My brand-new EP 'Sirocco' is now available on your favorite platform! ‘Sirocco’ took a slightly different approach compared to my other albums, and I'd like to share a few more words about its creation. I was always obsessed with sci-fi and watched Star Wars, Star Trek and obviously I’m a big fan of Dune. For the “Sirocco” EP I wanted to move away from the orchestra for once, which is very unusual for me since I usually rely on the power of the orchestra in some way or another. In this case all parts that I had initially planed to be played by the orchestra were replaced by synth parts that I shaped in a way that they reminisce a sound that we know from Vangelis’ work in “Blade Runner”, or Jean Michel-Jarre, or Tangerine Dream. I also wanted to add new elements to the palette like Middle-Eastern influences that are showcased by bendy male and female voices and small and medium percussion. The same goes for all the other instruments I used. The goal was to use all instruments in an unconventional way so they would evoke a sound that is alien, unexpected yet somewhat anchored in something that is predicable and rooted in what we know.
Jo's new album "VOCALESE" is out now!
Jo’s music in this Academy Awards montage for this year’s "Best Picture" nominees
Jo’s piece “Eleomera” set to this beautiful Oscars montage for this year’s Best Picture nominees.
Jo's new album "RUST" is out now!
Jo's music in A24's "The Inspection"
Jo's track “Hail the Sun" from his upcoming album “Rust” is featured in A24’s drama The Inspection”
Jo's music in Apple TV's "The Essex Serpent"
You can listen here
Jo's track “Apparition" from his album “Clandestine” is featured in Apple TV’s drama “The Essex Serpent”
You can listen here
Jo's music in Apple TV's epic family drama "Pachinko"
Jo's track "Zebra" in HBO's "Succession"
Jo's new album "UNRAVEL" is out now!
Jo's track "Dance de Cane Rosso" in Disney's "Cruella"
Jo's track “Dance De Cane Rosso" from his EP “STRNGTHRY” in collaboration with fellow music producer “Amp Live” is featured in Disney’s “Cruella”
You can listen here
Jo's new album "SENTIENCE" is out now!
Sentience - the forgotten places that capture our experiences and turn us into sentient beings
Sentience - the era that is the birthplace of everything we know
Sentience - intellectual stories and ideas become meaningless without the ability to feel
Sentience - the essence of every moment that creates a sliver of the past and projects into the future
Sentience - the days when emotions ascend closer to the surface
Sentience - the sounds that capture our experiences and turn us into sentient beings.
Jo's track "Fearmonger" in Netflix's new hit show "Shadow & Bone"
Jo's track “Fearmonger" from his album “Vanguard” is featured in Netflix’s new TV-series “Shadow & Bone”
You can listen here
Jo's new album "MEMOIRS" is out now!
I started out by recording all kinds of percussive sounds of my piano and as I experimented with different patterns I found that one particular percussive sound resembles a typewriter. That sound became a theme and recurring thing that can be heard in every piece. I like the piercing quality of it as it cuts through all the other instruments and always exposes the rhythmical backbone of the track:
The typewriter that goes on and on in the background of our minds that captures everything and writes the story of our life.
A major influence on me and for this album in particular is Steve Reich’s music. I’ve always admired the polyrhythmic nature of his compositions. I took a multi-layered piano approach which for me starts to become a staple in my arsenal. I would put down one layer of a rhythm and then find juxtaposing riffs to create syncopation to intensify the propulsive nature of a piece. Kaleidoscope-like patterns that are interchangeable and always complement each other.
Finding memorable melodies is probably the most difficult part of writing music but also the most rewarding for me if I’m able to “crack the code” time and time again and find a sequence of notes that mean something to me. Notes that have the power to draw you into a piece, that hook you and make you feel stuff.
I also used all kinds of single-note, percussive patterns where a single note motif rubs slightly with another syncopated motif of another pattern. There’s a lot of simplicity paired with the right amount of complexity that (ideally) creates enough intrigue to keep the listener interested and longing for more.
Every track is a tiny emotional snapshot of a life event that I wanted to capture. Things that spun me out of control. Things that challenged me to the core. The brightest joy I’ve experienced and the darkest valleys of despair I’ve wandered. I guess I could also call these “snapshots of momentary illusions”.
Jo's music in Bungie's ViDoc for "Destiny 2 - Forged in the Storm"
Jo's tracks “Cortex Bomb", “Tracer” and “Ace of Spades from his album “Ghost in the Machine” are featured in Bungie’s ViDoc for “Destiny 2 - Forged in the Storm”
You can listen here
Jo's track "Apparition" in Sony Pictures' "The Father"
Jo's track “Apparition" from his album “Clandestine” is featured in Sony Pictures’ “The Father”, starring Anthony Hopkins and Oliva Colman
You can listen here
Jo's new album "VANDALS" is out now!
“My new album "Vandals" has a special place in my creative heart as I allowed myself to fully express different facets of “opposing” genres. The classical, traditional on the one side and the gritty, electronic and modern on the other.
Every track depicts a form of transformation - a new birth out of fire and ashes. Something powerful that can only emerge out of the silence after the biggest destruction. The brightest light that can only shine after the darkest gloom. The fragile seed that can only sprout in a field of scorched earth. The greatest potential that can only be unleashed within us after wandering the darkest of valleys.”
Vandals - Strength | Power | Fortitude
Jo's track "Opium" in Bong Joon-ho's "Memories of Murder"
Jo's track "The Magellan Matrix" in "Wonder Woman 1984"
Jo's track “The Magellan Matrix" from his epic hybrid album “Vanguard” is featured in Warner Bros’ “Wonder Woman 1984” trailer.
You can listen here
Jo's piece "Needles" featured in "Blackbird"
Jo's piece “Needles" featured in this trailer for "Blackbird", starring Susan Sarandon and Kate Winslet.
Jo's new electronic album "Ghost in the Machine" is out now!
You can LISTEN on your favorite platform HERE
“The initial inspiration for this album was the ambiguity we all experience with technology - the good and bad that comes with technological advancements and how it affects us on a daily basis.
While I can be a complete nerd when it comes to science and all things artificial intelligence, I’m also really vigilant about the negative implications of these things and I can get genuinely scared when I think about possible doomsday scenarios that predetermine a change of power caused by AI sometime in the future. I know it sounds super sci-fi but it’s not as far-fetched as you might think.
The technology that not only augments and furthers the human potential but eventually overshadows us and turns us into “slaves of machines”. I don’t want to get too dark, just to let you know what my inspiration was for the pieces on this album. As for the music: I wanted some tracks to be almost neutral so they are not used as a vehicle to elicit a specific emotion from the listener. Other pieces have more ”emotional content” and are snapshots of “in-between states” of emotional experiences.
I mostly used more archaic electronic sounds of early synths with glitchy things, sprinkled with some highly processed orchestra. I grew up with Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, and Klaus Schulze and then, later on, produced electronic music (while I was working in Real Estate) long before I even got excited about the sounds an orchestra can produce.
This album is like going back to my roots in a way and showing my appreciation for early electronic music. Hope you enjoy this little adventure with me and maybe you wanna give this album a listen even though electronic music is usually not your cup of tea.”