Jon Hopkins : RITUAL (Clear Vinyl)

By turns devotional, empowering and nurturing, Jon Hopkins forthcoming RITUAL is a 41-minute electronic symphony built from cavernous subs, hypnotic drumming and transcendent melodic interplay. Tense, immersive and ultimately triumphant, it is a culmination of themes explored throughout his 22-year career, and acts as the kinetic counterpart to 2021s Music For Psychedelic Therapy.

A single piece unfolding over eight chapters, RITUAL is personified by depth and contrast. Takingceremony, spiritual liberation and the hero’s journey as inspiration, it taps into an ancient and primalenergy.

Featuring long-term collaborators Vylana, 7RAYS, Ishq, Clark, Emma Smith, Daisy Vatalaro and CherifHashizume, RITUAL came together within the second half of 2023, but initial seeds were sown in2022, when Hopkins was commissioned to compose for the stroboscopic Dreamachine experience inLondon. A project that felt ceremonial from the outset, this shorter piece