― Ned Raggett, Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― matthew m., Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― ethan, Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
We used to get his records at my old radio station every eight months or so, and somebody would always note "He's making real progress on this one!"
― Douglas, Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― electric sound of jim, Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― chaki, Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Curt, Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Brock K., Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― adam, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Dan Irons, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
Of course with IDM it's a bit distorted because when Aphex Twin started he was competing with maybe ten others, and now he's competing with hundreds, thousands of bedroom tinkerers, so the possibility of recognisable innovation shrinks dramatically.
In comparison people aren't likely to criticise Bob Dylan for not pushing boundaries (although I get the impression that Love & Theft evidences *personal* artistic progression) because the critical model that surrounds evaluation of Dylan - and traditional songwriting generally - usually adheres to a fall-from- paradise model rather than a race-to-the-finish-line model.
― Tim, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― nathalie, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Nathalie, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Melissa W, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Ronan, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
- and hey, maybe Drukqs makes more sense if you try and put it into a Dylan template! It's Aphex's New Morning or Self-Portrait - sprawling but also cosy, perverse and domestic at the same time (all those gentle interludes, the phone call from his parents, the general resting-on-laurels-having-fun ambience that pisses progressive Aphex fans off...). I like it, anyway.
― Tom, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
As for Drukqs, what I like about it is the sequencing of the record. It's the one album of 2001 (and I use that term instead of my customary 'LP' deliberately) that only makes sense if you play it all the way through in the prescribed order. Not that I've had the inclination to do that very often! We probably won't know unless and until RDJ deigns to release any of his more recent noodlings if this is just a self-indulgent nod to the influence of 'classical' composers (Delius, Stockhausen, etc.) and drum and bass, or if it's the direction he really wants to go in now. Personally, while I'll always be hoping he can repeat the Windowlicker trick, I'd be equally happy with more stuff along the lines of Gwarek2.
― Jeff W, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
oh well. that always happens to me. AND it bloody fades out, so is pretty hard to mix with.
― ambrose, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― gareth, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
Not this again. ;-) Both Dan and I think it is very wonderful, thank you. Yay us!
― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― o. nate, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Andy, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― A Nairn, Tuesday, 12 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
and, no, they do not nessecitate the same thing.
― Wyndham Earl, Wednesday, 13 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Jordan (Jordan), Thursday, 8 February 2007 17:23 (seventeen years ago) link
and yeah, i like drukqs too
was actually my favourite until i was told i should be liking the 'ambient' stuff more.
― Charlie Howard (the sphinx), Thursday, 8 February 2007 17:30 (seventeen years ago) link
― KeefW (kmw), Thursday, 8 February 2007 17:49 (seventeen years ago) link
― jimn (jimnaseum), Thursday, 8 February 2007 17:55 (seventeen years ago) link
― jimn (jimnaseum), Thursday, 8 February 2007 17:56 (seventeen years ago) link
― Disco Nihilist (mjt), Thursday, 8 February 2007 18:17 (seventeen years ago) link
For me, it's got plenty of good things but it's the least interesting of the "proper" studio albums, no doubt.
― It's Tough to Beat Illious (noodle vague), Thursday, 8 February 2007 18:23 (seventeen years ago) link
I pretty much thought it was shite when it came out.
― KeefW (kmw), Thursday, 8 February 2007 18:33 (seventeen years ago) link
― Jordan (Jordan), Thursday, 8 February 2007 18:42 (seventeen years ago) link
― and what (ooo), Thursday, 8 February 2007 19:11 (seventeen years ago) link
― and what (ooo), Thursday, 8 February 2007 19:15 (seventeen years ago) link
― held tony (held tony), Thursday, 8 February 2007 19:59 (seventeen years ago) link
― held tony (held tony), Thursday, 8 February 2007 20:03 (seventeen years ago) link
― Treblekicker (treblekicker), Thursday, 8 February 2007 21:19 (seventeen years ago) link
I got into Aphex Twin way late and sorta heard everything all at once. Drukqs struck me as the best. It's still my favorite.
― Nigel (Nigel), Thursday, 8 February 2007 22:46 (seventeen years ago) link
― Christopher Costello (CGC), Thursday, 8 February 2007 23:38 (seventeen years ago) link
― plan b: videodrome (fauxhemian), Friday, 9 February 2007 00:00 (seventeen years ago) link
― friday on the porch (lfam), Friday, 9 February 2007 03:10 (seventeen years ago) link
― Mr. Snrub (Mr. Snrub), Friday, 9 February 2007 03:16 (seventeen years ago) link
― Zachary S (Zach S), Friday, 9 February 2007 03:24 (seventeen years ago) link
― and what (ooo), Friday, 9 February 2007 03:25 (seventeen years ago) link
― Mr. Snrub (Mr. Snrub), Friday, 9 February 2007 03:50 (seventeen years ago) link
but... the drill stuff was already getting kinda old when this came out and he was looking to end his relationship with warp. I found the analord stuff actually pretty good and at least had a bit of a new direction.
