Tim Hecker

Biography

Tim Hecker (born July 17, 1974) is a Canadian electronic musician, producer, composer, and sound artist. His work, spanning albums such as Harmony in Ultraviolet×Harmony in Ultraviolet16 October 2006 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Rainbow Blood1:532Stags, Aircraft, Kings and Secretaries4:313Palimpsest I0:364Chimeras3:145Dungeoneering5:256Palimpsest II0:397Spring Heeled Jack Flies Tonight3:118Harmony in Blue I1:329Harmony in Blue II1:5310Harmony in Blue III2:4111Harmony in Blue IV2:0312Radio Spiricom4:5213Whitecaps of White Noise I7:3014Whitecaps of White Noise II5:5715Blood Rainbow4:06 (2006), Ravedeath, 1972×Ravedeath, 1972January 2011 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1The Piano Drop2:542In the Fog: I4:523In the Fog: II6:014In the Fog: III5:015No Drums3:246Hatred of Music: I6:117Hatred of Music: II4:228Analog Paralysis, 19783:529Studio Suicide, 19803:2510In the Air: I4:1211In the Air: II4:0812In the Air: III4:02 (2011) and Virgins (2013), has been widely critically acclaimed. He has released eleven albums and a number of EPs in addition to a number of film scores and collaborations with artists such as Arca, Ben Frost, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Daniel Lopatin, and Aidan Baker.

Biography

Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Hecker is the son of two art teachers. During his high school years, he played in rock bands with friends, before acquiring a sampler and working on solo material. He moved to Montreal, Quebec in 1998 to study at Concordia University and explore his artistic interests further. He initially performed as a techno producer under the name Jetone, debuting in 1996. By 2001 he became disenchanted with the musical direction of the Jetone project. In 2001, Hecker released the album Haunt Me, Haunt Me Do It Again×Haunt Me, Haunt Me Do It Again20 November 2001 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 20 tracks1Music for Tundra, Part 15:132Music for Tundra, Part 21:573Music for Tundra, Part 30:394Arctic Lover’s Rock, Part 15:355Arctic Lover’s Rock, Part 20:566The Work of Art in the Age of Cultural Overproduction7:357October, Part 13:358October, Part 21:099Ghost Writing, Part 14:2910Ghost Writing, Part 21:2011City in Flames (In Three Parts), Part 12:5812City in Flames (In Three Parts), Part 22:4713City in Flames (In Three Parts), Part 30:5514Border Lines, Part 14:5615Border Lines, Part 20:2216Boreal Kiss, Part 13:2817Boreal Kiss, Part 20:3318Boreal Kiss, Part 31:5919Night Flight to Your Heart, Part 12:2820Night Flight to Your Heart, Part 21:03, under his own name through the label Alien8. He followed with Radio Amor (2003) and Mirages (2004).
In 2006, he moved to Kranky where he released his fourth album Harmony in Ultraviolet×Harmony in Ultraviolet16 October 2006 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Rainbow Blood1:532Stags, Aircraft, Kings and Secretaries4:313Palimpsest I0:364Chimeras3:145Dungeoneering5:256Palimpsest II0:397Spring Heeled Jack Flies Tonight3:118Harmony in Blue I1:329Harmony in Blue II1:5310Harmony in Blue III2:4111Harmony in Blue IV2:0312Radio Spiricom4:5213Whitecaps of White Noise I7:3014Whitecaps of White Noise II5:5715Blood Rainbow4:06. He subsequently incorporated the use of pipe organ sounds which were digitally processed and distorted. The album was called the 9th best ambient album of all time by Pitchfork in 2016. For the album Ravedeath, 1972×Ravedeath, 1972January 2011 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1The Piano Drop2:542In the Fog: I4:523In the Fog: II6:014In the Fog: III5:015No Drums3:246Hatred of Music: I6:117Hatred of Music: II4:228Analog Paralysis, 19783:529Studio Suicide, 19803:2510In the Air: I4:1211In the Air: II4:0812In the Air: III4:02 (2011), Hecker traveled to Iceland where together with Ben Frost, he recorded parts in a church. The album was awarded the Juno Award for Electronic Album of the Year. In November 2010, Alien8 re-released Hecker's debut album on vinyl. His live performances contain improvisations by processing organ sounds that are manipulated, with great fluctuations in volume.
In 2012, Hecker collaborated with Daniel Lopatin (who also records as Oneohtrix Point Never) on an improvisatory project which became Instrumental Tourist. Following 2013's Virgins, Hecker returned to Reykjavík, Iceland for sessions in 2014 and 2015, to create what would become Love Streams. Collaborators include Ben Frost, Johann Johannsson, Kara-Lis Coverdale and Grimur Helgason, whilst the 15th century choral works by Josquin des Prez birthed the foundations of the album. In February 2016, it was announced that Hecker had signed with 4AD while Love Streams was released in April of that year.
In addition to touring with Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Sigur Rós, and recording with the likes of Fly Pan Am, Hecker has also collaborated with the likes of Arca and Aidan Baker. He has also contributed remixes to other artists, including Ellen Allien, John Cale, Isis, and Interpol.

Art

Hecker occasionally makes sound installations and has collaborated with visual artists such as Stan Douglas and Charles Stankievech.
Hecker, along with other musicians Ben Frost, Steve Goodman (Kode9), Piotr Jakubowicz, Marcel Weber (MFO), and Manuel Sepulveda (Optigram), provided music for Unsound Festival's sensory installation, Ephemera.
Hecker composed the score for Damien Jalet's performance piece, Planet [wanderer].

Film

Hecker composed the score for 2016's The Free World, selected to be shown in the U.S. Dramatic Competition section at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. He composed the score for BBC Two drama series The North Water directed by Andrew Haigh and based on Ian McGuire's novel of the same name.
Hecker also composed the score for the Austrian drama and horror film Luzifer, which won the Best Actor Award for Franz Rogowski at Fantastic Fest in 2021 and Best Actress Award for Susanne Jensen and Best Actor Award for Franz Rogowski at the 2021 Sitges Film Festival.
Hecker composed the score for Infinity Pool, the 2023 film by Canadian director Brandon Cronenberg, starring Alexander Skarsgård and Mia Goth, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.

Personal life

Hecker pursued a professional career outside music, working as a policy analyst for the Canadian Government in the early 2000s. After leaving his employment in 2006 he enrolled at McGill University to study for a PhD, with a thesis on urban noise that was published in 2014. He has also worked there as a lecturer in sound culture in the Art History and Communications department.
Hecker is a Buddhist and a former Catholic. He started studying Buddhism and practiced meditation in his studio during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.