How Aphex Twin Made Selected Ambient Works 85-92 (opens in new tab)

> directly sourced based on what RDJ himself said?

RDJ is well known for bullshitting interviews on purpose.

Sounds like speculation, but the sh-101 (which was re released as a fun little $300 battery powered toy, great gift idea) was at the time one of the most accessible synths at the time. Knowing that, they are probably just extrapolating that he would have had access to it because it was so cheap and widespread.

He typically doesn’t say what gear he uses for each track.

SAW2 was the first aphex twin album I ever listened to, thank you for bringing it up. It was definitely a transition when I listened to his other stuff afterwards, but that also helped paint the picture for me of how broad electronic music can be even from a single musician. A lifelong love of electronic music grew from that experience.

[edit: listening to AT stuff today, I recall MTV included an Aphex Twin song on their MTV Amp album, and there was one on the Pi soundtrack. That's where I learned that he did more stuff.]

Even if it was about SAW and not SAW2, I love that this article was posted on HN today.

SAW2 is one of my desert island albums for sure.

SAW has some great tunes, but it's basically just a compilation of some of his better early tunes. SAW2 is a properly cohesive album, a milestone ambient album. Peaceful and spooky, just enough sourness and dissonance to keep coming back to since it was brand new in the mid 90s.

(omg _VLetrmx21_ is such a nostalgic tune.. thanks for the reminder)

(with tongue firmly in cheek) From here on out I'm referring to MS-20 mini as the 7/11 MS-20, to distinguish. The kit is obviously the Ikea MS-20.

It's honestly not that difficult, speaking from experience.

Here's a fellow who smartly documented his work on doing Polynomial-C on an SH-101: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFkDH8t1Htg

One of my favorite songs.

A lot of Richard's stuff is surprisingly simple upon deconstruction. But it's his creativity in that simplicity that is key.

I remember the d'oh a few decades ago when I realized his snare rushes are just 1/64th notes.

Oh yeah, Plastikman's Sheet One was an amazing example of minimal Acid. _Glob_ still feels fresh today. Everything you mention I probably have a copy floating around somewhere. Bunch of Orb, Orbital, Future Sound of London, etc.

Funny how Avril 14th is one of his most popular and recognizable songs while... not being anything like most of his works. It's a straight and fairly straightforward piano song.

Warp just re-release Artificial Intelligence 30th Anniversary on vinyl if you are so predisposed.

See https://warp.net/us/artificial-intelligence

I can't speak for anyone else, but the sheer span of sounds he wrung out of his gear is impressive, and to make them hang together in interesting ways is why I like it so much. It has real movement and dynamics, he's a songwriting wizard. One of my favorite tracks, "Vordhosbn" gets me so fucking amped, the beat is so bizarre and nervous and energetic. It's textured in a way some other electronic music isn't, it has character. Like "Yellow Calx" off Richard D. James Album, it has this percussive sound like a ball bearing ricocheting off the side of a warehouse near the beginning (which is a sound he uses in other songs I think) that I can't explain, but I love that sound so much. It doesn't happen again in the rest of the track, it's this singular spike of sound in an otherwise mellow and contemplative song, and it's really effective imo.

Sorry if this is annoying, I just really like Aphex Twin.

Daft Punk is doing something very different. It would be weird to drop "Bucephalus Bouncing Ball" at a wedding. This is not a knock on Daft Punk--I think they're great. But occupy a different space altogether and happen to also make electronic music.

Daft Punk is fine, it's fun pop music extremely well executed, but it doesn't transport me anywhere. Listening to Aphex Twin always felt like I'm taking a journey somewhere.

It requires some focus, but doesn't need a massive cultural decoder ring like many kinds of contemporary Western art music. (I mean the post-WWII music by classically trained composers.)

I have loved Daft Punk for a long time, but one day I wanted to learn more about Aphex Twin and IDM in general and I must say it's an acquired taste. It's like getting into whiskeys.

There are still some tracks that are impenetrable, but I've been enjoy this album and the works of Squarepusher a lot. Squarepusher has such a wide range of sounds it might be a better gateway drug. I love the unapologetic electronic, artificial, synthetic feel of these two artists.

These were my ways into the genre:

- Aphex Twin - T69 Collapse (https://youtu.be/SqayDnQ2wmw) (as someone said "it's like jacking into cyberspace, but the RAR is corrupted")

- This album

- Squarepusher - Terminal Slam (https://youtu.be/GlhV-OKHecI)

- Squarepusher - Hello Everything (album)

In general many genres outside of pop are an acquired taste. If they were easy to get into, they would be called pop. You just need to find a way in, even if you decide it's not for you.

Being trained to appreciate it.

Ambient music in harmonics or patterns is a lot more abstract and different then pop, so to the untrained ear it looks more generally like "static noise" and boring. Trained ears you can for example take notice of evolving patterns (albeit their usually slow evolution, seemingly repetitive). And it's not only about the stuff you're hearing but also about what could be and what I call the negative space in-between (sorta like the counterpoint in classical music).

It's the same phenomenon as to why you'd like more songs on a particular genre you're accustomed to like Pop, then to something different in patterns like Metal.

I felt the same way for years. I don’t recall which track changed my mind, but I started liking him when I had a realization that his music has a childlike element to it that I haven’t heard in any other artist. He often rebels against traditional electronic song structures, preferring instead to create sprawling expanses that finish in a very different place from where they start.

I started loving his music after I noticed how much care goes into each track, and the wide array of technique he employs.

Xtal, Ziggomatic 17, Fenix Funk 5, Mookid, 4, T69 Collapse… these tracks sonically have little in common with each other, except that they all sound vaguely “Aphexy” as a result of his trademark playfulness and high quality of polish.

When and where do you usually listen to music? For me it's either while driving or while coding. In the former scenario, Daft Punk is great while Aphex Twin is too boring. In the latter, Aphex Twin is amazing while the melodies of Daft Punk are far too distracting. Perhaps that means Daft Punk is "better" since it is more likely to capture your attention.

But really, as others have pointed out, Daft Punk and Aphex Twin are different genres. It's like trying to compare Metallica with The Ramones. To an extremely untrained ear they might seem similar but they really aren't.

I mean I could list reasons, but in the end, it just comes down to taste really. Different people like different things.

Aphex Twin: musical genius

Daft Punk: bangers

They're both great, but for totally different reasons.

I like his music a lot, but I do get tired of nerds constantly fawning all over him.

Drukqs was great because it was something different. He has been kind of hit or miss since then.

You can enjoy music with your mind, body, or heart. People are resonant against these in different strengths. Certain types of complicated or glitchy electronic music appeal more to mind/body types.

Why do people buy red cars when blue cars exist?

Although I don't understand the comparison - from my point of view comparing Aphex Twin to Daft Punk is like comparing Aphex Twin to George Strait.

Why do some people prefer Daft Punk to Led Zepplin? Or Tchaikovsky, Frank Sinatra, Taylor Swift, Bolt Thrower, Sex Pistols, Tupac or any other artist?

People like what they like and are interested in what they're interested in.

A thousand people could post intellectual insights into their personal preferences but a thousand more could cite the exact same arguments as reasons why they don't like the same music. It's just part of the colourful tapestry of human culture.

1) I love Daft Punk. 2) His discography is so vast compared to Daft Punk, everything from prepared piano, ambient, acid techno, drill core, IDM/Braindance.

lots of different niche genres, but they all sound like him. you hear an AFX some and you're like, yep, that's RDJ."

I feel the same way but about Daft Punk.

I guess different strokes for different folks…