Junkie XL: Digital Addiction

Today

Holkenberg slaved six PCs to his Power Mac G5

Footsteps from L.A.s Venice Beach, Holkenborgs

studio is home to half a dozen Power Mac G5s some

command center, each one of the PCs loaded with

orchestral samples flutes, violin chords, even

are used exclusively to record audio using Pro Tools and

harpsichord riffs. I do the programming and the media

others run Logic Pro for MIDI sequencing. By slaving

the two programs together, I have a very powerful

arranging for the orchestra in Logic, he says. When it

comes to movie scoring, there are a lot of things at

system, says Holkenberg. I have audio running on one

stake. You usually have to deal with lots of acoustic

computer so I can use Logic for what I really want to

recordings. You need racks and racks of computers, all

use it for, which is MIDI. For me, Logics midi

programming is far superior to any other program.

stacked with samples, and you run MIDI from your main
host.

Holkenborg also has a vast library of ESX24 samples

that he can pull into Logic Pro. All of the samples that

He also runs Digidesign TDM equipment through Logic

Pro. The entire operation is chained together with MIDI

Ive made in my life have been converted to EXS24,

machine control, putting a seamless virtual orchestra at

several terabytes, he says. When I make electronic

music, I just go through the cool sounds that I made

Holkenbergs fingertips. Logic just slaves any other

computer thats in the chain and I just work on the

throughout the years and compile some together into a

Logic computer, he says. I dont have to do anything

four-bar loop. From there I just start arranging.

else. I just start working immediately and then all the

slaves, including the movie footage and all of the other
computers, work together. Its a beautiful system, and

Long-Distance Synthesizers
When Holkenborg moved from Amsterdam, he couldnt take
everything with him. I have about 40 classic analog synths, but most
of them are still in Amsterdam, says Holkenberg. Ive got a friend of
mine working there, so I can send him a riff and hell play it on the
original synth and send the file back. That way I can get a sound that
goes a lot deeper than I can get with the digital equipment I have
here.

Cutting Edge
I was always pretty cutting edge with whatever I made, says
Holkenborg. I was never conservative. But that musical
experimentation didnt always fly. Thats how I got kicked out of
music university, he says. Instead of studying my skills, I took a
cassette and recorded 90 guitar notes with distortion and without,
with reverb and without, you name it. I cut the tape in 160 pieces,
smashed it up, and put it back together randomly. It sounded really
Philip Glass, really repetitive. It felt like a pulse. The young student
played the tape for his professor. He didnt dig it at all.

its rock solid.

The New Radio

Holkenberg recognizes that video games are an
important and infectious channel for electronic
music. Theyre also challenging and exciting for an

Equipment List

electronic music producer. Todays video games require

everything from cinematic scores to ambient sounds.
Sometimes the director wants the game to be like a
mini-movie and sometimes he doesnt want that at all,
says Holkenberg. He just wants a blast of music from
beginning to end. Sometimes its just a bed of weird
sounds that make you totally uncomfortable.

But for Today, Holkenberg took a different tack.

Instead of experimenting with samples and loops, he
picked up his guitar. I just wanted to sit down for three
months and make music, see what came out, he
says. The organic approach yielded an album of
guitar-driven melodies with electronic backbones. For
vocals, he turned to singer Nathan Mader. The album is
the most personal Junkie XL project to date. The tracks
arent strictly dance floor grooves theyre
ruminations on Holkenbergs life. Musically, Ive spent
so much time traveling around the world carrying a
suitcase, so to speak, picking something up wherever I

Resources

The work can be very experimental, he continues.

Sometimes I deliver multiple sound layers for surround
sound that get triggered by how the players play the
game. Its very exciting technology and we havent

Recording/Sequencing
Power Mac G5
Logic Pro
Pro Tools
Steinberg Cubase SX
Symbolic Sound Kyma
U&I Software MetaSynth
Native Instruments Reaktor 5
Native Instruments Kontakt
M-Audio 1814 sound card
Solares Microphones
Tampa Pre-amps

even seen the beginning of it yet.

