Surfing on Sine Waves

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Surfing on Sine Waves
Surfing on Sine Waves cover
Studio album by Polygon Window
Released January 11, 1993 (1993-01-11)
Recorded Llannerlog Studios, Cornwall
Genre Techno
Length 56:58
Label Warp Records
WARP 7 (UK)
Wax Trax!/TVT Records
TVT-7204 (US)
SME Records
SRCS 7523 (Japan)
Zomba Records
RTD 126.3842.2 (Germany)
Producer Richard D. James
Professional reviews
Aphex Twin chronology
Xylem Tube EP
(1992)		 Surfing on Sine Waves
(1993)		 On (EP)
(1993)
Artificial Intelligence series chronology
Artificial Intelligence
(1992)		 Surfing on Sine Waves
(1993)		 Bytes
(1993)

Surfing on Sine Waves is a techno album by Polygon Window, a pseudonym for recording artist Richard D. James, better known by his other alias of Aphex Twin. The album was released January 11, 1993, on Warp Records, and is the second in its Artificial Intelligence series. Warp also released an accompanying single taken from Quoth.

Contents

[edit] Recording details

After hearing James's early material as Aphex Twin on Belgium's R&S Records, Warp contacted James and offered him a recording contract and a chance to show off his collection of homemade and modified synthesizers. He would later continue to release material on Warp, but under his other alias of Aphex Twin. Richard D. James is listed as the creator of the music; however, his name is printed over the brown cliff on the back of the album, so it is not easily seen without careful scrutiny. The full text reads, "Writing, programming, arranging, engineering, producing + location recording by Richard D. James at Llannerlog Studios, Cornwall." An image of him running down a flight of stairs can also be found inside the liner notes.

The album is a collection of largely instrumental electronic music (a few vocal samples are included in places, including one from the Broadway musical "The Sound of Music"). It might have been recorded by James onto cassettes in his bedroom studio, using a limited range of cheaply available drum machines, synthesizers, sequencers and samplers, some of which he may have modified himself. The equipment included staples such as the Roland TB-303 bass synth/sequencer and Roland TR-606 drum machine on an untitled track, a Roland R8 digital drum machine, and low-budget synths such as the Yamaha DX100. Digital piano sample sounds are also used. Most of the tracks feature insistent drum machine patterns (the ambient Quino-phec being an exception) and James' characteristic angular and modal melodies. James makes liberal use of lengthy digital reverberation, giving a spacious feel to the tracks.

The album was re-released in 2000 by Warp to celebrate the opening of its American division (albums by Warp had been distributed in the United States through licensing deals with many labels—this one was originally released on Wax Trax!/TVT Records there). The re-release features two previously unreleased tracks that were recorded during the same time this album was created.

An alternative version of Polygon Window, credited to James as the Dice Man, was featured on the first album in the Artificial Intelligence series, the compilation Artificial Intelligence. Remixes of "Polygon Window" and "Quoth" also appear on V/VM's "Helpaphextwin" album.

[edit] Track listing

[edit] 1993 release

  1. "Polygon Window" - 5:24
  2. "Audax Powder" 4:36
  3. "Quoth" - 5:34 (sample (help·info))
  4. "If It Really Is Me" - 7:01
  5. "Supremacy II" - 4:04
  6. "UT1-dot" - 5:17
  7. [untitled] - 6:24
  8. "Quixote" - 6:00
  9. "Quino-phec" - 4:42

[edit] 2001 US re-release

  1. "Polygon Window" - 5:24
  2. "Audax Powder" - 4:36
  3. "Quoth" - 5:34
  4. "If It Really Is Me" - 7:01
  5. "Supremacy II" - 4:04
  6. "UT1 - dot" - 5:17
  7. [Untitled] - 6:24
  8. "Quixote" - 6:00
  9. "Portreath Harbour" - 4:44
  10. "Redruth School" - 2:43
  11. "Quino-phec" - 4:42

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Richard D. James
As Aphex Twin
Digeridoo (1992) – Selected Ambient Works 85-92 (1992) – Xylem Tube EP (1992) – On (1993) – Selected Ambient Works Volume II (1994) – Classics (1994) – Ventolin (1995) – ...I Care Because You Do (1995) – Melodies from Mars (unreleased) (1995) – Donkey Rhubarb (1995) – Girl/Boy EP (1996) – Richard D. James (1996) – 51/13—Aphex Singles Collection (1996) – Come to Daddy (1997) – Windowlicker (1999) – drukqs (2001) – 26 Mixes for Cash (2003) Analord 10 (2005) – Chosen Lords (2006)
As AFX
Analogue Bubblebath (1991) – Analogue Bubblebath 2 – (1991) – Analogue Bubblebath 3 (1993) – Analogue Bubblebath 4 (1994) – Analogue Bubblebath 5 (unreleased) (1995) – Hangable Auto Bulb (1995) – Analogue Bubblebath 3.1 – (1997) – 2 Remixes By AFX (2001) – Smojphace EP (2003) – Analords 1-9, 11 (2005) – AFX/LFO (2005) – Chosen Lords (2006)
As Polygon Window
Surfing on Sine Waves (1993) – Quoth (1993)
As Power-Pill
Pac-Man (1992)
As Bradley Strider
Bradley's Beat (1991) – Bradley's Robot (1993)
As Caustic Window
Joyrex J4 EP (1992) – Joyrex J5 EP (1992) – Joyrex J9i (1993) – Joyrex J9ii (1993) – Untitled (unreleased) (1994) – Compilation (1998)
As GAK
GAK (1994)
As Q-Chastic
Q-Chastic EP (unreleased) (1992)
As Green Calx
Green Calx (unreleased) (1993)
With Mike & Rich
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