An Eclipse

On Sunday, May 15th, there was a full lunar eclipse, and because of that I decided to go into the desert with not one, but two House and Techno DJ’s from New Mexico, and our goal was simple: Techno under the moonlight. Always for the techno.

We were invited to attend something I feel we may never have the chance to experience again. And I’m not just saying that because it was right in the middle of the White Sands National Park, but also because it was Techno being played by one of the best DJ’s in the Southwest, Dustin Holtsberry, for a special set under the Blood Moon.

When the invitation was first sent to us, we had no expectations of going. I worked that day, gas was up near four dollars a gallon, and the drive was nearly four hours away. There were just so many reasons why we shouldn’t have gone. I was gonna say no.

But then I thought about it and I thought, this is my one opportunity at a moment like this, and If I miss it I may regret It, whereas calling into work and spending some extra cash is something I’ll never think twice about if it’s for the right reason, and this was great reason. And I’m not just talking about the eclipse either.

Anybody from the El Paso/Las Cruces area knows one thing about Dustin, the DJ. He’s got it. Whatever IT is, he has it, and you can hear that when he plays. For the blood moon he played close to four hours of hard, dark, and heavy techno, and yet the part about that stands out the most about it all was how easy he made it look. He plays techno like it’s his nature, which is something that can never be denied.

In years he is fairly young, and perhaps that is a good thing because he isn’t as jaded as many DJ’s at my age. He’s still aware of the sound he wants, while still bringing enthusiastic professionalism to his sets, which I feel is a sign of the next generation of Techno.

And that isn’t to say my generation isn’t serious about it, it’s just simply saying that in Dustin I see the future of techno, and after hearing him steal the show away from the blood moon while surrounded by white sands dunes for miles, I could see that the future is now.

We started the night at a favorite spot of mine, and it has nothing to do with techno, but rather with Chicken. Don’t ever forget to feed yourself before you go into the darkness. You have no idea what you’re gonna find there, and this night already had that magical feel since it was the eclipse.

I can still remember the image of that giant full moon traveling right alongside me on the lone empty highway between Las Cruces and Alamogordo, and as the eclipse slowly began, I could feel the music getting closer and closer.

That’s the secret about Techno, you know? Most people pay attention to the sound, but the reality of it is that you feel it far before you hear it. And the more time goes on, the further away you can feel it. It’s an energy very similar to the one felt from the eclipse, so having them as counters for this night would be an experience unlike anything before.

If you’ve never been to White Sands before the best way to describe the journey is that it’s a slow gradual change. You go from typical desert wildlife. Cactus here, Cactus there. Some birds. Bushes. Dirt. A lot of dirt. Hot as hell, but still very much alive.

But then as you get closer it slowly starts to grow still. Not as much wildlife, not as many bushes or cacti. It levels out, and you can feel the changes. Both unnatural and natural. White Sands itself is as much an example of that as anywhere in the world.

The sand dunes are natural, and have been there for longer than we know and yet the testing of the Atom Bomb during WWII, along with the missile range that still stands there, have changed the area beyond compare.

I wondered that the deeper into the dunes I got. Eventually the dirt turns to sand and the sand turns to white powder. The bushes are still there, but then, after you pay your fare, and are finally in, you go over one hill, and then it’s just white sands for miles and miles and miles. While that, and darkness.

As expected, the park was packed for the eclipse and since we found ourselves trying to find our DJ in the darkness, we reverted to our old raver skills and just followed the sound in the night. We did it all the time as teenage ravers in the deserts of New Mexico, and it worked most of the time. Most of the time.

Just go into the desert, and take your chances, follow the energy, and the vibe, and eventually the sound, and if you find it, you’ll know you were meant to find it, and if you don’t, well, that’s always gonna be one you never made it to. Happened to everybody back then.

And you couldn’t just call somebody who was there and ask for directions. Either you made it to the map point on time or run the risk of wandering the desert all night long.

Happened to me in the Santa Fe Mountains a couple of times, and I still can’t let that go. Especially the one with Donald Glaude. I think it was called the Prophecy. Yeah, I never made it to that one, and that was twenty years ago. Trust me. These things you remember, one way or the other.

