I’m breaking chronology covering this one next, but since I’m on a Caustic Window tip, it made sense to complete the trilogy.
Joyrex J9 is probably the weakest of the trio to be fair, lacking as it does a Cordialatron or On the Romance Tip. Not that there isn’t some industrial-strength acid rave gold here.
Fantasia takes its name from a porn film which it samples, and might be the most manic track so far from this early Aphex phase. The acid line writhes like an electric eel on speed, God knows how he created it, but it surely must count as abuse of a 303.
Clayhill Dub sees Rich trying his hand at dub techno, a style I can’t recall him ever revisiting, but who knows maybe there’s a lost Aphex Dubs mixtape somewhere.
But The Garden of Linmiri is the pick of the bunch. Whereas Fantasia has a kinda silly ‘let’s see how hard you can take it’ vibe, The Garden of Linmiri is cold, brutal and unrelenting – but that’s where the beauty lies. It can be witnessed in full effect in the 2017 Field Day set, sandwiched between mutant trance and Squarepusher. There’s something about witnessing a track dropped live – it’s an opportunity to hear it in a new context, especially when the artist themself mixes with something unexpected.
Rounding off the EP is the ‘Hardcore remix’ of We Are the Music Makers, which is not a patch on the version off SAW85-92 and is largely forgettable but for the Gene Wilder sample. Thinking about it now, I suppose Aphex was styling himself as Willy Wonka, churning out marvellous creations from his factory of dreams. There’s definitely a similarity there, especially the lurid creepiness of the 1971 film. I guess that makes me Augustus Gloop, drowning in his chocolate river.
Rating: 2 / 5 – One for the fans
*I’ve been doling out a lot of 2 and 3 stars for these early releases but that’s not to say there aren’t gems on every one, or that they don’t offer a funny-shaped window into the evolution of electronic music in the UK. But rest assured, we’ll soon be into 4 and 5-star territory, because coming up we’ve got the seminal SAW85-92, Surfing on Sine Waves and On. Stay tuned.
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