Inigo Kennedy

Inigo Kennedy has anchored the UK techno circuit from the middle of the 1990s onward, his abundant catalog of releases equaling the inventive scope of his productions. Though widely admired by informed listeners, the forward-thinking musician has never gained the wider recognition his output deserves. He first appeared with several EPs in 1996 and followed them with the 1997 debut album Specific Formal Patterns, earning early notice for brisk, forceful techno built on irregular rhythms and contorted lines. His tempos later eased while the material grew more spacious and melodic, yet the pieces kept expanding in complexity and range. Since Belgian label Token formed in 2007, Kennedy has remained a core artist, issuing the albums Vaudeville in 2014 and Strata in 2018 plus numerous singles and EPs. He has also issued dozens of EPs on his own Asymmetric imprint, among them Recovery Mode in 2021.

While still a student at university in Manchester, Kennedy began releasing techno records. Four EPs surfaced in 1996, two of them on ZET, the fledgling label started by Karl O’Connor (aka Regis). Specific Formal Patterns, an album of uneasy, spasmodic tracks, followed on the same label in 1997, after which Kennedy started performing across Britain and Eastern Europe with regular collaborator Umek. As his productivity rose he issued material under the names Helki Törsnum, Reducer on his Instillation label, and Tomito Satori on Exhibit Records, alongside his own name. He launched Asymmetric in 1999, using the outlet for some of his most demanding and exploratory work.

His second album, The Bigger Picture, appeared on Missile Records in 2001. Singles continued at a steady pace, chiefly on Asymmetric, while he kept a full-time job instead of attempting to live solely from DJ and production work. Asymmetric ended vinyl manufacturing in 2004, after which every subsequent release on the label was offered as a free download. Belgian DJ Kr!z started the dark techno label Token in 2007, and Kennedy quickly became one of its flagship artists, generating a large body of well-received records. Swedish label Electronic Desert Recordings released the experimental full-length CD September Pieces in 2010. His first Token album, Vaudeville, arrived in 2014 and remains his most unified long-form statement. After further singles for the label, the expansive and expressive Strata appeared in 2018.

Trajectory, another Token EP from 2019, preceded the collaborative Catalogue of Errors with Samuli Kemppi on Blacklabel Distillery. Voltage issued the acid-influenced Arcadian Falls in 2020. A number of EPs followed in 2021, including XX 4 with Marco Lenzi and Recovery Mode.