Avril 14th Delayed

Yesterday was 14th April, Avril 14th in Aphex Twin world. That track, Avril 14th, came out on Richard D. James' 2001 album Druqks, a two minute piano piece that provides some calming bliss, a moment of reflection in an ever- speedy world, an almost New Age composition but with that Aphex Twin edge that shifts it into slightly uncomfortable territory, loss and sadness at the fringes and very much a track that suggests something about memory and reminiscence. 

Avril 14th

It was recored using a Disklavier, essentially a piano that reads MIDI data and thus plays the notes without a human pressing fingers on keys- Aphex Twin blurring the lines between machine and human and producing something that is still ineffably human and beautiful. It's been used all over the place, in various films and sampled by Kanye West. It has been streamed hundreds of millions of times but remains unknown and obscure all the same. 

In 2018 Aphex Twin dropped two further versions and then deleted them the following day. Both add to the mystique. 

Avril 14th (reversed music not audio) sounds like things are as they should be. There's a lot of reverb and the piano does sound like it's playing itself

Avril 14th (reversed music not audio)

Alt Delay makes time shift around and adds further layers of melancholy to the piano in ways which are difficult to fully express. Liable to cause the blinking back of tears at the sudden appearance of memories, at least in this quarter.

Avril 14th (alt delay)