Tom Holkenborg | |
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![]() Holkenborg at the Ultra Music Festival in 2007 | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Antonius Holkenborg |
Also known as |
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Born | Lichtenvoorde, Gelderland, Netherlands | 8 December 1967
Genres | |
Occupations | |
Instruments | |
Years active | 1988–present |
Labels | |
Website | www |
Tom Holkenborg (born 8 December 1967), also known as Junkie XL, is a Dutch composer, multi-instrumentalist, DJ, producer, and engineer. Originally known for his trance productions, he has moved to producing electronica and big beat music and film scores. His remix of Elvis Presley's "A Little Less Conversation" became a worldwide hit in 2002.
In film scores, he has worked with Hans Zimmer and his company Remote Control Productions on Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice , as well as composing the scores for Zack Snyder's Justice League , Divergent , Mad Max: Fury Road , Deadpool , Tomb Raider , [1] Alita: Battle Angel , Terminator: Dark Fate , Sonic the Hedgehog (and its sequels), Scoob! , Godzilla vs. Kong , Army of the Dead , Three Thousand Years of Longing and Rebel Moon Part 1 as well as its second part.
Holkenborg was born in Lichtenvoorde, Gelderland, Netherlands. Classically trained by his mother – herself an accredited music teacher – Holkenborg started playing piano when he was three years old, drums when he was eight, [2] and guitar at 12. Influenced by the psychedelic pop of Pink Floyd and King Crimson, he took up the bass by age 14. After moving to Leeuwarden, at the age of 17, he decided to take a job at a local music store selling keyboards and other digital gear, and began to have an appreciation for the combination of electronic and organic sounds. [2] It was shortly after he discovered synthesizers that he joined the Dutch new wave ensemble Weekend at Waikiki as a multi-instrumentalist and producer, touring extensively with the band, including through Poland and parts of the Soviet Union, from 1988 to 1991. He also produced and played on their 1994 album, Sputnik. [3] In 1993, Holkenborg produced Almost a Dance by Dutch metal band The Gathering, and later that year went on to form the industrial rock band Nerve with Phil Mills. [4] After signing with label Play It Again Sam in 1992 and releasing two LPs – Cancer of Choice (1993) [4] and Blood & Gold (1994) – he continued as a producer, working with hardcore punk and metal bands like Sepultura, Fear Factory, and Dog Eat Dog, [4] while simultaneously licensing some of his instrumental electronic tracks for racing video games like The Need For Speed and Test Drive 5 . It was during this time that he also began scoring the Dutch feature film Siberia, which would be released by Warner Bros. Netherlands. [5]
In 1997, Holkenborg released Saturday Teenage Kick , his first album under the "Junkie XL" moniker. [4] Featuring singles such as "Billy Club", "Def Beat", and "Dealing with the Roster", the album combined pounding breakbeat rhythms with elements of rock and psychedelia. [4] Much of the album's songs featured lyrics and vocals by Patrick "Rude Boy" Tilon, vocalist for the Dutch rap rock band Urban Dance Squad. [4] After a brief tour with The Prodigy and festival dates at Fuji Rock and Roskilde, Holkenborg made a name for himself in the upcoming U.S. rave scene. His second LP, Big Sounds of the Drags , was released in 1999, once again with Tilon providing vocal work to most of the album's songs, as in "Action Radius", "Power of Big Slacks", "Zerotonine", "Love Like Razorblade", "Legion", and "Next Plateau". "Future in Computer Hell (Part 2)", the last track on the album, was featured prominently on Welsh DJ and producer Sasha's mix album Global Underground 013: Ibiza .
While making inroads as a film composer – contributing to movies like Blade (1998) and The Beach (2000) – Holkenborg was asked to remix Elvis Presley's 1968 single "A Little Less Conversation" (with three different music videos) for a 2002 Nike World Cup commercial, titled "Secret Tournament". The occasion marked the first time Presley's estate had granted permission for any of Presley's material to be remixed. The song reached No. 1 in 24 countries, including the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia and Mexico, and was released as a single under the name "Elvis vs. JXL". The song was also featured as the title song to the NBC TV series Las Vegas , and in feature films like Shark Tale , Next , Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief , MegaMind , and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows .
