In the case of celebrities choosing to reenter the public eye, the usual recourse is to do a hyped interview with Oprah, in which the celebrity in-question borders on tears as he or she recollects the series of foreshadowing escapades hopping newly-opened clubs exclusively for the paint fumes.
Richard D. James a.k.a. Aphex Twin doesn’t have a scandalous story like that to tell following his basically extended absence from the music scene, and even though he did grant an exclusive interview to Pitchfork ahead of his formal return vis-à-vis Syro, the interview was more about that album and James’s general penchant for anonymity. Syro has since served as the preface for several supplemental releases (including the Cheetah EP last year), so clearly, the legend of electronic music hasn’t defaulted to total retreat just yet.
And yesterday, the world received even more evidence of Aphex Twin’s newfound “man of the people” persona: he’s just opened (in conjunction with Warp) an online archive and web store that appears to cover the breadth of his discography across all monikers. In the downright congenial words of the gregarious Tweeter himself: “Open. Come in…”
Of particular note is the fact that several of the albums included in the archive also list previously unreleased tracks! (For instance: I’m noticing more than a few new tracks in the tracklisting for James’s album as The Tuss, Rushup Edge.) Additionally, “all Rephlex material will be going up” in “due course,” according to a note at the bottom of the page.
What a guy.
More about: AFX, Aphex Twin, Richard D. James, The Tuss
