Eva Walker and her band, The Black Tones, are bringing something new to Seattle’s music scene. “It’s how I feel and how I think about things in the world,” says Eva. “Sometimes we do a seven minute long instrumental, there’s music that just doesn’t need words. I take a lot of risks, and I wish more people would, too.”
Co-founded with her twin brother Cedric on drums, and Eva on guitar and vocals, with influences from Jimi Hendrix, Kraftwerk, Funkadelic and Nigerian psychedelic rock in the 60s and 70s, Eva says the band is always trying for something out of the ordinary on record and on stage.
Eva grew up as a tap dancer, even sharing the stage with greats like Savion Glover and Skip Cunningham. “But I was always more interested in the rhythm and the music than the dancing,” she says. When Eva was 15, a high school teacher loaned her a guitar and she’s been pursuing music ever since. And when her twin saw her play he was blown away. “Cedric said he wanted to back me up on drums. I’m a drummer,” says Eva, “so I gave him drum lessons and we started The Black Tones together.”
“I was a very self-conscious person most of my life,” she says. “I would never relive the teenage years again. That was a very tough time for me.” It was her twin brother Cedric who gave her the advice that changed her outlook. “He told me to embrace my weirdness, to love it. I wish I had known that sooner.” Now, Eva says with a laugh, “I’m not trying that hard to be unique. I'm just kind of a big weirdo and this is what’s coming out.”
Besides her job as lead singer and guitarist with her band, Eva hosts a Saturday night show on Seattle radio station KEXP. Her “Audioasis” program is dedicated to highlighting up and coming music acts from the Northwest.
When Covid-19 hit and Seattle went into lockdown, her whole world changed and Eva was clinging to a hope that there would be a light at the end of the tunnel. “I am a big family person and I wondered if I was ever going to see my family again and when I could hug my Mom. I was also worried if I was ever going to play a live show ever again? Everything changed.”
Eva was determined to make it through, and not let herself spiral into doubt or be stopped by the unknown. “I was lucky to have my fiancé around who has been super helpful, because if I was doing this alone, I think I would just be sitting here thinking what's going to happen next.” Her mother was also a driving force telling her “after we hang up the phone, pick up your guitar and play music.”
Her love of music and position at the radio station also allowed her to help other artists who were unable to play live shows because club venues closed and musicians lost gigs. “I made a call to artists and said that if your shows were cancelled and you’ve lost money and work, send me the information and a song and I will put it on my program.”
Through her respect for these artists, Eva said it was not about whether “I am personally into their music. It's not about that anymore. The music is on air because it is for the listener. Listeners might be like ‘whoa, that’s great. Where can I get that piece of music or some of the bands merchandise?’ “
“The artists have been very, very grateful” says Eva. “For a lot of them, this was their first time on the radio. And the listeners have responded, saying thank you for doing this for the artists.”
Eva’s values and work ethic have been strongly shaped by her family. “They’re originally from Louisiana and have worked so hard, being black in the southern United States. That’s what keeps me from giving up on things that I want to pursue. I just think about how hard they had to work” she says.
“There’s no formula to creating music,” Eva says. “Take risks and don’t listen to anybody else. And listen to as much other music as possible. If you don’t like country music, it means you haven’t listened to enough country music. The same goes for rap. If you hate rap, you haven’t heard enough of it. There is a lot of good rap music around.”
Eva says music and musicians will always be a part of her life. Besides performing with the band, she is committed to music education, discovering new artists and making the artistic community stronger. It doesn’t end there. “I’d love to start a label or work for a label. I’d like to be that brown face on the board that makes the decisions.”
“I want to grow and expand,” Eva says. “Taking risks, listening to everything as much as possible and experimenting. It’s about being true to yourself.”
