If my “Spotify Wrapped” were to be only one artist these past couple of years, it most certainly would be Oliver Heldens. The Dutch DJ has been streamed over a billion times on Spotify with good reason. People can listen to his music for hours at a time at music festivals with good reason as well. His unique and immersive sounds sit at a fascinating intersection between the mainstream EDM and house music sounds that many people enjoy at electronic dance festivals like EDC in Las Vegas or Tomorrowland in Belgium because of his future forward techno sounds. While he is known as a mainstream DJ, he is also known for a darker techno style of music that feels grittier and more underground in its beats, which he has a separate performance name for as “HI-LO.” I think this darker flavor of techno is the evolution of techno sound at its finest and much of his contemporary sounds and beats are likely originating from this unique sound base that he draws upon (with an additional understanding of the history of techno). The “Godfather of Techno” is undoubtedly Detroit’s Juan Atkins. Atkins is known for pioneering the earliest sounds of techno in nightclubs in Detroit.
Interestingly, Atkins’ father was a concert promoter, so the emergence of techno sound is one which sits at the intersection of dystopian science fiction brought together with mainstream exposure to the music industry, similar to Oliver Heldens and his mainstream versus HI-LO musical styles. This is where innovation sits – understanding where we are and creating something unique and new. Heldens is paving the way similarly to how Atkins carved out techno as a genre. Atkins specifically drew upon science fiction for creating the aesthetic ideas around techno music. One of my all-time favorite English courses in college was the history of Science Fiction as a genre. The genre as a storyline concept is highly underrated, to the extent that it often gets over simplified to ideas solely rooted in “Star Wars” or “Star Trek,” where the genre is actually quite expansive and makes social commentary on the contemporary reality of merging together mankind with technology and machinery.
Something deeply fascinating about Heldens music is that there is something which will likely appeal to most audiences. He has the mainstream “beats” which are going to be popular within any nightclub atmosphere (or candidly, it can even be the music used preceding a corporate event or meeting… it truly has a non-offensive sound quality to it and can be adaptable to its use case). However, the styling of HI-LO, his darker music is the one which fascinates me more: he merges together sounds and songs which are unique and he will bring together a very classic techno beat with a cultural song or sound, one that is deeply classical. For example, he has brought together the sounds of Mozart and turned it into an echo chamber of techno sound that resonates with listeners of EDM, where ultimately the new beat merged together with the original classical song enables the brain to focus back onto the classical song, somehow enhancing its original sound quality and turning it into something new and different.
I believe Oliver Heldens is the best DJ of our time for the reason that he is never stuck in one sound style – he is constantly pushing his own limits and this is especially exemplified through HI-LO. However, the qualities of sound he creates is a combination of talent, passion, skill and an understanding of where techno as a music genre has been, where techno is going, and what is also utterly timeless. Ultimately, techno as a genre and Oliver Heldens style is going to move in the direction of his individual passion for the music which is clearly based in how he loves what he does. Heldens is certainly carving forward the path for where the techno landscape is going. As a listener, you can sense that Heldens is performing out of genuine enjoyment for the musical talents he has to share. Hopefully, the continuation of his music career is rooted in this: a passion lit from within and shared as a gift for others. He is considered a pioneer of “future house” music because of his unique blend of electro house sounds. He releases a weekly track set called “Heldeep Radio” – be sure to his evolving talents each week!
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