In film scores, he is best known for his work in the DC Extended Universe beginning with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice with Hans Zimmer, contributing to the theme song for Wonder Woman, as well as the scores for Deadpool and Mad Max: Fury Road.
Holkenborg was born in Lichtenvoorde, Gelderland, Netherlands. Classically trained by his mother – herself an accredited music teacher – Holkenborg started playing piano when he was four years old, drums when he was eight, and guitar at 12. Influenced by the psychedelic-pop of Pink Floyd and King Crimson, he took up the bass by age 14. After taking a job at a local music store selling keyboards and other digital gear, he began to have an appreciation for the combination of electronic and organic sounds. It was shortly after he discovered synthesizers that he joined the Dutch New Wave ensemble Weekend at Waikiki as a multi-instrumentalist and producer, touring extensively with the band, including through parts of the former Soviet Union, from 1988 to 1991. He also contributed to their final album, Sputnik. In 1993, Holkenborg produced Almost a Dance by Dutch metal band The Gathering, and later that year went on to form the industrial rock band Nerve with Phil Mills. After signing with label Play It Again Sam in 1992 and releasing two LPs – Cancer of Choice (1993) and Blood & Gold (1994) – he continued as a producer, working with hardcore and metal bands like Sepultura, Fear Factory, and Dog Eat Dog, while simultaneously licensing some of his instrumental electronic tracks for racing video games like The Need For Speed and Test Drive 5. It was during this time that he also began scoring the Dutch feature film, Siberia, which would be released by Warner Brothers Netherlands.
In collaboration with Harry Gregson-Williams, he contributed additional music to the Tony Scott film Domino (2005), and served as the composer on the Dutch film Blind, which was nominated for Best Original Music Score at the Netherlands Film Festival in 2007 and received the Grand Prix award for Best Original Music Score at the 2008 Aubagne International Film Festival. Holkenborg continues to work in the film and television industry, collaborating with composer Hans Zimmer on Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises. The film marks the fourth scoring collaboration between Holkenborg and Zimmer, including Megamind (2010), Inception (2010) and Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012). Since moving into Zimmer's Remote Control Productions studio, the two have worked together on many other musical projects, including Man of Steel, the reboot of the Superman franchise, and a remix of that year's Academy Awards theme song. Holkenborg has provided music for the films Kingdom of Heaven, Domino, DOA: Dead or Alive, Shark Tale, The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury, The Animatrix, and Resident Evil, and has had his original music featured in a number of major motion pictures, including Blade ("Dealing with the Roster") and The Beach ("Synaesthesia"). In 2013, he composed the music for the Relativity Media film Paranoia. Shortly after, he was brought in by Zack Snyder, the producer of 300: Rise of an Empire, to create the score for the film. He is credited as the composer for the 2014 film Divergent, with Hans Zimmer credited as "Executive Producer" for the soundtrack. He is a member of the Magnificent Six, a collaborative group of five other musicians, consisting of Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams, Johnny Marr (from The Smiths), Michael Einziger (from Incubus), Andrew Kawczynski, and Steve Mazzaro. The "supergroup" of artists ranging from diverse backgrounds teamed up to compose the score for the Marvel comic reboot's second feature film of the original Spider-Man trilogy The Amazing Spider-Man 2. He was the primary composer for the 2015 film Mad Max: Fury Road and the 2016 film Deadpool, and was co-composer for the film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, along with Zimmer. Holkenborg's theme music for Wonder Woman was used in the film of the same name. Zimmer was replaced by Junkie XL to write and compose the music for Justice League releasing in 2017. Holkenborg was later replaced by Danny Elfman, brought up by Joss Whedon.[2] On 8 December 2017 Holkenborg was revealed to be composing the score for the 2018 film Alita: Battle Angel, based on the manga Battle Angel Alita by Yukito Kishiro.
To go along with his numerous artist albums and EPs, Holkenborg has been creating original music for video games since the mid-90s. In addition to composing the soundtrack for Xbox racing games Forza Motorsport and Quantum Redshift, Holkenborg is responsible for the SSX Blur soundtrack. He has also licensed a number of his album tracks for video game use. "Future in Computer Hell (Part 2)", "Synasthesia", and "Dance USA"—all taken from his album Big Sounds of the Drags—were licensed to the racing video game TD Overdrive: The Brotherhood of Speed (2002). The title track for Today is featured on the soundtrack for the video games Burnout Legends and Burnout Revenge, while "More"—taken from his fifth album, Booming Back at You—is featured on the soundtrack to EA Games' Need for Speed: ProStreet, which also includes a full score from Holkenborg. His cover of Siouxsie and the Banshees' "Cities in Dust" is featured on Electronic Arts' Burnout Paradise. He has written additional music for and licensed music to The Matrix: Path of Neo, Destroy All Humans!, The Sims 2: Nightlife, The Sims 3, Need for Speed: Underground, Need for Speed: Carbon, FIFA 08, and FIFA Street 3, among others. He composed the soundtrack for EA's Darkspore.
