Transcript:
0:00: From KXCI Tucson, this is Bonus Tracks.
0:03: My name is Jude and I’m here to talk to you about Aphex Twin, one of the most prolific and influential electronic music artists out there.
music sample: (0:33) “Alberto Balsalm (1994)” Aphex Twin, …I Care Because You Do, 1995 Warp Records
0:41: Richard Davis James, better known as Aphex Twin, was born in 1971 in Limerick, Ireland, but was raised in Cornwall, England.
0:50: He has been actively making music since 1988 and has been credited as a pioneer of intelligent dance music, also known as IDM and has explored many other genres like acid, jungle, drill, but it all falls under the blanket of electronic music.
1:10: First, I want to look at his track number 3 off of Selected Ambient Works Volume II.
music sample: (0:27) “#3” Aphex Twin, Selected Ambient Works Volume II, 1994 Warp Records
1:32: This track feels warm and comforting on an album that is mostly vast and unsettling.
1:38: I like how the murky blended quality of the chords give this song an unconscious dreamlike feel.
1:46: This contrasts with tracks like “Film” off his 1997 album Come to Daddy, which feels more alert with complicated breakbeat drums under a sweet lead.
music sample: (0:21) “Film” Aphex Twin, Come To Daddy, 1997. Warp Records
2:13: I think I gravitate towards the music of Aphex Twin and other artists of the same genre because it manages to be emotionally evocative using mostly just weird computer noises.
music sample: (0:18) “Iz – Us” Aphex Twin, Come To Daddy, 1997. Warp Records
2:37: As someone who writes and plays music myself, I’m interested in and impressed by music that is only instrumental being capable of conveying feeling.
2:47: I find genres that Aphex is often credited for pioneering like IDM and ambient to have some of the most expressive, tear-jerking melodies out there.
music sample: (0:38) “#4” Aphex Twin, Selected Ambient Works Volume II, 1994 Warp Records
3:02: And although Aphex Twin has an overwhelmingly huge discography that isn’t always easy listening, I think it’s worth exploring.
3:11: Let it wash over you and allow yourself to be transported.
3:15: This is Jude signing off from Bonus Tracks on KXCI Tucson.
3:20: Thanks for tuning in.
3:22: For more information and episodes, you can visit KXCI.org.
