Making Performances Feel Like Jams

Holden outlines his aim to turn studio work into flowing stage jams and the decade-long effort to achieve it.

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Episode notes

Music Not Diving is supported by AC55ID... head over to www.ac55id.com to check out the fastest growing electronic music marketplace, a central hub for music discovery, streaming and purchasing!

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Watch the full video version of this episode over at youtube.com/@WeNotDiving

James Holden is a highly respected electronic musician from the UK. He first broke through in the late 90s with his trance-crossover anthem 'Horizons', and quickly became established as an expert producer and DJ. Following his first album 'The Idiots Are Winning', released like almost all of his music on his own label Border Community label, his sound has evolved in expansive and unexpected ways, culminating in 2023's 'Imagine This Is a High Dimensional Space of All Possibilities' and most recently 'The Universe Will Take Care Of You' with Waclaw Zimpel.

We discuss his changing approaches to making recording and performing, his relationship with nightclubs and DJ culture, the specifics of making his most recent albums, and the nature of music as art.

We also attempt to get him to dish the dirt on big name DJs but he turns out to be the model of discretion!

This is a good one, stick it on, and then listen to his recent catalogue - it's truly amazing work.

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Listen to the music discussed on the show via the Music Not Diving Podcast Spotify playlist

Chapters:

00:00 Intro and how you can support the show

03:33 DJing and nightclubs

09:30 Playing live

13:00 Originality

16:00 Meeting Waclaw Zimpel

21:30 Improvisation

32:10 Jamming or songwriting

36:30 Awful superstar DJs and meeting heroes

39:40 Composition and coding

48:30 Is recorded music a historical blip?