Album Review: Aphex Twin - Syro

We all know that good wine gets better with time.

After long absence from the scene, Aphex Twin is back with the first studio album since Drukqs (2001) - easily one of the most anticipated albums of the year.

This August various hints of the upcoming album appeared here and there. At first the blimp that you see above flew over London then A.T. logos spreaded over the major cities which left fans with the question "Is it possible...?". Will it be the Aphex Twin we know or a total revolution?

The questions were answered just a few days later when a cryptic tracklist  with bpm was announced via the deep web and when the massive gear list leaked from the first infos of Syro packaging .

All this hype, nourished by some pre-listening events all over the world led to the final release on Warp the 23th of September which is a golden month for the label thanks to this and FlyLo' works.

"You've got so many machines, Ricard" was the sample of Richard D. James' mother that can be found in this track of the controversial Come To Daddy EP  back in 1997.

In his most recent interview, he talks about Syro and his obsession for studio equipment (even though the whole album fits in perfectly well, it was made in 7 years at 6 different studios ) and also how his family took part in making this album . From the name itself (pronounced Sigh-ro) that's made up by his kid to the voices of Richard, his kids and parents that can be found in various samples if you listen closely.

But let's get to the juice. Is this record worth the expectations? In my opinion - yes! A lot of things changed in electronic music since Drukqs came out, but it seems like time has stopped when it comes to Richard D. James' works - there is a strong continuity with Aphex's previous stuff.

It starts with the early anticipated and the most danceable minipops 67, a good record that bodes well for the album. The bpm will decrease only for the groovy and (maybe a little too much) linear produk 29 and then gradually rise again with the crazy tunes of the second part of the album like CIRCLONT14. That could be the perfect soundtrack for an interstellar race and the surreal PAPAT4 a great record adorned with upbeat clashes and retro synth.

Now is up to you to judge whether it deserves the good grades it has gained or not.

Enjoy!