I think I'm going to wait until mine arrives too, but the (nearly universally positive!) reviews so far have really tempted me. In the meantime I'm checking out drukqs again, which I never really gave a fair shot to begin with, and I'm absolutely floored by it. I understand the disappointment at the time but it's so very different than anything else IDM was doing in 2001, in retrospect the whole "RDJ lost it" narrative doesn't make much sense anymore to me.
― Maggie killed Quagmire (collest baby ever) (frogbs), Thursday, 18 September 2014 15:35 (nine years ago) link
I mean that breakdown in "St Michels Mount" is just O.o
― Maggie killed Quagmire (collest baby ever) (frogbs), Thursday, 18 September 2014 15:37 (nine years ago) link
sixth track of syro ✓
― Nothing less than the Spirit of the Age (nakhchivan), Thursday, 18 September 2014 15:49 (nine years ago) link
Is track 11 some kind of tribute to Renegade - Terrorist from 1994 ?
― StanM, Thursday, 18 September 2014 16:49 (nine years ago) link
check the interview that Branwell posted
― ugh (lukas), Thursday, 18 September 2014 16:50 (nine years ago) link
cool! thx
― StanM, Thursday, 18 September 2014 16:51 (nine years ago) link
answer is basically, maybe not that track specifically, but he was sure trying to figure out how early jungle producers accomplished what they did with a pretty limited sequencer. and admits he still hasn't made a good jungle track.
which is gold considering all of the "aphex pisses on straightahead jungle!" that got thrown around for a while, maybe still does.
― ugh (lukas), Thursday, 18 September 2014 17:01 (nine years ago) link
His parents are from Wales. They both worked in a psychiatric hospital, where it was accepted to hand out lsd to patients.
― Nothing less than the Spirit of the Age (nakhchivan), Thursday, 18 September 2014 17:05 (nine years ago) link
didnt some previous interview say his father was an engineer?idk, not going to pore over all of the shit he has said, print the legend
― Nothing less than the Spirit of the Age (nakhchivan), Thursday, 18 September 2014 17:06 (nine years ago) link
Richard worked in the mines for a while too
lol
― Nothing less than the Spirit of the Age (nakhchivan), Thursday, 18 September 2014 17:11 (nine years ago) link
Yeah RDJ has said he hasn't made a good Drum n' Bass tune yet, but come on
― Maggie killed Quagmire (collest baby ever) (frogbs), Thursday, 18 September 2014 18:08 (nine years ago) link
not a proper d'n'b track no. whereas Digeridoo is proper storming techno imo.
― ugh (lukas), Thursday, 18 September 2014 18:15 (nine years ago) link
what do you call the crazy half of drukqs then?
― Maggie killed Quagmire (collest baby ever) (frogbs), Thursday, 18 September 2014 18:29 (nine years ago) link
it's good but ... have you listened to much drum n bass?
― ugh (lukas), Thursday, 18 September 2014 18:34 (nine years ago) link
not really..wondering what consistutes 'proper' drum and bass
― Maggie killed Quagmire (collest baby ever) (frogbs), Thursday, 18 September 2014 18:42 (nine years ago) link
http://pitchfork.com/features/cover-story/reader/aphex-twin/#the-next-level
― cajunsunday, Thursday, 18 September 2014 18:47 (nine years ago) link
re the interview, what's the correct chronological order of the tracks on ambient works 85-92?
― For bodies we are ready to build pyramids (whatever), Thursday, 18 September 2014 19:46 (nine years ago) link
i enjoyed that interview
― socki (s1ocki), Friday, 19 September 2014 14:00 (nine years ago) link
dammit... I was hoping Syro would have been sent to me by now :-/
― monoprix à dimanche (dog latin), Friday, 19 September 2014 14:04 (nine years ago) link
Layout of the P Fork piece is pretty neat.
― Josh in Chicago, Friday, 19 September 2014 19:04 (nine years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QO16m_YW0o
― 💻 👀 (am0n), Friday, 19 September 2014 20:03 (nine years ago) link
not sure what to make of this. it's not bad. but nothing is really grabbing me either.
