Pacific Palisades wildfires inspired Kaskade’s most personal work yet

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While change is inevitable, the recent wildfires ripping through Pacific Palisades – where Kaskade has lived for the past 15 years – felt like a particularly impactful shift for him.

Everything changed for him after the fires raged for 24 days. The well-known DJ and dance music producer, Ryan Raddon, used to spend most of his time at popular spots in Palisades like The Village. Now, he’s mostly in Santa Monica and Brentwood. Out of the 30 families in his church, only four homes survived the blaze, and thankfully, his was one of them. Sadly, his brother’s house was destroyed.

Raddon says the close-knit community is gone, and he’s understandably upset. He’s even questioning whether to remain in the Palisades, where his three daughters spent their childhoods, and if he should take away their family home.

Raddon paused for a moment when asked how this unexpected change impacted the music on “undux,” his first album in eight years, following 2015’s “Automatic.”

He says he’s given a lot of interviews about the album, and this is the first time anyone has mentioned that. He tried to write a new album twice in the last three years, but was already dealing with difficult personal issues before the fires happened. A divorce after almost thirty years of marriage and watching his daughters move out led to sad songs he didn’t feel comfortable releasing. Ultimately, he decided to finish the album regardless.

Raddon explains he just needed to finish the project and see what came of it. He managed to complete it with longtime songwriting collaborators like Cayson Renshaw, Finn Bjarnson, and Nate Pyfer. He finds the process of co-writing very helpful, saying it’s a good way to express his feelings and experiences when he’s dealing with a lot.

Kaskade’s new album is called “undux” (pronounced “undo”), reflecting how overwhelmed he felt while creating it. Compared to his earlier work, this album is more introspective and less focused on upbeat, celebratory sounds.

With “Started Over,” Raddon steps away from his usual upbeat house music and experiments with a more fragmented, broken beat style. The track combines lush orchestral strings and haunting vocals by Renshaw, creating a powerful and emotional atmosphere that reflects the chaotic nature of difficult times.

“If Only” is an upbeat indie dance song featuring guitar that tells the story of Raddon’s experience after a fire. The lyrics express confusion and a search for meaning, asking, “Everything is gone, what happened, and why am I still here?”

The album still features the kind of energetic tracks that make Raddon’s many festival performances so popular. The first single, “DNCR,” is driven by powerful piano and a strong beat. Interestingly, these upbeat songs were created after Raddon dealt with some difficult emotions during the album’s creation.

According to Raddon, when you’re truly honest in your work, especially when recording in the studio, difficult emotions inevitably come up. He adds that making this particular album was a challenging experience for him.

Raddon’s manager was happy to hear he was recovering – he’d apparently used the word ‘undux’ to describe how he was feeling – but cautioned that his more gentle style wouldn’t appeal to everyone. Several record labels shared this view before Monstercat, a leading electronic music company based in Vancouver, decided to release the album.

I remember when he first sent out his record, it really didn’t connect with people. It was tough – even labels he’d worked with before, and some of the bigger names in the industry at the time, basically told him to come back when he was making dance music. It felt like a real setback for him, but he didn’t give up.

Undux features dance music, but it’s more varied than his most popular tracks like “I Remember” and “Atmosphere.” After his album “Automatic,” much of Raddon’s work focused on this style of music. The rise of streaming changed how people listen, moving from full albums to playlists and algorithmic recommendations, which tend to highlight individual songs. In the dance music world, these singles usually perform best when they’re designed for live performances.

Raddon’s ‘Redux’ EPs were his biggest project during this time. These EPs reflect his roots as a DJ, focusing on energetic tracks designed to keep people dancing. While his Kaskade music also gets people moving, it’s driven by songwriting and storytelling – a way for him to express himself following the wildfires.

Raddon explains that while releasing a single can be satisfying, the studio environment creates a lot of pressure. He feels he needs to create music that will work well even when performing late at night. He prefers working on albums because it allows him to focus on writing and creating without those constraints. It’s a different headspace – he can simply write and create without worrying about how a track will fit into a set.

It’s no surprise Raddon spent years honing his skills performing live. Shortly after releasing “Automatic,” he began a remarkable career on stage. He achieved major milestones, including drawing the largest crowd ever for an EDM artist at Coachella in 2015, and becoming the first performer to play to a public audience at SoFi Stadium in 2021. In 2022, his collaborative project Kx5 with deadmau5 set a new record for the biggest electronic music headlining concert in North America at the L.A. Coliseum.

Raddon has expanded his work into the world of professional sports. He made history in 2024 as the first DJ to perform live during the Super Bowl, and later that year, he was the first-ever DJ to kick off a Formula 1 race, debuting at the Miami Grand Prix.

While Raddon celebrates many personal successes, he’s most excited about the overall progress the dance music industry has made over the last ten years. He helped pave the way for dance music’s acceptance with his 2004 hit, “Steppin’ Out,” and now the genre has earned three categories at the Grammy Awards.

Raddon says what excites him most is seeing dance music finally gain some recognition. He notes the genre has reached a much larger audience recently, and it’s been a gradual process to get here.

Raddon has consistently excelled in his field for many years, establishing him as a rare and enduring star in the dance music world.

Raddon really stresses the importance of being flexible. He began DJing with vinyl records, and remembers when some DJs resisted switching to CDs. Now, everyone uses digital music files. He sees this same pattern with the rise of AI in music creation. While he acknowledges AI is new, he’s not overly worried because he’s already built a successful career.

“This train is moving. You’re getting on, or you’re not. There’s no fighting it,” Raddon says.

Losing his home and the changes within his family have been incredibly challenging for him, possibly the hardest he’s ever dealt with. However, he’s continuing to move ahead, and music is helping him through it.

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2025-12-11 14:33