The success of "A Little Less Conversation" set the stage for his 2003 double-disc album, Radio JXL: A Broadcast from the Computer Hell Cabin. The name "Computer Hell" referred to Holkenborg's Amsterdam studio and headquarters. Loosely based around the concept of a fictitious pirate radio station, the album's 3PM side features collaborations with The Cure's Robert Smith, Depeche Mode's Dave Gahan, Peter Tosh, Chuck D from Public Enemy, Gary Numan, Solomon Burke, and Saffron, along with the said Elvis Presley remix. The 3AM side consists mostly of progressive house instrumentals, including "Breezer", a collaboration with Sasha. The album was to be launched simultaneously with a fully functioning internet radio station at www.RadioJXL.com, which was to feature exclusive shows and mixes with top EDM producers and DJs, but the undertaking proved to be too expensive and time-consuming to continue. Subsequently, two downloadable albums were released from the site: 7AM Ambient and 7AM Dance.
Holkenborg decided to relocate to Los Angeles in 2003, and in April 2006, released his fourth full-length album, Today , an album that reflected the personal and professional changes that were occurring in his life. Today features only one guest vocalist, Nathan Mader, and reverts to the more guitar-based sound of his first two albums. His fifth album, Booming Back at You , saw Holkenborg cultivate a stronger club sound punctuated by tracks like "1967 Poem", featuring Steve Aoki. Many of the lyrics on the album were written in collaboration with Electrocute's Nicole Morier, who appears in "Mad Pursuit", "Not Enough", and "New Toy". The album was released on Artwerk Music, a joint venture between Nettwerk Music and video game company Electronic Arts, and peaked at 11 on Billboard's Top Electronic Album chart. It was the first Junkie XL full-length to chart in the U.S., and featured the hit single, "More", with Lauren Rocket. Rocket also contributed vocals to the Siouxsie and the Banshees' cover "Cities in Dust".
On 27 November 2012, Junkie XL released his sixth full-length album, entitled Synthesized. The album was preceded by a single EP for "Molly's E", which was released on 6 September and features remixes by Azari & III and Canblaster. A second single, "Gloria" (with Fredrik Saroea of Datarock), was released on 23 October. Stylistically, Synthesized strikes a balance between the introspective sound of Today and the club-heavy sound of Booming Back at You, and features collaborations with Isis Salam ("Off The Dancefloor"), Tears for Fears' Curt Smith ("When Enough is Not Enough"), and Tommie Sunshine ("Love Machine"). The album also features a spoken word excerpt from Timothy Leary's The Psychedelic Experience, read by Leary, on the song "Leave Behind Your Ego". A video for "Off the Dancefloor" was created by Japanese electro-pop band Trippple Nippples. The videos for "Gloria" and "Leave Behind Your Ego" were directed by John Christopher Pina for Clean Sweep.
In collaboration with Harry Gregson-Williams, he contributed additional music to the Tony Scott film Domino (2005), and served as the composer for the Dutch film Blind, [6] which was nominated for Best Original Music Score at the Netherlands Film Festival in 2007 and received the Grand Prix award for Best Original Music Score at the 2008 Aubagne International Film Festival. Holkenborg continues to work in the film and television industry, collaborating with composer Hans Zimmer as a sequencer programmer on Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises . The film marks the fourth scoring collaboration between Holkenborg and Zimmer, including Megamind (2010), Inception (2010) and Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012). Since moving into Zimmer's Remote Control Productions studio, the two have worked together on many other musical projects, including Man of Steel , the reboot of the Superman franchise, and a remix of that year's Academy Awards theme song. Holkenborg has provided music for the films Kingdom of Heaven , Domino, DOA: Dead or Alive , [7] Shark Tale , The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury , The Animatrix , and Resident Evil , and has had his original music featured in a number of major motion pictures, including Blade ("Dealing with the Roster") and The Beach ("Synaesthesia"). In 2013, he composed the music for the Relativity Media film Paranoia . [8] Shortly after, he was brought in by Zack Snyder, the producer of 300: Rise of an Empire , to create the score for the film. [9] He is credited as the composer for the 2014 film Divergent , with Hans Zimmer credited as "Executive Producer" for the soundtrack. [10] He is a member of the Magnificent Six, a collaborative group of five other musicians, consisting of Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams, Johnny