Kelly Lee Owens

Kelly Lee Owens, a producer, songwriter, and vocalist based in London, crafts shadowy yet resonant techno-pop. Her initial vocal contributions appeared on Daniel Avery releases before she launched her own productions in 2015, culminating in the widely praised self-titled debut album of 2017. Subsequent work included collaborations and remixes with Björk, St. Vincent, Jon Hopkins, and John Cale, the last of whom contributed to her 2020 follow-up, Inner Song. The more ethereal and experimental LP.8 arrived in 2022, while Dreamstate, issued in 2024, shifted toward a more accessible sound shaped by progressive house.

After relocating from her native North Wales, Owens completed an internship at XL Recordings, performed bass with History of Apple Pie, and held positions at several record shops such as Pure Groove, Rough Trade, and Sister Ray, where she absorbed influences and gained insight into music production. At Pure Groove she met Daniel Avery, who enlisted her vocals for the Water Jump EP in 2012 and Drone Logic in 2013; the latter featured her on three tracks, one of which she co-wrote. In February 2015 she issued her debut 12-inch single in a limited run of two hundred copies, pairing “Lucid” with the Arthur Russell-inspired “Arthur,” both also offered digitally. Months later Seb Wildblood & Apes released “Noshi” with Owens on lead vocals, while Jenny Hval put out Owens’ swift, rumbling club remix of “Kingsize.” That August the “Uncertain” 12-inch followed in a comparable private pressing, again available digitally, and her third single, “1 of 3,” appeared as a download the next March. Seven months afterward she made her Smalltown Supersound debut with the Oleic EP, a precursor to her first album.

Fronted by the Hval collaboration “Anxi.,” the self-titled album reached stores via Smalltown Supersound in March 2017. Critics responded favorably, and a deluxe edition containing three extra tracks surfaced later that year. Owens then issued standalone singles such as a cover of Aaliyah’s “More Than a Woman,” 2018’s “Bird” accompanied by a seventeen-minute Prins Thomas mix, and 2019’s “Let It Go” together with the Jon Hopkins collaboration “Luminous Spaces.” Her second solo album, Inner Song, emerged in 2020 and included guest vocals from John Cale on “Corner of My Sky.” Commissioned to compose for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, she delivered the theme “Unity” in October 2021. LP.8, drawing inspiration from Enya and Throbbing Gristle, appeared in 2022, followed by the companion EP LP.8.2 in 2023.

In 2024 Owens joined dh2, an electronic subsidiary of Dirty Hit. Her debut album for the label, Dreamstate, moved closer to Ibiza trance than her earlier work and incorporated production from Bicep, the Chemical Brothers’ Tom Rowlands, and George Daniel of the 1975.