Autopilot by Ken Ishii

Japanese Techno pioneer Ken Ishii returns to Radio Slave’s Rekids Special Projects with the ‘Autopilot’ EP, arriving 22nd August 2025. It follows his first appearance on the label in 2023, where he collaborated with Dutch duo Kamara on the ‘Powerplay’ single. ‘Autopilot’ kicks off with an unsuspecting, rolling groove while playful synths sneak up and
bounce off its rhythm. The trip continues with ‘Sunset Flight’, lush chords washing over deep, subby low-end, rising high before delving back into the background while delicious percs play between its pounding kick drums. Closer ‘Grid Bounce’ then returns to mischief, machine-like sequences tumbling over an unrelenting beat, excellently building pressure for maximum dancefloor wonk.

“With this EP, I wanted to combine the funky and happy side of my music with driving techno elements. The EP and track titles were inspired when I was on a long-haul flight. So happy to release these three tracks in one EP.” - Ken Ishii

DJ and producer Ken Ishii is one of the founding artists behind the Japanese Techno scene, he debuted on R&S Records in 1993 and quickly rose to global acclaim, releasing on labels like Harthouse, Exceptional, and now Rekids’ RSPX offshoot, while collaborating with artists like Jeff Mills, who remixed Ishii’s 2019 ‘MOBÏUS STRIP’ album on U/M/A/A. He is also the founder of the 70 Drums label, co-brewer of KIKK IPA, worked on theme songs for the 1998 Winter Olympics and the Japanese government for the 2005 World Expo, and continues to innovate through projects ranging from video game and anime soundtracks to collaborations with Jazz artists.