Latest Release
- JUL 28, 2023
- 4 Songs
- Syro · 2014
- Richard D. James Album · 1995
- Selected Ambient Works 85-92 · 1992
- Drukqs · 2001
- Come To Daddy · 1997
- Selected Ambient Works Volume II · 1994
- Richard D. James Album · 1996
- Richard D. James Album · 1996
- Selected Ambient Works 85-92 · 1992
- Syro · 2014
Essential Albums
- 2001
- 1997
- Richard D. James, aka Aphex Twin, always seems to make music with a wry grin on his face. When he released Aphex Twin’s seminal collection Selected Ambient Works Volume II in 1994, he declined to name any of the album’s 24 tracks. Instead, he simply numbered them from 1 through 24, giving Selected Ambient Works Volume II an air of mystery—as though someone had found a spare mix CD on the ground, and distributed it through Britain’s most influential indie label, Warp. Dedicated fans eventually decided to assign their own track titles, based on the album’s artwork—a move that speaks to the devotion and discussion that Volume II has inspired over the past few decades. It’s a classic of the ambient genre, one that James famously—and perhaps with a winking facetiousness—claimed was inspired by the sounds in his lucid dreams. He set out to recreate what he was hearing in his sleep, and the result was less like the organic new wave coming out of Japan, and more like minimalist industrial music. Instead of focusing on harmonious, naturalistic sounds, James crafted something more metallic and tonal: “Track #2 (Radiator)” softly bubbles, like someone’s playing on the pipes of an abandoned factory with a marimba mallet. “Track #15 (Shiny Metal Rods)” has a dark electric crackle—it’s techno by way of Brian Eno. Not everyone was happy with Volume II, though. James’ illustrious career as one of the UK’s most famous rave DJs, as well as Aphex Twin's previous release—Selected Ambient Works 85–92—had created an image of what his music “should” sound like. The ambient collection on Volume II was perhaps too gentle or too atmospheric for fans who wanted the hard-charging “intelligent dance music” of Aphex Twin. But James has made a career out of shapeshifting, going where his instincts take him. He may be electronic music’s consummate joker, but there's nothing trivial about his music.
Albums
- 2016
- 2014
- 2001
- 2018
- 2018
- 2018
- 2018
Artist Playlists
- Tinkerer, trickster, raver, wry experimentalist—and IDM hero.
- Distorted beats and helter-skelter sonics.
Compilations
More To Hear
- Eclectic selections from Sophie, Die Antwoord and Aphex Twin.
About Aphex Twin
Aphex Twin is one of many pseudonyms used by Richard D. James, the wildly eclectic and innovative British composer, DJ, and producer who revolutionized electronic music in the ’90s with his complex—at times abrasive—instrumental creations. • James grew up in the countryside of Cornwall, where he first grew fascinated with the mechanics of sound creation. He’d deconstruct and modify synthesizers and mess with the strings inside of pianos. • He cultivated a passion for raves through the ’80s, organizing local Cornish events along the coast or in clandestine club locales where the price of entry was often cannabis. • The artist’s 1992 debut album, Selected Ambient Works 85–92 is regarded as a landmark achievement in electronic music meant for contemplative listening. • Inspired by lucid dreaming, his 1994 album Selected Ambient Works Volume II peaked just outside the Top 10 on the UK charts. • His widely popular 1999 single “Windowlicker”—accompanied by a characteristically absurd, fever-dream–style music video—cracked the Top 20 of the UK charts. • James released the 2001 album drukQs after he left an mp3 player filled with unreleased tracks on an airplane. He figured the songs would soon be leaked, so he released them. • Over the next decade, he released material under the aliases AFX and Tuss. • In 2014, James released Syro, his first album under the Aphex Twin name in 14 years. It reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart and No. 8 on the UK pop albums tally. The LP also won a Grammy for Best Dance/Electronica Album. • Sticking with the Aphex Twin moniker, James returned to summit of Billboard’s Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart with his subsequent EPs Computer Controlled Acoustic Instruments pt2 (2015) and Cheetah (2016). • Aphex Twin music is often described as intelligent dance music, or IDM—a term that James has rejected.
- HOMETOWN
- Limerick
- BORN
- 1971年8月18日
- GENRE
- Electronic