This time around its aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii, which hasnt been on wax since its limited run back in the 90s. Theres a 33 book about this album that talks a lot about the formation of ambient music as a whole, as well as rdjs background in general. Selected ambient works volume ii messes with the idea of what an album is. We and our partners use cookies to personalize your experience, to show you ads based on your interests, and for measurement and analytics purposes. Aphex twins 1994 masterpiece selected ambient works volume ii includes barely anything resembling a beat or any sign of typical song structure, yet the album continues to garner adulation generally reserved for holy music. Selected ambient works volume ii, an album by aphex twin on spotify we and our partners use cookies to personalize your experience, to show you ads based on your interests, and for measurement and analytics purposes. Selected ambient works volume ii is the second studio album by aphex twin, the pseudonym of british electronic musician richard d. Its soundtracked spring afternoons wandering the city, late nights writing in my living room, and mundane days at the office. Selected ambient works volume ii by aphex twin on amazon. Fans have been testifying on its behalf for nearly two decades, as if it were capable of curing ills or healing the soul. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii book depository. I posted theses pieces in reverse order, from track 25 to track 1, in the 25 days leading up to the february, 2014, release of my book.
Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii by marc. Buy selected ambient works volume ii by aphex twin on aphex twin. Selected ambient works vol ii aphex twin we are the. Instead, all of these untitled tracks are long, unsettling electronic soundscapes, alternately quiet and confrontational. Sometimes all you need is the calming influence of a ridiculously slow, chilled out ambient track and if youre lucky, everything quietens down and youre able to hack through the to do list or even start.
James got the ideas for these sounds from the sounds being made in his dreams i picked up this album, which has been languishing in my collection for about a year, and approached it with an open mind, whilst. His book offers deep insights into what makes the individual tracks so startling. The title of selected ambient works 8592 was perhaps the first joke that notorious prankster richard d. Its influence on composers, producers, and sound designers. Once more, you can thank 1972 records for this one. It was also the first record to come out on sire, the subsidiary of warner music that had just signed aphex twin in the us. British electronics wunderkind richard james alias aphex twin, afx, polygon window, etc.
In spite of its dark atmosphere, though, selected ambient works vol. It was number 62 on pitchfork medias top 100 albums of the 1990s. Right from the start, selected ambient works volume 2 is a strange, challenging listen. Come down, but dont chill out marc weidenbaums book about selected ambient works vol. All of the cd releases are missing track 19, which is available on the vinyl, cassette and 2017 digital releases, and on the compilation excursions in ambience the third dimension. Like abstract paintings composed of shades of a single colour, jamess resonant explorations of specific timbres linger close to a central idea on each. Extravagantly opaque, willfully vaporous aphex twin s selected ambient works volume ii, released by the estimable british label warp records in 1994, rejuvenated ambient music for the internet age that was just dawning. People have been testifying on its behalf for nearly two decades, as if it were capable of curing ills or healing the soul. I care because you do is his overall best, its a mixuture of his ambient and crazy techno styles. Extravagantly opaque, willfully vaporous aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii, released by the estimable british label warp records in 1994, rejuvenated ambient music for the internet age that was just dawning. It was also the first record to come out on sire, the subsidiary of. A good example of this trope in play on the album is stone in focus, which actually combines the two categories. James is one of the most inventive musicians to have come out of britain. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii pitchfork.
An utterly essential piece of electronic history, constantly referenced and revered two decades after its release. Aphex twin selected ambient works volume ii discogs. Aphex twin selected ambient works volume ii 1994, vinyl. Selected ambient works 8592 is the debut studio album by aphex twin, the pseudonym of british electronic musician richard d. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii 33 kindle edition by weidenbaum, marc. Selected ambient works vol ii by simon reynolds by now you may have heard of richard james, the british techno whizkid who sleeps two hours a night and who is so prolific he needs a host of pseudonyms the most famous being aphex twin and polygon window to.
Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii turns 20. I posted theses pieces in reverse order, from track 25 to track 1, in the 25 days leading up to. Media of aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii. Im impressed by this book, as it comes close to embody what i want the 33 series to be like. If its an album with an overarching concept, that concept may be about the beauty inherent in willful confusion. In the united states, it was his first full length on sire records home to madonna and depeche mode, which helped usher in richard d. With his new 33 book, marc weidenbaum explains how aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii breathed life into ambient music while being one of.
I listened to the album for the first time in a long while the other day, and i realized how utterly fantastic it was all over again. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii youtube. Release selected ambient works, volume ii by aphex twin. I began listening to the 1994 release at the beginning of the year. Aphex twin reissues selected ambient works volume ii on. But with 1994s selected ambient works volume ii, james made a clean breakwith his own prior catalog, and with virtually everything else that was being trafficked in the genre. Under a variety of stage names, afx, caustic window, polygon.
