Aphex Twin ‎– Drukqs

Drukqs. Oh boy, let me just breathe for a moment.
This record is epic.
It is my favorite RDJ work, because you can feel how much passion he put into it and how mature his sound has grown. It is reminescent of SAW 85-92, yes. And ICBYD. And RDJ Album. And everything that came after Come to Daddy. It is a summary of RDJ's principles of music composition, but it is also so much more than that. The heaviest tracks, the most complex pieces i have ever heard, might sound just that on first listenings: complex. But they aren't really about frenetic drill 'n' bass only. It's the melodies that constantly appear, disappear, develop, the rhythm changes, the subtle details, so many that with each listen you find a new one. Or simply imagine a new one? It's so complex that you lose conscience. It's classical music, not because of the artwork, but because there are moments, happenings, stories, dialogues between sounds and sequences. And the piano tracks! How beautiful all of them. Drukqs would simply be a disaster without them. Besides being some of the most remarkable melodies i have heard coming from a bedroom music producer, they create the breathing moments between the epileptic-like tracks. It's like Yin and Yang. The conquest of balance. Imagine you are trapped inside a piano and suddenly all the pieces come to life and decide to kill you. This is the soundtrack to your attempt to escape.

sickeningly overproduced and up it's own arse. the mastering is really bad as well.

Whilst I tend to agree with the consensus that this is not RDJ's best output en masse - those that say the piano tracks are forgettable must have a bad memory! For me the standout tracks are the piano tracks, such as Jynweythek, Avril 14th and Nanou 2 - I actually find the typical RDJ tracks less interesting (that's not to say I don't like them) - I am a big fan of SAW II so do enjoy RDJ's ambient work but that said my favourite track is Come To Daddy, so it is not like I am pre-destined to only like the ambient output on this album. There is a lot of prepared piano in the style of John Cage on this album - Jynweythek being a classic example - I think RDJ pulls it off quite well given that it is not a terribly original concept.

Penty Harmonium on the vinyl is Qkthr on the CD (except on the CD acetate version where the title is the same as the vinyl)

Please add a cover :) thx

Second favorite album behind Geogaddi.

Breathtaking.

Vordhosbn. Mt Saint Michel + Saint Michaels Mount. 54 Cymru Beats.

Holy shit.

That's all I have to say

11/10.

Also, check out Mangle 11 (Circuit Bent V.I.P. Mix) off the Rephlexions compilation. Supposedly a Drukqs outtake and it definitely sounds like one.

Well, it's been nearly ten years. How about another listen?

Highly anticipated, Drukqs came at a time when the IDM sound that RDJ practically invented was growing stale. Unfortunately, I found it to be a huge letdown. Others have noted that it sounds more like a compilation of outtakes than an album of truly original material. I have to sadly agree. As a result, the album seemed to make almost no impact or impression on the IDM scene.

The theme of alternating quieter, shorter piano pieces with bigger, heavier-hitting tracks makes sense on paper. But it fails in practice because the piano tracks are totally forgettable whilst the IDM tracks are too similar. Once you've listened to the whole album (1hr 40min of *work*), there are very few tracks that are memorable. RDJ seems to have been directly influenced by Autechre's directionless waffling back then, turning in such wonders as "ziggomatic v17," which, for all I know, might have been on Confield, Ae's worst.

Moreover, the "good" tracks (and some of them really are great, though not groundbreaking) simply do not carry any of the emotional resonance that defined Aphex's masterpieces like I Care and SAWII. An improved version of Drukqs would collect all the longer tracks and two or three of the better piano pieces. This record had no business being a double album.

Luckily, the Analord series proved that he still had the ability and wherewithal to create interesting, engaging music -- some of which stands among his best work.

Richard D. James' most diverse release. The music styles are diverse, it ranges from IDM to classical piano (recently sampled by Kanye West) and has the most interesting texture, it's very unique. A very broad emotional landscape can be found within this album.

Clearly Richard poured his heart and soul into this release as it, IMO, is his best and most accomplished work to date.

Sadly i own this cd. I had done some research looking for some new cds and noticed that aphex twin was allways poping up. I read some news/history about it and figured id go out and buy a cd. Big Mistake. I love experimental but my god this was bad. It was as if someone with tons of knowldge about electronic music got a 6 pack of honey brown, chugged it and begain slapping things together and calling it a song. After reading about how legendary this guy is i was let down after hearing the cds.

1 out of 5... and thats generous.