PHOTAY FOR CORRIDOR




Photographer: Dan Snyder
Model: Photay
Stylist: Cole Ackerman
Production: Michael Mac Bolster-Houghton




Photay, the musical project of Evan Shornstein, creates intricate soundscapes that blend live recordings with electronic sound. His work has a depth to it that invites you to stop and notice the subtleties. We spent an afternoon with him at Public Records before his show chatting about the connection between his process and the way we think about craft at Corridor.


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For someone hearing your music for the first time, how would you describe what you make and the feeling you’re trying to create?


Genre-wise, it’s electronic music that includes a lot of organic sounds and acoustic instruments. It moves between club music, experimental, ambient and pop with heavy rhythmic influence from all corners of the world. Feeling-wise, I start with a foundation of positivity while exploring the full spectrum of emotions and energy. I aim to push boundaries not for the sake of alienating people but for the goal of uniting people. Eliminating boundaries through sound. That’s the goal.




Your work blends organic and electronic sound along with other recordings. What draws you to specific sounds?


I’m drawn to sounds that exist in nature or transmit the essence of natural phenomena. Water, wind, stone, wood etc. I’m equally drawn to industrial sound. So, it’s actually the combination of sounds and the contrast between them that I often focus on.

Where do you tend to find inspiration, and how do those influences filter into your final sound?


I seek time in nature: forests, deserts, mountains and rivers. These landscapes fill me with awe. I’m really taken by changing light, changing air and weather. However, I’m not strictly retreating into these environments. I am equally inspired by friends, community and listening to music in spaces together with people. I think the combination of these influences results in a sound that is not exclusively introverted or extroverted.


You’ve lived and worked in both New York and LA. How has your environment shaped the way you listen, create, and think about music?


I’m always seeking balance and contrast in whatever environment I’m in. It’s not always this linear but for instance, when I lived in the woods I often made harder hitting / club-focused music. When I lived in the city, I often tried to break up relentless rhythms with more spacious or ambient-leaning music. In Los Angeles, I’m around a lot of improvised music, and that often inspires me to write more composed or rehearsed music.

 

Corridor 2025