One EDM Reunites with Evan Cazes a.k.a Evalution

Evalution, born as Evan Cazes in Tampa, is a rising DJ and producer in the American EDM industry. Growing up as Evan Cazes, Evalution began playing his father’s piano at eight-years-old and started DJ-ing ten years later. During his first two years at Florida State University, Evalution obtained residencies at some of Tallahassee’s best nightclubs. Evalution’s musical style merges classic rock-n-roll elements with electronic music, especially deep dubstep and experimental bass.

One EDM recently interviewed the now-college graduated DJ in April, around the time when he released the XXVII EP. Here is One EDM’s second interview with Evalution, a rising artist who has his eyes set on everlasting success. His newest EP, Railhouse Rock, is out now for download and stream via Power House.

Kenny Ngo: How has everything been for you since the last time we talked?

Evalution (Evan Cazes): Hey! Things have been rather interesting since COVID hit, given the shutdown of nightclubs and the ban of pretty much any live event. Luckily, I’ve been making the most of it and have been producing a lot of new and exciting music that I can’t wait to share!

In the last interview, you mentioned that you were in your last semester of college. How do you feel about graduating from college?

It feels kind of strange, not going to lie. You go to school your entire life and then one day, it all just ends and you miss it when it’s gone. I think it still hasn’t really hit me yet since my graduation and all of the celebratory events never happened. However, I’m sure it will kick in soon haha!

Even during this pandemic, did you do anything fun to celebrate your graduation?

My entire family set up a zoom call and we were able to have drinks. It wasn’t much but it was special to me and made up for missing out on my graduation weekend. It definitely cheered me up and kept me from being bummed out over the weekend.

Getting to the music, your latest EP Railhouse Rock is out today. How excited are you on the release of Railhouse Rock?

I’m extremely excited to get this project out into the world. This is the most cohesive work of art I’ve produced to date and every song feels like another piece of the puzzle tying the EP together. I started this EP around a year ago so it’s exciting to finally release it and be able show everyone what I’ve been up to!

Is there anything different in the sounds of the EP’s tracks, “Bass N’ Blues”, “Make It Loud”, “Funk It Up”, and “Feel Alright” in comparison to your past musical content?

This EP is definitely more for myself than trying to appease the trends, like a lot of singles and remixes tend to do. It’s very reflective of my musical background and the style of rock/blues music that I grew up on, while also taking a new approach to the genre and blending it with electronic bass music. Something completely new to this EP is that I did all the vocals myself! Also in comparison, I would say it’s most similar to my first Power House release “Get Down” style wise!

In April, you participated in a virtual music festival hosted by David Bayne Trull that is titled “Save The Scene Virtual Music Festival”. How was it like performing on that virtual music festival?

It was super exciting to be a part of since it was the first time any of us had seen an idea like that come to life! Given how long COVID has lasted, livestream festivals have become the new trend to keep fans interested and the community thriving. However, when David reached out to me about “Save The Scene“, nothing like it had been done yet, so to see it all come together as a great success was awesome! I also always love at the chance to debut some unreleased music!

Aside from your own set, which were your favorite sets from “Save The Scene”?

I would say my two favorite sets were from local tally legend Hunter Reid, and the homie from Tampa, Lizzy Jane! Hunter always kills it with his productions and his sets are evident of that and Lizzy has been making some big waves in my hometown! Definitely keep your eye on these two in the future!

Railhouse Rock is out via the Power House record label. How is it like working with Power House?

It’s awesome! They were my first label release back in July of 2019, so to be coming back to do an entire EP with them a year later feels surreal! Power House is always very open to letting me pick follow my vision when it comes to the artistic direction of things, and they give me a chance to get my music out to a larger audience in South Florida! I’m pumped to be putting out this EP with them on Friday and I love my Power House fam!

What are your opinions on Florida’s situation with COVID-19?

Personally, I think everyone needs to just stay inside so things can get back to normal quicker. We’ve already seen the effects that people going out and continuing to live normal life can have on the case reporting’s, and the longer we put it off, the longer it will take our economy to get back to normal. Secondly, I feel for all my friends in the entertainment industry, because none of us are able to work and plenty of us do this for a living, so support your artist friends in any way you can during this difficult time!