Holkenberg doesnt get a lot of time to turn around a
video game score. You have to rely on a library of
sounds that you made for yourself over the years, he
says. You dont have time to noodle around with
sounds forever until youre happy with them, because it
always needs to be done yesterday.

Guitars, Bass, Synthesizers and Effects

Fender Jazz bass
Fender Stratocaster guitar
Gibson Les Paul guitar
Ibanez bass
Ibanez 7-string guitar
Ibanez Acoustic guitar

went and putting that experience in there, he says.

To speed things along, Holkenborg creates custom

Electro Harmonix EH 100 synth

For Today, I opened the suitcase and took all that

was in there.

templates in Logic Pro. You can shape the program,

he says. Youre not forced into an environment that is

Korg MS 10, 20, and 50 synths

Korg PS 3100 Synths

already set up. You can set up your own channel strips,

How to Score

Oberheim 4-voice Synth

JoMoX XBase drum machine

When Holkenborg scores a film, hes bound to a

your own mixer you can prepare everything. Thats

great when I do orchestral sections. I can save a

different set of creative conventions. He has to

combination of instruments, MIDI routings and plug-ins

Novation DrumStation
Roland JP8080 synth

interpret scenes, compose tracks for characters and

situations, and, above all, please the director and

as a template. The next time I do a similar scene, I can

just open it and I have all those instruments there.

Yamaha DX-7 VL-1 synth

M-Audio Black Box

producers. The end result is still a Junkie XL piece, but

When youre doing this kind of work, its all about

its finely tuned for the film.

speed. And thats where Logic kicks in with all those

Native Iinstruments Guitar Rig

Electro Harmonix Microsynth, Q-Tron and Phase Mistress
Ibanez Tube Screamer, Metal Zone, Compressor, and Chorus

templates.
His latest score for a movie called Dead or Alive,

Outboard Gear
Lexicon 480

based on a video game kind of like Charlies Angels

Looking Ahead

meets James Bond, he says. The big challenge for

the project was that the producers werent looking for

In the end, Holkenborg is still an electronic junkie,

addicted to his craft in the best way. He plays about 60

T.C. Electronic M2000

T.C. Electronic Finaliser

a typical Hollywood score. They wanted the classic 60s

gigs a year, touring dance clubs all over the world. But

vibe of John Barry and even Lalo Schifrin, who wrote the
music for Mission Impossible.

he plans to spend more time making music for movies,

commercials, and video games. Hell also keep working

T.C. Electronic Firerworkx

Manley Massive Passive EQ and ELOP limiter

on his own music, releasing singles and remixes as

Holkenberg was thrilled to have the challenge, creating

time permits. I like to work up to 18 hours a day, he

a fusion of orchestral melodies and funky,

secret-agent-inspired electronic beats. I think thats

says. Thats how I keep really sharp. I start at five in

the morning and work until eight, nine, or ten at night.

where the trick lies, he says. The producers didnt

That way, I can still have some kind of social life.

want some electronic music with an orchestra thrown

on top of it. They wanted to integrate different layers
and sounds. So a lot of it is experimental electronic, but

Pages 1 2

it has classic melodies and classic orchestration. It

goes the full spectrum, from violins to completely
deteriorated, bit-crushed, and chopped sounds that I
generated in Logic.
Logic Pro

Mac OS X Music and Audio Documentation

Seminars

Third-Party Music Products

Guitarists and Mac: Pat Metheny

Science: Make your next

discovery on a Mac.

Aperture: Streamline your

workflow after the shoot

To facilitate its
expansion into

See Aperture in action

in this free online

genomic research,

seminar designed for

Induqumica replaced
its Windows system

professional
photographers.

with Macs.
Learn more

Your guitar. Your Mac.

Your music.

Find a Product

Attend this free,

Buy direct from Apple 24-hours a day, or call

on-demand seminar

1-800-MY-APPLE.

to make the
connection between
your guitar and your

Learn more

Making Music on a Mac with GarageBand

Your Guitar. Your Mac. Your Music.

Visit an Apple Store

Mac.
Learn more

Home > Pro > Profiles > Junkie XL

Copyright 2006 Apple Computer, Inc. All rights reserved.

