Mesmerizing and Macabre: An Interview with ZK and Artemis of Eve Claret
By Maya Bishop | May 2nd, 2026
Photo Credit: ML Productions (landofthemoontw)
In the creeping darkness of New York City’s nightlife, amongst the streetlights and darkened warehouses you may find the strangest things. Those whose siren sings lure you in with the most ethereal sound. After following the strange call I was invited to dine with ZK and Artemis of Eve Claret. A genre-blending outfit bringing their creative vision to life. Please, take a seat, and enjoy us for a meal, Just don’t ask what (or who) it is.
Starting easy, how did Eve Claret get their name?
ZK: Initially eve claret was a pen name i was making perfume under... when we first started making music together we played shows as "lace" but it didn't feel right for the project long term, when talking about it our friend suggested the perfume name and it stuck.
What drew the band to this Visual Kei-like aesthetic? How did you all first get into the style?
ZK: mh... i think we're all into different aesthetics, me and Artemis grew up liking a lot of Visual Kei bands but now i feel we're just matching the image to what we want to portray in the moment through a variety of influences.
Artemis: Visual art was my first love. Before I touched an instrument. Paintings, animation, video games, movies, comic books, architecture. I'd always been into various music. My parents loved r&b, disco, soul, hip hop, rock, etc. when I came across V-Kei I liked that accompanying the music was this aesthetic that sometimes added another layer. I enjoy building around a feeling.
While I described you as Visual Kei I’ve also seen others call you nu-metal, post-screamo, and post-rock. Is there a particular sound you’ve been aiming for?
Artemis: Whichever sounds best translate my thoughts/feelings.
Artemis Photo Credit: ML Productions (landofthemoontw)
A lot of the lyrics in your songs are very macabre, where do you get the inspiration from?
ZK: I mostly like writing stories about different types of love
Artemis: Well I wish he would write more hopeful lyrics lol!
So Artemis, would you ever want to give writing a shot, since you'd like more hopeful lyrics?
Artemis: Yes I'd actually love to give lyric writing a shot in eve. Or at the very least, co writing. Maybe a song that is a bit conversation in tone. Zk and I have had a lot of discussions that might have worked best as a song.
You’ve played some big events like New Colossus and High Spirits Art + Music Fest, how do you prepare for those more varied audiences?
Artemis: I just enjoy it while it's happening
ZK: There's usually one thing I'm thinking about before and during the show, the people who come to the shows affect the energy quite a lot and I can sometimes go with it and sometimes feel really disconnected
What do you think you learned or gained from those experiences? Do you like them more or less than doing individual local shows?
Artemis: They're just so different. its nice to be close to folks in a room. but you reach more people at a big show
ZK Photo Credit: ML Productions (landofthemoontw)
With your extremely stylized appearance and the intense energy to your music, do you find it hard to translate that into your live performances?
Artemis: For me actually, it's a relief. the performance is more so a part of me that I only get to express doing shows
ZK: It's easier to show the living parts of the work live
You also have a very artistic and DIY nature to yourselves and your fanbase when interacting live, including a lot of hand drawn work, are a lot of you into other forms of art outside of music?
ZK: Yeah we really like Karina's illustrations. Everyone has their own creative things they like to work on…I like to make other things outside of music when i can, but now my room is full of strange things because of that...
Artemis: I used to draw and paint a lot. Another dream of mine long ago was to make art for video games. Something cool about designing a world, and characters for others to enjoy. I think about that before a show sometimes. So it's still with me a bit.
On April 1st you dropped a music video for one of your songs “Mannerisms” off of the EP lace, what was the creative process behind that?
ZK: I wanted to get a bit outside the initial idea of the song and make a scenario based on the characters in the lyrics after some time has past. Karina, mu and I came up with some of the initial visual ideas and were able to work with a few friends to make the food and set up the location.
The video itself also includes a lot of darker themes; cannibalism, latex, bondage, overindulgence, the list goes on. What drew you all towards those more unsettling visuals?
ZK: mh I think I wanted to make eating the rich look fun... it became more freaky the more we expanded on the idea and tied it to the song
This is also the fourth music video that you’ve done for songs off of lace, are they all connected in some sort of overarching universe, or is each to be taken as a separate concept?
ZK: they're each about different kinds of love, lotus eaters hedonistic eros... vesselias distant and star crossed... widower is a one sided limerence, and this ones maladaptively passionate
The videos are also pretty complex, creative wise, how has it been coordinating all of them?
ZK: It's fun to set up and plan them, I like trying to figure out how to shoot these with whats around us. our friend mu has worked a lot with us on them, and a lot of the filmings been done at my workplace
Artemis: It's been interesting to see it go from song to feeling, to storyboard or just scenes. Watching it come together is fun.
Photo Credit: ML Productions (landofthemoontw)
Which of the videos has been the most difficult to produce?
Artemis: There’s an unreleased video that Zak and I almost froze to death and fell off a mountain
ZK: oh yeah.... i really thought one of us weren't going to make it back, we wanted to get to this frozen waterfall upstate but the hike was very long and the cliffs were so icy..... there were all these signs saying turn back you will die!! and of course we didn't wear snow boots. After that we didn't even bother to finish recording the song .
Artemis: We also got stuck in a blizzard during Mannerisms (nearly freezing to death is a theme)
Has there been a really ambitious idea that you had to scrap or push into the future?
Artemis: That one lol
ZK: Yeah we got some other footage from the trip but the main idea was scrapped.. glad we finished mannerisms but I think we lost the best take of that one from it being so cold that mu didn't press the record button all the way...
Tell me more about the shot that will never be from "mannerisms"
ZK: I think it was me and artemis smooching... but maybe it wasn't I dont remember ¯_(._.)_/¯
Your next big move is an unplugged EP, what sparked the idea for that?
ZK: A lot of the songs from “lace” were written on acoustic guitar with piano arrangements in mind, so it feels right to show those stripped down versions that became the songs we have released so far
Artemis: All of us like ambient and acoustic or very chill music a lot. I think it just made sense. A lot of my favorite artists have done acoustic or chill arrangements of songs.
When can we expect the “Lace” unplugged EP?
ZK: I believe we'll finish that up this month or next month, we haven't been rushing it... but it’s almost done, so maybe expect it late June or July of this year
Are there any other exciting projects you want to talk about?
Artemis: We're writing new stuff. I also like the other members art, check out their personal stuff
ZK: yeah we're writing a new ep now and plan to do a short film project with it
Anyone you'd like to thank?
ZK: our friends that help us in the project and anyone that feels something from the things we make
Artemis: I'd like to thank my family, my predecessors, and those who enjoy the work we make.
And finally, what’s everyone’s favorite birthday cake?
Artemis: hmm. strawberry. or dark chocolate cherry
ZK: A friend made me a pistachio and cassis cake for my recent birthday.... that was good... [Maya: I saw that it looked absolutely amazing] Karina and Jackson were busy for these questions so I think Karina like bugs in her cake... and Jackson probably likes urine flavored cake
For those who wish to witness the magic of their performances live, Eve Claret will be performing at The Meadows in Brooklyn for VKNY on May 16th, 2026.
Links
https://www.instagram.com/eveclaret
https://www.youtube.com/@eve-claret