― hector (hector), Friday, 9 February 2007 03:57 (seventeen years ago) link
― Christopher Costello (CGC), Friday, 9 February 2007 04:25 (seventeen years ago) link
I keep replaying "Avril 14." Is the rest of the album this good?
― Tape Store, Sunday, 21 October 2007 19:11 (sixteen years ago) link
One of the things about Druqks that I'm not keen on is hearing all the ravey dance tracks broken up by these ambient pieces. Some might hear these wild changes in mood as pallet-cleansing. To me it's an unnecessary momentum killer. I'm rarely in the mood for listening to full-throttle drill'n'bass mayhem AND Satie-esque piano moods at the same time
I think this is why I haven't gone back to Druqks much, despite liking most of its songs
― Vinnie, Thursday, 21 March 2024 20:27 (one week ago) link
Yeah the current rephlex.com is kinda weird
― default damager (lukas), Thursday, 21 March 2024 20:40 (one week ago) link
Haha, right enough. It is "Big on the web"!
― Keith, Thursday, 21 March 2024 20:44 (one week ago) link
Vinnie, check out the two playlists I posted above. If anything it's an interesting new way to experience rhe album
― your mom goes to limgrave (dog latin), Thursday, 21 March 2024 20:44 (one week ago) link
Yeah as I mentioned up thread, if he'd dropped an album of just the prepared piano pieces alone that'd probably be up there with some of his best work. I feel the music is somewhat diluted in how its sequenced on Drukqs, but the magic of digital libraries and streaming can easily rectify this concern.
FWIW, despite my critiques above and focus on the downsides of Drukqs and Syro to fit things into the context of his career, I find both to be good albums and each feature multiple career highlight tracks. I prefer Drukqs way more than Syro, too. I just don't find them to be his career peak or zenith by a long shot.
His Soundcloud song dump was a cornucopia of awesome though, further cementing how fruitful RDJ's 90's era cutting room floor tracks were (us fanbois at the time fantasized there was this archive of stuff just as good as his releases, as was hinted by Mike Paradinas and James himself, and for the most part this came true). His "deleted" or "unreleased" albums at the time hinted at this. See the Melodies From Mars album and Caustic Window LP (btw 101 Rainbows off the latter is like a top 5 career RDJ track imho; listen to it immediately if you haven't yet)
I feel I could compile two separate LP length records from the Soundcloud dump that would be better overall, more satisfying and memorable LPs than Syro (or anything else he's dropped since Drukqs), but that's my tastes I guess. I totally suggest comparing the Caustic Window LP with Chosen Lords sometime. Play them back to back for science!
― octobeard, Thursday, 21 March 2024 20:52 (one week ago) link
I feel I could compile two separate LP length records from the Soundcloud dump that would be better overall
you should do that then! I'm not a big enough Aphex Twin fan to wade through all this myself. I'm sure it's been done dozens of times but I trust ilxors more
― frogbs, Thursday, 21 March 2024 20:59 (one week ago) link
No one has mentioned Cheetah either, and there are a couple tracks on there that are closer to my heart than anything on Syro.
Yeah that's another one I haven't really got into... I mean I like it, but it doesn't jump out at me—I'll need to have another listen.
― Keith, Thursday, 21 March 2024 20:59 (one week ago) link
Isn't Cheetah like "Hey I made an album thar sounds like my other stuff except on a redundant piece of hardware that's really difficult to use"?
I've heard similar concept albums by VSnares and Si Begg and my reaction with all of these is "That must have taken you fucking ages, I shall waste no time in listening to it"
― your mom goes to limgrave (dog latin), Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:05 (one week ago) link
To be more charitable, I think of it as creating an artificial constraint to see what he could possibly make with those constraints, as someone mentions in some form upthread. I also like Tarzan's monkey, Cheetah.
