7 ms·

How Aphex Twin Made Selected Ambient Works 85-92

166 points by initself 4y ago

n65463f23_4 4y ago
not to say i am anywhere on the same level as aphex twin, but all you really need to capture the SAW85-92 sound is some cheap analog gear and a cheap multi track recorder, ive recorded tons of stuff that way that has the same vibe
olivierestsage 4y ago
Xtal is one of the very few songs that I could not possibly imagine getting sick of, no matter how many times I hear it. It always seems to sound new, letting you notice different dimensions of it every time.
Hanschri 4y ago
Aphex Twin has been a large influence for tons of well-known artists today. There is just something special in how his songs convey different moods and feelings, with one of my favorites being Avril 14th, which reminds me of playing Minecraft as a young lad, although I think 180db_ [130] is my all-time favorite.
- Cthulhu_ 4y ago
  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.
  - Hanschri 4y ago
    I agree, I think it is at least in part because the song has been used in movies and such, but there's no doubt that song is an 'easier' listen than some of his more experimental work.
  - falsenapkin 4y ago
    This cover sounds almost more like the rest of Drukqs with a prepared piano https://twitter.com/kellymoran/status/1250132140290977800 https://twitter.com/kellymoran/status/1250132140290977800
Synaesthesia 4y ago
He used pretty standard pieces of gear, (Kroger MS-20, DX7) the difference is the obsessive amount of time he spent making music, and what he managed to get out of that gear. Weird, detuned moans, crazy skittering beats, all kinds of odd filter modulation and crazy stuff, and it all works well together. Then he bought himself a Mac and made the Richard D James album, that was 1996(!)
- i_am_proteus 4y ago
  (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.
  - joshka 4y ago
    I've been considering buying a Korg SQFC64 for a while... :D
  - weatherlight 4y ago
    This is funny and I'm not sure why its getting downvoted. Korg - Ikea, whatever.
localtoast 4y ago
Christ, this an impressive album... I revisit it every few years and it continues to blow me away. Shottkey 7th Path. Holy smokes.
marviel 4y ago
This is awesome. It reminds me of what they do on the podcast "Song Exploder." In that podcast, the host rarely talks, and instead all you're left with is the artist, and their explanations of where the stems for their songs came from, along with clips of those stems.
Severian 4y ago
This is one of my top 10 albums. "Tha" is one of my favorites. Also of note, Selected Ambient Works Volume II. I used to mix ambient tapes from a variety of sources in the mid-90s, and this was always features somewhere. One good mix was Autechre's _VLetrmx21_ over Aphex's _Blur_. None of it is in sync, some of it's dissonant, but it works. I miss 90s Ambient and IDM. Em:t label of was a top one. There was a sound to all of it, and it probably had to do with 99% being produced with outboard gear straight to tape. Everything now seems to be so over-produced and "perfect".
- cheschire 4y ago
  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.
- elevaet 4y ago
  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)
justaj 4y ago
> James likely also used the onboard sequencers on the Roland SH-101, while using CV and MIDI to keep different devices in sync. > These ambient pads were likely recorded with the Yamaha DX-100 or DX7, as these were the only polyphonic synths James mentioned owning at the time. He likely used the DX strings patches, as they have long attack and release times as well as mellow, sine-like oscillator sounds. > These were likely recorded on the Roland SH-101, a revered analog monophonic synth from 1982. So is this all speculation of RDJ's production methods or was this directly sourced based on what RDJ himself said?
- bfuller 4y ago
  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.
- dijksterhuis 4y ago
  > directly sourced based on what RDJ himself said? RDJ is well known for bullshitting interviews on purpose.
- midislack 4y ago
  He typically doesn’t say what gear he uses for each track.
  - arrakeen 4y ago
    maybe not in the past, but at least his last full length had an entire page of all the gear in the liner notes. also the song titles are pretty much just a list of the gear used on the track (probably so he can easily recall which recording is which)
    - jdkee 4y ago
      Notably the Cirklon. "Tighter than a gnat's ass." https://www.sequentix.com/shop/cirklon-hardware-sequencer https://www.sequentix.com/shop/cirklon-hardware-sequencer
mikrl 4y ago
It’s never an album I like to listen to on repeat (compare with flavour of the day hyperpop album) but I come back to it every year or so and it blows me away. Last time was recently, on a long transit ride through Toronto and it set the scene perfectly. I hesitate to say it’s a timeless piece of music (like a symphony) but it really does move me in the same ways.
billfruit 4y ago
Anyone else find the music of Apex Twin not appealing? Like in comparison with for example, Daft Punk, what makes some people consider Aphex Twin as interesting music?
