The mix starts with a slow rhythm and in a way that says, this is only the beginning. Followed by some solid breakbeats and a sample from one of my favorite movies when I was younger called Heavy Weights. “Don’t worry, I have them on the buddy system.” A nice little touch not just to show that this DJ wants to be unique and different but also that he is willing to throw in effects and sound samples to create his own remix on the fly.
The art of using sound samples and acappellas is one I feel DJ’s have lost a bit of over the years, which makes it immensely refreshing to hear a DJ doing that again. That’s the first thing I’ll say about Call me Caldwell and his musical taste. Refreshing.
I feel it fair to admit that at times Rave culture gets stale in what it likes and doesn’t like, and yet, we also will always have the advantage of progression. Who we are at the beginning of our first rave is not who we’re going to be somewhere down the line. This is a lifestyle that will change you, but only if you let it. I can see and hear that when listening to Call Me on his most recent mix. Who he was when I first met him is not who he is now, and I’m happy to see how far he still has to go.
Now, don’t get me wrong, John Caldwell is still the friendly, kind and honest person I met years ago, but what has changed is his commitment to the music itself and his ability to show that when it’s his turn to mix. I can hear the different stops he’s made in life and how they have influenced his sound, and in my opinion, that is the most important aspect of being a DJ.
Many in the DJ profession are obsessed with the best sound, or the best mix, or even the best set up, and don’t get me wrong, Call Me is as focused on these aspects as anybody, but what I also like is I can hear his personality in the music he plays. He’s a bit of Dirtybird, and a bit of Techno, mixed with Desert Hearts, and that subtle progressive house sound you only get from playing in New Mexico. He’s not just showing you what he likes, but also where he’s been.
What I’ve also noticed about Call Me is his commitment to the technical side as well as the natural side. He wants to use all the tools he has at his disposal, and to him, playing a mix is like building a house. He’s a carpenter.
You’ve got to build from the ground up, and use everything you can to do it right, and to share that ultimate respect to those around you that you are putting every bit of effort into this moment with them. It’s not so simple as putting some songs together and Call Me gets that. Any chance to infuse your own style and your own alterations is an opportunity to show a side of you as a person. This DJ understands that balance.
The middle of this mix is my favorite part since it reminds me of a high-speed chase in some dystopian movie, and frankly, that’s always the sound I favor. I want to close my eyes and picture myself on some dark and crowded highway, running from some futuristic cyborg who’s trying to stop me from saving the one I love.
As dramatic as that sounds, that’s just what goes through my mind when on the dancefloor, and thankfully Call Me gives me a stretch where I can picture that, moving straight into one of my favorite samples ever, “If you’ve got to believe in something, why not believe in me?”
The first time I heard Call Me DJ was in a Motel 6 in Santa Fe, the morning after we partied at Meow Wolf all night. The standard with any event in our Culture is not just the show itself, but also the moments you spend with people after the show into the morning hours.
When the rest of the world is asleep you are up making connections during a moment you will never have back, and in a way you will never have again. That was the environment when Call Me’s career as a DJ started in my eyes, and now I am so excited to see where it goes from here.
Above all else, I like that Caldwell is still growing and evolving. When I first met him we were just two party people on the dancefloor, following the beat, seeing where it takes us next. From there we saw Detroit together, and even Chicago as well. For whatever reason, on these monumental trips that have changed my life, Caldwell was there too, and I believe it matters who you’re on the trip with as much as where the trip is.
With every moment that changed me I can see that it changed him as well. It’s a grand reminder that we’re all on our own paths, but if we’re lucky enough to have them walk along one another for a bit, all we can do is be grateful and enjoy the ride.
He’s funky, he’s got that heavy sound, and this mix shows that. Covering as many styles as anybody playing in New Mexico right now, and constantly making tweaks and enhancements when he can. It keeps you on your toes and makes sure you’re still listening.
The groove is the most important and strongest part of this and any mix. Can he keep it? Can he change while still holding that power? It’s far simpler than I describe it as, and yet I feel that’s what separates DJs from one another. Can you ride this wave and this groove to the end?
The mix ends with a journey through the many sounds of house, and it includes another sample I recognized immediately as “Mushrooms” by Marshall Jefferson, a classic I heard years and years before I ever met this DJ, and yet that is the beauty of music. It spans across generations, and cities, and even time itself. From there a song I heard in Chicago that’s about California that will always remind me of the elrow stage and a crazy weekend we will never have back.
Finally finishing with a killer track and my favorite of the mix, Touch My Body by DiCi, a vocally progressive and powerful way to bring everything to a close. By the end you’ll find that you were taken on a full and complete journey through sound waves in the air.
Be sure to find Call Me playing all around the state this summer and bump this mix while you picture the lasers that go with it. I look forward to the continuation of Call Me’s progression and evolution, and I can’t wait to see him again on the road somewhere down the line. See you on the dancefloor.
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