A Moog synthesizer—the beginning of a love story and the creation of Siren & Seer. Luke and Bria, two individual artists with their own musical journeys under their own aliases SaQi and Diamonde, found their paths converging in 2020. Four years later, they’ve unified as not only a married unit, but also as a joint project seeking to make their imprint on the electronic scene. Reimagining dance music genres through the lens of Americana and folk, Siren & Seer reside in the growing territory of artists like Moontricks, KR3TURE, and more. Filled with passion for the sonic universe and a mission to heal unheard voices, Siren & Seer are ones to watch in the live electronic music stratosphere.
Having found Bria on Facebook after seeing a photo of her playing a Moog, Luke reached out and the pair’s connection immediately sparked a friendship-turned-love. “I listened to her song and I was like, ‘wow, she's got an incredible voice.’ We just immediately got together and started making music,” says Luke. After bunkering down in the studio during the pandemic, the pair released their first collaboration on SaQi’s album Journey Through The Underworld. The milestone cemented their working relationship and desire to bridge their musical worlds.
Although Siren & Seer recently debuted in 2021, their musical experience runs a lifelong span. Having been in the music business for 20 years, Luke studied music in college and soon found himself immersed in the West Coast electronic scene. From venturing out to Burning Man, he connected with the early pioneers of the West Coast creative sphere and witnessed the rise of Tipper and other bass music experimentalists at the onset. At this point in time, dubstep reigned as the popular dance music genre, but Luke’s heart compelled him in other directions. He explains,
“I was playing trumpet and I just loved acoustic music; it just seemed natural to incorporate live music. It was actually pretty difficult for me to be a live musician because it was all pretty much really heavy bass music. So I kind of had to battle my way through it all with my trumpet…I was actually really into Americana blues and spaghetti western.”
Luke went on to produce and perform under SaQi with six studio albums released under The Polish Ambassador’s Jumpsuit Records. A word from the Islamic religious practice Sufism, saqi found its way as Luke’s stage name when his late father shared a newsletter titled Bowl of Saqi. “It had this beautiful meaning like Divine Muse. It's like the bringer of wine. They filled the people's bowls with wine with the divine wine,” states Luke. Luke’s father was heavily influenced by various world religions including Inayat Khan’s teachings and at the foundation, spirituality, a defining trait that Luke would inherit within his personal life and music.
Although Bria’s musical passion parallels her partner’s, her journey into the music industry hasn’t been as straightforward. Music has always been omnipresent within Bria’s life as a centerpiece that intertwined her family. “When we played music together, it felt most like home.” Bria expands, “My mom sang opera. My other brother was in a punk band and my dad played guitar, but it was never a career for them.” Having sang, played guitar and piano since she was five years old, Bria stumbled on her first DAW, Logic Pro, during her freshman year of college. For the next 15 years, she would experiment with the limits of soundscapes and textures, honing her production vision and taking on a gig time-to-time, but withholding from making the leap to full-time.
While her mother, father and brothers were all music hobbyists, pursuing music as a career never felt like an option to Bria. “My dad is a businessman. He does really well for himself. He just never believed the music.” The expectations of perfectionism became a mental barrier that Bria would hold onto for years—until she learned to let go of the fear. “My friend Shazieh and Luke got me out of the woods. I was meditating and massaging and it brought me back into the music in a whole new way. That's when I started to go to shows and fully do this.”
Siren & Seer’s debut album Diamonds in the Dark marked their first attempt at finding their voice. A testing ground for the act’s sonic future, the 10-piece output features collaborators and friends including KR3TURE, Swan Hil, and Bria’s other project SIIKA, a woman-powered trio steeped in organic instrumentation and spiritual themes. Throughout the past few years, the pair have exchanged perspectives on musicality to create something new that borrows from their personal strengths—an intertwining of the feminine and masculine. Enmeshed in the electronic scene, Luke derived inspiration from Bria’s acoustic inclinations and songwriting focus. “With Bria I'm really more inspired by the old timey Western music and just having her play banjo, then using my flavor of moody electronic music, but taking it more to the songwriting realm,” shares Luke, whose strength is nailing the simple essence of a track. Bria takes a more intuitive route, following what feels right while composing. She says, “I've spent a lot of time in music education as well, but I like to follow the muse in the moment when I'm creating a song.” Luke’s penchant for groove and streamlined structure has helped integrate Bria’s free flowing artistry into more dance friendly productions. “Sometimes it's so fun to get into this textural world, but when you scale it back and keep space, a lot of magic comes through.”
Now, their Westwood debut “Temple of the Sun” calls in a new era of intentionality. Originally a Diamonde track, their new single speaks to the collaborative synergy between the duo and the magic alchemized when balancing forces join hands. On hearing the original track, Luke says, “I put the speed in there and it just felt like the song just came to life. I've been trying to encourage Bria to embrace the electric guitar and take it to the next level.” Delivering music with a message hits home for Siren & Seer, with storytelling becoming an essential component of songwriting. “I had this vision of walking through the desert and the bones of trees beside me,” expresses Bria. “The reality of where we're at right now with nature, our relationship to nature and hinting at the potential if we continue on how we are—I'm putting out this whole vision that continues on into a place of hope and to a place of a rebirth. It's just the beginning of the story.
