By: Staff
.. The album is a tremendous work of art and, when listened to all at once, has even more impact. "feeding the wound" opens with powerful yet comforting vocals instantly greeting our ears. The mix's clarity and placement of the vocals are perfect, making it feel like Sam is right in the room with us. The guitar strumming, gentle bassy hum, and subtle banjo are excellent touches. This track stuns with its production, giving real meaning to the famous old saying, "First impressions last forever." This left a great one on us. Early on, the acoustic guitars build progressively, creating a magical sensation when the electric guitars kick in later on in the song. "your words" is a definite love-gone-wrong song with a higher, catchy tempo. When the beats hit, they packed a punch and created anticipation, which we loved. The drop in the middle of "you think you can get me out of your head" is a fantastic use of dead silence, representing our head and thoughts with Sam proving there’s no stopping him invading it. “little things” has a classic indie rock feel, with vocals once again standing out as a favorite. Sam Caldwell can tell a story and discuss the weather while keeping our attention fixated. The cadence and delivery of the vocals and choice of drum fills and drops, alongside the guitars, are well-performed, making the final result super exciting. "dreams between" is soft and vulnerable. Again, we see the ability to act out a scene audibly, with this song evoking visions of water, trees, and a small house with Sam standing in the doorway. When we hear the lyric "Can you really fault a friend for following their dreams?" we get the real message these songs intend to deliver. "beacon street" rounds up this impressive album. Hauntingly, we hear Sam sing over distortion and chaotic sounds. The synths and slide-sounding guitar echo in the background, creating a soothing and slow atmosphere. This is a definite listen and you need to stream, playlist, and share Wanderlust by Sam Caldwell today.
Wait, there's more!
We caught up with this exciting and emerging artist for “The Cage” Music Blog to talk about music and learn more about them.
Here’s how it went:
Begin Interview
Can you walk us through your songwriting process and tell us where the inspiration comes from for this latest project?
Totally! Usually if somethings weighing on my mind for a couple days its a good indication that it’s an important topic to me or something I need to give some thought to. I try to play an instrument at least once a day without any expectations on myself. No “go learn this song for a gig” or “I should really make a TikTok” or “you should really write a new song right now”. I find that in the moments that I’m just playing an instrument for myself the ideas that have been taking up so much space in my head are suddenly on paper in front of me. It’s always an awesome experience finishing a song, I feel like the weights left my mind and now I have tangible thing that’s time stamped with how I was feeling at a certain point in my life.
Where do you see your sound and artistry heading in the future? Are there any exciting new directions you're exploring?
The music I’m currently writing is a lot more mellow. “wanderlust” was written at a really emotional intense time in my life. I think with age you start to understand your emotions in a different way. Lately if I’m feeling down or happy etc… I have more awareness to the fact that emotions come and go and actually recognizing them and giving them the time they deserve can be a really lovely experience.
Was there ever a time when you emotionally felt, “I can’t do this anymore”? Can you tell us why this happened and how you found the strength to continue?
Sure! I think a lot of us in the arts do. It’s been said so many times but as a society we really take the arts for granted. We listen to music commuting to work, maybe a podcast on our lunch break, and when we finally get home from our nine to five our feet go up and we turn on Netflix. Everyone’s day is surrounded by the art that they seek out and choose for themselves and that’s what makes us all unique and interesting— what we choose to digest. I think what’s personally given me the energy to keep going is the fact that we all have different taste and maybe my music isn’t something you can relate or even relate to in present moment, but for someone else it could be a lifeline like so many records have been for some many of us.
Where do you create your music, i.e., in a home recording studio or with a producer? How do you finalize your finished work, i.e., self-mixed/mastered or another source?
So this album was really fun for me because I got to work with so many people. Most of the music was recorded by myself in my bedroom but a good amount was done at friends houses/studios. Although I work as a mix engineer/producer, I was really excited to hire a mixing and mastering engineer to work on the record. I feel like sometimes is really hard to make smart decisions when you’re so close to the music. It’s like listening to your own voicemail, it’s hard not to cringe at your own voice sometimes haha.
What part of the music-making process is the most stressful, i.e., the creation, the actual release date, etc.?
For me, it’s definitely releasing it. Personally I hate advertising my self or ads in general, but it’s the reality of being an independent artist— you’ve got to put your music out there or no ones going to hear it.
What has been the most motivating force in creating your music?
I think it’s just been wanting to relate with our humans. Whether we like to listen to “sad” music or not, we all all feel a little lonely or down sometimes and often relating to others and understanding what they’re going through can make us feel less alone.
Taylor Swift has many breakup-based songs.
How do you feel about writing one based on an ex?
Haha yeah it’s definitely a really weird feeling. As a smaller artist it can feel really bad. Most everyone who’s listening is someone in your life that understands every excruciating detail. I think when the art itself becomes bigger the actual details that seem small and personal become more abstract and something people can then tangentially relate to. I think of artists like Elliot or Phoebe when they mention
"How is playing drums?" You said, "It's too much shit to carry””.
Okay we can all understand that and suddenly we start imagining this conversation and living vicariously through their words but me personally? I don’t know Phoeb’s, I got no clue who she’s talking about.
Where do you currently reside, and what is the live music venue scene like there?
I currently live in Los Angeles! Wow is it a crazy place, especially as someone who lives here year round. It’s obviously a huge touring destination and the scenes incredibly saturated. I feel very blessed that almost every show I go see I’m like completely blown away.
What is your favorite song to cover?
“Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down”! I think it’s by Kris Kristofferson originally but the Johnny Cash version is one of one.
When you reach the stage where you have the admiration and respect of other world-known artists, what band or artist would you love to call and say, “Let’s go on tour together”?
Yeah totally! I think Christian Lee Hutson would be out of a dream. His music has been so influential on me but also just the energy he puts into the music scene here in Los Angeles. The guys always working, writing, sharing the bill with smaller artists etc..
End Interview
Check out this latest release and listen to more of Sam Caldwell on Spotify & YouTube.
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