Aphex Twin's _Selected Ambient Works Volume II

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Even though I don't really do pyschedelics anymore, I swear I can still hear very distant dixie big band-type jazz behind a lot of the tracks if I snuggle right up to the speaker and lay still for fve minutes or so.

That is the funniest thing I've read in a while. I want to try that some day.

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 10:50 (twenty-two years ago)

and i think that i am going to put on the album right now, as i prepare my lunch.

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 10:51 (twenty-two years ago)

i have never heard all of this :(

― stevem (blueski), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 11:09 (twenty-two years ago)

Chalk me up to a member of the "saw ii um so what" party. I couldn't sleep to it, couldn't concentrate on it, couldn't keep it on as background noise, and ended up selling it within a year.

We had a fine thread on recommended ambient records a while back. I'd add me some fine releases from the Improvised Music from Japan label and the Necks' Drive-By.

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 11:13 (twenty-two years ago)

it's very distinct. didn't actually listen to it at the time, but i see what it's gor. very minimalistic, not just in structure, bul also in texture. nice. supposedly, he got the inspiration for it from standing inside a transformer station somewhere in the midlands.

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 11:26 (twenty-two years ago)

april 1994 was when 'supersonic' first came out as was on the chart show, marking the definitive 10 years of a degenerative obsession with music which has prevented me from getting anything nearly useful done. fuck me.

― matthew james (matthew james), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 11:35 (twenty-two years ago)

I thought only my (colored) vinyl edition was crackly... In fact, at first I thought the overall crackliness was part of the music. Later on I got a used cd copy and played that until it started skipping & now I'm using that crackly vinyl again! A mighty album, but I wouldn't dare go to sleep listening to it!

― Janne (Janne), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 12:00 (twenty-two years ago)

I just got mine a few weeks ago... ;'(

― John 2, Tuesday, 6 April 2004 12:10 (twenty-two years ago)

In my world, every year is 1994.

― Mike Salmo (salmo), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 14:41 (twenty-two years ago)

We are the music makers is a work of staggering genius.

― chris (chris), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 14:42 (twenty-two years ago)

We are the music makers is a work of staggering genius.

i thought we werent't talking about SAW 1.

― cutty (mcutt), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 14:52 (twenty-two years ago)

the Necks' Drive-By.

oh, this is a great album. i was being semi-facetious with the "what other ambient do you need" comment. what i sort of meant is that for a given type of music that i'm not all that interested in, there are at least a couple of records that are undeniably amazing, that i would be loathe to get rid of if i were ever to have to pare my collection down to say 20 records...saw II might be one of my token ambient rekkids in that case.

"-- :|", i could easily knock my rock stuff down to a couple of records and never worry about it!

― rgeary (rgeary), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 15:23 (twenty-two years ago)

i could also be content if i had to ditch all my non-rock music and only had a v. extensive rock collection to listen to. this is a weird hypothetical that i cannot express correctly. music is good and saw II is great piece of music.

― rgeary (rgeary), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 15:24 (twenty-two years ago)

'94 was a big year for the "IL" phoneme! snivILisation, ILL communication, ILLmatic, music for the gILted generation, southernplayalisticadILLacmusik.

― rgeary (rgeary), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 15:26 (twenty-two years ago)

we went through a phase where we'd ring each other up and just blast bits of SAW II over the phone lines. especially disc 1, track 2. that's my enduring memory of SAW II. i think i'll listen to it this morning in honor of this thread.

also comparing saw i / saw ii = completely dud.

― vahid (vahid), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 15:27 (twenty-two years ago)

I've never understood how the same person who made something as incredibly moving as SAW II could spend the next ten years making such unlistenable rubbish. 'I Care Because You Do' has three good tracks on it. 'Richard D James' I bought and regreted. Nothing since has remotely tempted me.

― Jamie Fake (the pirate king), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:00 (twenty-two years ago)

I've never understood how the same person who made something as incredibly moving as SAW II could spend the next ten years making such unlistenable rubbish.

and what of the ten previous years? I personally love Analogue Bubblebath's (whatever volumes I have, 3 and 4 i think) noisier moments, and Tamphax Hedfuq and Digeridoo, etc...

