Aphex Twin - Selected Ambient Works 85-92

Apollo Records

November 9th, 1992.

The debut album from Richard D. James, AKA Aphex Twin and a number of other pseudonyms, came at an invigorating crossroads in the progression of electronic music. A space in time where possibilities seemed infinite. One turn of a knob in a different direction or the use of a new piece of kit and a whole world awaited on the other side; the early 90's reverberated with potential and a formidable feeling of latent prospect.

Aphex Twin's career spans a number of decades, and with it a number of significant sounds and genre-defining feats. A cornerstone of the electronic landscape, Selected Ambient Works defines itself through the act of exuding a quiet confidence - no bells or whistles are required to strike gold; soothing persistence knows that what will be, will be. Shy, but certain. It's only a matter of time.

SAW 85-92 has a soft and circular feel to it's being. Existing in an aerosphere of whirring inertia, it captures a sonic realm that not many projects have since, or before. The liminal space that this record traverses is one of reverenced - near holy - regard. Held up to the light, it's about as pure an experience as electronic music has to offer.

Once those slicing hi-hat's on the opening moments of the album sink into the psyche the game is all over. The next 70+ minutes of your life have been sorted. Packing plenty knowns, and enough unknowns to spark intrigue, SAW balances the foundations with the future - albeit a future that not many ever actually managed to replicate; it is a standalone among heavyweights. The spark of airy luminescence and the rubbery rhythms on SAW provide a heaven and hell dynamic to the project. An air of innocence is placed among the tangible feeling of foreboding presence - as if saintly spirits reside within the sonic sphere; trapped in eternal groove to the devil's deeds. Said spirit's little legs have been on the edge of caving in for 30 years now; their will to live will forever outrun the mischievous doings of idle hands.

30 years on, and still as fresh today as it was then, Selected Ambient Works remains the barometer to which electronic music is set.