GAK - GAK

The attitude of this release (especially Gak 3) is a lot like RDJ's recent Analord 12"s. The overall repressed, near-melancholy, and (dare I say) emotional mood makes me think that when he made the Analord series, it was a merely a way for him to go back to the music he made when he was younger. The only difference is that the Gak-era RDJ was less experienced, as noted by the lack of evolution in the tracks. Certainly groundbreaking when it was made, but not by the standards of today's experimental tracks; seen as more simplistic and childish now.

If you feel that you have a deep enough understanding of all of Richard's works over the decades, I urge you to analyze the moods of his releases. I guarantee that you'll see the life of a truely interesting individual unfolding over time, from the good times to the bad.

Admittedly the tracks go on a bit with not a huge amount of variation, but they have the classic aphex sound to them. Being upwards of 13 years old you can't blame them from sounding a bit dated, but none of his peers sounded like this (did he even have any?). Gak1 has a wonderfully syncopated rhythm and Gak3 has a classic (but simple) haunting aphex melody.

An overall generic and lazy release at best. The backstory behind this is that RDJ sent it into Warp (before he was signed) under the name "GAK". After he was signed, they pulled it out of the archives and released it. GAK 1 is a very long and very boring track, with the only thing saving it from being a complete peice of crap is the piano riff. GAK 2 is just as bad (if not worse). GAK 4 is the only track that isn't extremely bad...Not a great RDJ release.