I don't like how SAWII is sometimes treated like a touchstone for his wor

― Nik (Nik), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:06 (twenty-two years ago)

er,

...for his work to be compared against

― Nik (Nik), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:07 (twenty-two years ago)

i'm in the "listened to it religiously late at night for years" group and also the "disc 1 track 3 is my favorite" group.

this is one that always comes to mind when someone starts a "top x albums of all time" thread here, but i haven't heard it for a very long time. thanks for the reminder ned!

― tricky disco (disco stu), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:14 (twenty-two years ago)

I think digeridoo was released before saw II

but I generally agree with the statement about his musical output as of late. I long to hear him do beautiful music again. I actually liked some of the satie inspired piano pieces on druqs just for that reason.

I know you are a killer programmer mr. james you no longer have to go on about it at length. Just give me some beauty.

Could drill and bass be the ultimate prog music?

― hector (hector), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:26 (twenty-two years ago)

if the Richard D. James Album isn't beautiful, I'll eat my Windowlicker CDs.

SAW II is unique. If Richard had tried to repeat the trick, chances are he'd have fallen on his arse. The joy of stuff like "Girl/Boy Song" is that he jams the beautiful bits against the drill 'n' bass and lets them work on each other.

I assume the peeps that lost interest after SAW II are the ones responsible for buying all those Greatest Chill-Out Album in the World....Ever! CDs that polluted the air a couple of years back.

― noodle vague (noodle vague), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:37 (twenty-two years ago)

I think digeridoo was released before saw II

Yep, the R&S release was in 92, and I'm pretty sure there was an earlier version on white label...

― mmmmsalt (Graeme), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:47 (twenty-two years ago)

"I assume the peeps that lost interest after SAW II are the ones responsible for buying all those Greatest Chill-Out Album in the World....Ever!"

oooh that hurt.

No sorry but I don't have tons of those records and I didnt say that everything after SAW II was shit but there have been quite a few shit things released. I mean that recent mixes for cash release? He has lost respect for his audience.

It just seems that his releases have become kind of half ass. I really dug that remix he did as afx for the 808 state track but most of druqs was lame.

― hector (hector), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:47 (twenty-two years ago)

I think digeridoo was released before saw II

I know, like noodle vague says, it's unique; you can hear its coming in his pre-SAWII work and see what he did next with I Care 'Cuz U Do and RDJ album.

― Nik (Nik), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:50 (twenty-two years ago)

my punctuation is for shit. again:

I think digeridoo was released before saw II
I know, which is what i was drawing attention to; why isn't this pre-sawII the touchstone?

I guess, like noodle vague says, SAWII is unique; you can hear its coming in his pre-SAWII work and see what he did next with I Care 'Cuz U Do and RDJ album.

― Nik (Nik), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:52 (twenty-two years ago)

Definitely not responsible for endless chillout compilations, and never really listen to anything 'ambient' any more, just think stuff like 'windowlicker' is taking the piss.

― Jamie Fake (the pirate king), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 17:53 (twenty-two years ago)

sorry, low blow.

Richard likes to give the impression in interviews that he doesn't give a shit whether his music is released or not, nor whether the stuff that is released is his best work or not, so I guess his respect for his audience has always been minimal. But hey, that's okay. I also get the feeling that his relationship with Warp has deteriorated over the last few years.

I don't think drukqs is terrible, it's just disappointing in its failure to be brilliant. Windowlicker was fabulous, and if he'd pursued that warped (excuse pun) R'n'B vein then drukqs could only have been better for it.

But if he never releases another decent tune again, his highs, like SAW II, have been stratospheric.

― noodle vague (noodle vague), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 18:20 (twenty-two years ago)

if there's any justice in the world, disc 1 track 3 should become as well known and regarded as any of the classics of, um, classical music.

― oops (Oops), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 18:40 (twenty-two years ago)

Well phillip glass has done cover versions of some of his tunes so at least its known in the classical world.

