Analord series - New from AFX

Chef Napalm

Lost in the Supermarket
Dear Rephlex:

I , like many AFX fans, eagerly signed up for the Analord newsletter when the series was announced in the summer. Since then I have been waiting patiently for word on its official release. Finally, Wednesday morning, word arrived: If you want one, it'll be £40!

£40!!??! That's almost $100 Canadian! For a *new* record! That may or may not be any good! No sound samples are available and apparently nobody has heard it except for a rare few who appear to have been chosen for their extreme inarticulateness. Example:


I really would like to trust you on this, Rephlex, but RDJ's output has been questionable of late, to say the least (Smojphace...hello!). I for one am beginning to wonder whether Mr. James is playing some elaborate prank that ratchets up a notch with each subsequent release. I get the idea that he is rummaging around his bank vault cum appartment wondering, "What unlistenable shit can I sell the proles this time?" Cue the hysterical laughter as he selects a mouldering reel-to-reel from the pile on the floor. Daddy needs a new tank!

I realise that Aphex Twin probably out-sells all of the rest of Rephlex's catalogue combined, but surely there must come a time when someone over there listens to Dick's latest stylus-on-sandpaper track and says, "Fuck, Rich, this sucks! Have you got anything worth listening to?" The penny has got to drop for those of us who have obsessively collected his stuff lo these 20 years and when it does you'll be luck to move one of these soul-sucking jokes, let alone the 87 that have been ordered as of this writing. We don't take kindly to being the butt of some artfuck's joke and we have the spending power to back it up.

In closing, I would like to thank you for opening my eyes. I will not be wasting my hard-earned, near-worthless Canadian dollars on any more of your product.

Merry Christmas,

The Grinch
 
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hint

party record with a siren
it's not an ordinary record though:

it's a limited run (short runs cost more per unit)
it's on audiophile vinyl (proper audiophile vinyl at that)
it comes in a fancy folder thingy

therefore it costs more

anyway - isn't it coming out as a "normal" release further down the line?

personally, I wouldn't spend £40 on a record without hearing it first... but I'm sure it exists to satisfy that percentage of aphex fans who like buying boutique editions of his stuff and expect him to come up with something different, in that respect, each time.

it's a bit of fun, but certainly not a prank.
 
£40 is a bit of a risky figure, even for an old AFX stalwart like myself. Think I'll wait for some reliable opinions to filter through, or maybe wait for this:

"If you're not up for this special collectors edition with binder, we are pleased to announce that you will be able to purchase Analord 10 in a more regular format, but not until 9 preceding volumes have been released (via your local record store, starting with Analord 1 & 2 in late Jan. / early Feb. 2005. We estimate that the alternative format of Analord 10 will be released next Summer.)"
 

ambrose

Well-known member
I for one am beginning to wonder whether Mr. James is playing some elaborate prank that ratchets up a notch with each subsequent release. I get the idea that he is rummaging around his bank vault cum appartment wondering, "What unlistenable shit can I sell the proles this time?" Cue the hysterical laughter as he selects a mouldering reel-to-reel from the pile on the floor. Daddy needs a new tank!

dude this is what happened everytime someone released an aphex tune!

who have obsessively collected his stuff lo these 20 years.......We don't take kindly to being the butt of some artfuck's joke

!!!! does not compute?! ;)
 
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mms

sometimes
massive overreaction there .
its always been clear what the thing was from the start ie 1 x custom made folder to contain all the series and one 1x audiophile virgin pressing http://www.recordtech.com/
plus the £40 includes shipping which will probably be about £15 i guess as those two things are well heavy, some people just can't read tho.
and the bloody thing is getting released on normal vinyl anyway next year, no big deal, this is just a thing for those who've taken the last train to nerdsville.
seems if your're bothered wait till next year, it's only a record afterall.
and all this shit about sandpaper is laughable isn't it?
 

DigitalDjigit

Honky Tonk Woman
It's all over Slsk. It's really shit. Boring, cheap acid. Like the Universal Indicator series only less lo-fi but also less weird. One of the tracks sounds like a remix of that track on Analogue Bubblebath 3 that starts with a vacuum cleaner (that is by the way one of the funniest jokes AFX made) only played at 45. Okay, so I didn't really give it a proper listen but I am sure anyone can bang this out in 5 minutes in ReBirth.