- linguistics__ 4y ago
  I mean I could list reasons, but in the end, it just comes down to taste really. Different people like different things.
- karmicthreat 4y ago
  Drukqs was great because it was something different. He has been kind of hit or miss since then.
  - Synaesthesia 4y ago
    I really liked Syro personally, as a long time fan.
    - laumars 4y ago
      Same here. I find I need to listen to most of his albums a couple of times before I fall for them whereas Syro clicked first time.
  - gravitate 4y ago
    Drukqs is a popular album to get stoned to. Although some songs on it are depressing as fuck and give me bad vibes. I love all the drill-and-bass songs though.
- laumars 4y ago
  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.
dumpsterdiver 4y ago
On [µ-Ziq Mix] was always one of my favorites. Girl Boy (£18 Snarerush Mix) is also pretty quintessential Aphex, IMO.
glitcher 4y ago
This was one of my favorites in the early 90's, along with The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld and their single Blue Room, Tango N'Vectif by µ-ziq, early Plastikman releases on Plus 8 Records, and Loveless by My Bloody Valentine :) Feeling pretty old, thought I just saw this same article just a couple years ago. Turns out several outlets did a similar article for the 25th anniversary of Selected Ambient Works, so that was actually 5 years ago: https://www.factmag.com/2017/02/12/paul-white-aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-85-92/ https://www.factmag.com/2017/02/12/paul-white-aphex-twin-sel... https://www.thestudentplaylist.com/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-85-92/ https://www.thestudentplaylist.com/aphex-twin-selected-ambie...
- Severian 4y ago
  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.
unfocused 4y ago
If you like that selection of music, there's a nice 1hr mix from 1994, from Hearts of Space: https://v4.hos.com/programs/details/356 https://v4.hos.com/programs/details/356 (track list info) You can also listen to it here through your browser if you don't have an account: https://www.mixcloud.com/deepspace5/aphex-twin-hearts-of-space-0356-public-broadcasting/ https://www.mixcloud.com/deepspace5/aphex-twin-hearts-of-spa... It really is timeless, relaxing music.
technonerd 4y ago
Everyone seemed to be influenced by AFX in the 90s? Or at least it was the in thing Todo, make ambient techno. Digging through the back catalog of techno artist you seem to find LOTS of 90s ambient / IDMish techno that are beautiful pieces of music. Speedy J's ginger and gspot albums and Luke Slater's the 7th plain albums come to mind for 90s ambient but now they are playing mind bending techno.
weatherlight 4y ago
If you like that style of early warp IDM :) Cassilda and Carcosa - https://open.spotify.com/album/5k8cHnULoBPJ7hlKWYchZG https://open.spotify.com/album/5k8cHnULoBPJ7hlKWYchZG RX-101 - https://open.spotify.com/artist/1nxxFDcQjl85Vn3PSZs651 https://open.spotify.com/artist/1nxxFDcQjl85Vn3PSZs651
- jdkee 4y ago
  Warp just re-release Artificial Intelligence 30th Anniversary on vinyl if you are so predisposed. See https://warp.net/us/artificial-intelligence https://warp.net/us/artificial-intelligence
motohagiography 4y ago
The thing about Aphex Twin is you have to try to reproduce it to appreciate what's involved I think. The sequence for Polynomial-C's main alternating loop is suprisingly subtle, and I haven't been able to get the rhythm quite right, and I think there's a deeper reason why it's not trivial. It's not just bleep-blooping on some modular gear. They're compositions. I found this and posted it to HN a little while ago, and it goes more in depth about it. "Techno Counterpoint - Tracking in the Music of Aphex Twin" https://disis.music.vt.edu/eric/LyonPapers/AphexTwin/ https://disis.music.vt.edu/eric/LyonPapers/AphexTwin/
- runjake 4y ago
  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 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.
  - motohagiography 4y ago
    I remember that video and couldn't find it, thank you. The sequence isn't just the 5 step 3-note motif shifting back and forth, it's the 5 steps, 5 again, 3, 5, 3. So 21 steps that are hard to hear it through the reverb. What makes it so good is the listeners ability to lose where we are in it so it never seems repetitive. Bach's work is simple on deconstruction too. :)
WeylandYutani 4y ago
The first time I heard this album was in a videogame called grand theft auto 4. I dislike normal music but this game had a radio channel called "the journey". Still listen to it regularly at the gym. https://youtu.be/CkqFGYr0hC4 https://youtu.be/CkqFGYr0hC4

166 points by initself 4y ago

not to say i am anywhere on the same level as aphex twin, but all you really need to capture the SAW85-92 sound is some cheap analog gear and a cheap multi track recorder, ive recorded tons of stuff that way that has the same vibe

olivierestsage 4y ago

Xtal is one of the very few songs that I could not possibly imagine getting sick of, no matter how many times I hear it. It always seems to sound new, letting you notice different dimensions of it every time.