― hector (hector), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 18:47 (twenty-two years ago)

I've never understood why people have such trouble figuring out which song goes with which picture. It's pretty obvious to figure out (though it's hard to explain without actually being able to use the album as a visual aid.) If you look on the back of the CD jewel case with the little circles divided into sections, each section represents one song (each circle = a "side" for the vinyl version, I assume). For each section/song there is a corresponding picture. You start from the top of each circle and move clockwise to find the track order. There is one extraneous picture, though, for the track that's only included on press release vinyl, "Stone In Focus"

THIS IS MY THEORY AND IT IS RIGHT SO DO NOT QUESTION IT

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Tuesday, 6 April 2004 19:04 (twenty-two years ago)

I just got this album a few weeks ago, and I can say it doesn't sound aged at all. The only Aphex Twin I had prior to this was SAW I which was nice enough but never really moved me, but I'm in love with SAW II. The day I bought it I put on my headphones, laid on the floor, and listened to the first disc, and I was pretty much blown away. I always hear people say that Loveless is the only music you can touch, but SAW II is the only music I'm aware of that you can use as a blanket.

― stephen morris, Tuesday, 6 April 2004 21:04 (twenty-two years ago)

I never quite got why this is supposed to be such a classic - not that I hate it or anything but if we're talking 1994 then Amber is obviously vastly superior, and Patashnik beats it quite squarely too.

― Siegbran (eofor), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 21:11 (twenty-two years ago)

If your kundalini is opening, it's inadvisable to listen to SAW II however. It seems to razzle the snake and make it start shimmying in a disturbing fashion right through your brain. I would suggest Eno's later ambient work - eg Neroli - for people in this situation.

― the music mole (colin s barrow), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 21:12 (twenty-two years ago)

Both fine albums, Siegbran -- as my AMG reviews note. ;-) But I have to say that SAW II is still *the* album for me from that year in that vein.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 21:14 (twenty-two years ago)

WIRE interview/article from back in the day and about the infamous "lucid dreaming" technique;

So, I'm just listening to SAWII for the first time in years, and boy is my tape copy worn out. I need to buy this on CD tomorrow.

― Nik (Nik), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 22:30 (twenty-two years ago)

WIRE interview/article from back in the day and about the infamous "lucid dreaming" technique;

― Nik (Nik), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 22:31 (twenty-two years ago)

SAW II is gorgeous, terrifying, and mysterious. I automatically lose a glimmer of respect for someone when they dis' this record -- assholish I know, but I can't help it. It's not so much losing respect as it is just wondering if our brains all have the same parts and regions and stuff, because I cannot imagine not being moved by this album. The microtonality? the robot big-band hip-sashaying ambient boogie? yes, it's all there, and there's a lot more there, a whole world of light and shade, plush organic squish and hard gleaming inhuman shine, a record that plays the listener, scritching at the cerebral cortex, knotting neural pathways, whispering to our deepest fears -- aural, tactile fears we can never quite fully apprehend.

― Clarke B. (Clarke B.), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 00:44 (twenty-two years ago)

And yes this is one of those albums that casts such a spell on me, all I can do is fling strings of words and vague impressions at it to try and make sense of it, make sense of why it means so much to me. Ultimately a failure, of course. I think I'll go put it on now.

― Clarke B. (Clarke B.), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 00:46 (twenty-two years ago)

I'm ready to start fawning over Oval - 94 Diskont whenever you're ready.

― Ian Christe (Ian Christe), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 01:10 (twenty-two years ago)

that's how i feel about autechre's "amber" which is another album that i've spent an unhealthy amount of time with.

i think to myself, now this is a declaration of intent if i've ever heard one. simply massive...

i think my favorite thing about "sawII" and "amber" is the way they reference nature.

― tricky disco (disco stu), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 01:11 (twenty-two years ago)

Just remember Clarke B - if your kundalini rises, walk straight up to that CD player and press stop. The kundalini goes nutso to Aphex Twin's ambient material. Steady her a little with something down-to-eath - AC/DC or Motorhead should do the trick.

