Interview: Mark Evich

For songwriters and composers, modulation is one of many tools at their disposal to help shape the sonic experience of a song. Modulation, defined as the change from one key to another, has the ability to transport the listener from one place to another — escaping or running to — in what can feel like a spiritual experience.

For many years, modulation was a standard technique for composers, especially in Gospel music. Typically, if the choir director wanted to take the song a little higher, pushing the perceived limits of the composition and its performers, they could always rely on a key change. Or on the dance floor, in House music, when the DJ alters the tempo, modulating the tonal center, it can be like a shot of adrenaline to a club.

But, in contemporary compositions, modulation has become less common — typically, the key a songs starts in is the key the song ends in. In part, this is what makes Mark Evich’s new single so incredible. When the modulation kicks in at the 1:58 mark, a feeling of euphoria is present; you can’t help but want to move. Evich — a singer-songwriter born in Moscow, now based in Los Angeles, California — draws on a long line of artists in the Soul tradition, and his new single is evident of that.

Following the release of his new song, I got the chance to interview him. We talked influences, growing up in Russia, production and bunch more! Here’s our conversation:

——

Stanley: I wanted to start with your origin(s). How did you come to music and being an artist?

Mark E.: It all happened when I was spending summer in the countryside with my mom, I was 13 at the time. Mom had that old guitar laying around I never touched, but I guess I was either bored or whatever, so decided to give it a try. And ever since there was no stopping me, it became an obsession, I would play guitar everywhere from school hallways to family gatherings. Somehow I also started writing my own songs almost right away and even had a sold-out (well, nothing was being "sold", but there were no available seats either) show at my high school playing only original music a year after I started.

I would also say the high school had a major impact on me, because this art teacher Vadim Giglauri (he's actually a very prominent choreographer) asked me once "hey, what do you listen to?" I was listening to a lot of Goa Trance at the time - don't ask me why, I wouldn't know. So he gave me "I gotchu" look and the next day he brought me a pile of CDs: Brian McKnight, Frank McComb (Philly native btw!), and Eric Benet. That's how it all started, and he kept giving me music by the likes of Earth, Wind & Fire, The Temptations, George Ingram...

So even though there never was a conscious decision to become an artist, since I picked up guitar there's no other option either.

Stanley: You were born and raised in Moscow, so I’m curious to know, what was (or is) the music scene like there, specifically for R&B, Soul, and other Black musical traditions?

Mark E.: Thanks for this question, Stanley. It's a tough one because I don't really wanna talk bad about the place where I was grown, but the truth is, Moscow is not necessarily oozing R&B and Soul, man. We did have a wave of R&B in the naughts, but mostly the "rich & beautiful" bastardized version of it, kind of cargo cult. A lot of clubs started popping up where they would play Usher or Beyonce or Sean Paul, but it was more about sexy glamourized vibes and way less about music.

Of course, there was a tiny circle of true fans, we had parties called Soul Kitchen and iSoul, where people really tried to cultivate better taste, played tracks by Maxwell, D'angelo, Erykah Badu, and started good conversations about music. A number of unquestionably talented artists definitely appeared at these stages, but a lot of this was blind imitation rather than actually a result of an attempt to learn about Black culture and why exactly this music sounds the way it does. There was no ill will about it, more so lack of education I think. For me, it was always crucial to look deeper, to dig into the origins. Cause yes, there's Rhythm, but there's also the Blues. And that's what I think often gets overlooked back home.

I mean, you can't really blame people for not growing up surrounded by a certain culture. Russia has a great track of musical geniuses like Stravinsky ,Tchaikovski, Prokofiev, and so on - these people are idols for whole generations of classical and jazz musicians globally. Overall, our culture in every art form is indescribably vibrant, we can talk for hours about it - but R&B is simply not something Russia has a background for, that's why for me it was obvious, that I had to move to the U.S. and start learning the culture rather than mimic something I don't understand.

Stanley: Who are some of your influences/the artists you look up to? 

Mark E.: As with every artist, you get more or less heavily inspired by different artists. Today, the names that come to mind are Devin Morrisson, Buddy, Bj The Chicago Kid, Anderson .Paak, SiR, Jazmine Sullivan, Derrick Hodge, Ski Mask The Slump God ... but there are also long-term affections that won't ever go away and that I think influenced me the most during the first years of my journey: Anthony Hamilton, Sting, D'Angelo, Slum Village (J Dilla era), Phil Collins, Rick Ross, Raphael Saadiq... Honestly, this one can take up to 10 paragraphs, and of course minutes after I answer I'm gonna feel like I should've named a few more names, so let me stop right here haha.

Stanley: I wanted to talk a bit about your new song, Back Home With You. What was the inspiration for the song? Did you produce the song yourself?

Mark E.: This one wouldn't have happened without Ayonick - a producer from New York City, who I know through a mutual friend, Karim Hutton, he's a bass player, one of the best I know. Ayonick is a phenom, and it's only a matter of time before he becomes a household name. Definitely recommend his releases, he's just released an EP, and got waaay more in store. So he reached out to me with a beat he made and asked if I'd like to jump on it. I said "yes", but then had an audacity to sit on it for months - not really my MO, I promote working quickly, and definitely most of the times I practice what I preach, but this time I messed up.

However! When I finally got to it, it only took me a few hours to write everything. This song is basically an imaginative story of me going to the club in LA and meeting a girl. The catch here - and that's what the chorus says - I don't really go the club like that. And if I do, i definitely do not dance, cause embarrassing myself is not a part of the plan. But in this story a girl makes me wanna dance for her and with her.

I'd say this track is as much mine as it is Ayonick's, we just put it under my name for marketing convenience. His beat is so dangerously good it would be a crime to not write this song. See, my main source of income is producing for artists and publishing, and as a producer, I believe it really helps to step back and trust someone when it comes to my music.

It's also important to mention another friend, Alex Hook, who was mixing this one - he is a king of dance music, seriously. He produces, mixes and masters, so it's his mix we hear on this one. Amazing work from everyone on the team, and I'm extremely honored to have worked with these people on a song.

Stanley: Are there any other projects you have coming out you can talk about?
Mark E.: For sure!

We got another collab song with my friend James, a bass player from New York. More of a soulful vibe like "Twice Upon a Time", slightly more pop-R&B oriented, but still heavy accent on musicality.

And by the end of the year, I'm thinking EP. I've released a lot of music over the last 4 years, and it started to really pick up this year, so the intent is to keep applying this pressure. You know how music business is these days, the intensity is incredible, and if you are not consistent, you don't exist. Fine with me!