Pan Sonic founder and noise icon Mika Vainio has died aged 53

Pan Sonic founder and noise icon Mika Vaino has died aged 57

One of electronic music’s great agitators.

Mika Vainio, co-founder of Pan Sonic and an icon of experimental music, has died. Sources close to the producer confirmed the news to FACT this morning that Vainio died in France yesterday. He was 53.

After playing in experimental bands such as Gagarin-Kombinaatti, Vainio made his mark on electronic music with the glitch-focused project Pan Sonic alongside Ilpo Väisänen and Sami Salo. The project stretched the ’90s and ’00s releasing classic albums such as Kulma and the nearly four-hour epic Kesto.

After disbanding in 2009, Vainio continued his successful solo career often collaborating with experimental French composer Franck Vigroux, including an excellent 2015 FACT mix.

Artists across genres and generations have already begun paying tribute to Vainio’s life and career. Read them below.

Mika Vainio had a unique talent where you can study in exact detail what he does but never in a million attempts emulate its emotional power

— Holly Herndon (@hollyherndon) April 13, 2017

shocking news. RIP Mika Vainio. incredible legacy w/ Pan Sonic, IBM etc

— Steve Hauschildt (@stevehauschildt) April 13, 2017

It's a sad day for the music world… R.I.P. Mika Vainio – u will always be our hero! #pansonic #mikavainio

— MODESELEKTOR (@modeselektor) April 13, 2017