And for the record, I love acid. It's just that there's a lot of shit out there.
 

mms

sometimes
yeah those are some tracks someone has guessed might be analord (which is just odd cos there are 11 eps, why chose these two tracks?) that come from an bootleg recording of a dj set.

neither of them are anything to do with analord, i've heard them all, they sound nothing like this and no one else has heard em or played them out, so not a chance of soulseek getting them.
one of those trax is is some shit old djax track and another is just a track that wasn't released from analogue bb3 era.
 

Chef Napalm

Lost in the Supermarket
mms said:
neither of them are anything to do with analord, i've heard them all, they sound nothing like this and no one else has heard em or played them out, so not a chance of soulseek getting them.
one of those trax is is some shit old djax track and another is just a track that wasn't released from analogue bb3 era.
Now THIS is what I hoped would happen. Someone out in the dissensosphere has actually heard this stuff and presumably is willing to talk about it. Excellent. By all means, let's hear it. Believe me, I would dearly love to be convinced that another Windowlicker/On/Come To Daddy (but, you know, DIFFERENT) is on the horizon.

Come on then. Let's have some Aphex acid.

mms said:
and all this shit about sandpaper is laughable isn't it?
What can I say? Opinions are like assholes: everyone's got one and everyone thinks everybody else's stinks. :D Seriously though, RDJ has done some beautiful stuff and some ugly stuff, but let's face it, the ugly has far outweighed the beautiful in the last 5 or 6 years. I can appreciate interesting noises as much as anyone, but if I had known I was buying the squealing-fingernails-on-a-blackboard tracks on the B-side of Smojphace...well, I wouldn't. I mean, what is the point of owning records you can't/won't play?

Nick Gutterbreakz said:
If you're not up for this special collectors edition with binder, we are pleased to announce that you will be able to purchase Analord 10 in a more regular format, but not until 9 preceding volumes have been released (via your local record store, starting with Analord 1 & 2 in late Jan. / early Feb. 2005. We estimate that the alternative format of Analord 10 will be released next Summer.)
I know, I know. It still pisses me off.
 

mms

sometimes
Chef Napalm said:
What can I say? Opinions are like assholes: everyone's got one and everyone thinks everybody else's stinks. :D Seriously though, RDJ has done some beautiful stuff and some ugly stuff, but let's face it, the ugly has far outweighed the beautiful in the last 5 or 6 years. I can appreciate interesting noises as much as anyone, but if I had known I was buying the squealing-fingernails-on-a-blackboard tracks on the B-side of Smojphace...well, I wouldn't. I mean, what is the point of owning records you can't/won't play?.

yeah it didnt rip the bank open tho and that is the only 2 noise tracks he's done, it wasn't the greatest ep tho.
ithink the noise tracks are ok personally, not all the time at all or anything, and obviously they're not tuneful or comparable to his other stuff but they're nice and clear, i especially like the bit in the second track around a minute and a half in where the ultra sound kicks in and you think someone is behind you.
 

Chef Napalm

Lost in the Supermarket
mms said:
yeah it didnt rip the bank open tho and that is the only 2 noise tracks he's done, it wasn't the greatest ep tho.
ithink the noise tracks are ok personally, not all the time at all or anything, and obviously they're not tuneful or comparable to his other stuff but they're nice and clear, i especially like the bit in the second track around a minute and a half in where the ultra sound kicks in and you think someone is behind you.
Hardly the only ones he's done. Ventolin, the [equation] track on Windowlicker, and several on DrukQs also qualify, methinks. The correct (?) categorisation might be "aggro", but it amounts to noise; noise with beats.

Regardless, you're side-stepping the question. Are you going to tell us about what you've heard of the Analord series or not?

Hint: Try to avoid the descriptor "Wicky, Wicky, Wicked." ;)
 

mms

sometimes
Chef Napalm said:
Hardly the only ones he's done. Ventolin, the [equation] track on Windowlicker, and several on DrukQs also qualify, methinks. The correct (?) categorisation might be "aggro", but it amounts to noise; noise with beats.

Regardless, you're side-stepping the question. Are you going to tell us about what you've heard of the Analord series or not?

Hint: Try to avoid the descriptor "Wicky, Wicky, Wicked." ;)

ventolin has beats and a hummable melody.
as do the others.


its analogue dance music avaliable next year
 

Chef Napalm

Lost in the Supermarket
mms said:
its analogue dance music avaliable next year
Rocori%20Head%20in%20Hands.jpg


Very profound.
 

