The most remarkable quality of Singularity is its through line. From deep groove to infinite atmosphere, Hopkins creates a flawlessly continuous mix, skillfully composing many of the track endings with the following beginnings in consideration.
Have you ever experienced walking outside at night to see something foreign suddenly appear in the sky? A green flash or a white orb that moves in an unpredictable manner? You turn to your friends (or if alone, within yourself) and ask, “What IS that?” Scanning your mind for similar images, you attempt to piece together its meaning from your terrestrial understanding. As you begin to let go of your initial confusion it is replaced with a feeling of acceptance. The sight itself can have a humbling and resonating affect, bridging the earth bound observer with the universe beyond it in a single moment.
Jon Hopkins presents his fifth studio album Singularity, an exemplary work of electronic music that ventures from rooted techno to classical leanings and ambient experiments. The first track, which shares the album’s name, leads the listener into a peculiar space while synth arps begin to percolate to the forefront and expand, somewhat similar to the sounds of Cliff Martinez’s work on his score for the series The Knick, but ending in digital disintegration. Overall, the record shares fantastic commonalties with the work of Nils Frahm, whose Una Chorda virtual instrument is utilized throughout, and given that Hopkins has collaborated closely with Eno it would be impossible not to notice a similar attention to airiness when it comes to the instances of delicate piano. Early choral music also comes into play in “Feel First Life,” a sacred cut not typically expected on such a release.
In regards to the rhythmic side of Singularity, as the second track “Emerald Rush” drops into its pulsing beat it feels as though it would be right at home with the work of Rival Consoles or in consideration of its emotional chord progression, even as a late descendant chill-out track of Tiesto’s seminal trance album Elements of Life. “Neon Pattern Drum” for that matter as well, in which Hopkins manipulates a cosmic ambience into a stuttering effect, like a dying radio transmission that only allows us glimpses into what it once was. It’s a bold creative decision and one previously unheard before. The sound then becomes a part of something more as the chunky beat is introduced; it adapts and grows until eventually stripped down to singing bowls and recedes into itself.
The most remarkable quality of Singularity is its through line. From deep groove to infinite atmosphere, Hopkins creates a flawlessly continuous mix, skillfully composing many of the track endings with the following beginnings in consideration. He discusses this approach as it pertains to “Luminous Beings” in his recent episode on the exceptional podcast Song Exploder, an insightful listen.
Singularity‘s praised visual player in Spotify is a perfect companion to the album and an equally unifying component to the listening experience as a whole. The official video for “Emerald Rush (Edit)” from the BAFTA nominated production company Blink Industries and a very talented pool of collaborators is stunning and further fortifies Jon Hopkins’s vision.
It’s all connected, including you the listener if you’re willing to abandon any preconceptions and surrender to the enriching experience Hopkins has shared.
Singularity is available on Domino. [Bandcamp]
