We take for granted how easy it is to make electronic music today. All the hardware and software tools available facilitate the creation of musical styles like hip-hop, house, and breakbeats, but we forget that once upon a time people made music from scratch and they understood the process of its creation thoroughly. What we’ve sacrificed for ease of use is a deeper knowledge of how electronic music is made. Thankfully we’ve still got Aphex Twin, the sonic shaman that reminds us with each project that, when you live and breathe the nitty gritty of sound, the product is 100% pure.
After so many releases under so many monikers, each establishing a new direction in his varied style, listeners have come to trust Aphex Twin to guide them into uncharted realms of electronic sound. That’s why when he plans something as outlandish and crazy as Remote Orchestra, we can’t help but follow him. Debuting in Wroclaw, Poland in 2011 and arriving in his native UK this past October, the three act performance finds Aphex Twin taking control offstage. The first act consists of an orchestra facing a screen and following visual cues as their conductor and sheet music. The second is a remotely-controlled piano swinging on a pendulum while playing an Aphex Twin composition. Finally, a piece referencing Steve Reich’s Pendulum Music.
In the trailer above, Aphex Twin’s team tells us a bit about the show, insist that it’s organized while admitting that it’s pure chaos, and dropping a few critical nuggets about British reality show star Joey Essex. Stay tuned for lots more on Aphex Twin’s Remote Orchestra.