Interview with 7Elevan

7Elevan is the project of Brooklyn-based artist Evan Bieber. His music is a love letter to his past, present, and future self. After spending years writing songs that explored a broad range of emotions and self-reflection, he decided it was time to share his love letter with the world. I caught up with 7Elevan to talk about his latest single ANTISOCIAL, his biggest musical influences, and social media during the pandemic.

Hi, how are you?

Hi Elin! First of all, I just want to say I love your name because my niece is also named Elin and I love her so much. I’m doing good! I love fall and Halloween so this is my favourite time of the year. I’ve just been watching scary movies and being “basic” drinking pumpkin spice lattes daily. No shame in the basic game!

How would you describe your sound to the readers?

I think of my sound as the lovechild of Third Eye Blind, Avril Lavigne, and blink-182. A lot of my songs have a familiar nostalgic sound, as I was revisiting and reflecting on the music I grew up with during the pandemic. There’s a lot of 90’s alternative and 2000’s pop-punk influences, but I also didn’t want to try and recreate and copy that sound. I think it has an updated and current feel to it.

Who would you say are your biggest musical influences?

My first musical hero is Andrew McMahon from Something Corporate and Jack’s Mannequin. I started playing piano because I was so inspired by him when I was younger. Avril Lavigne has also always been one of my biggest influences with her “idgaf” attitude and her mix of heartfelt, badass, and fun songs. My current biggest musical influence is Phoebe Bridgers. She’s such an incredible songwriter and singer. I’m honestly obsessed with her and everything she has worked on! Ben Gibbard from Death Cab for Cutie is another big songwriting influence for me. I love how both of their lyrics are so specific yet you can somehow relate to every word. Hayley Williams is another huge influence for me. I aspire to have her energy on stage one day!

How did your musical journey start?

I’m sure most people probably say this, but I have been obsessed with music my entire life. I bought myself a keyboard my first year of high school because I was inspired by Something Corporate’s piano rock sound. I started to learn to play and write music myself, but mostly just covers of songs. After I graduated college, I got my first acoustic guitar. It was always a dream of mine to put out my own music, but I just never had the time and never felt inspired to actually write my own songs. During the pandemic, like everyone, I was obviously at home all day and I was playing a lot of guitar. One day, a song just flowed out of me in one take. It was a really cool and special moment, and kick started the idea of writing more. After I wrote a bunch of songs that I liked, I thought why not pursue my dream of actually recording and releasing them?!

Your new single ‘ANTISOCIAL’ is out now, congratulations! As someone who is a big fan of pop punk music, I loved listening to this song. How was the process of creating this song for you?

Thank you so much!!! This song was so much fun to make. Most of the songs I write are more serious and emotional, but I wanted to have one that would just be pure fun. I actually just got my first electric guitar last year, and the intro of ANTISOCIAL was the first thing I played on it. The process of writing this one was pretty funny because a lot of the lyrics I wrote while I was out running errands and I would record voice notes of random ideas. I wrote the bridge when I was just walking to the laundromat. Creating the song in the studio was a blast because Rob and I were just having fun. I think my favourite part was screaming the whooooooaaah’s.

You’ve said this song is “about wanting to escape from the constant noise of social media and obligations of keeping in touch with everyone” I guess with the pandemic it was expected that everyone would be available to talk at all times, and that can be draining. It’s interesting to see a song from that perspective, was that something you set out to write about? Or was it something that just came naturally to you?

Honestly it was just something that came naturally to me. I’m someone that is a homebody so in the beginning of the pandemic I was actually fine staying at home and having some “me” time that I never truly had before. On the other hand, I obviously missed all of my friends and seeing people! I think everyone was craving that communication with others, but it was exhausting at times to have everyone know that I was obviously free and available. Eventually, all of the FaceTime’s and Zoom hangouts felt so tiring to me. The other funny part was that if everyone stopped calling me to talk or virtually hang out, I would be bored and lonely! The song is supposed to be an overdramatic way of saying I want to turn off the world for a second and just relax.

What was it like to work with Rob Chiarappa on this song?

Rob is a genius. Working with him was the best experience ever. He produced, mixed, and mastered all of my songs! I was nervous going into the studio because it was new for me and I didn’t know what to expect. At first, I was overthinking how I wanted my music to sound, since I wrote everything with my acoustic guitar or just singing on voice notes. Rob just naturally helped to create the sound that I now view as “my” sound for my music. It feels authentic to who I am and the music I love. I’ve always wanted to work with him because I knew we have similar taste in music, but I didn’t realise how damn talented he is. On my EP, he plays drums, guitar, bass, piano, violin, tambourine, in addition to all of the production. It’s crazy! We would work together all day and stay up past 3am just rocking out and jamming.

Do you have a favourite lyric or line from the song?

Oh tough!! I think my favourite lyric is “I’ve always been one for over-dramatics and this time’s no different” because in general I think this song is dramatic. I also love “this city made me miserable and this life is like a fucking joke, and I’m still waiting for the punchline.” I wrote that line one night trying to get home from the city but none of my trains were running and I was over it. Sometimes NYC is the best city, but it’s not easy to live here!

What’s next for 7Elevan? Could you tell us more about your upcoming EP?

I can’t wait for you to hear the rest of the songs!! I’m hoping I can release some music videos and some live performances. The EP touches on a lot of different topics, but overall it’s reflecting on my past and how that makes me who I am today. There’s songs about relationships, friendships, and learning to be an adult. All of the songs are about specific situations or thoughts I was having when I had time to be alone and reflect.

And lastly, what music have you been listening to recently? Anything you can recommend to us?

I’m obsessed with Lucy Dacus’s album “Home Video” and I listen to that pretty much every day. I also love the new Big Red Machine album “How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last?” Clairo’s new album “Sling” is also so beautiful. Those are pretty much my rotations for albums lately. Some up and coming artists I’d recommend are Charlotte Sands, 90’s Kids, FRND CRCL, Range Life, and Øff Guard.

Thanks so much for chatting with me!

You can listen to ANTISOCIAL now on your preferred streaming service, and if you like what you hear please go and give 7Elevan a follow on his social media pages too!

Thanks for reading, until next time...

Listen to ANTISOCIAL on Spotify here.

Follow 7Elevan on Spotify here.

Follow 7Elevan on Instagram here.

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