According to his press bio, Global Goon's Johnny Hawk is a former shepherd from Liverpool who earned a recording contract after moving to London and rooming with Richard D. James (aka Aphex Twin) for a time. Hawk had worked in the capital for a multimedia company while making music on the side; after moving into a shared house with James, he released his first album Goon on Rephlex in 1996. Rumors that Goon actually was Aphex Twin persisted even after the release of Cradle of History two years later.