― Keith, Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:07 (one week ago) link
xps to frogbs - I shared some thematic playlists I made for the soundcloud dump in the regular C/D thread
― I painted my teeth (sleeve), Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:08 (one week ago) link
would also love to hear octobeard's choices
― I painted my teeth (sleeve), Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:09 (one week ago) link
I am being a bit facetious about Cheetah, obviously. It sounds like an Aphex album with a more limited sound pallette, and hey that's not necessarily a bad thing. I coold see myself putting it on when im in a particular mood. It's fairly groovy too
― your mom goes to limgrave (dog latin), Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:36 (one week ago) link
(btw 101 Rainbows off the latter is like a top 5 career RDJ track imho; listen to it immediately if you haven't yet)
good shout although I might quibble with top 5
if only we had a way to collectively decide what the top aphex tracks are
alas
― default damager (lukas), Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:42 (one week ago) link
he continually challenges himself [...] going as far as making an EP (the “Cheetah EP”) almost exclusively using the Cheetah, a synthesiser from the early 1990s, which was apparently notoriously difficult to use.
Bizarrely enough, the designer of the synthesizer in question subsequently sold a software company to Hewlett-Packard for $11.1 billion and is now on trial in San Francisco, charged with multiple counts of fraud and conspiracy.
― Vast Halo, Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:44 (one week ago) link
xxxp ha - I'm happy to go through and do that! I'll put something together and share in the next few days
― octobeard, Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:45 (one week ago) link
okay I can't stop myself, linking my favorite ILM post again: Did the guy who said he'd make the best of Aphex . . .
I can't believe this was written over twenty years ago: There was a time when RDJ records were like shocking brand new worlds, that was before there were a thousand IDM producers making entire microgenres out of just one of RDJ's hyperprism gimmicks.
― default damager (lukas), Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:47 (one week ago) link
Going back to the Analord stuff and I totally forgot about this gem that samples the same drums the Chemical Brothers use on It Doesn't Matter and is an absolute dance banger:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msJUNl-lrgg
Might need to revisit this series and see if there's some other gems I overlooked too. Might need to make my own "Chosen Lords" as well.
And I might be hyperbolic with "top 5" too - but it's just soaring with beauty in ways very few of his songs do. But yeah if only there was a ballot poll to try and sort that out. Honestly though, organizing an RDJ one would be quite an undertaking. I'd be open to volunteering but I've never run one before and I'd need a LOT of help with it. If I'm unemployed this summer I'd take it on.
― octobeard, Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:48 (one week ago) link
Ha yeah I probably sounded overly pious in the response, when I agree with your point too. I remember seeing some complicated acrobatic act on with work people at the Edinburgh Festival—it was rubbish really, and a work guy turned to me stoney faced and said the kindest thing he could think of: "That must've taken a lot of practise". Haha!
― Keith, Thursday, 21 March 2024 21:49 (one week ago) link
xp yeah that is a gem.. also “pissed up in se1”’or whatever
― brimstead, Thursday, 21 March 2024 22:02 (one week ago) link
I just got the Cheetah EP recently, not terribly impressed by it. but you can still lose yourself in it if you're a real analog synth head. amusingly it's those 2 short tracks that capture my attention the best.
― frogbs, Thursday, 21 March 2024 22:11 (one week ago) link
His "deleted" or "unreleased" albums at the time hinted at this. See the Melodies From Mars album and Caustic Window LP (btw 101 Rainbows off the latter is like a top 5 career RDJ track imho; listen to it immediately if you haven't yet)I’ll have to revisit that track… I remember purchasing the Caustic Window download, and then being disappointed, after the years of hype. I had Melodies on Mars on CD-R, and didn’t think that was too great either. I guess I don’t subscribe to the “unreleased tracks” theory of his catalog, lol
― let’s get intertwined (morrisp), Thursday, 21 March 2024 22:23 (one week ago) link
The SoundCloud dump is great if you just start listening in the order the tracks were uploaded, which is how most torrents etc organize them anyway. The first 100 or so tracks are just loaded with gems, if you’re nuts for the early stuff that is
― brimstead, Thursday, 21 March 2024 22:33 (one week ago) link
Cheetah is dope dark low riding funk
― brimstead, Thursday, 21 March 2024 22:34 (one week ago) link
I've been pissed up in SE1 many times and I do feel for the guy if that's what it sounds like for him. I thought it was rather joyous.
― Keith, Thursday, 21 March 2024 22:59 (one week ago) link
Scanning over the soundcloud dump and a couple of the cheetah tracks are in there as early edits/mixes.
― octobeard, Friday, 22 March 2024 00:34 (six days ago) link
280 tracks are you for real
― Premises, Premises (flamboyant goon tie included), Friday, 22 March 2024 00:46 (six days ago) link
hmmm looks like it's up to 298
― maf you one two (maffew12), Friday, 22 March 2024 00:59 (six days ago) link
xp and most of it is good-to-great, it's insane
― I painted my teeth (sleeve), Friday, 22 March 2024 01:53 (six days ago) link
Yeah holy shit I was unaware of the last 18 tracks, all uploaded in the last 7 years. A few at least exceed a good majority of his released tracks during the same period, honestly, like Love 7. Why wasn't this on Collapse? blargh.
