Singled Out: Cea Serin's The Rose On The Ruin

08-29-2025

Progressive metal pioneers Cea Serin are gearing up to release their new album "The World Outside", and to celebrate we asked mastermind Jay Lamm to tell us about the single "The Rose On The Ruin", which features guest vocals by Steffi Cannelli and guitar solos by Joao Miguel and Andy Gillion. Here is the story:

I looked up where exactly divorce ranks for a guy in a list of "most stressful events in life" and it turns out that it ranks up there at number two, just under "death of a spouse." So, I wrote "The Rose on the Ruin" during a rather stressful time in my life. But I don't like writing songs about specific people. Not only that, but I didn't want to give my ex-wife the satisfaction in thinking that I wrote a song about her. Instead, I wrote the song to be about a collection of people I have met-and, I believe, we all encounter throughout our lives.

I think we all know that person who seemed to have a batch of qualities that distinguished them from others. Whether they're exceptionally smart, uncommonly artistic, or uniquely motived, you could just tell they had a lot of potential in store. So, it's strange that so many of these stand-out people choose to squander their best qualities for a life of meaningless distraction and purposelessness.

I can think of two specific cases that greatly influenced me for "The Rose on the Ruin." The first was a guy I went to high school with. He was one of those guys that was just smart without trying. He could get straight As without studying. He was funny, outgoing, liked by everyone that knew him. But even when I was in high school with him, I just knew he was going to screw things up some how. And sure enough, he did. It was only a few years after I graduated that I saw him walking down some street, obviously homeless or just heading towards being a vagabond.

But becoming a drifter isn't always the worst outcome. Like I alluded to at the start of this, my ex-wife had a ton of potential in her own industry. She was extremely motivated and talented in what she did; however, as great as that may sound, it was also a recipe which would lead her to disaster. Always wanting more and never being satisfied led her down a path of seeking constant attention and notoriety. She placed more value on short-term gains than long-term benchmarks. Ultimately, leading a life of vice and glamor led her into dealing with the wrong sort of people, the wrong sort of career, and ultimately a bout of financial ruin.

"The Rose on the Ruin" is about those people that had the open world upon their horizon but got blinded by, or distracted by, something fleeting. Seeking comfort, seeking distraction, seeking empty validation may make you happy for a moment, but what does it really amount to? I believe true meaning isn't about obtaining fame or instant gratification. It's not about catering to base desires. True meaning is found within the good choices we make, the moral values we uphold, and the positive impact we have on others.

I don't believe a life well-lived is measured in attention, social media "likes," the number of followers, upvotes, and social media shares. The best life can be found in how we value care over harm, being fair over being deceitful, honoring loyalty over betrayal, and showing dignity instead of accepting degradation.

I know many-if not all of us-we falter and fail from time to time in these ideals but we should always strive for a life with purpose. Though it is a path harder to take, it is the only one worth living.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more here