Trevor Jackson has been working at the forefront of audio and visual culture for over 20 years. The London based Art Director, Designer, Moving-Image maker and Producer’s work has been exhibited at the ICA, BALTIC, GUGGENHEIM and BARBICAN, as well as on countless, seminal record covers. With its emphasis on visual as much as musical artistry and innovation, Jackson’s iconic OUTPUT RECORDINGS label set a new aesthetic standard that prompted critics to declare it this decade’s equivalent to Factory.
Jackson’s career began in 1987 when he formed design company BITE IT! Selected for the Creative Futures exhibition, his early work also featured in Cynthia Rose’s influential DESIGN AFTER DARK: The Story of Dancefloor Style. Jackson subsequently ventured into record production and remixing: working as THE UNDERDOG, his dark blend of hip-hop, psychedelia, avant-garde electronics and dub won him many admirers, and remix work for MASSIVE ATTACK, U2 and UNKLE followed. In 1996 he retired The Underdog alias and formed a new label, OUTPUT RECORDINGS. Jackson’s art direction gave Output its unique and immediate visual identity, one intimately and inextricably linked to the groundbreaking records it released and distributed – music by FOUR TET, LCD SOUNDSYSTEM, THE RAPTURE, and Jackson’s own PLAYGROUP project, among others. After 10 years and 100 releases, Jackson closed Output, subsequently releasing: I HATE MUSIC CD/DVD collating some of the label’s most notable offerings
His visual campaign for the band SOULWAX received several prestigious awards, including the TOKYO TDC Non Members Prize, a D&AD Silver Pencil Nomination and CREATIVE REVIEW’s Best In Book. Jackson’s work has featured in the GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM’s exhibition on minimalism, Singular Forms (Sometimes Repeated): Art from 1951 to the Present. A sound and light installation for the launch of the BMW 1-series car saw Jackson combine his audio and visual interests to much acclaim, leading to his debut A/V live performance for the 2005 ONEDOTZERO festival in Tokyo. In 2007, Jackson showed work at Gateshead’s BALTIC, as part of the DAZED vs WARHOL exhibition, and created a real-time live A/V performance entitled RGBPM, which premiered at the London IMAX cinema as part of the OPTRONICA festival of visual music. Trevor recently produced a sound & light performance for the launch of the LEXUS CT200h on Hollywood Blvd in LA, a visceral exploration of intense light & sub bass frequencies the installation literally stopped traffic and was broadcast on the primetime US TV show JIMMY KIMMEL.
In 2011 Jackson had his first solo show NOWHERE at the KK gallery in London, these video, photographic & screen printed works explored the innocence of natural light and colour, as well as the power of opposing astrological forces. A natural progression from his work as a commercial Image maker, these highly personal studies were equally as expressive as they were cathartic. A new show YESTERDAY, TODAY, TOMMORROW, FOREVER featuring magnified microscopic images of vinyl grooves from his vast record collection is nearing completion, Abstract and explicit, these images pay tribute to the physical recorded medium and reflect Jackson’s engagement with the visualisation of music through art.
Jackson remains an in-demand Producer, Sound designer, Remixer and DJ, and has recently worked with the likes of the GOSSIP, TIGA, SOFT CELL, YELLO and the DOVES, His classic mix for the renowned compilation series DJ KICKS (K7! 2003), is much like his own approach to creating music: an uncompromising blend of diverse sounds that traverse the sonic spectrum. With a forward-thinking approach driven by an enduring commitment to promote innovation and new talent, as well as extensive knowledge and respect for music history and its cultural roots, Jackson's ability to communicate with the dancefloor, whether it be in larger mainstream clubs like FABRIC (London) High profile fashion & Art events or smaller underground parties across the globe, keep him one of London's most notable dj's.
2012 brings the release of a new compilation titled METAL DANCE (Strut). Focusing on the more underground and danceable side of 80's industrial, Post-Punk and Electronic Body Music, as well as long awaited new music under a series of various guises.