Esteemed English composer Jon Hopkins and vocalist/DJ Kelly Lee Owens join forces for the unexpected release of the redolent “Luminous Spaces.” The project was first intended to be a Kelly Lee Owens remix of “Luminous Beings,” a track from Hopkins’ 2018 LP Singularity, but quickly gained its own identity with a redefining topline from Owens.

“I sent her the parts, but what she sent back just felt like something totally new, and had the potential to be so much more than a remix…” Hopkins writes in a recent statement.  “…I got a beautiful sense of nostalgia and a true heart-lifting joy the first time I heard it, and it was so painless to take it from there to a finished piece.”

Together, they repurpose the 11-minute “Luminous Beings” into something soft-spoken and transcendental, with just a touch of zest from ’90s electronica. In an interview with NPR, Hopkins once described the original piece as trying to “capture a feeling similar to the sensation of struggling through bracken and brambles, getting scratched, lost and confused, then bursting suddenly into a clearing to find there is nothing but space, clear air, stars.” With “Luminous Spaces,” that vision is finally realized.

This collaboration didn’t necessarily happen by chance, as Hopkins and Owens have been sharing billings for the past few years, including a sold-out show from last month, through the Manchester Warehouse Project at Albert Hall.

“Luminous Spaces” is out now digitally and will be available on vinyl Jan. 24.

H/t: NPR

Photo Credit: Sónar

Tags: jon hopkins, kelly lee owens

Categories: Music