#D.J. Aphex Twin

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

"...BUT I THINK WE HAVE PROG TODAY. YOU COULD SAY MAYBE APHEX TWIN IS PROG. NEO PROG."

PIC INFO: Resolution at 945x2000 -- Spotlight on a BJÖRK '95 Tour concert poster w/ Yasuhiro "COBA" Kobayashi & (DJ) APHEX TWIN supporting, performing live at the Detroit State Theatre in Detroit, MI, on August 5, 1995. Artwork by Mark Arminski.

BJÖRK : "I mean, I think there’s prog of every decade — the prog of the ’70s is probably most famous. But I think we have prog today. You could say maybe Aphex Twin is prog . . . neo-prog. [laughs]

AUGUSTYNIAK : Okay. Then it makes sense to me because I feel, “Oh, it’s cool again.”

BJÖRK : "Yeah. I mean, APHEX TWIN would probably beat me in the head for saying that, but there you go."

Sources: www.jojosposters.com/products/1995-bjork-w-coba-aphex-twin-poster-by-mark-arminski-ma-044 & www.bjork.fr/Interview-Magazine-juin-2009.

[disease]

BJÖRK ft. D.J. APHEX TWIN 1995 | @ STATE THEATRE, DETROIT

[moonsandmelodies]

Notes on Petrichor

Main post here

These are some notes on the making of this mix and the ideas behind it. I planned this to be part of the original post, but it got way too long for that. I also plan to do something like this for some of my past mixes sometime later.

Rain has been one of the forms of weather that, aesthetically at least, interested me the most for years now. I have a distinct memory of watching it fall with the song “Skeletons” in my head and that memory spurred a lot of my initial fondness for it.

The odd part is how long it’s took for me to consider making a mix about it. Part of it was because I felt I didn’t know/remember enough fitting songs for it. Another was that this idea first came up when I was in the middle of making around three different other, very ambitious mixes (Virtual Rainforest, Daydreams In The Garden, etc.) which left me tired out for awhile. Eventually though, I thought up enough songs, so I became more motivated over time. One of these was “Wet Weather” by Machinedrum which felt like the perfect intro for a rain mix because of both it’s title and music.

It’s been a few months since the two mixes I did in January now, not to mention that this blog has been on an unfortunate drawn-out hiatus of posting little beyond reblogs since February. Spring, the wettest of the seasons, also just began. With these gathering motivations, it felt almost overdue to bring the idea to fruition. 


The overarching musical themes

These songs utilize electronic techniques like extensive layering, echo/delay, reverb and evolving textures in a way that aurally suggests falling water, wet surfaces, taking walks in rain, pale-cyan colors, clouds accumulating water, and other rain related sensations.

I’d say that the majority of the songs are a morning/afternoon sort of rain set in a city, but there’s some exceptions. “Ckaif” for example sounds to me more like the splash of rain drops in a murky night shower, while “Constant Index” and “Lovergirls Precinct” feel like a rainstorm in a futuristic universe and “Skeletons” has both rain-like and paranormal elements. 


To a lesser extent, I also wanted to keep the songs from all being sad/gloomy, since rain is so often defined by these moods. I wanted to show, at least through some of these songs, that rain can be comforting, neutral or even intimidating.

Similar/related music

The talented Laurel Halo has put out loads of songs that could’ve fit for this mix. Without question, it’s her discography that I had the most trouble choosing songs from. I decided not to include something from her Chance of Rain album in the end, despite it’s title, but the songs “Chance of Rain”, “Serendip” and “Still / Dromos” were in close consideration. Beyond that album, several songs on her Hour Logic EP also fit, particularly the 9-minute title song along with a handful from her debut album Quarantine, including “Thaw”, “Nerve” and, in some ways, “Light + Space”.


My favorite Aphex Twin song “Xtal” could’ve fit well but I decided not to include it because it seemed too obvious. 


Lukid’s song “Foma” isn’t quite rainy but it otherwise feels similar in style/texture to several songs on the mix.

The Siouxsie And The Banshees b-side “A Sleeping Rain” came close since it suggests a more surreal and chaotic sort of rainstorm.

Their song “William” felt more fitting for this mix, but Mount Kimbie’s “Vertical” came close with it’s beautiful intro.

The D.J. Spooky song “Thoughts Like Rain” was only removed from the mix at the last minute for being a bit too repetitive.

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