In a pre-award ceremony it was announced tonight that Aphex Twin won a Grammy for Best Dance/Electronic Album for his latest album, Syro, on Warp Records. Crazy but cool, right? Dutch DJ/producer Tiësto picked up his first Grammy for his remix of John Legend’s “All Of Me.” Clean Bandit’s “Rather Be” won for Best Dance Recording.
Find out the full list of winners here.
DJ/producer/sound designer Tom Middleton cut his production teeth in the late ’80s in Cornwall, England, after striking up a friendship with Richard D. James while Aphex Twin was in its infancy. Middleton’s studio experiments with James influenced him greatly and set the stage for his groundbreaking ambient work with Mark Pritchard in Global Communication. (The duo’s 1994 album, 76:14, remains a benchmark of excellence in the field.)
Middleton has since gone on to fine-tune his own impeccably diverse sound, one which spans the spectrum from deep house to classical. With a spate of wondrous albums, singles, remixes and DJ mix compilations, the lessons he learned all those years ago in Cornwall continue to resonate.
As James presents his much-ancticipated Syro after a decade-plus absence from music, the constantly innovating Middleton has just unveiled his second sample pack for Loopmasters, Dub Bass House, and is finishing up a series of album projects.
We spoke with Middleton about how he came to work with James and the experience that made an indelible mark on his musical psyche.
Tom Middleton presents Dub Bass House is out now on Loopmasters.
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Fresh from announcing the upcoming release of Syro, his first album in 13 years, Aphex Twin has announced a series of listening sessions for the much-anticpated album. According to a missive sent this morning, eight listening sessions will be conducted around the world. Tickets will be allocated via a lottery. Sounds fair, right?
Here is the press release in its unedited entirety:
This is the information
Beginning next Friday, over the course of several days there will be one off events internationally where fans will be able to hear Aphex Twin’s first new record in 13 year in its entirety before the release on September 23. RSVP ticket lottery begins on Sunday, August 31 at 4amPST/7amEST/12pmGMT/1pmCET and closes Tuesday, September 2 at midnight in each time zone.
These are the cities where they are happening
London, UK
New York City, US
Los Angeles, US
Chicago, US
Toronto, CA
Paris, FR
Brussels, BE
Utrecht, NLThis is where you out find more about rsvping for specific listenings:
http://smarturl.it/syro-listening
New York duo MGMT have kept a low profile since crafting their seminal 2008 anthem “Kids” heard on their breakout album Congratulations. After intentionally being off the radar for a while, it was revealed that the duo have been recording their next album in Buffalo, New York, for the past year. According to Rolling Stone, the forthcoming album due in June is the byproduct of jam sessions inspired and informed by Aphex Twin and an array of house music they’ve been listening to lately. The duo’s Ben Goldwasser told RS, “We’re not trying to make music that everyone understands the first time they hear it.”
Andrew VanWyngarden recogized MGMT’s massive global success and added that “there’s no illusion on their part that we’re going to turn into a Top 40 band. That’s kind of comforting.”