Rocker, Texas Ranger

Castille's next producing job may also be the oddest--and most ingenious: Beginning February 25 at Muddy Waters, Castille will start recording a live record for the Calways, a rockabilly band so far removed from the VDO ambient-techno-industrial sound they might as well be, well, rockabilly. The sessions, which will also include a recording of the Calways' February 28 Orbit Room gig, came about after Castille heard the band in concert and concluded he hadn't "seen such talent in Dallas since I've been living here." As a result, he hopes to do to rockabilly what Jon Spencer does to the blues--tweak the music without losing its form, screw with it just enough so it sounds familiar but still brand-new. (Think Al Jourgenson and Reverend Horton Heat, then think again.)

"The first time I saw them, my jaw was open the whole time," Castille says. "The next time I saw them, they did a Duke Ellington song, and nobody does a Duke Ellington song. That convinced me they were the ones I wanted to do next. I just think that I can pull out some of their innermost feelings about music.

"Sometimes what will happen is I've seen them play and they'll get into these grooves with the stand-up bass popping and the snare drums going, and there's this heartbeat you can almost get up and dance to rhythmically. I want to milk more of the rhythmic things and extend that so when you hear the CD, you can get the rockabilly thing going and then dance...They're a bunch of good guys who play their hearts out for people, and that's what it takes."

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