DigitalDjigit

Honky Tonk Woman
Ah, ok, sorry for the unnecessary flaming then. One of the tracks did sound very much like Djax. Is it not shipping yet or what? Because surely the moment someone gets a copy it will be up on slsk in no time.
 

hint

party record with a siren
Chef Napalm said:
This unsatisfying description has kept me looking for samples with limited success.

just wait til the first release comes out. you'll be able to hear it then and decide whether or not you want to buy it. you seem to have already decided that you don't want to buy the audiophile / folder package.... what's the problem with waiting a while? it's funny how people just assume stuff will be available online well in advance of its official release these days.

I get the impression that very few people have heard the genuine article and those that have are going to stay tight-lipped, like mms. I think it's a waste of energy to demand that people convince you to buy these records, especially since you've made it clear with your first post that you hold those responsible for putting the releases together (artist, label) in very low regard.
 

mms

sometimes
Chef Napalm said:
This unsatisfying description has kept me looking for samples with limited success.

Make of these what you will. I for one am still not impressed.


yeah no one has heard it apart from the chosen few, wait till the audiophile is there and then get the proper job ones on soulseek int it.
 

Chef Napalm

Lost in the Supermarket
hint said:
just wait til the first release comes out. you'll be able to hear it then and decide whether or not you want to buy it. you seem to have already decided that you don't want to buy the audiophile / folder package.... what's the problem with waiting a while? it's funny how people just assume stuff will be available online well in advance of its official release these days.
Let's be clear: I don't want to download anything (thanks for the condescending generalisation, just the same). I want listen to it. Give me RealAudio, give me Windows Media, hell, imbed it in the goddamned java (Warp don't seem to have a problem with that). Why is it so unreasonable to ask for sound samples before I shell out 40quid ex. shipping ($100CAD. To put it in perspective, that's a weeks worth of food.)? Extra-super-special packaging aside, I love records (If my cutting/pressing thread says anything, surely it says that.). I love the way they look, I love the way they sound, I even love the way they smell. Believe me, if I liked it enough, $100 is not going to stop me buying it. The reality is, however, that I live in a rural area. When I say "rural", I'm not sure anyone who lives in the more populated areas of Europe can appreciate what that means. In eastern Canada, "rural" means "my nearest neighbor is a 2 - 3km away." It means I drive 3 hours to my "local" record shop. It means I buy lots of stuff online and I've been screwed too many times to buy it unless I hear it first. Up until recently, RDJ was the exception to that rule. DrukQs was the second-to-last AFX product I bought, no questions asked. I got the CD and the 4X12". Then there was Smojphace...

The bottom line is that I don't think sound samples are too much to ask, especially when you're expecting what I view as a substantial investment. The whole thing smacks of arrogance and it pisses me off.

hint said:
I get the impression that very few people have heard the genuine article and those that have are going to stay tight-lipped, like mms. I think it's a waste of energy to demand that people convince you to buy these records, especially since you've made it clear with your first post that you hold those responsible for putting the releases together (artist, label) in very low regard.
For what reason are they tight-lipped? What would it have hurt to expound upon the sound? There are eloquent reviews written here and associated blogs every day and no one is willing to tell us what two tracks from the now released Analord 10 sound like? *Shhhh* It's a secret! :rolleyes:

And for the record, I'm not demanding: I'm pleading. I'm begging. Throw me a fucking bone, for godsake. In fact, why don't we start by confirming or disputing that the low-quality samples are, in fact, the real deal. No? :eek: See the shock and awe.

Sure, I felt betrayed when I wrote the first post and it may acidic, but I stand by it. RDJ/Rephlex have put out some inspiring work in the past, but my view is that they have collectively been on cruise control and I don't see any signs of a bend in the road.
 

mms

sometimes
For what reason are they tight-lipped? What would it have hurt to expound upon the sound? There are eloquent reviews written here and associated blogs every day and no one is willing to tell us what two tracks from the now released Analord 10 sound like? *Shhhh* It's a secret

they are tight lipped because it's their label and they can do what they want, and they don't want you to get it on soulseek months before it's out.

i'm tight lipped cos it's more fun than being super fucking boring and doing mp3s of it.

i remember the pleasure of waiting for records to come out for what seemed like months and waiting till woolies opened in the morning on the day it came out, not having any money to buy mags and pre internet. then going home or having it on my walkman at anytime possible and endlessly listening to it for weeks.

now i can download some data of alot of things at my will anytime 3 months before the release date, i don't.
 
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