Hanschri 4y ago

Aphex Twin has been a large influence for tons of well-known artists today. There is just something special in how his songs convey different moods and feelings, with one of my favorites being Avril 14th, which reminds me of playing Minecraft as a young lad, although I think 180db_ [130] is my all-time favorite.

Cthulhu_ 4y ago
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.
- Hanschri 4y ago
  I agree, I think it is at least in part because the song has been used in movies and such, but there's no doubt that song is an 'easier' listen than some of his more experimental work.
- falsenapkin 4y ago
  This cover sounds almost more like the rest of Drukqs with a prepared piano https://twitter.com/kellymoran/status/1250132140290977800 https://twitter.com/kellymoran/status/1250132140290977800

Synaesthesia 4y ago

He used pretty standard pieces of gear, (Kroger MS-20, DX7) the difference is the obsessive amount of time he spent making music, and what he managed to get out of that gear. Weird, detuned moans, crazy skittering beats, all kinds of odd filter modulation and crazy stuff, and it all works well together. Then he bought himself a Mac and made the Richard D James album, that was 1996(!)

i_am_proteus 4y ago
(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.
- joshka 4y ago
  I've been considering buying a Korg SQFC64 for a while... :D
- weatherlight 4y ago
  This is funny and I'm not sure why its getting downvoted. Korg - Ikea, whatever.

localtoast 4y ago

Christ, this an impressive album... I revisit it every few years and it continues to blow me away. Shottkey 7th Path. Holy smokes.

marviel 4y ago

This is awesome. It reminds me of what they do on the podcast "Song Exploder." In that podcast, the host rarely talks, and instead all you're left with is the artist, and their explanations of where the stems for their songs came from, along with clips of those stems.

Severian 4y ago

This is one of my top 10 albums. "Tha" is one of my favorites. Also of note, Selected Ambient Works Volume II. I used to mix ambient tapes from a variety of sources in the mid-90s, and this was always features somewhere. One good mix was Autechre's _VLetrmx21_ over Aphex's _Blur_. None of it is in sync, some of it's dissonant, but it works. I miss 90s Ambient and IDM. Em:t label of was a top one. There was a sound to all of it, and it probably had to do with 99% being produced with outboard gear straight to tape. Everything now seems to be so over-produced and "perfect".

cheschire 4y ago
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.
elevaet 4y ago
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)

justaj 4y ago

> James likely also used the onboard sequencers on the Roland SH-101, while using CV and MIDI to keep different devices in sync. > These ambient pads were likely recorded with the Yamaha DX-100 or DX7, as these were the only polyphonic synths James mentioned owning at the time. He likely used the DX strings patches, as they have long attack and release times as well as mellow, sine-like oscillator sounds. > These were likely recorded on the Roland SH-101, a revered analog monophonic synth from 1982. So is this all speculation of RDJ's production methods or was this directly sourced based on what RDJ himself said?

bfuller 4y ago
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.
dijksterhuis 4y ago
> directly sourced based on what RDJ himself said? RDJ is well known for bullshitting interviews on purpose.
midislack 4y ago
He typically doesn’t say what gear he uses for each track.
- arrakeen 4y ago
  maybe not in the past, but at least his last full length had an entire page of all the gear in the liner notes. also the song titles are pretty much just a list of the gear used on the track (probably so he can easily recall which recording is which)
  - jdkee 4y ago
    Notably the Cirklon. "Tighter than a gnat's ass." https://www.sequentix.com/shop/cirklon-hardware-sequencer https://www.sequentix.com/shop/cirklon-hardware-sequencer

mikrl 4y ago

It’s never an album I like to listen to on repeat (compare with flavour of the day hyperpop album) but I come back to it every year or so and it blows me away. Last time was recently, on a long transit ride through Toronto and it set the scene perfectly. I hesitate to say it’s a timeless piece of music (like a symphony) but it really does move me in the same ways.

billfruit 4y ago

Anyone else find the music of Apex Twin not appealing? Like in comparison with for example, Daft Punk, what makes some people consider Aphex Twin as interesting music?