Find an Apple Reseller:

City/State/Zip

Junkie XL: Digital Addiction

By Dustin Driver
Few would willingly take the name Junkie, but after

The band didnt storm the pop charts, but it did get

spending more than 18 hours a day in an Amsterdam

noticed. I mixed electronic sounds with guitars in such

basement mainlining MIDI and sucking down samples in

a binge of creativity, Tom Holkenborg decided to

a way that got a lot of bands interested in what I was

doing, says Holkenborg. Thats how my production

embrace it. He became Junkie XL, one of the worlds

career started. Thats how I began to work with metal

foremost electronic music producers and remixers, a

powerhouse who churns out tracks for the dance floor,

bands like Fear Factory, Soul Fly, and Sepultra

million-seller bands.

Long-Distance Synthesizers
When Holkenborg moved from Amsterdam, he couldnt take
everything with him. I have about 40 classic analog synths, but most
of them are still in Amsterdam, says Holkenberg. Ive got a friend of
mine working there, so I can send him a riff and hell play it on the
original synth and send the file back. That way I can get a sound that
goes a lot deeper than I can get with the digital equipment I have
here.

movies, television, and video games. Hes the only

artist whos been trusted to remix an Elvis song and

Cutting Edge

the only producer to be given the chance to remix the

Beatles Strawberry Fields Forever. He has also
released four albums and his music has conquered the

I was always pretty cutting edge with whatever I made, says

Holkenborg. I was never conservative. But that musical
experimentation didnt always fly. Thats how I got kicked out of
music university, he says. Instead of studying my skills, I took a
cassette and recorded 90 guitar notes with distortion and without,
with reverb and without, you name it. I cut the tape in 160 pieces,
smashed it up, and put it back together randomly. It sounded really
Philip Glass, really repetitive. It felt like a pulse. The young student
played the tape for his professor. He didnt dig it at all.

pop charts in 24 countries.

Holkenbergs electronic music addiction is taking a new
form. Hes now spending more time scoring motion
pictures and video games. Junkie XL tunes can be
heard in Blade, Resident Evil, Matrix, Domino,
Team America, Kingdom of Heaven, and many video
games. I feel that movies, commercials, and video
games are the new radio for electronic music, he
says. Ive made music for commercials that aired
during the Super Bowl and the Oscars. Millions of people
who would never go to a Junkie XL show or buy a Junkie
XL album heard it. Thats beautiful.
But Holkenborg hasnt abandoned his die-hard fans. His
latest LP, Today, is a collection of free-flowing tracks
fueled by melodic guitar riffs and tight electronic beats.
Its a back-to-basics project that pays homage to
some of Holkenbergs biggest influences New Order,
U2, Depeche Mode, and Peter Gabriel. Its pretty much
where I stand right now in my musical development, he
says. Thats why its called Today.

Becoming a Junkie
They say that talent runs in families. Holkenborg is no
exception to this rule. The Holland native was steeped
in music from the very beginning. His mother taught
violin at a music school and his father was an
accomplished musician and a DJ of sorts. My dad was
one of the very first DJs in Holland in the 50s, he
says. He cruised around on an old moped, going to
parties and playing music.

Resources

Thats also how Holkenborg got hooked, working

feverishly in his Amsterdam basement studio, mixing
song after song using early Roland samplers and
sequencing software like Cubase and Pro 24. But the
endless days in his subterranean studio fried his
nerves, strung out his creativity until it was ready to
snap. In 1995 Holkenborg collapsed. I couldnt deal with
it anymore, he says. I took a break for a half a year
and thats when I realized that I needed to do my own
stuff. Thats when I started Junkie XL.

Expanding Limits
The first Junkie XL album, Saturday Night Teenage
Kick, hit store shelves in 1997. The synthesis of rock
and syncopated electronic break beats secured
Holkenbergs seat among electronicas greats. He
toured with Prodigy, hitting major rock festivals like Fuji

Equipment List
Recording/Sequencing
Power Mac G5
Logic Pro
Pro Tools
Steinberg Cubase SX
Symbolic Sound Kyma
U&I Software MetaSynth
Native Instruments Reaktor 5
Native Instruments Kontakt
M-Audio 1814 sound card
Solares Microphones
Tampa Pre-amps
Guitars, Bass, Synthesizers and Effects
Fender Jazz bass

Rock and Roskilde. In 2000, he followed the hit album

Fender Stratocaster guitar

Gibson Les Paul guitar

with Big Sounds of the Drags, a release that played a

major role in the emerging rave scene in the United

Ibanez bass
Ibanez 7-string guitar

States.

