Mekon

John Gosling’s work for Wall of Sound Records as Mekon has anticipated a barrage of stylistic changes during the mid-’90s, from trip-hop to big-beat techno and the general influence of American hip-hop in electronic culture. Debuting in 1994 with “Phatty’s Lunchbox” (just the second release on Wall of Sound), Gosling pioneered the blueprint for the dance music popularized years later by the Prodigy and Chemical Brothers: breakbeat trip-hop invested with a lot of energy and old-school attitude. Future singles blazed new trails as well, through contributions from “Mad” Frankie Fraser (on the gangsta-oriented “Revenge of the Mekon”) and Schoolly D (for “Skool’s Out”). Gosling released his first Mekon album, Welcome to Tackletown, in June 1997 and has remixed Wall of Sound labelmate Agent Provocateur. The 2000 effort Relax with Mekon featured guest appearances from Marc Almond, Roxanne Shante, Jacques Lu Cont, and Shawn Lee. Schoolly D returned for the 2013 effort Piece of Work, which also featured Pig, Marco Pironi, and Peter Christopherson. ~ John Bush