Mad Max: Fury Roadbrought the work of electronic music veteran Junkie XL, AKATom Holkenborg, to the attention of a lot of people, and Holkenborg has since booked a variety of gigs scoring high-profile movies. The musician, who has made plenty of records under his moniker over the years, didn’t start as a film composer until 2014, but he has a bit of a history adding additional music to films and scoring video games likeNeed for Speed; his original tracks have been used in movies likeBladeandGinger Snaps, as well. But now he’s in the big leagues, and his first big post-Mad Maxgig,Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, has seemingly secured him an equally massive project:Justice League.
During our recent set visit,we found outthat Junkie XL will indeed be providing the score toZack Snyder’s next grim-as-fuck epic, which is kind of a big deal. Though I can’t say I remember much about what anyone talks about inBatman v Superman, I most certainly remember the noise that accompanied and occasionally overwhelmed the dialogue. That film, for me, is all about noise: metal breaking and bending, machines powering up and malfunctioning, walls demolished and hammered against, buildings being incinerated and collapsing, and so on and so forth. In a way, Junkie XL was, for me, the most memorable element of the entireBatman v Supermanproduction.
That’s similarly the case with Junkie XL’s other recent work, from300: Rise of an Empireand thePoint Breakremake toBlack MassandDivergent, though he wasn’t even half the reason thatDeadpoolworked so shockingly well. BesidesJustice League, he’s currently tapped to compose the score forThe Dark TowerandMartin Koolhoven’sBrimstone, starring Jon Snow himselfKit Harrington. Though I’m attempting to keep an open mind and be optimistic aboutJustice League, especially consideringJeremy Irons' comments about the upcoming film, there’s a chance Holkenborg’s work will be a standout inJustice Leagueas well.