Many of the classics were cleaned up and mastered to be tacked on as bonus tracks for a number of his albums too.
― octobeard, Friday, 22 March 2024 01:58 (six days ago) link
Jah bless archive dot org
https://archive.org/details/aphex_twin_user18081971_soundcloud
― Marten Broadcloak, mild-mannered GOP congressman (Raymond Cummings), Friday, 22 March 2024 02:07 (six days ago) link
(they also have several complete analord downloads)
― koogs, Friday, 22 March 2024 06:12 (six days ago) link
listened to this in the day and now Confield at night. wow, can't believe both of these albums were seen as disappointments. the world was not ready
― frogbs, Thursday, 28 March 2024 02:39 (sixteen hours ago) link
Confield is easily one of my most disliked albums ever, terrible sonics and no material to justify it. When I’m dead and in hell I’m sure Pen Expers will be on loop
― Premises, Premises (flamboyant goon tie included), Thursday, 28 March 2024 04:22 (fifteen hours ago) link
“lentic catachresis” tho! exquisite.
i like confield a lot myself. kinda like the ae boys playing catch-up with mego digital noise of that era but not quite losing what made them autechre in the process.
is it better than “interesting” tho? still not quite sure! guess i’ll play it yet again…
― (⊙_⊙?) (original bgm), Thursday, 28 March 2024 04:45 (fourteen hours ago) link
I think it's great. I was actually surprised how listenable it was, despite what I'd read in the reviews. The only moments that are really overwhelming are Bine and the end of Lentic Catachresis, though I love the latter because it's such an aural rollercoaster. There's even that moment where like, you stop rising, you speed up a bit, you see the cliff over the horizon and know you're going over very soon...it nails that feeling
totally understandable why someone wouldn't like it though, I guess "head in a pinball machine" isn't all that enjoyable for some people
― frogbs, Thursday, 28 March 2024 04:52 (fourteen hours ago) link
to me it feels a lot like a real noise record with a pretty major profile, which is cool. but of course… not for everybody. i myself like noise and find it very listenable (sometimes, when it’s done right). but i mean that it’s a “real noise” record as opposed to afx stuff that uses noise more like nine inch nails or a hardcore band like botch might. hits different but both approaches are valid. confield is more like what you get when you already loved roland kayn records also start to love kevin drum’s mego stuff (im guessing). it’s electronic music with very few concessions for people that don’t already find electronic music of this style to be perfectly listenable music. which is cool but… not for everybody.
― (⊙_⊙?) (original bgm), Thursday, 28 March 2024 05:05 (fourteen hours ago) link
I just realized this thread isn't about black metal band Drudkh. Maybe I should listen to Aphex Twin and post in the "listen to an album... and tell us about it" thread
― Nabozo, Thursday, 28 March 2024 08:09 (eleven hours ago) link
There are so many odd choices on Confield that if they'd not made them I'd probably enjoy it a lot more. Some sounds are so overwhelmingly loud in the mix, if they'd been toned down just a tiny bit it would have made a big difference to my enjoyment
― your mom goes to limgrave (dog latin), Thursday, 28 March 2024 09:12 (ten hours ago) link
<3 confield, the most synaesthetic album ever, incredible sounds, no aural fatigue like i get with exai.
but this is an aphex thread. i've been working my way through the analords (thanks fgti), slowly because i'm suddenly in loads of all day meetings for the first time in my career. i'm digging the faster acid breakbeat workouts, most of the rest of it i could take or leave - i was never that crazy about saw 85-92 though.
― gene besserit (ledge), Thursday, 28 March 2024 10:15 (nine hours ago) link
Maybe I should listen to Aphex Twin and post in the "listen to an album... and tell us about it" thread
i recommend the Richard D James album, mostly cuz it's the shortest and arguably the weirdest.
― frogbs, Thursday, 28 March 2024 13:12 (six hours ago) link
and it has his best track on
― gene besserit (ledge), Thursday, 28 March 2024 13:16 (six hours ago) link
For a long time RDJ was his agreed on high point album, now it feels underrated.
― default damager (lukas), Thursday, 28 March 2024 16:24 (three hours ago) link
I at least had never heard that kind of crazy shit sounding so warm and organic and cozy, it's like a drill n bass wool sweater.
― default damager (lukas), Thursday, 28 March 2024 16:26 (three hours ago) link
I have never thought about the connection between the word "sweater" and "sweat" before. (And that's why I think Finnegans Wake is bullshit)
― default damager (lukas), Thursday, 28 March 2024 16:28 (three hours ago) link