Junkie XL

As JUNKIE XL, Dutch born musician, producer, remixer and one-man band Tom Holkenborg has become synonymous with electronic dance music. With the arrival of his fifth proper studio album, 2008′s invigorating Booming Back at You, the club culture icon and L.A. transplant has crafted a disc that not only builds on his beloved back catalogue but is also inspired by today’s vibrant new school of dance music and matches the momentum and enthusiasm of his notorious live performances. Musically never comfortable in one place, his new work highlights surprises for his fans.
Spearheaded by the disc’s lead track, “Booming Right At You” paves the way for a simultaneously infectious and exhilarating song sequence. It boasts the guest vocals of Tommy Vext (who was introduced to Junkie XL by frequent collaborator Lucas Banker and sings in Divine Heresy with ex-Fear Factory guitarist Dino Cazares) and counts a snippet of Stetsasonic’s 1988 hip-hop classic “DBC Let The Music Play” to make the track uplifting and soulful as it is inventive. “This time out, I wanted to capture the energy of my live shows,” Junkie explains of the follow up to 2006′s introspective, rock-influenced Today. “In the past, I always made conceptual records or tried to find a theme. But I’m such an energetic performer, very upbeat, and I wanted to capture that. “Booming Right At You” and the album as a whole, throws that vibe right back at the fans.”
When he recently unveiled the album’s first single “More” which will be featured in the new EA Need For Speed Pro Street game released this winter before an expansive Buenos Aires audience, the crowd offered the passionate reaction he was looking for. He partnered with vocalist Lauren Rocket, front-woman for emerging LA all-girl rock outfit Rocket, for the trackwhich has already taken on a number of names by fans, including its original moniker “Fuck More” and its unofficial title, “The PacMan Song.” The song–replete with its chorus “Rock more/roll more/fuck more/Pacman is loving it”–is pleasurable, exciting and impossible to ignore.