Opalescent (album)

In 1999 Hopkins signed with boutique London label Just Music as a solo artist, and began recording his debut album Opalescent. At the time he was also working part-time as a studio session musician. Opalescent attracted positive press attention upon its release, and several tracks were licensed to Sex and the City. Hopkins spoke on how he felt about the album: "It’s always going to have a special place for me. It’s where it all began, and it was very personal, very heartfelt. There were tracks on it I will always be proud of. Now, I obviously don’t like everything on it, but you’re always critical of what you’ve done. Otherwise you wouldn’t move forward. I’ve tried to do every album in a different style, which is why I tend to leave a fair bit of time between each one. But yeah, it’s got a very specific sound all of its own, which is a valid step in my whole musical journey." ==Reissue==

Opalescent was remastered and reissued for its 15-year anniversary on 26 August 2016. It also was issued on vinyl for the first time that year. ==Critical reception==

Upon its release, Opalescent was met with generally mixed reviews from music critics, but many years after Hopkins' worldwide success as a musician and record producer, the album is now critically acclaimed. Kevin Lozano from Pitchfork gave Opalescent a 5.6/10 and wrote: "This reissue of the electronic composer’s first album, made in his early 20s, rings thin and hollow compared to the dark genius of his later work." ==Track listing==

Notes • Additional guitar by Leo Abrahams. == References ==