Mika Vainio

Sometimes referred to as Ø, Mika Vainio was the co-founder of Finnish techno duo Skillet Sonic (referred to as Panasonic until 1998), whose innovative make of blistering rhythmic sound and uncompromising minimalism transformed them into perhaps one of the most popular exports in the Northern Euro techno underground. Unlike Skillet Sonic’s harder, relatively more dancefloor-oriented equipment, nevertheless, Vainio’s Ø function tended even more toward the ambient and experimental, wedding ceremony sparse machine sounds with moving rhythms, stubbornly unmusical sonic textures, and assorted route parting weirdness. His function under his provided name followed an identical path, even though some of his afterwards recordings and collaborations, especially ones created after Skillet Sonic’s 2009 break up, flared up to the strength degree of the duo’s harsher occasions. Vainio’s Ø produces stretch back again to the first ’90s (predating his association with Panasonic by way of a couple of years); his first function appeared on the organization label before getting with Finnish techno organization Sähkö in 1993, where he released the majority of his materials, including three albums and a small number of EPs. The raising recognition of Panasonic discovered Vainio giving much less and less time and energy to his Ø function, but he do manage to launch a few of his most achieved solo materials in 1996, on his second Sähkö full-length, Olento, which presented the very best fusion of Panasonic’s austere minimalism with much less immediate, more difficult constructions. Demand for Vainio like a remixer grew, with revisions of paths by Björk and Tactile both showing up in middle-1996. He continuing to record as Tekonivel (for Sähkö sublabel Puu) so when Kentolevi for Patrick Pulsinger’s Inexpensive label; titles released under Vainio’s personal name consist of 1997’s Onko (Contact), 1999’s Ydin (Wavetrap), and the next year’s 20 to 2000 (Raster-Noton) and Kajo (Contact). Wohltemperiert, the next cooperation between Ø and Noto, aka Carsten Nicolai, made an appearance on Raster-Noton in 2001, adopted in 2002 by Invisible Structures 2 (Audiosphere, in cooperation with Fennesz). Vainio’s following solo recording was 2003’s Contact launch Sokeiden Maassa Yksisilmäinen on Kuningas (Within the Land from the Blind One-Eyed Can be King); this is accompanied by collaborations with Fennesz and Christian Zanési (GRM Encounter, Personal) and John Duncan and Ilpo Väcan beänen (Nine Recommendations, Allquestions). He resumed the Ø alias for 2005’s Kantamoinen and 2006’s Aste (both on Sähkö), while 2006’s Revitty [Torn] made an appearance on Wavetrap under his provided name. Pursuing 2007’s “Ikuinen” solitary and 2008’s Oleva full-length, both released as Ø on Sähkö, Skillet Sonic disbanded in ’09 2009, liberating two collaborations with Keiji Haino in 2009-2010 and last studio recording Gravitoni (Blast First Petite) this year 2010. Vainio dedicated a lot more of his time and energy to single and collaborative function under his very own name, with Aineen Musta Puhelin (Dark Phone of Matter) showing up on Touch in ’09 2009. Raster-Noton released Period Examined, a dual CD/reserve documenting Vainio’s set up functions, that same calendar year. 3. Telepathics Meh In-Sect Connection, a collaborative record with Kouhei Matsunaga and Autechre’s Sean Booth, made an appearance on Important Information this year 2010. A fresh Ø album entitled Heijastuva made an appearance on Sähkö in 2011, with Vainio’s Lifestyle (…It Eats You Up) arriving in Editions Mego immediately after. The entire year 2012 noticed the discharge of Vainio’s single record Fe3O4 – Magnetite on Contact, in addition to Venexia, a cooperation with Kevin Drumm, Axel Dörner, and Lucio Capece, on Skillet. A heavier, noisier single album entitled Kilo made an appearance on Blast First Petite in 2013, and Contact released Monstrance (in cooperation with Joachim Nordwall) exactly the same calendar year. Vainio collaborated with Arne Deforce for the drone collaboration entitled Hephaestus, released by Editions Mego in 2014. Ø’s Konstellaatio surfaced on Sähkö that calendar year. In 2015, Contact released Halfway to Light, a reserve of picture taking by Joséphine Michel that included a Compact disc by Vainio. Also that calendar year, Vainio collaborated with guitarist Franck Vigroux for the full-length Peau Froide, Léger Soleil, released by Cosmo Rhythmatic. In 2016, iDEAL Recordings released Vainio’s soundtrack towards the film Mannerlaatta. Unfortunately, Vainio passed on on Apr 12, 2017, at age 53.