<p><span style="font-weight: 400">Austin’s own queer musical sensation, <a href="https://www.calebdecasper.com/">Caleb De Casper</a>, has joined forces with producer Florentine<a href="https://www.instagram.com/ribongia/"> Ribongia</a> and <a href="https://www.urbanheatband.com/">Urban Heat’s</a> Jonathan Hortsmann to release <a href="https://soundcloud.com/caleb-de-casper/sik-culture/s-fC61GteI2O8?si=4a872ebc9145445dafc910ca4b4fbcc7&;utm_source=clipboard&;utm_medium=text&;utm_campaign=social_sharing">“Sik Culture.”</a> A rush of dark discowave excellence, it’s as captivating as the virtual world the song speaks on. A commentary on the grim social hypnoses of social media and the bizarre online, “Sik Culture” cuts through the noise with a compelling hold on the body, as if it’s a sonic invitation to move your body back into the real world through the music. In an age where social networks across the internet and the conception of online persona play such heavy roles in how we find and share ideas, De Casper’s new track is a truly invigorating and energizing reconnection to a vision of their other-worldly signature. <a href="https://rockthepigeon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Caleb-De-Casper-Sik-Culture-2.png"><img class=" wp-image-26697 alignright" src="https://rockthepigeon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Caleb-De-Casper-Sik-Culture-2.png" alt="" width="407" height="407" /></a></span></p>
<blockquote><p><span style="font-size: 17px;color: #3d3d3d;font-family: 'Open Sans', sans-serif">“Sometimes I feel like the world is on its way into the abyss because we have all let technology warp, corrupt, and replace our value systems, ” says De Casper. “When I feel chaos or impending doom I often look to what the artists are doing [&#8230;] we are the ones who will give the perspective to set things right. And if you can dance to it, even better.”</span></p></blockquote>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400">The </span><a href="https://kutx.org/live-events/kutx-events/indie-orchestra-on-kutx/"><span style="font-weight: 400">Austin PBS’ Indie Orchestra’s performance with Caleb De Casper</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400"> showcased what would come before the song&#8217;s official release in July. “Sik Culture” utilizes a gorgeous and playfully intimate structure of orchestral elements, throughout the song and especially in the mystifying beauty of its intro. Created alongside Caleb De Casper’s talent was producer Ribongia </span><span style="font-weight: 400">(Haiku Hands), mixed by Billy Hickey (Ariana Grande, Lana Del Rey, BlackPink), and mastered by Max Lorenzen (Tele Novella, Christeene, Bayonne). The song has only grown and expanded since its Austin PBS debut; listeners have been enthralled to hear the music in its next level of production, where the enchantment of strings and Caleb’s uncanny synthpop heart have been engineered gorgeously in “Sik Culture.”</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400">Being online can be an overwhelming experience in an already dizzying world. In their real-as-fuck star power, Caleb De Casper casts us into a countering frenetic energy that is just as much a danceable reprieve from the insanity as much as it is a musically delicious expression of a refreshing take that we need from artists in times like these.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400">Leave just a little bit of internet bandwidth to stream Caleb De Casper’s “Sik Culture” wherever you find yourself today–online or elsewhere. &#8220;And if you can dance to it, even better.&#8221;</span></p>