Day 142: Aphex Twin – Richard D. James Album
News-wise, it’s been a bit of a day, hasn’t it? I needed a little break. I wanted to go wash my hair in some sort of a warm, pulsing oasis of electronic music and nice smells and turn my brain off for a little bit, so I went for Aphex Twin’s Richard D. James Album. I’ve been meaning to write about Aphex Twin for a while now but it’s never really been the right time. Interesting guy. Also he’s one of those artists who I’d listen to when I was younger but who sort of dropped out of the roster for no reason, I’d like to see if I can get back into it.
Album cover courtesy of Warp Records
Aphex Twin, or Richard D. James, is a DJ/composer/musician from Cornwall who’s been releasing music since 1988 after he got tricked into signing a record deal when he was high on acid to release his first EP Analogue Bubblebath. Mark Darby from Mighty Force Records says there may have been no Aphex Twin if that night hadn’t happened:
He had done some acid and after he had played, he was sitting backstage completely off his tits. I said, “Richard we really, really need to put this record out. Please. Just agree to do it please.” Tom was there as well saying, “Richard you really have to do it.” I think it was because he was really tripped out and he just wanted us to fuck off so he said “yes”
Aphex Twin has famously got an imp-like quality to him where he likes telling lies in interviews and once did a DJ set at a avant garde New York club where he “played” sandpaper and a food mixer because he wanted to make fun of their self-importance. People apparently enjoyed it. He’s also the proud owner of decommissioned military equipment, saying that he’s purchcased things like submarines and tanks. We have no photos of the submarine, which I guess is apt, but here he is with his tank, along with this delightful quote from an interview he gave in 1995:
Usually when you’re in a car you learn to be concerned about damaging the vehicle you’re driving, but in the tank you only worry about the mayhem you are about to inflict on others. All you have to do is touch another car as you drive and you’ve totally demolished it … [O]nce you get over your fear of losing control, being in the tank gives you a feeling of great security. There’s a nice sense of inner peace, because you know that nothing is ever going to hurt you. It’s like a womb...with a gun.
The Richard D. James Album was Aphex Twin’s fourth studio album and it became his most successful release at the time when it came out in 1996. It’s definitely one of a kind. For a guy who collects tanks, insists on having album covers where he looks like a sex pervert and once said he’s done so much acid that he thinks he can smell his own brain, his music is quite frankly disarmingly relaxing. You would assume his output would be a bit more off-kilter, but he fast drums and unpredictable patterns of rhythm are so busy that it ends up being strangely soothing.
It’s a memorable album altogether, but my favourites were “Girl/Boy Song (NLS Mix)” with its gorgeous string arrangements, as well as “Logan Rock Witch”, a sort of goofy-spooky sounding organ song with wacky sound effects. Bu there wasn’t a single thing I disliked on it. It’s a solid 9/10, I’d whack it on practically whenever.