Aphex Twin - minipops 67

“Sounds like Skrillex”, “worst dubstep ive ever head”, “i think the aphex twins r pretty good but why is there no drop?” - Trollworthy Youtube comments are rarely enlightening, but those following up the first Aphex Twin material in thirteen years tell a story of their own. First of all, the musical landscape’s changed colossally in between 2001’s ‘Drukqs’ and now, and while the wait for material’s only made Richard D. James’ rep more in-demand, the influence of his work has filtered through to every corner, from bedroom Ableton heads to big-name DJs.

With ‘minipops 67’, the story behind the song doesn’t particularly matter. Robots might’ve been used in the process, it’s been recorded in complete wilderness (Richard now resides in a small village with a population of 300), but in a matter of seconds, the song spread to thousands of laptop-hugging, bloodthirsty fans.

Harsh, industrial tones, robotic vocals and click-clacking beats line the seams. This isn’t the music of someone that’s found peace from his relative silence - his mind is clearly still ticking, swerving its attention towards the great unknown. Music obsessives are happy, the trolls are happy, everyone’s happy - Aphex Twin’s return couldn’t be more assured than this.