linguistics__ 4y ago
I mean I could list reasons, but in the end, it just comes down to taste really. Different people like different things.
karmicthreat 4y ago
Drukqs was great because it was something different. He has been kind of hit or miss since then.
- Synaesthesia 4y ago
  I really liked Syro personally, as a long time fan.
  - laumars 4y ago
    Same here. I find I need to listen to most of his albums a couple of times before I fall for them whereas Syro clicked first time.
- gravitate 4y ago
  Drukqs is a popular album to get stoned to. Although some songs on it are depressing as fuck and give me bad vibes. I love all the drill-and-bass songs though.
laumars 4y ago
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.

dumpsterdiver 4y ago

On [µ-Ziq Mix] was always one of my favorites. Girl Boy (£18 Snarerush Mix) is also pretty quintessential Aphex, IMO.

glitcher 4y ago

This was one of my favorites in the early 90's, along with The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld and their single Blue Room, Tango N'Vectif by µ-ziq, early Plastikman releases on Plus 8 Records, and Loveless by My Bloody Valentine :) Feeling pretty old, thought I just saw this same article just a couple years ago. Turns out several outlets did a similar article for the 25th anniversary of Selected Ambient Works, so that was actually 5 years ago: https://www.factmag.com/2017/02/12/paul-white-aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-85-92/ https://www.factmag.com/2017/02/12/paul-white-aphex-twin-sel... https://www.thestudentplaylist.com/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-85-92/ https://www.thestudentplaylist.com/aphex-twin-selected-ambie...

Severian 4y ago
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.

unfocused 4y ago

If you like that selection of music, there's a nice 1hr mix from 1994, from Hearts of Space: https://v4.hos.com/programs/details/356 https://v4.hos.com/programs/details/356 (track list info) You can also listen to it here through your browser if you don't have an account: https://www.mixcloud.com/deepspace5/aphex-twin-hearts-of-space-0356-public-broadcasting/ https://www.mixcloud.com/deepspace5/aphex-twin-hearts-of-spa... It really is timeless, relaxing music.

technonerd 4y ago

Everyone seemed to be influenced by AFX in the 90s? Or at least it was the in thing Todo, make ambient techno. Digging through the back catalog of techno artist you seem to find LOTS of 90s ambient / IDMish techno that are beautiful pieces of music. Speedy J's ginger and gspot albums and Luke Slater's the 7th plain albums come to mind for 90s ambient but now they are playing mind bending techno.

weatherlight 4y ago

If you like that style of early warp IDM :) Cassilda and Carcosa - https://open.spotify.com/album/5k8cHnULoBPJ7hlKWYchZG https://open.spotify.com/album/5k8cHnULoBPJ7hlKWYchZG RX-101 - https://open.spotify.com/artist/1nxxFDcQjl85Vn3PSZs651 https://open.spotify.com/artist/1nxxFDcQjl85Vn3PSZs651

jdkee 4y ago
Warp just re-release Artificial Intelligence 30th Anniversary on vinyl if you are so predisposed. See https://warp.net/us/artificial-intelligence https://warp.net/us/artificial-intelligence

motohagiography 4y ago

The thing about Aphex Twin is you have to try to reproduce it to appreciate what's involved I think. The sequence for Polynomial-C's main alternating loop is suprisingly subtle, and I haven't been able to get the rhythm quite right, and I think there's a deeper reason why it's not trivial. It's not just bleep-blooping on some modular gear. They're compositions. I found this and posted it to HN a little while ago, and it goes more in depth about it. "Techno Counterpoint - Tracking in the Music of Aphex Twin" https://disis.music.vt.edu/eric/LyonPapers/AphexTwin/ https://disis.music.vt.edu/eric/LyonPapers/AphexTwin/

runjake 4y ago
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 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.
- motohagiography 4y ago
  I remember that video and couldn't find it, thank you. The sequence isn't just the 5 step 3-note motif shifting back and forth, it's the 5 steps, 5 again, 3, 5, 3. So 21 steps that are hard to hear it through the reverb. What makes it so good is the listeners ability to lose where we are in it so it never seems repetitive. Bach's work is simple on deconstruction too. :)

WeylandYutani 4y ago

The first time I heard this album was in a videogame called grand theft auto 4. I dislike normal music but this game had a radio channel called "the journey". Still listen to it regularly at the gym. https://youtu.be/CkqFGYr0hC4 https://youtu.be/CkqFGYr0hC4