Aphex Twin's _Selected Ambient Works Volume II_ is ten years old

fucking hell.

this is like rediscovering something that you only had a vague inkling you'd lost.

thank you for the YSI.

And if you're a part of the pro-child-eating/anti-sleep camp, then maybe you're into that. BUT I'M NOT.

If he's listening, I would ask: I love my Aphex Twin SAWII, and I am in love with 'Tired Sounds of the Stars of the Lid," what should be next in that haunting, gorgeous vein?

Wait, I don't think I ever answered this. Er, did the links above from others help?

Digging this out -- I'm finding that I'm a bigger fan of the pretty, Eno-esque/"An Ending (Ascent)"-style stuff more than the "I WAS LUCID DREAMING IN FRONT OF A POWER STATION, YO" stuff, which I do feel has maybe lost a bit of its luster in the intervening 17 years.

hey, power station translates to 'kraftwerk' in german -- and i lucid dream to kraftwerk all the time

Fair enough.

Blue Calx!

That's one of 'em...

More electronic/synthesizer power station connections:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtbqFNxIHyI

the "I WAS LUCID DREAMING IN FRONT OF A POWER STATION, YO" stuff, which I do feel has maybe lost a bit of its luster in the intervening 17 years.

no way man. the sounds on this album are still fucking incredible to me.

more references to power stations in electronic music--

louis and bebe barron's 'krell shuttle and power station' from the forbidden planet soundtrack, circa 1956

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djpJd5RmQxk

also the legendary techno club berghain, in berlin, is inside of an abandoned power station

"Power Station" in Cornish is "tredanva". Surprisingly, there isn't an Aphex Twin tune of that name. That we know about, at least.

Karen D. Tredanvaskin

'tredanva' is a nice name--i approve

oh! i just remembered another reference to power stations in electronic music! the power plant, the legendary club in chicago in the 1980s, one of the early birthplaces of chicago house

and i just pulled out a classic strictly rhythm 12" from '91, photon inc - 'generate power'--i have not listened to this in forever

XP: There's a windfarm at Goonhilly Downs, which I'm guessing has nothing to do with Goon Gumpas.

Actually OMD did a track called Sealand which is a much better fit.

Wow, it just hit me that I haven't listened to this record in at least three years, despite considering it one of my favorite records ever... I need to change that right away. Each track is its own strange little room, and I find it an almost frighteningly transportive experience to listen through them all.

Wow, it just hit me that I haven't listened to this record in at least three years, despite considering it one of my favorite records ever... I need to change that right away. Each track is its own strange little room, and I find it an almost frighteningly transportive experience to listen through them all.

I listen to this album every morning at work. I like it a lot.

I love it, but I'd be a mess if I listened to it every day.

How long have you been doing this for Mr Snrub?

about a year now. i've tried getting into other "classic" ambient albums, like "74:16" by global communication and "the orb's adventures beyond the ultraworld" and "another green world" and "music for films," but none of them even come close to the same effect

The only problem I have with this album is finding a three-hour block in which I'm guaranteed to not be interrupted. Consequently I've not played it all the way through in at least 10 years.

XP: That's pretty impressive.

been listening to it a lot again lately but all mixed up with other ambient stuff. the tricksy little sonic details in the corners really make it stand up - the obvious classic tunes don't get tired for me but the less obvious tracks bear repeat visits

Mr. Snrub: Do you have Eno's Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks? Or Ambient 4: On Land? Both are gorgeous, texturally amazing records with direct links to Selected Ambient Works, Vol. 2... Start with those if you don't know them. You should also check out William Basinski's Shortwave Music at some point. Another Green World I wouldn't call ambient, and Music for Films is more about brief little motifs and less about immersion in sonic "environments" (which SAW Vol. 2 to me is all about). And the other two records you list I feel truly aren't anywhere near as good (or as beautifully alien sounding) as the Aphex and Eno records (few records are, to be honest!).

will do, thanks! i do like that "deep blue day" song from trainspotting. another green world: definitely not ambient. that album was such a disappointment. there are like two ambient songs on the album. "becalmed" is great, though.

Another Green World took a while to grow on me, but it's now one of my very favorite Eno albums, and maybe the one I listen to the most frequently. I came at it from the opposite side as you, expecting it to be an upbeat thing more in line with his first few solo records and being somewhat frustrated by its relative quietude. It's hard to find records with that same mix of deep-space utter coldness, suggestions of machinery/technology, and drifty bliss as SAW Vol. 2. If you're not familiar with Main, some of his stuff strikes that balance: Hz in particular is pretty immersive. I also love Permafrost and Teimo by Thomas Koner. Dettinger's first record on Kompakt is incredible as well, though less visually suggestive/cinematic and more miniature-ish.

You should check out Biosphere - Substrata (and then work your way through his catalog)

Coincidentally I listened to this yesterday afternoon.

A pivotal album for me. When I first discovered it I made up my own track titles.

Goon is actually a quite common placename in Cornwall because in Cornish, goon means "meadow".

It would be great if he wrote a song called Goon Tredanva, which would be a meadow pun on power plant.

This is such a nice album to paint to, it's really good for doing lots of detailed textural work. Especially late at night, when you actually have the time to get a block of a few hours to listen to it all in sequence.

Apparently he played some of the tracks from it at the gig in Dublin last weekend. But I've no idea how that would work at a festival, quite hard to yell for songs which don't have names.

I wonder if people sang along...