Junkie XL, has made a huge impact on cinematic scoring in recent years. Over the last two years alone, the man born Tom Holkenborg has worked on blockbusters like Divergent, Mad Max: Fury Road, Deadpool, and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The Dutchman doesn’t only work in special effects driven tentpoles, however. In fact, his latest score is for a film that focuses more on natural visual wonders than digital ones: Distance Between Dreams.
Coming as the second entry in Red Bull Media House The Unrideables franchise, Distance Between Dreams is a documentary following big wave surfer Ian Walsh as he tackles record-setting El Niño-powered swells in the Pacific Ocean. Together with his brothers Shaun, D.K. and Luke, Walsh heads into the waters to test the limits of what others consider “rideable.”
“Trying to tell Ian’s story was a tremendous learning experience for me,” Holkenborg said in a press release. “Surfing is a dangerous, solitary, and very noble pursuit, and I think the majority of people are unaware of just how athletic guys like Ian are. The work he has to put in and out of the water is tremendous. The ocean is a magical place, but it’s also dangerous. Capturing Ian’s spirit and the dichotomy of his environment is what is at the heart of this score.”
You can hear that spirit on “Increasing Vibes”, a new track from the film’s official soundtrack. The song plays out like the internal emotions of waiting for a wave, starting out slow and serene but increasing gradually with heartbeat synthpads. As Holkenborg works his collection of analog synthesizers, you can just imagine the sensation of rising high atop a building wave and gliding down impossible heights as it crests above you. Take a listen below.
Both Distance Between Dreams the soundtrack and the movie will be available across all platforms on December 2nd, with a vinyl release of the OST coming in early 2017. Watch a trailer for the film below.
