Cern began in Auckland around 2001–2002, when Ollie Macky, also known as Omen, and Jonny Beck, known as Climate, started making drum and bass together. The pair developed their production and DJing while working at Auckland nightclub Fu Bar. Their early releases included the Manaia EP in 2009, followed by the album Terminus in 2011, released through Project 51/Uprising. Renegade Hardware was a label Macky had long wanted to release music with, and he has described it as a source of support for his work. The duo also put music out through Critical and Samurai Music. Cern’s 2011 singles included Recollection / Desert Heat, made with Nymfo, and Futurus, made with Borderline on SOM MUSIC LTD. The later singles Pinch Me / Hollow Moon, with Sabre, and Tracer VIP, with Silent Witness and Survival, added to the project’s releases before its second album. Cern is the drum and bass project of New Zealand producer Oliver Macky.
After Beck died in July 2008, Macky carried on with Cern, releasing music and performing in tribute to his friend. The project’s releases have also appeared on Commercial Suicide, Dispatch Recordings and 31 Records. Macky later moved from New Zealand to London, where exposure to a wider range of music influenced his approach to Under Another Sky. Released on Dispatch Recordings in 2014, the album was his second LP. Macky described it as an experimental, artist-led work, made without DJing as its main purpose. The single Homeland featured DLR, Minor Rain and Safire.
Cern’s collaborations include work with DLR, Jubei, Loxy, Sabre, One Mind, Concord Dawn and Nymfo; Overlook is another collaborator. Macky has said he values collaboration because combining different approaches can generate new ideas and arrangements. He discussed that process in connection with the Multiverse EP, made with Maztek and Dose. The album also includes “Those Left Behind”, a track made with Hydro.
In 2024, Cern released the Desire Path EP on Dispatch Recordings.