The Jon Hopkins Australian Tour 2013 has been announced and following news that the classically trained electronicist is headed to Australia for the Meredith Music Festival this December, Jon Hopkins will now bringing his refined brand of music-making to Australian audiences through a series of Meredith sideshows.
Returning to the country of the back of his blissful, beautiful latest LP, Immunity – an album which has confirmed Hopkins as a solo producer of international standing and a respected artist in his own right – these dates, presented by Niche Productions will be held through December.
Until now, Jon Hopkins has been an elusive character, known to most as an expert producer, Ivor Novello-nominated composer of film scores, remixer and long term collaborator of Brian Eno and Coldplay. Yet as Hopkins freely admits, the fact that his solo albums to date (Opalescent, 2001; Contact Note, 2004; Insides, 2009) have been rather overshadowed by his work with others has meant that he’s been able to quietly develop his own identity, style and sound.
Released in June to international acclaim, Immunity announces itself as a powerful, multi-faceted beast, packed with the most aggressively dancefloor-focussed music Hopkins has ever made.
Initial indications suggest his first foray into riffs and grooves is paying off. See first single from the album, ‘Open Eye Signal’, where a high pressure hiss gives way to burbling, insistent rhythm – a chrome express train accelerating through a sunlit landscape.
The track got its first outing courtesy of Apparat at a DJ set in Japan on New Year’s Eve – an email from the German musician informing Hopkins that the room had erupted made for a great late Christmas present. Or ‘Breathe This Air’ with its graceful build and huge contrasts in mood via uppity rhythms, mournful piano notes, and stirring choral drones. And then there’s ‘Collider’, the album’s peak and the track that Hopkins says is the best he’s ever written. A ten minute techno monster, ‘Collider’ is underpinned by a constant, pounding bass pulse and a sinister texture that could be a harshly taken breath inside a gas mask.
Since the release of Immunity Hopkins has also collaborated on tracks with Purity Ring and Bat For Lashes, as well as receiving the remix treatment on the albums lead single ‘Open Eye Signal’ from Nosaj Thing. These upcoming December dates mark Hopkins’ second Australian tour, following his performances at Brian Eno’s ‘Luminous’ curated festival at the Sydney Opera House in 2009.
Don’t miss Jon Hopkins’ Australian Tour 2013 this December.
Jon Hopkins Australian Tour 2013
Saturday 7th December – The Bakery – Perth
Tickets: www.nowbaking.com.au
Thursday 12th December – The HiFi – Melbourne
Tickets: www.thehifi.com.au
Saturday 14th December – Oxford Art Factory – Sydney
Tickets: www.moshtix.com.au
Also appearing at:
Meredith Music Festival 2013 Dates & Tickets
Meredith Supernatural Amphitheatre
Saturday 14th December
head to http://2013.mmf.com.au for more info and to subscribe for the ticket ballot
