In our march toward Aphex Twin’s new Cheetah EP, we’ve already been gifted the producer’s first official music video in 17 years (it was made by a 12-year-old) and a vintage-looking press release that appeared to be advertising some kind of electronic instrument. Over the weekend, the new EP was premiered in its entirety for the first time on BBC Music 6, as Pitchfork reports. Stream it here at the 1:00:10 mark.
Cheetah is quintessential Richard D. James (aka Aphex Twin). It’s a unique electronic style that’s stayed in vogue since his Selected Ambient Works hit the airwaves back in the early ‘90s. Active despite its ambient underpinnings, Cheetah is defined by its blips and bumps, which leave the soundscapes slightly askew with just a dash of sleaze. Like everything James has done, the new EP is unencumbered and unbeholden to anyone or anything but his own mountains of hardware.
Esoteric track names, as per usual, identify his analog processes on a seven-track EP that includes both eight-minute epics and 30-second snippets of sound. Cheetah is distinctly Aphex Twin, and that’s all that we could ever ask for. (Listen as host Tom Robinson shares listeners’ immediate reactions between tracks, which range from thoughtful analyses to mindblown nonsense.)
Cheetah follows the Syro full-length and AT’s two recent EPs, Computer Controlled Acoustic Instruments pt2 and Orphaned Deejay Selek (2006-2008). The record officially arrives this Friday via Warp, but it will be available for streaming on BBC 6 all month. Check it out and let us know what you think in the comments. Full tracklist below:
Cheetah EP
01. CHEETAHT2 [Ld spectrum]
02. CHEETAHT7b
03. CHEETA1b ms800
04. CHEETA2 ms800
05. CIRKLON3 [ ÐšÐ¾Ð»Ñ…Ð¾Ð·Ð½Ð°Ñ mix ]
06. CIRKLON 1
07. 2X202-ST5
IMAGE: Warp