― Porto for Pyros (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Friday, 19 September 2014 22:26 (nine years ago) link
So far I'm into 1, 2 and 6 and yeah sorta bewildered by the rest. It's a really rich album and I expect some of these will open up. But I also think half the tracks don't need to exist in public maybe? I'm a stan for the man though, and will give this album a lot of chances. Someday we'll look back at this post and laugh.
― ugh (lukas), Friday, 19 September 2014 22:32 (nine years ago) link
its up on spotify. 3 tracks in and im loving it so far.
― everyday sheeple (Michael B), Friday, 19 September 2014 22:40 (nine years ago) link
It starts kind of okay-ish and gets really good after the initial 3 songs (which are as usual impeccably produced but didn't really catch my attention, might need to relisten).
180DB is a jam, specially love the final breakbeat part, wish it was longer. The buildup to CIRCLONT6A is incredibly neurotic and brilliant, he sounds at the top of his game in here. FZ pseudotimestretch is a tease, which I hated because it sounds very promising, it seems like it swould have been one of the best songs in here instead of being used as an interlude. The other CIRCLON sounds like a BOC track remixed by Squarepusher. The title track sounds cheesy but there's some great transitions going in there. The next two tracks I could do without, they sound like 90's rave music.
The piano piece doesn't sound nearly as memorable as Jynweythek or Avril 14th and it sounds completely out of place in here but it's pretty, I guess.
― Moka, Friday, 19 September 2014 23:01 (nine years ago) link
btw you think papat4 is willfully referencing this macca song?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9BZDpni56Y
should have titled this one xmas evet.
― Moka, Friday, 19 September 2014 23:20 (nine years ago) link
how old are some of these tracks. track 11 is very jungle-y.
― everyday sheeple (Michael B), Friday, 19 September 2014 23:25 (nine years ago) link
This bit from the pitchfork interview is reassuring:
But I don't think these Syro tracks are particularly innovative. Maybe in really subtle ways they are, for me, but there's nothing there that I need to explore more, so it's not going to put me off releasing anything. It just totally makes me want to not do anything else in that particular style.
It's an admission that these are just some old tracks and styles he had and wanted to release them before moving on to another kind of sound. Hoping this means we'll have another completely different album coming afterwards that doesn't take 13 years.
― Moka, Friday, 19 September 2014 23:31 (nine years ago) link
this is p funky
― emo canon in twee major (BradNelson), Friday, 19 September 2014 23:33 (nine years ago) link
very good time to be getting into aphex twin for the first time. this record is great
― i also enjoy in line skateing (spazzmatazz), Saturday, 20 September 2014 00:29 (nine years ago) link
― everyday sheeple (Michael B), Friday, September 19, 2014 5:40 PM (1 hour ago)
Not seeing it. Non-US customers only maybe?
― Malibu Stasi (WilliamC), Saturday, 20 September 2014 00:34 (nine years ago) link
possibly. that would be weird tho
― everyday sheeple (Michael B), Saturday, 20 September 2014 01:00 (nine years ago) link
Not released in the US until the 23rd
― ugh (lukas), Saturday, 20 September 2014 01:05 (nine years ago) link
There's some amazing moments on this album where the tracks transform into pure sonic bliss for a few bars (the title track being one of them). I don't think the solo piano piece is necessarily out of place. The whole album has a certain sense of intimacy -- samples of his family members being one example. The last song with all the environmental noise is really nice.
― Eggs and the marketing board behind them, Saturday, 20 September 2014 01:10 (nine years ago) link
I'm holding out until my copy shows up.
― RAP GAME SHANI DAVIS (Raymond Cummings), Saturday, 20 September 2014 02:38 (nine years ago) link
This bit from the pitchfork interview is reassuring:But I don't think these Syro tracks are particularly innovative. Maybe in really subtle ways they are, for me, but there's nothing there that I need to explore more, so it's not going to put me off releasing anything. It just totally makes me want to not do anything else in that particular style.It's an admission that these are just some old tracks and styles he had and wanted to release them before moving on to another kind of sound. Hoping this means we'll have another completely different album coming afterwards that doesn't take 13 years.
