IN CONVERSATION WITH EVISSIMAX

Interview by Samo Šajn

Evissimax returns with “SCM (Silly Club Music)”, a playful, high-energy club track built on instinct and pure fun. We spoke to her about letting go of perfection, trusting gut feeling in the studio, and why being “silly” might be the most honest approach to dance music right now.

Photography by Andrea Cenetiempo

“SCM” stands for Silly Club Music. What does “silly” mean to you in a club context?

Silly, in this context, is letting loose, dancing without a care, dancing so hard your thong starts showing. I love to be silly, I love to have fun. I’ve always been someone who dances in any situation, as long as I like the energy. 

Especially in a world that’s becoming more and more obsessed with the perception of coolness, where being "cool" is tied to caring as little as possible, "aura farming," and not being cringe. Silly, to me, is the complete antithesis of that. I love to be cringe, I love to be loud, and I love to be surrounded by silliness.

Your new single feels very playful and high-energy. How do you keep dance music fun without losing impact on the dancefloor?

I don’t really think about that. I think dance music is whatever you can dance to on the dancefloor. Being a DJ, I realized that, in the right moment and in the right context, you can play basically anything. So with this song, I feel there are more twerk/shaking-ass moments, and then more feeling-yourself/body-roll moments, but they all happen on the dancefloor.

You’ve previously explored techno, electro, Jersey club, and Afro rhythms. How do you decide which influences fit a track?

I play by mixing different genres together. I can go from techno to Jersey club in a heartbeat, so I feel like I’ve trained my ear to hear what could possibly blend well together. So it’s not really a decision, more of a feeling. If I’ve maybe written a few lyrics first, that also helps me set the energy I want the track to have, and from there I choose the genre that best fits what I’m trying to express.

The track was created with Luca Eck. How did your creative dynamic work together in the studio?

Honestly, it was so seamless. It was the first time we met in person, even though we had already collaborated creatively in the past. I did a remix of their track "Run From Me," and for that release they asked me to do an IG Live to talk about it. During that live, I think we both felt a comfortable energy between us. Even though we had never spoken to one another directly before, the conversation flowed super naturally.

Then, when we met in the studio in Berlin, it felt like we had already hung out before. They played me their amazing, at the time unreleased, FLESH EP, which I thought was incredible, and I played PRESS X for them. We then listened to different things that were inspiring us at the time, and from there we started playing around with some sounds until we found the silliest sound, which became the foundation of "SCM."

We made the track in two hours. I wrote the lyrics on the spot, and they created the beat in the moment. I feel like when things happen so organically, without too much thought or stress, and it just feels right, you know it was meant to be. So I’m so happy we’re finally releasing it, almost a year later.

Photography by Andrea Cenetiempo (left) & Sven Marquardt (right)

You’ve mentioned a spontaneous and organic process behind “SCM.” What usually triggers the start of a track for you?

It really can be anything. Sometimes I write a base of lyrics because I get a jingle in my head. Sometimes I have ideas for sounds and genres that would go well together. But it’s very much a gut feeling. There’s always a moment where it clicks and I know it’s the sound I want to express, and I just keep working on it until I get that feeling. Even if other people might say it needs more work, or less, I kind of only listen to my instinct, lol.

Artists like Upsammy and Isabella Lovestory also play with unconventional club sounds. Do you feel part of a wider shift in club music right now?

I think people are opening up to experimenting and mixing things more. I feel like it’s kind of a natural evolution. As the world becomes closer through a screen, the things that can influence you increase. The combination of all these different factors is creating such an interesting take on genres that have always existed, and I love to see this evolution.

I started with ghetto tech, and that was already a fusion of ghetto house, Detroit techno, hip-hop, R&B, electro, and Miami bass. So music forever evolving and blending feels completely natural to me.

“SCM” feels built for both sun-soaked days and chaotic nights. Do you design tracks with specific environments in mind?

Not really. I make the music, and then, as I’m making it, I start seeing the world in which it would exist. It’s more like the tracks tell me where they want to be. That’s how it was for my last EP, PRESS X, and that’s how it is for "SCM." After we made it, I could already picture it as the perfect summer getting-ready track before going to a club, festival, or hot summer date—something that puts you in the mood to have fun and be a little silly.

The track leans into a stripped-back, vibe-first approach. When do you know a song is “done enough” and doesn’t need more layers?

I just feel it, lol. I don’t have a super technical or analytical reason. I’m a very instinct-based person, and I’ve trained myself to follow my intuition. When something feels right to me, I know it’s right. People I work with might hate or love that, lol. But if it feels ready and right to me, it’s nearly impossible to make me change my mind.