Marr (from The Smiths), Michael Einziger (from Incubus), Andrew Kawczynski, and Steve Mazzaro. [11] The "supergroup" of artists ranging from diverse backgrounds teamed up to compose the score for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 . He was the primary composer for the 2015 film Mad Max: Fury Road [12] and the 2016 film Deadpool , [13] and was co-composer for the film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice , [14] along with Zimmer (who still wrote all the main themes, [15] including the music for Wonder Woman which was later used in the film of the same name). Holkenborg was set to compose the music for the Snyder's 2017 film Justice League , but was replaced by Danny Elfman when director Joss Whedon was brought on to finish the film. [16] Holkenborg composed the scores for the 2018 film Mortal Engines , the 2019 films Alita: Battle Angel [17] and Terminator: Dark Fate , [18] the 2020 films Sonic the Hedgehog [19] and Scoob! , [20] the 2021 releases Zack Snyder's Justice League, Godzilla vs. Kong , [21] and Army of the Dead , [22] and the 2022 releases The 355 , [23] Sonic the Hedgehog 2 , [24] and Three Thousand Years of Longing . [25]
To go along with his numerous artist albums and EPs, Holkenborg has been creating original music for video games since the mid-1990s. In addition to composing the soundtrack for Xbox racing games Forza Motorsport and Quantum Redshift , Holkenborg is responsible for the SSX Blur soundtrack. He has also licensed a number of his album tracks for video game use. "Future in Computer Hell (Part 2)", "Synasthesia", and "Dance USA"—all taken from his album Big Sounds of the Drags—were licensed to the racing video game TD Overdrive: The Brotherhood of Speed (2002). The title track for Today is featured on the soundtrack for the video games Burnout Legends and Burnout Revenge , while "More"—taken from his fifth album, Booming Back at You—is featured on the soundtrack to EA Games' Need for Speed: ProStreet , which also includes a full score from Holkenborg. His cover of Siouxsie and the Banshees' "Cities in Dust" is featured on Electronic Arts' Burnout Paradise . He has written additional music for and licensed music to The Matrix: Path of Neo , Destroy All Humans! , The Sims 2: Nightlife , The Sims 3 , Need for Speed: High Stakes , Need for Speed: Underground , Need for Speed: Carbon , FIFA 08 , and FIFA Street 3 , among others. He composed the soundtrack for EA's Darkspore .
Holkenborg had made remixes—for both A-list pop superstars and lesser known artists. Highlights include work for Scissor Sisters ("Mary", "Land of a Thousand Words"), Depeche Mode ("Enjoy the Silence"), U.N.K.L.E. ("Burn My Shadow"), Justin Timberlake ("What Goes Around"), Fatboy Slim ("Weapon of Choice"), Coldplay ("Talk"), Bloc Party ("Sunday"), Michael Bublé ("Sway"), Avril Lavigne ("Girlfriend"), Daft Punk ("The Grid"), Madonna ("4 Minutes"), Fischerspooner ("Emerge"), and Hans Zimmer ("Inception" and "Bombers Over Ibiza"). His remix for Britney Spears' "Outrageous" was used in the 2004 film Catwoman , and his remix of "And Then We Kiss" was featured on Spears' 2005 remix album B in the Mix: The Remixes . In 2008, he was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical for his remix of Madonna's "4 Minutes". His remix of Elvis Presley's "A Little Less Conversation" has gone to No. 1 in 24 countries.
Holkenborg's music has also been featured in a number of international ad campaigns for major brands like Nike, Adidas, Heineken, and Cadillac. His remix of Eagles of Death Metal's "Don't Speak" was used in the 2008 Nike "Take it to the Next Level" commercial, which was directed by Guy Ritchie. "Today" was featured on ESPN commercials for Major League Soccer, while "A Little Less Conversation" provided the soundtrack to Nike's 2002 World Cup campaign. [26] [27] [28]
In 2003, Holkenborg created the musical theme of Dutch television channel Nederland 3. [29]
Holkenborg is an associate professor at the ArtEZ Conservatorium, one of the major art institutes in the Netherlands, where he teaches producing, remixing, and music composition. He resides in Tarzana, Los Angeles, California. [30]
He uses the name JXL in cases where the term "Junkie" might cause offense. One example of this was with his biggest hit, a remix of the song "A Little Less Conversation" which was performed by Elvis Presley, a singer who toward the end of his life was addicted to prescription drugs and whose death in 1977 at the age of 42 was at least partially caused by them. [31] Holkenborg says of his name: "I called myself Junkie XL from the point of view that once you're completely overworked, you never want to go there again. The 'XL' stands for expanding limits; broadening up your vision." [32]
