James Holden: From Judas Priest To Progressive Trance

"It was only when I was 16 that somebody played me some techno. I then put all my old CDs in the cupboard and started feeling ashamed of my Judas Priest poster." 21 one year old mathematics graduate James Holden was a 9 year old rock fan when acid house first emerged, listening to Queen and practising both the piano and violin (eventually to Grade 8 for both disciplines). Nowadays, a hotly tipped protege of Timo Maas, courtesy of his Bedrock / Tong-endorsed debut single Horizons, James spoke to mezzmusic this week about his journey into clubland, via Oxford University's toff-dominated world of privilege.


mezzmusic ; Was Horizon your first 'serious' track-

James Holden:"There was one 12" before that. I had a mate who ran a cheesy trance night in Oxford, he was putting together a compilation CD and asked me for a track. So I made two trance tracks for him. That never happened because he was a space cadet who smoked too much, but the tracks then got picked up by Silver Planet. I only wrote a trance track because somebody asked me to. Horizons followed and was the first track where I did exactly what I wanted, with decent equipment."


mezz: When you were at Oxford University, did you have to attend many traditional formal dinners wearing those Brideshead Revisited-style gowns-

James Holden:"There were quite a lot of situations where there'd be two sittings for dinner. The first sitting would be where you went to eat normally, the second would involve wearing gowns and being waited on, by people of your own age. It was really fucking weird. That whole Oxford thing pissed me off, it's a horrible place. Although I did meet the people there who changed my life, like my girlfriend and friends who are really similar people to me. Apart from that, I wish I hadn't gone there, it was horrible. For example, at these dinners, you'd be sat there being waited on by somebody the same age and there are these fucking arrogant students, treating them like they're better than them. Just because someone gets good A levels (qualifications) because they happened to go to a fucking good school, doesn't make them a better person."


mezz: Did you mix with many of the public school contingent-

James Holden:"Just being at Oxford really put me off them. I'm from a state school in Leicester, and up to that point, I liked people and

believed that most people were decent- because normal people are. When you get to Oxford, you find this 'We're so fucking cool, because we're at Oxford' mentality."


mezz: Did public school students still tend to look down on State school entrants-

James Holden:"It seems that people who've had all that money thrown at them, are different- they do turn out differently, thinking they're really great. If you get into Oxford from state school, the chances are, you've been the odd one out, maybe you're a bit too brainy (clever). I never got any hassle for it (ie being brainy) but occasionally I would. People would say if you were good at stuff (school-work) 'ah, you're a geek, then'. Whereas at public school, I suppose it's different. They turn them out more confident and more full of themselves."


mezz: You're just 21 and must have been 10 back in the acid house days, did that Summer Of Love thing make much of an impression on you-

James Holden:"I was completely oblivious to it, back then, I didn't watch much TV and I was a Queen fan. Looking back I 'd hear tracks and think 'that's pretty cool,' but at the time I was getting into Judas Priest and rock. It was only when I was 16 that somebody played me some techno. I then put all my old CDs in the cupboard and started feeling ashamed of my Judas Priest poster. I still listen to Queen though, it's still really good music."


mezz: When did you start clubbing-

James Holden:"Until I was 17, I was going to shit clubs, those shirt-and-shoe-brigade plac Tags

• James Holden