Insides

Released in 2009 on Domino Records, Insides represents the pivotal moment where Jon Hopkins transitioned from a respected producer and collaborator into a leading voice in contemporary electronic music. The album is notable for its integration of music originally composed for Wayne McGregor's contemporary dance production, Entity, which explains the visceral, physical quality of the rhythmic tracks like 'Vessel' and 'Wire'. It also features 'Light Through the Veins', a track that gained massive exposure after being adapted by Coldplay for their album 'Viva la Vida'. Musically, the album sits at the intersection of IDM, ambient, and modern classical, featuring contributions from long-time collaborators like Leo Abrahams and Davide Rossi. Critics praised the album for its 'aggressive' production and 'widescreen' emotionality, noting that Hopkins' background as a trained pianist allowed for a level of compositional sophistication rarely found in beat-driven electronic music. It remains a definitive document of the late-2000s UK electronic scene.