Year | Title | Developer(s) | Publisher(s) | Notes |
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2002 | Quantum Redshift | Curly Monsters | Microsoft Game Studios | — |
2003 | Need for Speed: Underground | EA Black Box | Electronic Arts | "Action Radius" |
2005 | Burnout 3: Takedown | Criterion | Electronic Arts | — |
Forza Motorsport | Turn 10 Studios | Microsoft Game Studios | — | |
The Sims 2: Nightlife | Maxis | Electronic Arts | Neighborhood Theme remix | |
2006 | Need for Speed: Carbon | EA Black Box | Melody - Feel the Rush (Remix)Yonderboi - People Always Talk About The Weather (Remix) | |
2007 | SSX Blur | EA Montreal | EA Sports BIG | — |
Need for Speed: ProStreet | EA Black Box | Electronic Arts | Composed with Andre Ettema and Sam Estes | |
2008 | Burnout Paradise | Criterion | — | |
2010 | The Sims 3 - Re-Imagined | Maxis | — | |
2011 | Darkspore | Maxis | — | |
2015 | Madden NFL 16 | EA Tiburon | EA Sports | — |
2017 | FIFA 18 | EA Vancouver EA Romania | — | |
2024 | Skull and Bones | Ubisoft Singapore | Ubisoft | — |
Year | Title | Notes |
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2003 | Nederland 3 | Musical score for the channel |
2012 | Lijn 32 | 8 episodes |
2019–present | Love, Death & Robots | 3 episodes |
2019 | Chimerica | 4 episodes Composed with Shigeru Umebayashi |
2020 | White Lines | 10 episodes |
"A Little Less Conversation" is a 1968 song recorded by American singer Elvis Presley, written by Mac Davis and Billy Strange and published by Gladys Music, Inc., originally performed in the film Live a Little, Love a Little. The song became a minor hit in the United States when released as a single with "Almost in Love" as the A-side. A 2002 remix by Dutch musician Junkie XL of a later re-recording of the song by Presley became a worldwide hit, topping the singles charts in nine countries and was awarded certifications in ten countries by 2003.
Almost in Love is a compilation album by American singer Elvis Presley, released in November 1970 by RCA Records on their budget label, RCA Camden. It was the first of several albums on the low-priced RCA Camden label to make available in LP format tracks that had previously been available only on 45 rpm singles or EPs.
"UR" and "A Tear in the Open" are two electronic music tracks which appeared on Tiësto's second studio album in 2004, entitled Just Be. Unlike Tiesto's other album from 2004, Parade of the Athletes, Just Be featured only unmixed tracks.
Dutch DJ Junkie XL has released six studio albums and multiple soundtrack albums.
Megamind: Music from the Motion Picture is a soundtrack to the 2010 film of the same name, released by Lakeshore Records and composed by Hans Zimmer and Lorne Balfe. It was released on November 2, 2010 in the United States and Canada. The soundtrack gathered mixed reviews from most music critics.
Mad Max: Fury Road is a soundtrack album for the 2015 film, Mad Max: Fury Road, composed by Tom Holkenborg a.k.a. Junkie XL. It was released on 12 May 2015 through WaterTower Music.
The soundtrack for the 2016 American superhero film Deadpool, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name and distributed by 20th Century Fox, consists of an original score composed by Tom Holkenborg and a series of songs featured in the film. An album featuring these, named Deadpool: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, was released on February 12, 2016. It reached number 30 on the US Billboard 200, and topped the soundtrack list from Billboard.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is the soundtrack to the film of the same name composed by Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL. It was released on March 18, 2016, by WaterTower Music. The exclusive deluxe edition of the album contains five bonus tracks, entitled "Blood of My Blood", "Vigilante", "May I Help You, Mr. Wayne?", "They Were Hunters" and "Fight Night". The soundtrack also features the Eric Whitacre Singers.
Zack Snyder's Justice League (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the film of the same name, itself a director's cut of the 2017 theatrical film which had its own soundtrack. Tom Holkenborg, also known as Junkie XL, composed the film's score; he had previously worked on a score for the theatrical version of Justice League, before being replaced by Danny Elfman following original director Zack Snyder's departure and Joss Whedon's arrival. Upon Snyder getting the chance to finish and release his version of the film, Holkenberg was brought back and decided to rescore the film from scratch. The album was released via WaterTower Music on March 18, 2021, the same day as the film's release, and was later released as a limited-edition 7-disc vinyl set on April 14. The film's score is notable as the longest in film history at nearly four hours long.