But I don't think these Syro tracks are particularly innovative. Maybe in really subtle ways they are, for me, but there's nothing there that I need to explore more, so it's not going to put me off releasing anything. It just totally makes me want to not do anything else in that particular style.It's an admission that these are just some old tracks and styles he had and wanted to release them before moving on to another kind of sound. Hoping this means we'll have another completely different album coming afterwards that doesn't take 13 years.
I kind of like this idea of releasing an album just to get rid of it
― Dokken played here for a Ribfest and people were total assholes (Sparkle Motion), Saturday, 20 September 2014 05:11 (nine years ago) link
Giving it a second listen right now and I think there's around 3 great Aphex songs and the rest feel like exercises. He is an incredibly talented producer but in a sense this feels like too little too late. Reading that pitchfork interview you get the sense that despite all the hype that the label and the media are throwing on the release, Richard himself doesn't feel like it's a great album. At one point of that interview he talks about how he is making some songs with midi robots atm which he likes more than anything on Syro, he also explains, as I quoted above, he gives the impression that these are leftovers that he needed to get out to move on.
It's hard to get excited over material that the musician himself considers subpar.
― Moka, Saturday, 20 September 2014 06:50 (nine years ago) link
If this is an album of throwaways then it's one of the best I've heard. Wonderful melodies and layers of trademark Aphex synth-twisting. I love it.
― Acid Hose (Capitaine Jay Vee), Saturday, 20 September 2014 10:24 (nine years ago) link
If he thought it was subpar, he wouldn't release it
― everyday sheeple (Michael B), Saturday, 20 September 2014 12:02 (nine years ago) link
Yeah, I wouldn't necessarily take things that RDJ says at face value.
― Position Position, Saturday, 20 September 2014 12:06 (nine years ago) link
actually it's really easy, if for instance you like it
― Branwell with anNe (wins), Saturday, 20 September 2014 12:22 (nine years ago) link
Love this record and I was always lukewarm on his stuff before. Great piano track at the end too.
― calstars, Saturday, 20 September 2014 12:31 (nine years ago) link
I'm rather unwhelmed by the whole thing. Not over or under.
― StanM, Saturday, 20 September 2014 12:41 (nine years ago) link
feel like this could be one of the great releases of the 4th quarter of 2014. it has a certain "vibe" that really resonates with me. i must admit that my toes were tapping on one or two occasions! this is a definite classic and i'm predicting a solid 8/10 from the pitchfork boys
― cool music buff (missingNO), Saturday, 20 September 2014 13:39 (nine years ago) link
Don't get me wrong I think this is one of the best albums of the year and definitely one of his best releases, I was just saying that it seems like he doesn't feel as excited as Syro as the press and the label, Position Position is right, though, you shouldn't take anything he says at face value.
But, yes, I do love it. Definitely nothing that sounds 'new' coming from him but I can see it overcompensates in replay value, I'm on the 4th listen and it keeps revealing some exciting ideas and sounds. More interested in what he does next, though.
― Moka, Saturday, 20 September 2014 18:08 (nine years ago) link
Gonna dive into this tonight. Ty missingNO for new dn.
― a definite classic and i'm predicting a solid 8/10 from the pit (Le Bateau Ivre), Saturday, 20 September 2014 18:09 (nine years ago) link
i mean, yeah, it doesn't sound "new" in the sense of something actually new, but let's be honest, what really sounds new nowadays? especially with how the internet makes it so fast plus the whole social media thing. this is a great album, a solid eighter, but perhaps one for the music buffs and not the johnny go latelys?
― cool music buff (missingNO), Saturday, 20 September 2014 18:24 (nine years ago) link
"The Pitchfork boys"
Hmmmmm.
― Aphex T (wins) (Branwell with an N), Saturday, 20 September 2014 22:07 (nine years ago) link
New Shellac got in the way of listening to this tonight, but Aisatsana is absolutely amazing. What a closer.
― definite classic, predicting a solid 8/10 from the p-fork boys (Le Bateau Ivre), Saturday, 20 September 2014 22:10 (nine years ago) link
ah man i was really enjoying the phrase "a solid 8/10 from the pit"
― emo canon in twee major (BradNelson), Saturday, 20 September 2014 22:25 (nine years ago) link