Wagon Christ - Throbbing Pouch

It would be really silly of me to mention how great this album is but not post it or any tracks from it.

Throbbing Pouch is truly dark, moody music. It's the type of stuff you expect to hear in a movie about the end of the world, or at least a cool anime flick about some kids trying to escape a post-apocalyptic city while remaining as hip as possible. Most of the album is swimming in that dark drama, though you get slightly out of character moments like Reedin, where A Tribe Called Quest samples punctuate the groove, or Ring Piece, which features goofy horn loops and keyboards that almost seem to parody the rest of the album. Some of the best moments on the album though are tracks like Down Under, where everything slows to a spacey crawl, Phase Everyday, probably the definitive example of that anime metaphor, Floot, which is based entirely around a goofball yet funky flute sample, and Underground Level, with it's ridiculous bass and heavily warped grooves. The only weak moment is the track that best represents the album as a whole, E-Z Listener, and that's only because it's probably the closest thing to a crossover moment as it's less bizarre than everything else, and even it isn't bad!

Yes Virginia, it's a pot album! Keep in mind that the previous declaration is from a non-pot smoker who has never gotten stoned in his life, but I don't need to get high to know who some of this records biggest fans will be. Really, if you wanna blaze up you should be listening to this. If you wanna have strange dreams you should be listening to this. If you wanna play Super Metroid or some other classic video games you should be listening to this. If you wanna dream about the future on a warm night while making out with someone you really, really like you should be listening to this! Throbbing Pouch is simply one those records you shouldn't miss out on because it has the power to change your life in subtle ways you might not notice till later on. Just trust me and grab this, you won't be sorry!


Wagon Christ - Throbbing Pouch

01 Intro
02 Reedin
03 Down Under
04 Phase Everyday
05 Throbbing Pouch
06 Rexcist
07 Floot
08 Intermission
09 Pull My Strings
10 Spotlight
11 Scrapes
12 Night Owls
13 E-Z Listener
14 Vibes
15 Underground Level
16 Ring Piece
17 All My Fingers


And if you need more Luke Vibert after hearing this, go visit DJ Polished Solid for an incredible mix she did of Vibert's various personas. Polished Solid got skills!

Aphex Twin - Rare Stuff, Part 2

Here we go with Part 2. Just so you know, I don't like to do transcodes but, in the case of several of these tracks, it was quite necessary. This was mostly due to damaged files or slight improvements on the quality of the existing sources. Everything I had an original copy or lossless rip of was used over MP3s, but some things just don't exist in higher quality, at least not to the public.


Aphex Twin - Rare Stuff: Disc 2

01 Polygon Window - My Teapot
This is Richard's contribution to Warp's Artificial Intelligence II compilation. Not really rare, but I've found a lot of people who had no idea it existed, so I'm posting it. On a related note, on the first Artificial Intelligence comp, Richard's contribution was credited to The Dice Man. It is the only track where he used that pseudonym because, unbeknownst to him at the time, Colin James of Meat Beat Manifesto was using that name. Polygon Window was his next choice.

02 Caustic Window - Cunt
03 Caustic Window - Phlaps
Both of these tracks are from the unreleased Caustic Window album. Not to be confused with the Caustic Window compilation which features most of the material released via EPs on Rephlex, this would have been a completely original album. Apparently test pressings were made and shared with friends, including Mike Paradinas. He is most likely the source of the info we know about it. Based off these tracks, I wish the album would have come out. Both of these were released on compilations which you can read about here and here.

04 Mike & Rich - Brivert and Muons
This is a leftover from the Mike & Rich album, Expert Knob Twiddlers, which was a goofy collaboration between Richard and Mike Paradinas, better known as µ-Ziq and the founder of Planet Mu Records. This was available as a free download a LONG time ago, and that's the source of this recording. If you go digging into the Mike & Rich album, prepare for oddball weirdness galore!

05 AFX - Bummy
This track was exclusive to the Mealtime compilation which was released on Planet Mu. It sounds like it was recorded around the same time as the Richard D. James Album.

06 Equation (Demo, Live On Ultrasound)
This one needs some explaining. Back in 1997, Richard appeared on the American radio program Ultrasound. He was interviewed and they played stuff from the Richard D. James Album, but they also played an early version of this then-unreleased track. Some of the interview is attached to the end of the track and Richard mentions that it's crappy and probably won't ever come out. This led to the track generally being referred to as Crappy, but it is indeed an early version of the Equation track from the Windowlicker single.

07 Squarepusher/AFX - Freeman Hardy & Willis Acid
Unlike the Mike & Rich project, this track is completely serious. This appeared on the Warp Records compilation, We Are Reasonable People, which was an album length release with a single's release code to celebrate Warp's 100th single release. This will be appearing on the forthcoming Warp20 box, but it's the same track. It's also the only released collaboration between Richard and Tom Jenkinson, aka Squarepusher. Supposedly there are a few more tracks stored on a DAT somewhere, but who knows. If I had to guess, Richard did the music and some editing while Tom did the beats. Really, REALLY good track!

08 Windowlicker (Original Demo)
Like the Equation demo, this is a simplified version of the main beat from Windowlicker. If my memory serves me correctly, this initially leaked on a bootleg 7" somehow related to Luke Vibert. Most people dismissed it as fake, but then Windowlicker came out and everyone was proved wrong. This was later issued as a one-sided 12" and as a CD single with the video for Windowlicker on it.

09 Windowlicker (Demo Version)
I know it's confusing, but it's important you know this is NOT the demo of Windowlicker. Hell, I don't think this is even the same song. This was released on the Japanese edition of the Windowlicker single and has sometimes been referred to as a Special Edit, but you'd be hard pressed to find any similarities between this, the original demo or the finished track. Very strange.

10 AFX - 46 Analord-Masplid
11 AFX - Naks 11 (Mono)
These tracks were issued on a split 12" with LFO in 2005. They are somehow related to a version of the game Wipeout that was issued exclusively on the PSP. I guess these are also leftovers from the Analord series, but how much you wanna bet there are a ton of those lying around Richard's home, or tank, or bank, or whatever. Oh yeah, he doesn't own the bank anymore, one less place to wonder about!

12 DJ Pierre - Box Energy (4 Remix 1)
This remix if very similar to the one on the 2 Remixes By AFX single, but this is longer and a little more out there. It was released as a free download from Rephlex during the Analord campaign.

13 Wagon Christ - Sci-Fi Staircase (Tahnaiya Russell Remix)
As the story goes, there was a competition for people to create a remix of this Wagon Christ tune. Richard, under the above pseudonym, secretly entered this mix and won the competition. Not trying to steal the prizes from someone more deserving as he didn't need them, they were given to the runner up, but Richard's mix is the one everyone remembers. Totally bonkers!


Come back tomorrow for Melodies From Mars!