The title “musical prodigy” is often reserved for a child or young person having extraordinary musical talent or ability – we call him Walden. Cobra Starshipʼs smash hit “You Make Me Feel” (Fueled By Ramen/Decaydence), Zoe Badwiʼs “Accidents Happen” (Neon Records) and Rebecca & Fionaʼs “Luminary Ones” (Neon Records) each received the remix treatment before the now 18-year-old Sydney native John Walden was even old enough to enter the venues where his music was on high rotation, and as he swiftly gathers acclaim, it's no surprise that artists like Estelle, Marina and the Diamonds and Paper Crows are all lined up for mixes. Walden's debut EP “Brightness” is a twisted blend of styles and sounds; the title track, best described as soaring piano-driven progressive house, received an unheard of double feature on Pete Tong's BBC Radio 1 show in the UK, drawing support from international heavyweights Afrojack, Ian Carey, Michael Woods, Morgan Page, Roger Sanchez, Tiesto and Tommy Trash to name a few. But if it wasnʼt for a school field trip to Sydneyʼs Powerhouse technology museum, none of this might ever have happened. During the visit, Walden and his classmates were given a demo of the audio workstation software Acid Pro, and the 12-year-old was immediately hooked. Despite a complete lack of musical training, he got himself a copy of Acid Pro and began to experiment, using all the samples and loops he could get his hands on to start concocting tunes. This musical output varied wildly, veering from ambient one moment, to techno the next, and on to jazz the moment after that. But when he was 13, Walden discovered the Clubland compilation series, and his path into dance music was assured. After brief flirtations with happy hardcore, hard trance and electro, his sound emerged - a dash of Avicii, a pinch of Deadmau5, and a heavy helping of Wolfgang Gartner, but more importantly that intangible thing that makes an artist stand out... originality. Waldenʼs sound most closely resembles, well, Walden. Before long, Walden had created himself a profile on ReverbNation and within a couple of weeks, Big Beat Records, the dance label of music industry royalty Atlantic Records had discovered him and instantly snapped him up. John Walden's journey is just beginning, and the futureʼs looking bright...