San Diego’s CRSSD Fest Fall 2018 wrapped up with high energy last weekend. We were able to catch some of electronic music’s biggest names out at the Waterfront Park in San Diego [checkout our full review here].
The festival headliners would be nothing without their openers and we had a chance to catch up with one of the most vibe-driven openers of the festival. He goes by Euføeni, and his music is a rare breed of futuristic soul that blends the elements of jazz, house, and hip hop. Euføeni is based out of SoCal and has been quickly working his way up the ranks of Soundcloud with his unique brand of music.
Photos by Bay Visions and FNGRS CRSSD
It was noon on Saturday when the gates opened at CRSSD and Euføeni began throwing down some disco and lofi house. His set at the Palms Stage quickly drew people in as they grabbed the first round of drinks and headed for the sound of the music. The performance drew from different eras and style of house but used funky jazz-inspired beats to tie it together. Overall it was a solid way to kickoff the weekend and we were lucky enough to chat with him afterwards!
What does your name mean?
Sweet or similar sound. Similar to harmony but with musical voices, it’s a term from classical music. It was originally spelled “euphony” but I ended up changing the spelling to make it more confusing. I came up with the name when I was 15 when I started making music.
What were you making back then?
Well my parents bought me a light-up keyboard and I began taking piano lessons as a high school freshman. Later in school I took these sound tech classes that revolved around Garageband. Back then I was listening to a lot of Tribe Called Quest and Atmosphere so I started off making hip-hop type beats.
Do you still use Garageband?
I ended up switching to Logic Pro and I’ve been using that for the past 10 years or so!
How was your experience playing at Splash House this Summer?
I was a lot more nervous than usual! After playing a few tracks I got in the vibe of it and had a lot of fun.
Do your sets vary from day time to night time parties?
Yeah I definitely go heavier with tech and bass house for a night time gig.
Is it difficult to mix your original music with those heavier styles?
I feel like there’s a fine line with house where you can take an old Japanese funk song from the 80’s and flip it into a future funk song, but you can also take a Mary J. Blige vocal and flip it with Chicago house stabs. I can kinda mix the happier stuff with the darker stuff to create a set that’s deep, future, funk, and everything in between.
Your music feels funky and futuristic, what artists do you draw the most influence from.
I would say Kaytranada and Disclosure forsure.
Will you be dropping anymore music before the end of the year?
I have a single with Tropic Harbour on the vocals called ‘Pseudo’ and a collab with Jarrad Cleofé called ‘Avocado Pop’ coming soon!