Army of the Dead (Music From the Netflix Film) is the soundtrack album to the 2021 American film Army of the Dead, directed by Zack Snyder. The soundtrack was released by Milan Records on May 21, 2021, coinciding the day with its global release on Netflix. It features 12 tracks from the original score composed by Tom Holkenborg, also known as Junkie XL, and the Elvis Presley song "Viva Las Vegas" (performed by Richard Cheese and Allison Crowe). In addition, a limited edition 2-disc vinyl set of the soundtrack was released on September 10.
Godzilla vs. Kong is the soundtrack to the 2021 American monster film Godzilla vs. Kong. A sequel to Kong: Skull Island (2017) and Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019), it is the fourth film in Legendary's MonsterVerse, the 36th film in the Godzilla franchise, the 12th film in the King Kong franchise, and the fourth Godzilla film to be completely produced by a Hollywood studio. Directed by Adam Wingard, the film features musical score written and composed by Tom Holkenborg, the fourth film composer to work on the MonsterVerse franchise. He was announced as a part of the film in June 2020, before a planned meeting with Wingard, two years, expressing his interest on working on the score due to his personal love for the Godzilla film series during his teen years. The recording of the score took place for nearly two years, and was bundled into a soundtrack album, released by WaterTower Music in digital and physical formats on March 31, 2021, coinciding with the film's United States theatrical release.
Godzilla: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack to the 2014 American monster film Godzilla, which is a reboot of Toho's Godzilla franchise and also being the 30th film in that franchise. It is also the first film in Legendary's MonsterVerse and the second Godzilla film to be completely produced by a Hollywood studio. The score was composed and conducted by Alexandre Desplat, being the first film composer to work on the MonsterVerse franchise. The film score was released digitally by WaterTower Music on May 13, 2014, and a separate vinyl album was launched on June 17.
Sonic the Hedgehog 2: Music from the Motion Picture is the score album for the 2022 film of the same name. The score, which was composed by Tom Holkenborg, was released on April 8, 2022, by Paramount Music in both digital and physical formats.
Scoob! The Album and Scoob! are the soundtracks for the 2020 animated film Scoob!. The former, which was released on May 15, 2020 featured two singles, "On Me" by Thomas Rhett and Kane Brown, featuring Ava Max, and "Summer Feelings" by Lennon Stella, featuring Charlie Puth. The soundtrack also includes other songs by various artists, including Sage the Gemini, R3hab, Pink Sweats, Galantis, Best Coast, Rico Nasty, and Jack Harlow. A deluxe edition was also released on the same day, featuring four additional renditions of the tracks. The latter, featured film score composed by Tom Holkenborg and was released digitally on May 29, 2020.
Sonic the Hedgehog: Music from the Motion Picture is the score album for the 2020 film of the same name. The score, which was composed by Tom Holkenborg, was released on February 14, 2020, by Paramount Music in both digital and physical formats. Riff Raff, who had a role in the film but was cut, appears on the soundtrack.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods is the score album composed by Christophe Beck, to the 2023 film of the same name, the sequel to Shazam! (2019) and the 12th installment in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). The album featured 28 tracks and was released on March 10, 2023 by WaterTower Music.
300: Rise of an Empire is the score album to the 2014 film of the same name directed by Noam Murro, a follow-up to the 2006 film 300. Zack Snyder, who directed the first film, served as the screenwriter and producer for the sequel. The score is composed by Tom Holkenborg, known under the stage name Junkie XL, as credited in the album. The film marked the beginning of a collaboration between Snyder and Holkenborg where the latter would work on Snyder's future directorial ventures, beginning with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016). The album featuring 16-cues of Junkie XL's score running for one-hour and seven minutes, released through WaterTower Music on March 4, 2014, in digital and physical formats.
Mortal Engines (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the 2018 film of the same name featuring musical score by Tom Holkenborg. The score was recorded during October 2017 to July 2018 at the Michael Fowler Centre concert hall with New Zealand Symphony Orchestra performing the score and mixed at Park Road Post in New Zealand. The score blends and overlays modern electronic and synth-based score with orchestra. The album was released by Back Lot Music on December 14, 2018.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is the soundtrack to the 2024 film Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga directed by George Miller, which is a prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). The film's original score is composed by Tom Holkenborg and released through WaterTower Music on 17 May 2024.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3: Music from the Motion Picture is the score album for the 2024 film of the same name. It features the original score composed by Tom Holkenborg and was released by Milan Records on December 20, 2024.