I wonder which party would gain my recognition as the best of 2002, if James Holden didn’t show up in Warsaw on October 18th? And what would Charlie Jan put on his Sentence Progressive Pink Night CD, instead of “One For You” if the tune didn’t exist? I’m thinking over the Sasha’s debut album, “Airdrawndagger”, devoided of one of its pillars – “Bloodlock”. Who would play the Essential Mix on February 20th 2000 and would it include Yunus’ “Red Pilot”?

Fortunately, James Holden exists and never felt better. On August 23rd , he came to Poland for the second time, creating a huge stir in Piekarnia club. Thanks to Decadance, I got a chance to interview him. Here’s what I managed to extract from him.

Sound Revolt: So! Are you tearing Piekarnia's roof off tonight?
James Holden: I'm hoping to. I've got better tunes this time

Sound Revolt: You hold residencies at two superclubs: UK's Passion and Dutch's Kremlin. Have you noticed any differences between the crowds in these places? What about Eastern Europe?
James Holden: Last time here seems like back in the old days in England. That's what it reminded me of - when I was 18, 17, 16 and I went out for the first time to proper underground clubs. In Warsaw I felt that way again and it was incomparable with anything else.

Sound Revolt: When you perform in Kremlin, do you happen to play dutch trancey style? Do you change anything in your performances to fit into a specific place?
James Holden: I can't play dutch trancey style, 'cause I don't really like it (laughs). And getting back to various places... The difference I've noticed is that Dutch people don't like long breakdowns. Strange...

Sound Revolt: I've got a feeling that breakdowns are getting longer and longer recently...
James Holden: It depends, if it's Digweed (laugh)

Sound Revolt: Right! So what did you feel as a teenager, when Warren charted your "Horizons"?
James Holden: (laughs) I was just peeking! I was properly like: "I don't believe it's really happening". I was amazed.

Sound Revolt: Who helped you stay on the ground?
James Holden: My girlfriend. Well, I might be able to play records that are ok, but I'm an idiot for the rest of the time (laughs) She tells me that!

Sound Revolt: Great motivation!
Leon: Same with mine!
Nermal: Confirmed (laughs). You had problems with Silver Planet, Easy Access never really left the ground...
James Holden: Yeah.

Sound Revolt: But I don't want to get details of the parting. I'm rather interested whether the indecency between artists and labels is an everyday problem in the industry?
James Holden: When I realised what had happened to me for the 3 years I'd been in Silver Planet, I started getting away from them. I spoke to loads of other artists I knew and similar things have happened to almost everyone. Well, more or less everyone. So now, I try to look out for my friends who are younger than me and just getting into the whole thing. Me and my girlfriend help them with contracts, so they don't get screwed. But even so, during the last month I've seen someone trying it on with a friend of mine. If you're an 18 year old perk kid and it's your first record or your second record - you really wanna get signed - you don't think of what's gonna happen. You don't think: "I should check". You just think: "Fuck it! I want a record out!" and there are a lot of people, who play on that. But there's also many people who run record labels in a really ethical manner. Really ethical manner! With respect for their artists. These people are keeping the scene alive.

Sound Revolt: So now it's Border Community time? Where did the name come from?
James Holden: It took forever to think of a name! Every time we thought of a name that we liked, it was already taken. So that's like an amalgamation of two names that we liked (laughs). The idea is our home - our friends all over the place that we chat with on the internet, hanging together and trying to meet up. Which is not often 'cause I'm too busy. So it is a little community. Some of the people don't make music, they do art work or just like to write stories, or just like to chat, or roll joints or whatever. It's a community on the edge of things - like on the borders - not straight up progressive or something like that. Just interesting little things on the edge of people's activities.

Sound Revolt: Just as I thought! The name works! (laughs)
James Holden: Cool! (laughs)

Sound Revolt: Ok! What releases can we expect and who is Nathan Fake?!
James Holden: (laughs) You've heard of Nathan Fake already?!

Sound Revolt: Yeah and I want a CD!
James Holden: (laughs) That's what I'm not allowed to give out. The vinyl will be ready in a month or so. He's... oh, I have to be careful not to get his age wrong. He's 20! He's a very sweet guy and he doesn't really like progressive house at all. He just likes techno and Boards of Canada. That's kind of why his records sound like techno and Boards of Canada (laughs).

Sound Revolt: Easy to imagine! (laughs)
James Holden: So that's the second release. After that, we've got kinds of things. Like some of the tunes aren't that big. We don't expect to sell as many copies of them as some of the other things. But we think they're all good and that's why we're doing it. So it's like a tech-house, kinda lo-fi... it's all melodic, it's all emotional, soulful and in some way good. And later down the line there's this producer Petter from Sweden. Hopefuly, we're gonna be doing something with him and let him do exactly what he wants, 'cause I think he's one of the greatest producers around at the moment.

