Aphex Twin – Blackbox Life Recorder 21f /in a room7 F760 review

It’s odd, but some of the most prominent electronic music artists of this century have had a lopsided take on their own work ethic. Witness Boards of Canada, now a decade on from the release of their last album Tomorrow’s Harvest. Or take Richard D. James, AKA Polygon Window, AKA The Tuss, AKA user18081971, AKA Aphex Twin. After a hugely productive final decade of the last century, album wise all fans have had to savour are 2001’s Drukqs and latterly Syro, released thirteen years later. And this knob-twiddling was supposed to be easy.

Asked if he was a thinker or a doer in a 2019 interview, James opted for the former. Still playing live frequently, the last bona fide Aphex material was 2018’s Collapse, and although the fanfare for a new release by almost anyone is what it is these days, there was still a sense of anticipation when Blackbox Life Recorder 21f was announced, accompanied by making the EP’s titular first track public.

Notably, Collapse was hailed for of it’s lack of inventiveness, James the non-pioneer, and with Blackbox Life Recorder changes in tone are just as subtle. The opener mines a seam that was the orbit of Richard D. James, moving at two speeds with a dolorous overtow punctuated by a clanking break: despite the legions of mimics who’ve copied the formula, it’s still immediately recognisable as Aphex Twin.

One of Syro‘s most gratifying qualities was the almost Balearic vibe, especially when set off against the schizophrenic emotional austerity of Drukqs. Both of the other new tracks explore this in different ways, zin2 test5 via a kinetic low end, some passive melody and the occasional handclap, whilst with in a room7 F760 there’s a potential new entry into James’ elite techno canon, an invitingly warm synth line, booming low end and guest appearing cowbell (!) proof the grand master still where gets a dancefloor is.

The quartet closes with the smudgy Parallax mix of the title track, however opinion on Blackbox Life Recorder is largely going to be defined by the continued absence of either the old skool menace or confrontation in James’ approach. Maybe a new full length album might allow the thinker to set himself free and send some people running for the sanctity of EDM again.