Inspired by a nostalgic paternity leave, Evran released an emotionally-compelling single titled “Villains In The Night”. “Villains In The Night” was an ethereal masterpiece that takes you into this heart-rending realm that will leave you mesmerized. “Villains In The Night” had cinematically driven sound, with a theatrical arrangement to help create this storytelling vibe of innocent rebellion. The vocals in “Villains In The Night” are passionately projected with a dynamic range that shifted from soft and melodic to augmented. A dash of indie and alternative meets grandpop.
Evran demonstrates a trail-blazing sound that will hypnotize you and have you connecting with each line sung in this single. Evran takes a journey back into a nostalgic memory with “Villains In The Night”, thus giving the listener a chance to explore their definition of the song. The production of “Villains In The Night” serves as a canvas while the dark but romantic lyrics paint the picture for us. “Villains In The Night” is one of a kind song that we can replay and feel the same goosebumps we felt when we first heard it.
Listen to “Villains In The Night” by Evran here.
Welcome to BuzzMusic Evran! You’ve spent meticulous time crafting together new music out of your unreleased songs in the past. How was this process for you? What was the most challenging aspect of this and how did you overcome these obstacles?
Thank you, guys! It is a really fun and interesting process. It's like being in a digital attic uncovering old treasures that you had forgotten about. So it adds an exploration element to songwriting which is always inspiring.
Figuring out how and why you did certain things however is the challenging part. I have uncovered so many projects where I have no idea what I'm playing on certain instruments, so the backtracking bit where you almost have to rediscover the melody is quite challenging. The same goes for effects and sound editing. You find this perfect guitar sound in an old project but you can't recreate it for the life of you because it happened by sheer dumb luck. But we grow through challenges, and usually, you figure out a better way of doing it.
Talk to us about your single “Villains In The Night”. The message behind this song was powerful. How were you able to channel in this nostalgic emotion? Where did you grab most of your inspiration from?
I wrote this song at the end of my paternity leave. And during my paternity leave, I would take stroller walks with my daughter to places from my childhood and teenage years. It was really nostalgic seeing all these places again, and especially now with my daughter. It's a bit of a cliché, but becoming a father changes something in you, and the way you view the world.
I started to think back on past events, friendships & life choices and how all these seemingly random moments ended up where I am today. And if one thing would have gone differently I could be somewhere entirely different. It was an unsettling thought since I'm very happy about my current state of affairs. But all these feelings lingered in me, so when the lyrics started to take shape it started to paint this picture of teenagers trying to figure out life and themselves.
I drew inspiration from my own experiences with the paradoxes of the teenager (possibly Alternativ title XD) Starting high-school, trying to figure out who you are, trying to fit in but expressing your individualism, not wanting to stick out but at the same time wanting attention for you uniqueness, not wanting to look like everybody else, but the people you start to hang out with start to look identical to each other and you. It's those really awkward first steps where you push boundaries, break curfews, and do mischievous things with your friends. But they were all very innocent when you look back at them.
“Villains In The Night” had an augmented and cinematic chorus that helped create this dramatic impact on the listener. Can you tell us your creative approach towards the production of this single?
It started out like most of my songs do, which is me playing around on my instruments, trying out new things. The first two chords on the piano are what set it of. It reminded me of the dungeon theme from the old Legend of Zelda games I played in my childhood. It sparked something. It had this mysterious, haunting vibe to it so went with that and wrote the bass, drums, guitar and vocal parts for it. I write, record and produce at the same time, it's a messy process but it's what works for me.
When it came time to write the chorus I became completely stuck. I could not figure out where the song should go. I tried this descending bass line thing that ended it a key change, and no way to return back into the verse naturally. So I had to leave it alone for a while. Get some air, reset the brain sort of.
I don't know how long I left it alone. But when reopened it again I found a piano melody that I had recorded quickly just to save the idea. I tried singing the part instead, playing around with some chords, and then the moment came where all the stars align and you're like "there it is!!" I tried to go from the verse to this new chorus part and they worked together perfectly. It was a real "hallelujah" moment. The rest of the song flowed naturally from thereon. I knew I wanted a real ambient bridge, and I'm really pleased with how the bridge moves back into the chorus again.
What made you decide to name this “Villains In The Night”? How do you feel the title best represents the song’s theme?
I think the title was one of the first lyrics I wrote for the song. I improvise over the track while I write the lyrics, It flows better for me than staring at a blank paper. The title and chorus lyric was something that just appeared. Words that just flow through you from the subconsciousness. You don't know what it means at the moment, but there is something in you that tells you that it is the right lyric, and it becomes a starting off point and inspiration for the rest of the story. In the end, it tied in with the narrative of these teenagers hanging around at night with their "Devils" feeling like "Villains" because they're out past their bedtime. Feeling cool and overthinking how hardcore and bad they are.
What can we expect to see next from Evran?
I'm constantly writing new music, whenever there is a free moment I'm in the studio or sitting with an instrument. So more music is to be expected. I would love to do an EP or Album down the line. And taking my music on the road in a live setting. Connecting with people on a more face to face level.