Finally I have the 2CD. Here is my humble opinion:
Now this album IS ambient.
Not in the literal sense of the word, but rather in the tradition of Eno,
Byrne, Fripp, Sylvian, Gong etcetera. Aphex creates a sonic soundscape of
interlocking sounds that drift somewhere between beautiful and heavenly. This
is an album that is not so much listened-to as heard. However it is still
immensely involving and it is not long before you find yourself somewhere
between sleep and consciousness. Believe me...I wasted a whole afternoon in
bliss, half alive on my bed.
This album has all the qualities of classic ambience, such as Edgar Froese's
"Aqua" and Steve Hillage's "Rainbow Dome Musik". However, at the expense of
this Aphex has lost the trademark sound we are familiar with. Rumour has it
that he first created this sound when his first home-made sampler failed to
work. Watching him solder on stage, I can believe it.
So. A warning for all you hardheads out there: ZERO BPM, requiring some form
of attention span)
This album is GREAT!!
Charles Wildig <u91clw@ecs.ox.ac.uk>
Religeon of Ambience