xtal

http://www.martianarts.net/web/images/stories/ourgear/mks30_mainschematic.gif

top left

Dayumm

it was supposed to be a 303 diagram but I guess it's a Roland MKS-30

crystal?

Xtal 1, Xtal 2, Xtal 1, Xtal 2...

I get knots in my throat when the song starts.

So I guess this means there will be a sequel

heliosphan!

that explains... so much.

so how is it pronounced? crystal?

yes, it is an abbreviation for a crystal oscillator, a common component in lots of electronic devices

  On 4/13/2012 at 5:01 AM, benc812 said:

yes, it is an abbreviation for a crystal oscillator, a common component in lots of electronic devices

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_oscillator

Neat!

where's Tha?

Oh my god...that contradicts this poster: http://i2.listal.com/image/700972/600full-aphex-twin.jpg

Xtal (crystal oscillator) is certainly in fitting with Schottkey 7th Path (as in Schottky diode) and Pulsewidth. I'm guessing that was about the time James was studying electrical engineering? It sounds like he tinkers around with synths a lot too, which is a nice way to get into that. It would appear he dislikes actually naming songs about as much as he likes making them, hence the weird array of barely pronouncable groups of items (place names; electronic components; computer viruses; acronyms).

Then there's the coloured calces, or to put it another way, the audax powders.

But surely this is to be expected with instrumental music; there's no catchy line in the chorus for you to name a given track after.

i want a MKS-30 real bad

I'm still going to keep calling it "ex-tal".

i think there is artistic merit to the names of his tracks. i dont know what the term for word art is but i think he has a sense of word art. Xtal is the perfect name for that track. It sounds like it looks

  On 4/14/2012 at 4:13 PM, marf said:

i think there is artistic merit to the names of his tracks. i dont know what the term for word art is but i think he has a sense of word art. Xtal is the perfect name for that track. It sounds like it looks

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellar_door

good link

  On 4/14/2012 at 5:20 PM, Rhombix said:

  On 4/14/2012 at 4:13 PM, marf said:

i think there is artistic merit to the names of his tracks. i dont know what the term for word art is but i think he has a sense of word art. Xtal is the perfect name for that track. It sounds like it looks

 

http://en.wikipedia....iki/Cellar_door

am i the only person who doesnt understand this cellar door shit?

But in terms of Aphex the article hits the nail on the head.

  On 4/13/2012 at 2:18 PM, ZoeB said:

Xtal (crystal oscillator) is certainly in fitting with Schottkey 7th Path (as in Schottky diode) and Pulsewidth. I'm guessing that was about the time James was studying electrical engineering? It sounds like he tinkers around with synths a lot too, which is a nice way to get into that. It would appear he dislikes actually naming songs about as much as he likes making them, hence the weird array of barely pronouncable groups of items (place names; electronic components; computer viruses; acronyms).

 

Then there's the coloured calces, or to put it another way, the audax powders.

 

But surely this is to be expected with instrumental music; there's no catchy line in the chorus for you to name a given track after.

I think you have it all wrong. By naming the tracks after things he is experiencing at the time he actually is creating a story much more interesting than he can actually imagine. Now you have these series of track names based on the occurrences in his life and if you actually wanted to plot them chronologically you could get this really detailed idea of what he was experiencing at the time of each track. He also creates this wonderful unfolding story by giving each track its own significance without having to imagine it. It is more honest than most artists who sit back and try to give the names more meaning than they actually have. At the same time he conveys that it isn't the track name that really matters its the track itself, because he doesn't ( a lot of the time) take the time to come up with something that is supposed to be thoroughly determined. His track names are a total autobiography. Sometimes though they are funny or catchy or interesting, but in my opinion never wanky.

  On 4/16/2012 at 5:28 AM, sergeantk said:

  On 4/14/2012 at 5:20 PM, Rhombix said:

  On 4/14/2012 at 4:13 PM, marf said:

i think there is artistic merit to the names of his tracks. i dont know what the term for word art is but i think he has a sense of word art. Xtal is the perfect name for that track. It sounds like it looks

 

http://en.wikipedia....iki/Cellar_door

 

am i the only person who doesnt understand this cellar door shit?

 

But in terms of Aphex the article hits the nail on the head.

hmmm...my opinion is that its just linguists trying to deconstruct everything. I can understand where they are coming from. Sit around and just say random words and try to think about how they sound and avoid thinking about their actually meaning. Think about how each words sounds when you say it over and over again. Which words do you prefer to hear? It is like listening to music. You prefer a certain arrangement of sounds versus a different arrangement. Its all the same series of notes just rearranged in different order. I think its is easier if you don't have a frame of reference for the meaning of the word. It is kind of like how people always think certain languages sound more beautiful than others. I think its a meaningless argument though. It's completely subjective. It is like arguing about your favorite color. It can be fun though.

For instance, one of the first words I thought of was "silhouette" and it turns out that it actually originated from a French person's last name. So, basically it is reinforcing the idea that French is a beautiful language.

I was watching a video with Tobias Freund in his studio. He's messing with the AMS DMX 15-80S Digital Delay and it's got a xtal/vco switch right on the front panel. I don't know common that is, but it caught my eye.

From this video... looks like a fun bit of kit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=rHzWjVKbxBw#t=488

i dont know. i just think xtal sounds like xtal. the word has this ethereal crispy look to it. and the tracksounds like that

  On 4/13/2012 at 7:01 AM, joshuatx said:

Neat!

 

where's Tha?

"Tha" comes from SamanTha, former girlfriend and photographer for early releases (Quoth, Surfing on Sine Waves, etc.)