Hi everyone,

It recently came to my attention that Josh wasn't familiar with Aphex Twin. After I stopped crying and shaking, I sent him this:



"4" is the first track off Aphex Twin's critically-acclaimed "Richard D. James Album," released on Warp Records in 1996. This album is exceptional for a few reasons. First, it came out in 1996. Simply put, this record was years ahead of its time. This kind of music wasn't being made by anyone else at the time. Period.

Second, this record was a relatively early example of the drill'n'bass genre, and paved the way for the style's further development. Drill'n'bass shares similarities with drum'n'bass in that they share syncopated break beats rather than the four-to-the-floor drumbeat (think untz-untz-untz-untz) common in electronic music. They also generally use very fast tempos, usually upwards of 160 bpm. Where they differ is that drill'n'bass drumbeats are, for lack of a better term, crazy as hell. While many (but by no means all) drum'n'bass drumbeats are loop-based, drill'n'bass beats are generally not. While common elements may show up throughout the drumbeat (i.e. snare on the third beat or a kick on the first beat), entire patterns aren't necessarily repeated.

Third, Aphex Twin used software synthesizers and sequencers to make this record. In 1996, using computers to make entire songs was pretty rare. And, considering that Aphex Twin's previously released material (both ambient and acid) was made using hardware synthesizers and sequencers, this marks a pretty major turning point and innovative change in his production style.

I really like this track, and encourage all of you to get your hands on as much Aphex Twin material as you can. He also releases music under the moniker AFX, so check for that also.