Ibanez Acoustic guitar

Then Junkie XL exploded. In 2002, Holkenberg was

Electro Harmonix EH 100 synth

asked to remix Elviss A Little Less Conversation for a

Nike World Cup commercial. Millions saw the commercial

Korg MS 10, 20, and 50 synths

Korg PS 3100 Synths

and the song entered the pop charts in more than 24

Oberheim 4-voice Synth

JoMoX XBase drum machine

countries around the world. Junkie XL nearly became a

household name. He used the success to break into

Novation DrumStation
Roland JP8080 synth

movies, crafting tracks for Matrix, Resident Evil, and

Blade.

Yamaha DX-7 VL-1 synth

M-Audio Black Box

His next album, Radio JXL: A Broadcast from the

Native Iinstruments Guitar Rig

Electro Harmonix Microsynth, Q-Tron and Phase Mistress

Computer Hell Cabin, was an homage to his heroes. It

was a big project, he says. There were two albums
one was called 3 a.m. and the other was called 3
p.m., my vision of day radio and night radio. There

Ibanez Tube Screamer, Metal Zone, Compressor, and Chorus

Outboard Gear
Lexicon 480

were two more albums on the website 7 a.m. and

7 p.m. It was about 240 minutes of music made over

T.C. Electronic M2000

T.C. Electronic Finaliser

two or three years. The album featured Solomon

T.C. Electronic Firerworkx

Manley Massive Passive EQ and ELOP limiter

Burke, Peter Tosh, Chuck D, Dave Gahan, Robert

Smith, and others.
Holkenberg got a set of drums when he was eight. By
the time he was 13, he was playing guitar and drums in
local bands. When he was 16, he landed a job at a local
music shop partly to make some cash, but mostly

Holkenberg made the album using Akai and Ensonic

samplers and Roland, Korg, and Electroharmonics
synths. He wove everything together with Cubase
running on a Mac. Im not a computer technician, he

to gain access to expensive synthesizers and

samplers. That was in 85 and 86, right about the
time the first Atari came out, he says. It was possible

says. I just want something that works. I want to go

to a store, buy a computer, install my stuff and go for
it. Now Holkenborg runs Logic Pro and Pro Tools in a

to do music with the Commodore and Yamaha had a

music computer that you could do all kinds of stuff

studio thats crammed with Power Macs. I dont know

much about computers, he says. Thats why I used

with.

to call my studio a computer hell. But now, with Apple,

life is just easier. Macs just work.

In the late 80s, Holkenberg formed a band called

Nerve. It was industrial, it was organic it was
based on hard beats, really heavy guitars, and
aggressive vocals, he says. Appearing in the same
circles as Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, Al Jorgenson,

Pages 1 2

Ministry, Front 242, and Front Line Assembly, Nerve

fused driving guitar riffs with emerging electronic music
technology.
Logic Pro

Mac OS X Music and Audio Documentation

Third-Party Music Products

Science: Make your next

discovery on a Mac.

Guitarists and Mac: Pat Metheny

Aperture: Streamline your

workflow after the shoot

To facilitate its

See Aperture in action

expansion into

in this free online

genomic research,
Induqumica replaced

seminar designed for

professional

its Windows system

photographers.

with Macs.
Learn more

Seminars

Learn more

Making Music on a Mac with GarageBand

Your Guitar. Your Mac. Your Music.

Your guitar. Your Mac.

Your music.

Find a Product

Attend this free,

Buy direct from Apple 24-hours a day, or call

on-demand seminar
to make the

1-800-MY-APPLE.

connection between
your guitar and your
Mac.
Learn more

Home > Pro > Profiles > Junkie XL

Copyright 2006 Apple Computer, Inc. All rights reserved.

Visit an Apple Store

Find an Apple Reseller:

City/State/Zip