We had a chat with ambitious alt-pop artist Eva Pagán about this new era of her sound and her recent single ‘Gold’
An artist who we have been loudly celebrating here at CLOUT both as Eva Pagán and under her previous moniker Eva Westphal, the LA based Puerto Rican-German artist has been pushing a more expansive and ambitious alternative pop sound since her re-emergence last year, and each new release feels more vibrant and exciting than the last.
The most recent showcase of the artist’s dynamic appeal is the colourful ‘Gold’, a track that is packed full of chaotic sonic intricacies and her fierce sense of character and independent spirit. In awe of Eva’s self-produced sound that feels more all-encompassing and exciting than ever, it feels like the perfect time to have another chat with the artist and find out some more about her influences and the factors that led her to make such a dramatic shift within her style, so we had a chat and did a deep dive on the vibrant new release.
Hey! We love your new single ‘Gold’, what more can you tell us about it?
Thank you so much! It’s a self-produced track, actually the first time i’ve produced a track and actually put it out, so that’s super exciting. I honestly had a lot of fun making it, which I think really comes through when you listen to the song. It’s upbeat, kind of glitchy synthpop, in Spanglish. I just feel like it’s a great opening chapter to this next body of work, my second under my new name.
What was the process like putting it together?
I made it all alone in my room, just kind of messing around with different plugins and Splice samples. The part I had the most fun with was the vocal chain, which I find to be the most fun and the most difficult part of self-producing. I do love how detail-oriented I can be when I’m recording my own vocals, though, like going through each note and consonant and making sure it matches up, making sure the chain sounds good on the lead and the doubles, and just trying to get it as mix-ready as possible. “Gold” was mixed by Samantha Henry and mastered by Gabi Grella, and they both have a huge impact on the final sound.
What were your biggest influences when creating it?
I’ve been listening to a lot of Underscores recently, and her production is just genius-level. Listening to “The Peace” has really guided me as I learn how to do my own vocal chops and what I want my vocal chains to sound like. Other than that, i’ve been loving FKA Twigs, Chxrry, and of course Charli, especially the vocal processing on “Rock Music” — kind of leaning away from heavy autotune and towards vocals that really stand out and run the track.
How do you think your sound has evolved or changed since your emergence back in 2020?
So so much! I changed my artist name last year from Eva Westphal (my legal name) to Eva Pagán (taking my mom’s last name), which marked a huge change in my sound and image as well. I used to make acoustic pop, all in English, with guitar as the main instrument and little touches of pop sounds. The lyrics were hugely personal. Since I changed my name to Eva Pagán, my sound has reflected more of the music I listen to in my daily life: Rosalía, Charli XCX, FKA Twigs, Underscores, Judeline, Empress Of. The biggest thing i’ve carried over from my old project to my new project is how personal the lyrics are — I’m still writing about my daily life, my family, my feelings, my dreams. My music is maturing with me, and I find myself writing more about the world around me or my dreams for the future than the individual thoughts in my brain. Plus, it’s all filtered through a different production style now, and I’m having more fun with it.
What else do you have planned for the near future?
I’m releasing a second single very soon, so definitely keep an eye out for more teasers there. I’m super excited about this second body of work under my new name, I think it really draws on some similar themes and sounds from “EP1” but expands and grows a bit more too.
