Truthlive embraces the chaos with ‘Going Up’ - a raw, rave-fuelled statement of intent
- Undrtone Blog
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
San Francisco artist Truthlive is back with a record that leaves no room for restraint. His latest single ‘Going Up’ lands as a heavy, high-impact statement, signalling a new phase in his creative direction, darker, harder, and unapologetically built for the rave.
Behind the name is Evan Phillips, a producer, DJ, and lifelong night owl whose music blends emotional intensity with raw club power. After his previous EPs ‘October Summer’ and ‘Love & Respect’ both hit number one on Beatport’s New Releases chart, Phillips could have easily stayed in familiar territory. Instead, ‘Going Up’ breaks that comfort zone wide open.
The track opens like you are walking toward a warehouse, sub-bass pulsing through the walls before the full impact hits. Then the kick lands, fast percussion, distorted hooks, and sharp drops creating a constant cycle of tension and release. “I didn’t dive into a rave focus,” Phillips explains. “This is just part of me, albeit not all of me, but a key part.”
He calls the release both a shift and a return, pulling from the emotional blueprint of his first underground experiences. “On ‘Going Up’ I am coming back to the first emotional response of being immersed at an underground or rave. It’s nostalgic, yet new, every time. That feeling of reconnection is at the heart of this track.”
Those roots run deep in San Francisco’s nightlife. Phillips speaks with real affection for the Bay’s evolving late-night culture, from punk and reggae to hip hop and house. “The shape and form changes, but not the basic energy,” he says. “A lot of people feel at home in more than one scene. If you feel it, and you are respectful to the community, you are welcomed.”
‘Going Up’ also reflects how Phillips now balances instinct with intention. “The success of my last EPs made me focus more on polish and growth,” he says. “I want to harness the small audience I have and keep growing it by showing improvement and depth.”
The record’s blend of techno, big room and hardstyle is deliberate yet instinctive. “There is a saw lead that is straight hardcore electro, with synth arps that sound like progressive house or trance. Somehow, all together, it is a techno and big room track. I do not really care what subgenre it is, I just go with what feels right.”
And while ‘Going Up’ turns up the intensity, his next single ‘Surrender’ promises the opposite, slower, smoother, and vocal led. “I am a dynamic person,” he says. “My creative momentum is best when I allow myself to flow with what I feel. Do not fight the feeling, do not force the feeling.”
For Phillips, the distinction between Evan and Truthlive lies in purpose, not persona. “Truthlive is not a character,” he says. “It is an idea. When I was a teen, I nearly died from heart failure, and in that moment I heard a voice say, ‘live truth, truth live.’ Maybe I am crazy, but ironically, it is the truth.”
‘Going Up’ is out now on all major platforms, with more new music to follow soon, each release pushing further into the spaces where emotion and energy collide.
Comments