" Undefinable, eclectic and breaking norms "
HOLEG SPIES‘ work can be described as cinematic, weaving evocative visual soundscapes and narrative orchestrations; hybrid, blending electronic, acoustic, field recordings and ethnic influences, and immersive, crafting art installations that transport the listener into deep sensory experiences.
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Holeg Spies has composed twelve albums and numerous film scores. He is one of France’s greatest exponents of electronica and contemporary music. Freeing himself from the boundaries of time, he reflects on the continuity of the place of sound in human societies. His music also pushes for a form of demandingness: through its ruptures, irruptions and unpredictability, Holeg Spies’ music provokes the unexpected, forcing active listening and always reminding the listener of his/her senses.
SacreBleu Production – Cannes Golden Palm, César, Golden Globe and Oscar winning-company
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It is not noise that deprives humanity of the world, but the forgetting to listen. Any sound and noise is a colour, a movment and a texture to paint landscapes
– Holeg Spies
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In the early 90s, while studying international law in Paris La Sorbonne, Holeg DJ’d and hosted underground Raves in Europe and India, joining the French pioneer DJ booking agency Out Soon alongside such artists as Jeff Mills and Laurent Garnier.
Throughout the 2000s Holeg moved into avant-garde audio-visual creations and exhibited at the Pompidou Centre and the Nation French Library in Paris, contemporary art venues in Tokyo, New York, and Geneva, and Yohji Yamamoto‘s fashion shows.
All his works are based on immersive journeys, including those among the Hopi tribe in Arizona, the steppes of Mongolia nomads, long spells of solitude in the French wilderness as well as in the absolute silence of an anechoïc chamber and within echoes of paleolithic decorated caves.
From 1997 to 2007, Holeg extensively toured and performed in Japan thanks to Mike Maguire from Juno Reactor (contributors to the Matrix franchise soundtracks), and it was there that he crossed paths with the notorious filmmaker Takashi Miike. After making an audio-visual remix of his film Ichi the Killer (2001) Holeg’s film journey began.
Since then, as a solo artist and also with Australian-British violin virtuoso and composer Patrick Savage, Holeg has composed feature film scores that include fantasy animation Abruptio (2023) starring Jordan Peele ; thriller Black Site (2022) starring Michelle Monaghan, Jason Clarke ; multi award winning drama Apartment 407 (2016) ; moving documentary The Road to Freedom Peak (2013) narrated by Djimon Hounsou ; cult horror The Human Centipede: First Sequence (2009) ; the trailer for Michael Bay’s The Hitcher (2007). more
Holeg’s numerous collaborations include iconic artists like The Future Sound of London, Coldcut, Anne Clark, Youth (Killing Joke) , Gaudi (Steel Pulse producer), East Bay Ray (Dead Kennedys), Jon Klein (Siouxsie & The Banshees), Andy Falconer (The Orb), Mona Soyoc (KaS Product), Von Magnet among many others…
Holeg’s shape-shifting discography includes releases on major labels as Universal, Sony and Lakeshore as well as many indie labels like Citizen of French electro-pop star Vitalic, Perfecto of Grammy nominee Paul Oakenfold, and Liquid Sound Design of Youth – producer of The Verve, Pink Floyd and Paul McCartney… more
Nowadays, Holeg Spies pursues to expand his polymorphic creative explorations… more
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Holeg Spies’ Brave New World album is a masterpiece. Genre bending psychedelia. An electronic Dark Side of the Moon meets soundtrack and chill.
Martin ‘Youth’ Glover – Grammy winner producer
Holeg Spies’ Axis Mundi album is the soundtrack to the ultimate film I dream of directing. A journey between the end of a world and the beginning of a new era reconciled with the original vibration.
Pierre Morel – Director of Taken