Internationally renowned as a DJ and producer, Andy Caldwell has seen a career go from strength to strength. He has several Grammy nominations to his name, including 2014’s nomination for his remix of Canadian group Delerium, 2011’s Best remixed recording by Wolfgang Gartner for his original track, “Funk Nasty,” and his work with Kaskade and Dirty South on “Sorry,” which snagged his first nomination for Best Remixed Recording in 2008.
He now is the owner of IO Music Academy, which looks to educate and inspire the next generation of producers and DJs.
Andy’s original releases can be found on OM Records, Moody Records, Murk and Erase Records featuring Jaceo, Todd Terry, Mr. V, Omega and Anduze. He’s also remixed international artists including Major Lazer, Lenny Kravitz and Beyoncé.
He now gives us a new Weedsday playlist that takes us back to some memories in the 1990s and some recent records like “Midnight City.”
1. Gat Decor – Passion
Ah the memories, when I was a wee lad of 19. I remember hearing this for the first time in the summer of 1992, when a British DJ by the name of Darren Pearce dropped it at a Rave called Sharon. To say I was gobsmacked is an understatement. It was, to put it simply, magical. The creepy synth string intro, the pulsating bassline, the purity of the piano and raw tribal outro, this track had every element I loved about raving in the early 90's. It sounds amazing to sober ears but when listened in "enhanced mode" – wow.
2. M83 – Midnight City
What were you doing in 2012? I was doing many things as I'm sure you were too, but one song stands out from that year, yep – “Midnight City.” Was it the cheesy sax solo or that square wave baseline? Maybe it was those indistinguishable lyrics? Whatever it is, this track fucking rocks. Pop this puppy on when you need that warm embrace of soulful French electronic synth loveliness. I remember seeing some hilarious meme videos of people attempting to lip sync the chorus to devastating effect, a great example of a song that makes almost zero sense lyrically but somehow just ticks all the boxes for the perfect anthem. What is he saying anyway??
3. Air – La Femme d'Argent
Speaking of French electronic music, I can't forget about Air's breakout album Moon Safari which took the now defunct trip-hop/downtempo genre of the late 90's to meteoric heights and canonized the era as one of the most interesting things to happen to modern electronic music. The first track on that album was and is absolute perfection. It sounds as perfect today as it did when I first heard it in 1998. I was living with my Soulstice band mates in San Francisco and one of the things we used to do for fun was to each pitch in a few bucks to rent the nicest car we could afford – say a Cadillac El Dorado and drive around the Bay Area absolutely blasting our tunes while completely baked. Hotboxing in a rental car while driving down the interstate at 70 miles an hour, you haven't lived (and cheated prison/death) until you've done this.
4. Gotye – Eyes Wide Open
I was a little late to the Gotye party, he dropped his album Making Mirrors sometime in 2011, but I only discovered him through his breakout hit "Somebody I Used To Know" as I'm fairly certain 99 percent of everyone else discovered him as well. But for me this is the defining song from this album. Why, you ask? Imagine cruising through the Mediterranean Sea, the island of Ibiza on your left and Es Vedra on your right with a few of your best friends. The warm summer air whipping through your hair and the island’s purest mind altering offerings pumping through your veins, this was how I came to truly appreciate this album and in particular this song. Got it?
5. Lophiile – You’ve Changed
I recently discovered Lophiile when he did a masterclass at our music school IO Music Academy. I casually accepted that he was probably a decent enough producer, but I hadn’t actively listened to any of his work. Damn, that was stupid. I seriously slept on this artist and his incredible body of work, doing writing for some major players and producing a string of singles under his own moniker. “You’ve Changed” is in my opinion his best work to date and goes very, very well with a couple tokes of pure indo kush while cruising through California’s Central Valley oil fields. Don’t toke and drive but if someone else is at the wheel (sober of course), then it’s hard to beat this track on repeat as your soundtrack.
