Junkie XL – Big Sounds Of The Drags

My favorite album of all time. I am a die-hard fan of "Saturday Teenage Kick" for life. However, in "Big Sounds Of The Drags", Tom Holkenborg kept his godlike touch and brought more diversity, allowing a larger range of dreaming sounds to exist.
Two more things : the title is just badass and the album cover is fantastic. It pictures the energy given off from this music so well.

For real big beat fans, this is the ultimate version to own.
The original release finishes with sort of cracklings after "Future In Computer Hell Part 2" which last for more than 10 minutes. Not the prettiest way to end such a masterpiece.
Then, you have the 2000 version which notably features "Bon Voyage", a hell of a tune. However, "Action Radius" is missing, the version of "Future In Computer Hell Part 2" does not sound as memorable as its original form in my opinion and the reprise of "Power Of Big Slacks" does not suit that much with the rest of the tracklist.
That's why I strongly recommend this particular version. The "Extended Neurotransmitter" version of "Zerotonine" is definitely worth it.

- "Check Your Basic Groove" starts the hostilities with cow sounds (shout out to "The Castbreeder") followed by Formula 1 sounds. It's not the dragster from the album cover, but it's cool nonetheless. Then you have a mix of solid booms and funky sounds.
- "Action Radius" is a throwback of the "Saturday Teenage Kick" style. Good job from the Need For Speed franchise for including it in "NFS Underground".
- "Synasthesia" is defined by the ability to combine several senses, such as combining colors and letters/digits. This bomb is definitely able to ake you lose your mind, especially with the HUGE beats that kick in at the third minute".
- "Power of Big Slacks" still has big beats, but the acoustic guitars make it a bit less noisy.
- "Zerotonine" is the definition of Holkenborg's brilliance. The combination between violins and electronic is just perfect there. In another words : how to prove that electronic music can be emotional (especially in the outro).
- "Love Like Razorblade" is true big beat. Whoever knows "The Fat Of The Land" should find satisfaction with this tune as well.
- "Legion" has the same beat pattern as The Crystal Method's "High Roller". The section from 2:34 to 2:53 is simply eargasmic.
- "Dance U.S.A." is part of another video game soundtrack : "Test Drive Overdrive". I totally imagine myself driving at sunset while listening to this combination of female chorus, bombastic beats and unleashed keyboards.
- "Black Jack" changes the atmosphere drastically, with a production that sounds more like a lounge soundtrack. Arguably the weakest song from this LP, but still very good at this latter's scale.
- "Next Plateau" keeps a calm atmosphere with its beautiful strings and the superb vocals of Patrick "Rudeboy" Tilon.
- "Future In Computer Hell Part Two" brings wonderful progressive house for ya. There are so much mindblowing sounds (the loops at 0:47, the sort of cyborg sigh at 1:01, the melody at 2:50 and, mostly, the unforgettable drop at the 4th minute mark). The outro is as soothing as you like.
- "Disco 2000" brings back the groove, yet the beats are still strong.
- Last but not least, the "Zerotonine" remix is a 8-minute long progressive work. The orchestra in the middle of the track sounds wonderful.

To put it simply, "Big Sounds Of The Drags" has not the consistent strength and these continuous dark and explosive beats like its predecessor but it is the result of a more light-hearted Junkie XL, which began transitioning to progressive house as his next opus "Radio JXL" will prove in 2003.

I apologize for the long review, but it reflects all the love that I have for this CD and that has remained intact for the past 6-7 years.
Thank you Mr. Holkenborg for this piece of art, and bravo for your successful career as a film composer.