  Victor Calderone, world-renowned DJ and Club World magazine’s “Best Resident DJ” for his residency at New York’s Pacha, has heard it all. When you’re in the business as long as he is (20 years and counting), you understandably develop niches and certain trademark sounds that you’re known for. Fair enough. But name one DJ that’s survived and thrived for that long resting on the same sound over and over. Victor Calderone has long earned his bona fides among deejays as a sonic innovator in house, techno and tribal music. His sets draw thousands of people. His mixes listened to all over the world. For Calderone, it boils down to one word that acts as both his brand, mantra and raison d’etre: EVOLVE. As a 15-year-old in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, Calderone quickly became obsessed with his older brother’s DJ equipment, spending virtually every day on his turntables and every dollar on records. A frequent patron at classic nightspots Funhouse and Paradise Garage, Calderone’s Program Two was signed by Sire Records in 1991 and released one album before an self-imposed extended hiatus from music. In 1996, he returned to the music scene and quickly became one of dance music’s top producers and live deejays, releasing a steady string of original productions and remixes. But now it’s time for the next chapter. “I feel like I’ve been through a few reincarnations,” he says laughing, from his home studio in Brooklyn. “Some people only know me for my past work with pop artists or productions I did years ago. I'm still proud of that, but I've always tried, both in the studio and deejaying live, to keep moving forward. I've had a lot of people come up to me after they hear me spin now and go, ‘Wow. I did not expect that.’” What they “didn’t expect” is Calderone’s deft chameleonic ability to weave in, around and between myriad genres while always keeping the crowd energetic and anticipatory for the next record. As Calderone puts it: “I went from playing these remixes I was doing for Sting and Madonna to playing hard tribal to the more minimal and techno stuff. Techno goes deep in my roots, but I still love house and tribal and being versatile is what makes a unique deejay.” It’s this melding of styles that can be found on Manipulating Waveforms, Calderone’s hour-long podcasts available for free on VictorCalderone.com. Sure, we all know it’s a fool’s errand to try and capture the deejay’s constantly shifting, marathon sets in 60 or so minutes, but each volume does encapsulate the varied sounds Calderone has been spinning for years, moving more like a live set than the traditional compilation album. “I try not to spend too much time on it, but there is an organic feeling to these mixes that has a flow and isn’t so exact and mechanical,” says the deejay. “I try to have those peaks and valleys so it has a little bit of a story to it and more of a club feel.” After a long string of successful albums and singles, Calderone established his Evolve brand in 2005 as a way to coalesce his numerous residencies around the world, including Montreal, Tel Aviv, Bulgaria, and a monthly residency at New York’s Pacha. With the Evolve brand now taking off globally, clubgoers have quickly begun to equate the word with joy-inducing, risk-taking sets that shatter musical boundaries and the conventions of what a DJ set “should” be. |
  The rich heritage of New York nightlife is focused on the figure of the resident DJ: The homegrown jock that puts down roots in a single venue, bonds with its crowd, and explores the limits of a DJ set with his faithful. The DJs who flourish in this demanding environment go on to become folk heroes, not only in New York, but all over the world (see Larry Levan, Danny Tenaglia, Junior Vasquez). DJ Boris started his ascension to these ranks in 2004, when the native of St. Petersburg, Russia took up residence at New York super club Crobar. It was the culmination of years of workhorse gigging at almost every club across the Big Apple. But it was more than that too: It was a movement that has shown no signs of fading. Boris (birth name: Boris Inzhin) started moonlighting as a DJ while taking classes at the Institute Of Audio Research in New York. With a metronomic mixing ability and a penchant for expansive, groove-based power-house music, the jock quickly found work both in DJ and production booths, playing at clubs like Exit, and Roxy, and remixing artists like Janet Jackson, Jewel and Gloria Estefan. In 2002, his mix of Pink’s “Get This Party Started” hit No.1 on the Billboard Hot Club Play chart. His relentless approach to bring his cult of followers the best sound and experience possible has taken his production to even greater heights. Powerhouse industry labels like *69 Records, and Stereo Productions have wasted no time in signing Boris projects to their labels. Dancefloor missiles like "Automatic," "Everybody Tweakin'," "Lights Go Out," and Lisa Pure's "Movin On" have been embraced by a culture of beat aficionados, in and out of the many clubs DJ Boris has grown to call home. And if home is where your heart is then Boris must be endowed with a heart the size of North America. His movement has rewarded him with residencies in every major city. Now a regular on the city’s club circuit, the name of Boris started to become associated with unapologetically massive music: big drums, big riffs, huge build-ups and lots of energy. Propelled by the promise of a great party experience and by a growing affection for the approachable DJ and his humble manner, his crowd swelled. By the time Boris debuted at mega club Crobar in May 2004, his faithful numbered in the thousands, united under a spontaneously created banner: “Believe in Boris.” Boys stamped it on their T-shirts in masking tape, girls Sharpied it on their flesh, and eventually Crobar flashed it on their video screens: A battle cry for a clubber’s revolution. While at Crobar, Boris set the 30,000-square-foot club’s attendance record (a swinging-from-the-rafters 5,400), released his first mixed compilation (aptly titled “Believe”), and started to gig regularly outside of NYC, in markets like Miami, and Las Vegas. In 2006, when it became apparent that Crobar would close, Boris uprooted and moved his crowd 20 blocks north to Pacha New York, the first North American branch of the fabled European club brand, without missing a beat. He is still a Pacha resident. Boris’ faithful service to the clubbers of New York has been rewarded with two Club World Award “Best Resident DJ” nominations (one while at Crobar, and one while at Pacha), a DJ Times cover story, a top 5 finish in the national America’s Best DJ fan poll, and a new residency at super club Space in Miami. Add this to the already accomplished residencies he holds at Rise in Boston, Therapy in Rhode Island, as well as his regular appearances at Ruby Skye in San Francisco, 960 in Connecticut, Deko Lounge in New Jersey. He’s also become one of the reigning kings of Winter Music Conference week, throwing massive pool parties by day and after-hours marathons by night for thousands of fans. The spoils of success have not halted his enthusiastic work ethic either. His ongoing pursuit to creatively, and musically express himself to those who adore him, has no doubtedly outgrown our own country's limited borders. With his global campaign as New York's premiere DJ underway, believers can be found from all corners of the planet. Venezuala, Colombia, Marrakech, Barcelona, Madrid, Ibizia, London, Montreal, Mexico, and Toronto have all been blessed with his energetically extreme beat orchestration. Boris and his team are currently planning the release of his fourth mixed compilation, and a series of European, and South American dates to compliment his tremendous ability in the studio. So world, New York wants to know: Are you ready to believe in Boris? |
