Junkie XL
A composer, producer, DJ, and multi-instrumentalist who has charted internationally with both his electronic music and his film scores, the Netherlands' Tom Holkenborg is also known as Junkie XL. Though he began his career as musician/producer in bands such as Weekend at Waikiki and Nerve in the late '80s and early '90s, he made his name in big beat music with the Junkie XL moniker in the late '90s. His cover of Elvis Presley's "A Little Less Conversation," released as "Elvis vs. JXL," topped the charts in over a dozen countries in 2002. In the meantime, he found work scoring the occasional video game or film, a sideline that picked up substantially toward the end of the 2000s. By the mid-2010s, he was composing music for such blockbusters as Mad Max: Fury Road, Deadpool, and, with frequent partner Hans Zimmer, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
Beginning his career at the age of 14, Holkenborg initially played in area funk and reggae units, later switching to alternative rock. While working in a music store, he began experimenting with synthesizers and technology, and in 1996 won the Grand Prix of the Netherlands as best house music producer. After completing Junkie XL's 1997 debut LP, Saturday Teenage Kick, a blend of electronica and rock, he enlisted rapper Rudeboy (an alumnus of Urban Dance Squad), DJ Frankie D., drummer Baz Mattie, and guitarist Renee van der Zee to transform his one-man studio project into a working band.
In the meantime, Holkenborg provided music for a handful of video games and made his feature film scoring debut with the 1998 Dutch film Siberia (as Junkie XL). Returning to dance music, Big Sounds of the Drags, released in 1999, was the first album from his expanded lineup. More than two years later, Holkenborg masterminded the first (legal) remix of an Elvis Presley song, "A Little Less Conversation," as heard in a Nike commercial to coincide with the 2002 World Cup. Released as a single, it hit number one in Britain by June, and reached the Top Ten in over two-dozen countries. The track landed on his 2003 album Radio JXL: A Broadcast from the Computer Hell Cabin, which also featured vocals from Chuck D, Robert Smith, and Gary Numan. His 2008 effort, Booming Back at You, featured vocalist Lauren Rocket on a cover of Siouxsie and the Banshees' "Cities in Dust," along with a guest appearance from fellow producer Steve Aoki. Synthesized, from 2012, included contributions from Datarock, Tommie Sunshine, and Tears for Fears member Curt Smith.
By the early 2010s, Holkenborg was taking on more and more work as a composer of film music, often collaborating with Hans Zimmer. In 2014, he was credited alongside Pharrell Williams, Johnny Marr, Mike Einziger, Andrew Kawczynski, and Steve Mazzaro as a member Zimmer's the Magnificent Six on the soundtrack for The Amazing Spider-Man 2. That same year, he received sole credit for Divergent, which reached the Top 20 of the Billboard Soundtracks chart. Soon, he was scoring such international box office hits as 2015's Mad Max: Fury Road, 2016's Deadpool, and, with Zimmer, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, also from 2016. He closed out the decade with work on such projects as the 2017 video game FIFA 18 and the 2018 film Tomb Raider.
© Marcy Donelson & Jason Ankeny /TiVo
Similar artists
-
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Music from the Motion Picture)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Paramount Music on 8 Apr 2022
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Terminator: Dark Fate (Music from the Motion Picture)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Paramount Music on 1 Nov 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Alita: Battle Angel (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Milan Records on 5 Feb 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Radio JXL - A Broadcast From The Computerhell Cabin
Rock - Released by Roadrunner Records on 6 Feb 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Divergent: Original Motion Picture Score
Film Soundtracks - Released by Lionsgate - Divergent Score on 18 Mar 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Sony Classical on 18 Mar 2016
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
White Lines (Music from the Netflix Original Series)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Masterworks on 15 May 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Army of the Dead (Music From the Netflix Film)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Milan on 21 May 2021
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Tomb Raider (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Sony Classical on 9 Mar 2018
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
A Forest Called Mulu
New Age - Released by Keytone Records on 10 Oct 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Distance Between Dreams (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Lakeshore Records on 2 Dec 2016
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Black Mass (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by WaterTower Music on 15 Mar 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Racing Collection
Electronic - Released by Sounds of Red Bull on 20 Nov 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sonic the Hedgehog (Music from the Motion Picture)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Paramount Music on 14 Feb 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brimstone (Original Soundtrack Album)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Masterworks on 31 Jan 2020
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Need for Speed: Prostreet (Original Soundtrack)
EA Games Soundtrack, Junkie XL
Film Soundtracks - Released by EA Music on 11 Dec 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
SCOOB! (Original Motion Picture Score)
Film Soundtracks - Released by WaterTower Music on 29 May 2020
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Music from SSX Blur (Original Soundtrack)
Junkie XL, EA Games Soundtrack
Film Soundtracks - Released by EA Music on 20 Feb 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
-
Lijn 32 (The Music of the TV Series)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Riva Media Records on 10 Apr 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Run All Night (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by WaterTower Music on 10 Mar 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo