Junkie XL - Today
Apr 6, 00:02 by Stefan KoopmanschapTom Holkenborg. The dutch prodigy of electronic music has a new album out. Today contains no Billie Club, no Saturday Teenage Kick, and no A Little Less Conversation. Junkie XL is getting more laid back. And I’m not complaining.
Junkie XL already has an impressive track record. During the big beat mania Junkie XL became very popular. He has worked together with many artists, amongst whom Rudeboy of Urban Dance Squad fame, and has remixed, for instance, Elvis Presley, something that not many artists can say they have done, at least not legally.
Today, Junkie XL brings to us a new album. 10 massive tracks that are not anymore what they used to be in terms of style. Today, Junkie XL brings a slightly poppy electronica sound, and I for one, feel this is a wonderful step ahead. A positive development in the music of Junkie XL.
The album already starts off with a very nice tune, the over 10 minutes long Youthful. A very poppy sound with great vocals, a track that would work very well on the dance floor. Mushroom follows and here we find some of the influences of Holkenborg’s past, in the form of the breakbeat that drives the track. Even though I like the poppy sound of Youthful, Mushroom gets to me more, with at the basis a very dreamy track, accompanied by beautiful melodies and a great bass. Such A Tease is a very playful track, more down tempo than the previous two. Again beautiful melodies, great rhythms and that playful sound, which makes the track very likeable. The laid back nature of the track would make this track work well on a chill out compilation.
The title track, Today, brings back the driving, house-y rhythms. The combination of Holkenborg’s electronic sound with guitars works well, and when the vocals – again quite poppy – come in, the track indeed is complete. As the title implies, Drift Away is a very nice laid back track that you can drift away to. Up until now, song titles have been quite “regular”, but I had to chuckle a bit as I saw the song title of “I’ve got a xerox to copy”. This is hopefully for the obvious reasons. Fun about the songtitle aside, this track is THE track for the dancefloor. Banging beats and great stimulating melodies. It’s funny, this track reminds me of The Chemical Brothers in their lesser period. Unfortunately, The Chemical Brothers had the wrong approach to the housey sound, and Junkie XL has found the exact right way of doing it. Energetic, driving, slightly dreamy. Awesome!
Even In This Moment, a very short track with less than 2 minutes of play time, this seems some kind of interlude, or an introduction to the next track. It’s a short break after the energy released by I’ve Got A Xerox To Copy. Yesterdays keeps things more laid back again, with a nice rhythm, and again great vocals and melodies. Very poppy again, this somehow reminds me a bit of the old electro-pop of the late 80’s and early 90’s, though in a more modern form.
Honey. A very fitting song title for a very sweet track. Cooling down has clearly begun with this track, which is very dreamy. Some people might even classify it as a sort of ambient music. The only real rhythmic element is the guitar that plays, which drives the track. A very nice track to fall asleep to (and that’s a positive thing in this case!). The last track is We Become One. A down-tempo rhythm, quite minimal with nice filtered vocals. Growing, extending into a beautiful track. A very nice close down of a wonderful album.
Concluding, this is not the Junkie XL I’m used to. And though I might have made some different choices, for instance on the track order, I feel this is a wonderful album, and a great development after the previous material. The poppy sound may also make it easier for Junkie XL to break into the higher regions of the charts. I definitely wouldn’t mind having some good music on the charts for once!
Released on Ultra Records
See also: Junkie XL website