In the united states, it was his first full length on sire records home to madonna and depeche mode, which helped usher in. While i liked volume ii, i still go back to selected ambient works 8592. Selected ambient works 8592 by aphex twin on spotify. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii by marc weidenbaum, 9781623568900, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. James claimed that it was inspired by lucid dreaming, and likened the music to. Ii is the third album rework done by the r aphextwin community. Aphex twin selected ambient works volume ii boomkat. Billed as a followup to james debut selected ambient works 8592, the album differs in sound by being largely beatless ambient music. Ambient doesnt necessarily have to be beatless, guys. Selected ambient works volume ii by aphex twin on spotify. The sire cd releases are missing track 4 as well, and the 2017 vinyl reissue by 1972 is a copy of this cd version. When aphex twin followed that up with a second volume two years later, however, it so thoroughly embodied the amoebic, indefinite properties of. Apr 10, 2014 extravagantly opaque, willfully vaporous aphex twin s selected ambient works volume ii, released by the estimable british label warp records in 1994, rejuvenated ambient music for the internet age that was just dawning. Aresa, the royalty network publishing, and 3 music rights societies.
Selected ambient works volume ii, abbreviated as saw2, is the second album by aphex twin, released in 1994. With his new 33 book, marc weidenbaum explains how aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii breathed life into ambient music while being one of the first albums to draw an obsessive fan. The album consists of beatorientated ambient tracks recorded onto cassette reputedly dating as far back as 1985, when james was thirteen. It is the followup to 1992s selected ambient works 8592. This album is a coverremix compilation of aphex twins selected ambient works vol. Ive begun compiling the above set, under the working title selected ambient works volume 3, as an imaginary sequel to selected ambient works 8592, whose earliest tracks are 30 years old as of 2015, and to selected ambient works volume ii. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii is ten years old. Or you could get drukqs if you want some weird stuff. Pdf aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii marc. A few months before selected ambient works volume ii hit the shelves, warp released on, a fourtrack ep of rabid and melodic techno that many assumed was the first single for the new lp. Like abstract paintings composed of shades of a single colour, jamess resonant explorations of specific timbres linger close to a central idea on each cut.
Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii 33 kindle. Born in limerick, ireland, and raised in truro, cornwall, uk, to parents of welsh decent, his music is always changing, always inventive, and liberally laced with his own brand of eccentric humor. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii turns 25 years old today. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii 33 marc.
More of a piece than the 1st collection of ambient work from aphex twin. Get selected ambient works 8592 if you want his strongest ambient stuff but if you want crazy aphex twin go for richard d. Listen to your favorite songs from selected ambient works volume ii by aphex twin now. May 05, 2019 but with 1994s selected ambient works volume ii, james made a clean breakwith his own prior catalog, and with virtually everything else that was being trafficked in the genre.
Jamess first full length on sire records home to madonna and depeche mode under the moniker aphex twin. But those youtube clips are still just exports of 12 songs or so each, so ill stand by my view of them being kinda bollocks. Much more sparse and also darker and more brooding than say brian enos ambient work but successive listens reveals more and more to admire. Another crack at it by the guy who wrote the saw ii book. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii is a beguiling and masterful album. Cultural historian tim lawrences rst book lo e saves the day adopted a chr. And this, more than kurt cobain being dead, gives me a sense of the passage of a decade.
Ii is filled with some of jamess gentlest, most elegant work. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii by marc weidenbaum. Stream adfree with amazon music unlimited on mobile, desktop, and tablet. Apr 25, 2014 with his new 33 book, marc weidenbaum explains how aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii breathed life into ambient music while being one of the first albums to draw an obsessive fan.
Mould anticipates burial by a decade, pitchshifting vocals into androgynous blurts that hiccup over a wide space buoyed by notes that are held just a splitsecond too long, changing their light tone into. Selected ambient works volume ii alternates between what most people think of when they hear the words ambient music and this trope. What follows are links to 25 distinct posts, each about a different track from the album selected ambient works volume ii, which aphex twin released in 1994, and which i published a book about, two decades later in 2014, as part of the 33 series. Chuck nanney will exhibit sculptural works made over the last three years, along with sound pieces, comprising a miniretrospective of recent activity. In the united states, it was his first full length on sire records home to madonna and depeche mode, which helped usher. About aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii. With his new 33 book, marc weidenbaum explains how aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii breathed life into ambient music. Ii is a more difficult and challenging album than aphex twins previous collection. Following the glacial synths and deft percussion of selected ambient works 8592, aphex twin crafted selected ambient works volume ii, a mammoth doublecd set of beatless vistas, textured compositions that are at turns beautiful, nightmarish, emotive and thrilling.
Selected ambient works vol ii by simon reynolds by now you may have heard of richard james, the british techno whizkid who sleeps two hours a night and who is so prolific he needs a host of pseudonyms the most famous being aphex twin and polygon window to unleash his monstrous creativity. Jamess first full length on sire records home to madonna and depeche. Chuck nanney selected ambient works, volume ii moca. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii is required listening for any person in the field of electronic music. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii marc weidenbaum. Selected ambient works volume 2 is a strange, challenging listen. Selected ambient works volume ii, an album by aphex twin on spotify. Aphex twins selected ambient works volume ii, released by the estimable british label warp records in 1994, rejuvenated ambient music for the internet age that was just dawning. Selected ambient works 8592, an album by aphex twin on spotify. James would foist upon the public, a misleading indication of the relaxed but nonetheless beatdriven, even danceable tracks contained within.
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