― the music mole (colin s barrow), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 01:43 (twenty-two years ago)

See the problem is that Aphex ambience opens up the head chakra to the eternal snake, which then shimmies down and starts busting at the heart chakra like an L.A. cop. Then, cos it can't seem to get in, it snakes right back up to the head chakra and goes "Waaaah!", scaring the pants off you. Then it goes back down again and has another go. Every time it fails, which it always does, it goes back to you head and spits the cosmic dummy like a clown from hell.

― the music mole (colin s barrow), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 01:55 (twenty-two years ago)

The last track on the first disc is one of the most unsettling slivers of sound I've ever heard. Still remember a visit to the beach down in Florida years ago, falling asleep next to the patio screen door at a friend's condo, sound of the waves heard fainly through the glass. Started off blissfully enough, first three tracks lulling us, then dropping off to sleep in the middle set ... but that last track came on and its abstract urban architecture superimposed itself on the natural landscape, mixing with my dreams and sending a streak of terror through me. As I was rising out of sleep the sampled voices went with me, conjuring up a crowd hallucination that I -knew- was gathering on the sand below, anticipating an oncoming tidal wave. I woke my friend up, frantically grabbing at the door handle just to step outside. It's Richard D.'s sinister little Hadyn moment a la the 'Suprise Symphony.'

― Dare, Wednesday, 7 April 2004 02:13 (twenty-two years ago)

or 'Surprise,' take yer pick.

― Dare, Wednesday, 7 April 2004 02:19 (twenty-two years ago)

Drukqs is a fucking masterpiece! More so than Windowlicker, I'll venture.

― sundar subramanian (sundar), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 03:44 (twenty-two years ago)

It still annoys me that the cd doesn't have "stone in focus", cos it's probably my favourite aphex track ever. i urge people who haven't heard it cos they only have the cd to download it now.

― toby (tsg20), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 08:36 (twenty-two years ago)

Yes, listened to it at night for years, but uncomfortably so in the sense that I wanted to hear it in headphones, and yet my walkman kept giving off a little grinding noise as it played the tape, so I could never quite listen to it in the total silence I craved. Someone stole my CD copy in '97 and I bought it used again maybe a year ago and was really disappointed. Just didn't seem to have the same affect anymore. Certainly it was the highlight of his career. Still is. The RDJ album was a major disappointment and I've never looked back.

― bimble, Wednesday, 7 April 2004 15:55 (twenty-two years ago)

Hello, are there any beats on this cd?

― scg, Wednesday, 7 April 2004 16:09 (twenty-two years ago)

Of course there are!

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 16:18 (twenty-two years ago)

thanks toby! i just followed yr advice and "stone" is gorjuss.

― m., Wednesday, 7 April 2004 17:03 (twenty-two years ago)

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Dispatched: 1 October 2024, 14:53 UTC

Aphex Twin
Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition)
CD (3×CD)

― brimstead, Tuesday, 1 October 2024 17:47 (one year ago)

I got that email earlier today too!

― Marten Broadcloak, mild-mannered GOP congressman (Raymond Cummings), Tuesday, 1 October 2024 17:48 (one year ago)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3Ii9Q5YMeM

worth clicking through for the top couple comments

― default damager (lukas), Tuesday, 1 October 2024 18:11 (one year ago)

Despite owning this on multiple formats over the years, I'm still waiting-by-the-mailbox eager to receive my copy of the 3xCD reissue. Few albums from my youth have the kind of enduring power over me that this one does. And I say that despite still preferring SAW 1!

― Paul Ponzi, Tuesday, 1 October 2024 18:29 (one year ago)

two weeks pass...

Dan Weiss has a great new piece up about a particular angle on the release/anniversary -- namely, a dive into how it was actually marketed and sold here in the US:

https://riotriot.substack.com/p/red-white-and-blue-calx-the-story

A lot of detail, including comparisons to other acts under the Warner umbrella and how they were marketed etc.

― Ned Raggett, Monday, 21 October 2024 15:31 (one year ago)

Well, the first part of the article seems interesting.

― Maxmillion D. Boosted (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Monday, 21 October 2024 15:32 (one year ago)

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