The good news is we did, in fact, finally find the DJ, and yet don’t get it twisted, we had to really find them. Hidden behind a curved dune back at the end of the loop, it was an amazing sight to drive up to, and even more amazing once we finally walked up and found what we were looking for.

If it never goes away when you don’t find the party, it also always stays when you did. This was one of those moments. The image of walking up to Dustin playing that hard, real Techno hidden behind that spot, with the blood moon clearly above us, and people dancing all over, will stay with me for a long time, and I knew immediately that first moment right there was enough.

The music, the people I was there with, the people who invited us, the people I didn’t even know, and of course the DJ, we all had that moment together, and it’s one we will never get back, but then again, we don’t have to. Living it once was enough for it to last.

We danced and celebrated a new moon as we all responded to each sound, and rattle, and beat drop as if it were a natural reaction; because with techno it is. I suppose from there the shrooms we ate at the car finally kicked in, and we just spent the rest of the night wandering around those dunes, under the blood moon, to the sounds of techno. It was better than I expected, and yet exactly what I needed.

That area of this state, and the people I met from it, will always hold a special place in my heart not just because of the time I spent living there and going to school, but also because of how real the connection still remains. They believe in this music, and it’s not just something they do, it’s something they are. I can feel that when I hear them play, I can feel that when I talk to them, and I can even feel it just by being on the dancefloor next to them.

El Paso is an electronic music epicenter, and it shows that every single weekend with unique and real environments like the one I experienced at white sands. And now with Dustin they have a DJ that I feel is on the verge of something big, and my only hope is that he remains committed and true to this sound I can tell he knows so well.

The best DJ’s don’t say it or even write it, like me. They just go and do it and I feel moving forward you will see for yourselves what this DJ can do. Techno is not something you learn as much as it’s something you know, and Dustin knows Techno. Because of that I feel very confident with where he and other DJ’s will take it next.

What I also hope for is sometime in the future we will be able to experience a Paradigm night here in Albuquerque. I want nothing more than for my El Paso Techno Fam to finally and once and for all connect with the Albuquerque crowd. A connection that is already there, we just need to notice it already.

Paradigm is Dustin’s own creation and I feel we are at a point where we need to allow DJ’s to evolve into something more than just the set times they are allowed, and I feel what he is doing with these shows is a great example of that.

Next for Dustin is a very exciting show for everybody as he is playing at a world famous night club in Juarez, Mexico known simply as Hardpop. Dustin is playing an all night long b2b with another DJ who I have been a fan of ever since I heard he play at the Essential Mix at Exchange in Los Angeles. Lee K.

Lee K is another DJ who I know is both the right now and the future of where Techno is going. I have been blown away by her music at every stop, and I believe the two already played together for a CRSSD after party with another El Paso DJ we all know so well, the outstanding, Raul Facio.

The night is warming up to be a very epic experience as Dustin and Lee K are given all night long, so if you’re in the area, please go, and witness this for me. A turning point for us all and a moment I feel will show how good both DJ’s are right now.

In closing, what I’ll admit stood out to me most about this DJ and this night was something that you notice from the real DJ’s that you find yourself supporting more than others, and it has nothing to do with musical ability, although, again this guy has a whole lot of that.

What I liked is that after he was done playing, Dustin helped break down the setup and even thanked us all one by one for coming. I know this doesn’t seem as much to most, but to me it was such representation of both this DJ, and this corner of the world.

He played amazing, and I’m sure he was exhausted, and yet no ego, no focus on the next day. He was a part of it as we were a part of it, and it matters so much to us on the dancefloor knowing we have a DJ who feels that way too.

I wish to say thank you to Dustin for the great music and the great night, and also to Mark for the hospitality and the great conversation every single time we’re down there. The moments I share with this part of the world are moments I cherish and I don’t feel that has anything to do with a blood moon.

This started as a story about an eclipse, and instead it made me realize one thing. Eclipses come and go, more common than we realize. But being able to see a DJ on the verge of something big, that never happens, and yet it happened that weekend under the blood moon. We saw the future, and the future is Techno. Duh!

See you on the dancefloor.