William Adam Jones’ “Intrusive Thoughts”

My first introduction to musician/producer William Adam Jones was with the synth quartet S U R V I V E. He, along with Kyle Dixon, Michael Stein, and Mark Donica built ominous, dark musical worlds with analog machines. Capturing the work of folks like Vangelis, Brad Fiedel, John Carpenter and even Kraftwerk to some extent. Stein and Dixon went on to score all seasons of Stranger Things, which upped S U R V I V E’s visibility in both electronic music and pop culture.

Jones is also one of the runners of Austin-based record label Holodeck Records, a label that throughout 2018 thru Covid times offered up an amazing roster of artists and vibes. Any fan of heavy synth, synth wave, and even synth pop was gifted so much great music during that time that you could almost forget that the world was burning around us. And to this day the label’s compilation Holodeck Vision One is still a top tier collection of heady electronic and blissed-out experimentation. I still think it would have made for an excellent double vinyl release, but I digress.

As well as running a label and being a member of S U R V I V E, William Adam Jones was also a member of Troller, Thousand Foot Whale Claw, and has been an integral part of the Austin music community for years.

William Adam Jones has returned with a solo track titled “Intrusive Thoughts”, a moody, dark, ambient electronic piece that feels distinctive and singular from Jones’ other projects, while still locking into the darker side of instrumental electronic music.

Here’s how Jones describes “Intrusive Thoughts” and it’s origins:

“My debut single “Intrusive Thoughts” is a tribute to ’80s and ’90s sci-fi soundtracks from composers like Vangelis, John Williams and Brad Fiedel, whose scores were my first exposure to instrumental music and provided an emotionally rich counterbalance to the music I heard on the radio and MTV.“

“The track began with a basic woodblock sample that I glitched and re-tuned until it became almost like a pad. Spiritually inspired by Brad Fiedel’s Terminator 2 theme song, I wanted the lead synth to come right in with the main theme over the percussion and carry the weight of a fully orchestrated arrangement.” – William Adam Jones

Listening to the over 6 1/2 minute “Intrusive Thoughts” you’re greeted by an almost industrial, mechanical sound. A synth line emanates from below bringing to mind Vangelis and Tim Hecker(his Infinity Pool score for sure), and to an extent early Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze. The looping noise brings to mind The Haxan Cloak; dark, ominous and mechanical in nature, while touches of Huerco S’ Colonial Patterns also comes through. I’m reminded of the great work of Johann Johannsson as well here. It’s a moody, mysterious, and hypnotic track with Gothic undertones and sci fi score vibes.

Hopefully this means William Adam Jones is working on a long player for release in the somewhat near future. Until then, we have “Intrusive Thoughts”, which you can listen to below. Download it over at Holodeck Records.