Las Vegas producer Dixon Hill’s new instrumental album, ‘Holodeck Beats: Program 3.’ beautifully captures the feeling of isolation while also being a treasure trove of head-nodding beats. While the beatsmith has woven a tight narrative through the project’s 16 tracks, he’s not necessarily concerned over whether his listeners dig into it or not.
“I hope people appreciate the details and nuances of the beats, the narrative structure, and the attempt at cohesion,” Hill says. “But it’s not my place to interpret or analyze my music on behalf of the listener. I want it to be theirs.”
Hill’s humility as an artist is admirable, especially at a time when ego-tripping is at an all time high. But he’d probably be the first one to tell you otherwise, because he’s simply interested in creating and sharing music that he hopes his audience will connect with. It’s a mindset he’s had since he started playing music in his teens, and he continues it today after pushing through hardships (he lived in his car for a time) and working with his heroes such as Guilty SImpson on their ’19 released collab LP, ‘Actus Reus.’
And with ‘Holodeck Beats: Program 3‘ Hill is continuing an instrumental series that just gets better with each release. As he weaves a tale of a “solitary musical alien” visiting a spaceship with sci-fi samples, he also delivers straight-up slappers like lead single “Damage Mode” and opening track “Out of the Silent Planet.” But there’s a lot more than bangers on Program 3, with highlights like “Dollarcab Redux.” “The Long Goodbye.,” and “One For Nov” showing off his laid-back, jazzy side.
There’s just so much to love and dig into with Program 3, and it’s only the first bit of new material we can expect from Hill this year. As he tells us, he’s working on two collaborative albums—one with AG of DITC, the other with Noveliss of Clear Soul Forces—and he has plans to dip into other music genres. Until then, immerse yourself in the sounds of “Holodeck Beats: Program 3” which is available now via Fat Beats.
