What's wrong with James Holden nowadays?

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-- What's wrong with James Holden nowadays?

Posted by BlueSky on May-25-2010 11:21:

What's wrong with James Holden nowadays?

Urm.. have you guys even heard his new "track"? It's horrible!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMoOU-6PGME

I'm sayin' it because I'm a big fan of Holden!
Compare some of his old tracks with the shit he's on those days!

He was laughing at "Horizons" in an interview some months ago!

Posted by Glaniskanis on May-25-2010 11:54:

To be honest, if this is perceived as "something wrong with him" I want alot of other producers/djs to get the same disease
He's just not into that sound anymore.

Posted by Sand Leaper on May-25-2010 11:59:

In his strive to "evolve" as an "artist", he has dug himself into a tuneless and navel-gazing hole. It's not an uncommon phenomenon.

However, I don't see why he shouldn't be allowed to eventually go off and dislike his earlier works. Everyone's tastes change over time, and many of the big techno players have items in their back catalogues that they no longer like or want to associate themselves with (Vince Watson's old hardcore/gabber records come to mind).

Posted by Konijn on May-25-2010 12:50:

i'll always prefer prog holden over today's holden, but i saw him spin a wicked set at a festival last year. as a dj, he's really come into his own with this style.

Posted by MrJiveBoJingles on May-25-2010 13:33:

Someone here posted an interview with Holden in which his musical evolution was discussed. At some point in the interview, "Horizons" was played as an example of Holden's old style, and he sat there listening with a smirk on his face that seemed to say, "Gawd, I am just so past that!" Perhaps in another five years he will put on the same airs as he talks about the music he is making right now.

Posted by Mr.Mystery on May-25-2010 14:36:

Drugs. Either too much or not enough. But drugs.

Posted by Psionic on May-25-2010 14:45:

I actually kinda like the latter half of the track, curious how it would hold up in a live set.

Posted by Adam420 on May-25-2010 15:44:

Wow, I hate it. Did he really make that?

Posted by Woony on May-25-2010 16:49:

quote:
Originally posted by Sand Leaper
In his strive to "evolve" as an "artist", he has dug himself into a tuneless and navel-gazing hole. It's not an uncommon phenomenon.

Whats up with all those artist thinking they need to "evolve" because normal edm isnt enough "art"?

Posted by xtr3m on May-25-2010 17:02:

Posted by Woony on May-25-2010 17:03:

quote:
Originally posted by xtr3m

So I guess thats what "real" art is?

Posted by MrJiveBoJingles on May-25-2010 17:26:

Stylin' and profilin', Mr. Holden. Way to go.

Posted by PatMcGroin on May-25-2010 18:15:

2003-04 holden was the shit. thank god recorded live sets exist. i dont think i'll ever love half this crap that comes out today as much as i did holdens prog.

Posted by bas on May-25-2010 18:37:

I think Triangle Folds is great. Granted the drums fall a little flat, but that's nothing a little editing can't fix. In any case, this obviously wasn't designed to be a club track.

However:

Monstrous

Posted by Dj Minaya on May-25-2010 21:11:

quote:
Originally posted by bas
I think Triangle Folds is great. Granted the drums fall a little flat, but that's nothing a little editing can't fix. In any case, this obviously wasn't designed to be a club track.

However:

Monstrous

Agreed. This is one of my favorite moments in DJ Kicks.

I love everything he's done recently. It feels and sounds real and it's more unpredictable which I think adds a lot more depth to a track.

Posted by Kismet7 on May-25-2010 21:16:

love the vagueness of "its horrible."

lol.

Gotta love internet judges of music.

It sounds like something that would have fit on At The Controls. Wondering how old it is.

Posted by Rebel Brown on May-25-2010 22:01:

This "new" track is from 2006.

Posted by torontotrance on May-25-2010 22:41:

I liked the old holden. His best was his remix of first light by ogenki clinic.

He has clearly changed. Fair play to him.

Still solstice was dope as well

Posted by Omega_Blue on May-26-2010 00:37:

Re: NOTHING

quote:
Originally posted by olympic
Answer ... absolutly ... NOTHING ... only never do the same track or remix

this- apart from his awful profile pic on the dj kicks comp. i dunno why people keep hailing "horizons" like it's some sort of masterpiece- that track has NOT aged well, at all. you can really tell he had limited resources to create that track.

Posted by torontotrance on May-26-2010 00:41:

Re: Re: NOTHING

quote:
Originally posted by Omega_Blue
this- apart from his awful profile pic on the dj kicks comp. i dunno why people keep hailing "horizons" like it's some sort of masterpiece- that track has NOT aged well, at all. you can really tell he had limited resources to create that track.

He was a maths student at oxford at the time when he did horizons.

Posted by MrJiveBoJingles on May-26-2010 00:47:

I always preferred the Way Out West remix of "Horizons" to Holden's original.

Posted by Lews on May-26-2010 00:50:

Favorite tune by him by far is "I Have Put Out The Light," though I love the original Nothing and all of his old prog releases.

Posted by euphoria on May-26-2010 20:09:

quote:
Originally posted by Konijn
i'll always prefer prog holden over today's holden

agree!

Posted by miamitranceman on May-27-2010 02:58:

Definitely miss his older proggy stuff, but as someone else said, that sound (dare I say, McProg) left the scene over 5 years ago.

Posted by sljiva on May-30-2010 12:15:

Only thing more awful than that haircut (and that pic in general) in this thread is remix of that othervise great Mogwai tune.

Holden's music is obviously passing through some kind of midlife crisis, and as Sand Leaper said, in his strive to be different, he just comes off uninteresting.