While navigating the music business has been a challenging and humbling experience, Siren & Seer have cultivated a close-knit community of musicians including Moontricks, Dirtwire, KR3TURE, and other like minded artists. Luke’s work as an agent for Midnight Agency and now, Reciprocity Music have led to connections with artists and managers at the respective agencies—Nick Middleton, Westwood founder and one-half of The Funk Hunters, being one of them. Moontricks in particular have been a source of inspiration, support and camaraderie for the duo. Sean from the band and Bria have specifically developed a strong bond. “Bria's really connected with him. They're kind of like brother and sister,” says Luke. Siren & Seer have been busy creating, with two new songs in collaboration with Moontricks and work with Gone Gone & Beyond underway. “We have a whole musical family that's shaping up and I wish we could give it a name, but I've wanted that for a long time—to have kindred musicians.”
Simultaneously, Bria has forged an enduring and poignant relationship with folk artist Ayla Nereo. With production credits on four tracks from Ayla’s most recent studio LP Sovereign Kin - Book I: The Spark along with producing her following album Sovereign Kin - Book 2, she has instilled a vibrant dance element into the West Coast powerhouse’s music and continues to work alongside Ayla. Several other figures have empowered Bria in the music scene and elsewhere. With Women’s History Month coming to an end, Bria reflects on the trials she overcame to find her current self and those who’ve offered their unrelenting support along the way. For a three-year period, she left music for solitude and took up practicing massage. Bria’s relinquishment of her attachment would eventually bring music back to her in a renewed light.
“This beautiful person Shazieh, who's part of my girl band SIIKA, found out about me. I was hermit out in the woods and my roommate told her, ‘Bria’s an incredible producer’ because [Shazieh] was having trouble working with male producers,” says Bria. “And she came over and introduced me to our other girl band member Leanna. We just started singing and all my production tools came back. We made this album in a month and a half and wrote those songs in Bali over two weeks.”
Since then, Bria’s confidence in self-expression has given back to women in music naturally. She has been involved in teaching at various women’s retreats centered around creative inspiration, production, wellness, and spirituality—all of which serve to empower women in mind and body. Described by Luke as a “song doula,” Bria feels her purpose is to pass down the lessons she’s acquired on how to follow the muse. “There's this idea of how things need to be and the structure even with production. It has to be this certain way that’s very masculine. And that's why a lot of women have come to me recently to help them write, produce and even mix their songs to have that feminine touch where I follow the flow and I listen, tune into their feelings and their vision, and empathize,” shares Bria. “It's been such an honor to be there to provide that for women now. I've had so many women cry in finally finding the liberty to express their voice without it having to be in a box.”
Möonbabe Records founder and folk artist Heather Christie has also been a parallel support system for Bria. Common threads link the two women including their joint projects with their partners, their separate girl bands, and even their overlapping pregnancy timelines. Becoming a mother has required shifting and navigating changes, but Bria has been inspired seeing Heather juggle both womanhood and forwarding her production, label and community efforts. Their shared community spans vibrant acts such as themselves and others like rising electronic producer and sound-healer Arula. While Bria’s passion for music has manifested in much of the feminine, there has been no lack of support from male counterparts—her husband providing guidance through his years of experience and Moontricks never missing the opportunity to bring Siren & Seer on tour. However, her brother’s role in her journey to authenticity is undeniable. “He was always searching for a deeper path. He’s a farmer now and in a bluegrass band; he's lived his life. He had a transformational time in his 20s where he pivoted into working with organic farms and finding out a deep purpose that didn't have to involve money, but more so following his deepest beliefs,” says Bria.
“I've really been inspired by him following that path and it's an incredible world to be in when people are connected to their deepest truth and following that every day. He's influenced me a lot. I would go over [to Vermont] every year and spend a month or two. Just playing music and around the fire, fireflies, whiskey. That's why I like the Rising Appalachia and Mamuse or just this raw feeling of being by the fire.”
“I have a very deep, beautiful relationship with the Muse,” shares Bria. She has sought that in artists such as Sheryl Crow, Sylvan Esso, RY X, and Fink. Looking forward, Bria sets her sights on staying true to herself while pushing forward the potential of Siren & Seer. “Luke and I—music is the essence of who we are.” The pair aim to bring an even more immersive live experience to the stage through adding more instruments and world elements. Along the way, they aspire to add acts like Tycho and Timber Timbre to their list of collaborators. Bria and Luke believe in the potential of Siren & Seer to reach beyond their electronic scene and break through to a larger audience. “For us to make powerful transformative moments on stage and even just while people are listening, the greatest intention is, ‘how much can we be in service?’”