Holkenborg is an associate professor at the ArtEZ Conservatorium, one of the major art institutes in the Netherlands, where he teaches producing, remixing, and music composition. He resides in Venice, Los Angeles, California. He uses the name JXL in cases where the term "Junkie" might cause offense. Holkenborg says of his name: "I called myself Junkie XL from the point of view that once you're completely overworked, you never want to go there again. The 'XL' stands for expanding limits; broadening up your vision."
Drift Away
Junkie XL Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
what you mean to me
This constant fight
and struggling
would slip away
from night to day
it's yours to take
and throw away
Don't turn my violent side
as you drift away
there must be some mistake
this time you find to cry
as you drift away
there must be more to say
the sooner you fall from
in decision turns for some
and desires self destruction on
so will love and your affection
A new world for me
how silly can it be
this serpent you see
devouring me
don't you see... what you mean to me
Oh don't you see... what you mean to me
Don't turn my violent side
as you drift away
there must be some mistake
this time you find to cry
as you drift away
there must be more to say
the sooner you fallfrom
in decision turns for some
and desires self destruction on
so will love and your affection
If you only knew
what you mean to me
This constant fight
and struggling
would slip away
from night to day
it's yours to take
and throw away...
The song “Drift Away” by Junkie XL is a beautiful yet emotional depiction of a person torn between their intense love for someone and the violent tendencies that this love brings out in them. The lyrics paint a picture of someone desperately trying to hold on to their love, even though it causes them great pain and struggle. The opening lines of the song, “If you only knew what you mean to me, this constant fight and struggling would slip away from night to day, it's yours to take and throw away”, highlight the intensity of the person’s emotions, as they believe that all their struggles would vanish if only their love knew the true depth of their feelings.
The song also speaks about the duality of emotions that this love brings out in the person. While they feel an intense passion for their love, it also brings out a violent side in them that they cannot control. The lines “Don't turn my violent side as you drift away, there must be some mistake, this time you find to cry as you drift away, there must be more to say” speak volumes about the struggle within the person as they try to come to terms with their emotions.
Overall, “Drift Away” is a powerful love song that delves deep into the complex and often tumultuous emotions that love can bring forth.
Line by Line Meaning
If you only knew
The singer wants the listener to understand the depth of their feelings.
what you mean to me
The listener is very important to the singer.
This constant fight
The singer is struggling with something that is difficult to overcome.
and struggling
The artist is experiencing hardship and difficulty in their life.
would slip away
If the listener understood what they meant to the artist, their struggles would disappear.
from night to day
The singer's struggles would disappear quickly.
it's yours to take
The listener has the ability to change the situation by understanding how much they mean to the singer.
and throw away
The listener can discard the negative aspects of the artist's struggles.
Don't turn my violent side
If the listener were to leave, the artist could become aggressive.
as you drift away
The listener is leaving the artist.
there must be some mistake
The singer is confused about why the listener is leaving.
this time you find to cry
The listener is upset about leaving the artist.
there must be more to say
The singer believes there is a way to understand each other and prevent the listener from leaving.
the sooner you fall from
The listener falling away will have consequences.
in decision turns for some
The listener's inability to make a decision is causing them to leave the singer.
and desires self destruction on
The listener wants to harm themselves and is using the decision to leave the artist as a form of self-destructive behavior.
so will love and your affection
If the listener keeps making self-destructive decisions, it will impact their ability to love and receive affection in the future.
A new world for me
The singer will experience some type of transformation as a result of the listener leaving.
how silly can it be
The singer is having difficulty understanding the situation and how things ended up this way.
this serpent you see
The artist believes there is some sort of danger or destruction happening.
devouring me
The artist is being consumed by their own emotions and struggles.
don't you see... what you mean to me
The artist is pleading with the listener to understand how important they are and how much they mean to the artist.
Contributed by Gabriel I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@Meurth
It's a shame this isn't on Spotify!
@bikesnbeerz
Who heard this only a few seconds of this to realize it is epic?
@Meurth
Hoop dat je het ooit op spotify zet Tom!! zo prachtig
@robertk8844
Really want this to be on Spotify
@blakepotter7937
Still one of the absolute best.
@micheltangy2725
Forgotten jem. Beautiful in every aspect, both musically and text. The name of the singer is Nathan Mader. Thank u 4 posting!
@starpoint78
superb!!!