Sound Revolt: I have read about him in one of the interviews with you but haven't listened to any of his tunes.
James Holden: All right! Well, I've got a mixed CD coming out. I put three productions of his there, so you'll hear it.

Sound Revolt: Great! But the mixed CD is going to be a later question!
James Holden: Ah, OK! (Laughs)

Sound Revolt: What do you think of Yunus and Mo Shic and the whole Middle East vibe? People on various message boards often put the three of you in the same line - as unique producers pushing the sound forward.
James Holden: Oh yeah? Yunus and Mo Shic are more progressive but I do respect what they're doing. Some of Yunus' tunes are in my bag, so I can see whether they're good. Some his stuff I think is brilliant. And it's cool that the scene is taking off in the internet. It's one of the good things about the internet. The people all over the world can become accepted in the scene as global, rather than centered on Europe or America like it was before.

Sound Revolt: Do you visit message boards?
James Holden: I don't read them at all (laughs). I'd read them occasionally, when I'd got really bored on tour or something. I have a look at my laptop but I find them a bit depressing. I think some of the people on those message boards just don't even have a basic understanding of what music is about. It just becomes like collecting stamps.

Sound Revolt: I agree with what you said in one of the interviews, that 90% of artists incorporate someone else's sound. The this-should-sound-like-this-track attitude.
James Holden: Yes

Sound Revolt: On the other hand, there's the Luke Chable's remix of PQM's "You Are Sleeping" on your chart. For me it sounds like James Holden!
Leon: Yeah! Definitely!
James Holden: [moment of embarassment]

Sound Revolt: Got Ya!
James Holden: I wouldn't want to say that it sounds like me but the bassline is like the hoover sound that I like.

Sound Revolt: Leon: The melody is definitely yours.
James Holden: I really like Luke Chable's music.

Sound Revolt: Leon: He's amazing!
James Holden: Yeah! It's amazing music and it doesn't really sound derivative. I've heard people doing some attempts on copying one of my ideas before but Luke Chable is not one of them. It's maybe the same vibe to the track but it feels original to me.

Sound Revolt: So it's a good copy! (laughs)
James Holden: No! I have heard records, cds and things where people have gone from little deep tones, echoing melodies and stuff, then just progged it up. That's horrible but not when Luke Chable does it, he's the proper artist. You understand?

Sound Revolt: Yes. "You Are Sleeping" sounds right to me. But let's get to your productions. First of all - "Nothing". In my opinion, the promos were given out way to early before the official release. You and big jocks like Sasha or Tiesto simply wore the tune out!
James Holden: That was about the point that I started to realize Silver Planet weren't very nice people. They told me I have to let them release it, 'cause they thought, they owned it. Even though it wasn't covered under the contract they've got me to sign, when I was a teenager, because the song was written by someone else. It's like a legal mess. They tried to stop it ever coming out, since I didn't want to release it with them, 'cause I knew they were liers and thieves and unpleasant in every way. And so for six months it was just shit - war between lawyers. I didn't think it was gonna come out. For a long time I thought it's just never gonna happen. And in the end, we knew we were right, so we just - "Fuck you!" - we put it out on Loaded. That's why it took so long. It's frustrating!

Sound Revolt: It was also frustrating for me, because I really loved the track and when Polish djs finaly got the chance to play it, I had to scream and runaway from the dancefloor, because...
James Holden: ...it's a year old - yeah!

Sound Revolt: Actually Leon was the first one to perform it
James Holden: Ohhh (laughs)

Sound Revolt: First time I heard "Nothing" was when I listened to your mix from Screen, Helsinki.
James Holden: Oh, that was before it was even finished! That was just a demo version.

Sound Revolt: Cool! But what does the name "93 Returning Mix" refer to?
Leon: Oh yeah! I was asking that myself.
James Holden: When I finished the mix, I realized it kinda reminded me of the 1993, Paul Oakenfold, goa trance kinda stuff I used to be into, when I was very young (laughs). And so I thought - Fuck it - 93 Returning Mix! There's also a graffiti in London that says: "39 returning" or something...

Sound Revolt: ...I don't think the author meant the sound.
James Holden: It probably had some lexical meaning and I thought, no! 93 Returning! Bring back the trance! But now... I got bored with trance (laughs)

Sound Revolt: What about the follow-up?
James Holden: Umm... it's half-done at the moment (laughs)

Sound Revolt: Well! It was half-done few months ago! (laughs)
James Holden: Well, in a year my taste has changed a bit, and now it's difficult to follow up something that's quite a big tune, that loads of girls like. If I was left to my own devices, I would be writing clicky leftfield sound, rather than big tunes that girls like.

Sound Revolt: You don't feel like a smash hits producer? (laughs)
James Holden: It's just hard to go in the studio and say: "I'm gonna write a smash hit today!". You just go with an idea and you do it. So, we did one idea and in the end I ditched that one, and that one halfway through like a new one, which I really, really like. I think it's the best thing I've done - but I always think that! (laughs)

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