Jon Hopkins and Imogen Heap collaborate for track ‘Reckoning’ after 30 years of friendship

British artists Jon Hopkins and Imogen Heap celebrate releasing their first collaborative song today. Titled ‘Reckoning’, it is a dance track that borrows from the techno and house worlds, whilst bringing in the ethereal soundscapes that both Hopkins and Heap have dabbled in over the decades. Indeed, whilst the pair have been friends with deep respect for each other’s song craft, it took a BBC 6 Music interview to set them off on a collaborative tangent. Whilst Hopkins had played in Heap’s first touring band when they were teenagers, they’d never written music together. ‘Reckoning’ changes that.

Speaking about the process, Jon Hopkins says:

“I’d been building this piece for something like a year and kept coming back to it, but it never quite felt interesting enough to me. Then Immi and I were interviewed together on BBC 6 Music and found ourselves wondering, on air, how we’d never actually made a track together. Later that night I was back in the studio on this tune and realised her singing and writing was what it needed.”

For Imogen Heap, the track arrived at a difficult time:

“I’d been writing almost like a diary, but also writing words that sounded nice with each other, things with a nice stanza. Jon sent me this track and I loved it. Something pretty devastating had happened that day and I was upstairs, unable to go downstairs and I had it on my headphones. I immediately felt so positive and grateful that I had this outlet, and that these words were magically feeling really nice with what Jon had done.”

From there, a freeform mix of spontaneous recordings, experimentation, exploration, and improvisation across several days of vocal sessions allowed the track to grow and develop naturally. Add in Imogen’s Mi.Mu gloves, and some additional support from artist HAAi, and the track was ready to rumble. I think you can hear that freeform exploration in the panoramic synths and swandive vocals, which stretch and glide over granular samples and crunchy beats. It’s definitely made for the dancefloor, but with that signature Jon Hopkins elegance. It’s a wonderfully uplifting track and perfectly timed for the summer heat.

‘Reckoning’ is out now. There’s no word on whether this is just a one-off, or if there will be further collaborations. Nor do we know if the single will end up on either artist’s next album. We know Imogen Heap has been working on one, so we’ll find out soon.

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