Project 1001: Selected Ambient Works 85-92 by Aphex Twin

A look at a landmark ambient electronica album

Jun 12, 2025

Full disclosure: I know almost nothing about electronica or ambient electronica. Before today I could not have named a single artist in the genre outside of Daft Punk.1 This offering from Aphex Twin (British musician, composer and DJ Richard D. James) isn’t my cup of tea, but it’s interesting, nonetheless.

Most interesting to me is how the songs were structured. Usually they start with one element, maybe a certain beat or a sound. There are no lyrics but where you’d usually expect a new verse to appear after the chorus, Aphex Twin adds onto the soundscape with a new element or instrument

. He keeps building into a crescendo of sorts and that makes for something rather more fulfilling than you would expect from ambient music. But it’s not really just ambient music, is it?

The New York Times called Aphex Twin one “of the most important figures in contemporary electronica.”2 In 2014, NME named him as “one of the most important and influential artists alive.”3 He’s also been referred to as “a pioneer of what would become known as ‘intelligent dance music.’”4

As I thought about these statements, it occurred to me that this album was made in 1992 before most of the technology available to Aphex Twin’s musical descendants. Despite that, this record doesn’t sound dated to me. One of the few electronic artists I know anything about is Daft Punk and I can hear not a small influence on them here.

I didn’t think I’d like this album, but I ended up enjoying it quite a bit. Not sure something like this would ever hit my regular listening rotation, but when in a certain mood I could seek it out. My rating:

Pitchfork published an appreciation of the album way back in 2002 by David M. Pecoraro:

They say next to no one heard the Velvet Underground’s first album when it was released, but everyone who did went on to start a band. Listening to Selected Ambient Works 85-92, one can’t help but imagine the seeds being planted in the imaginations of the lucky few who were there when it all began. Nestled in these simple, undeniably danceable tracks are the roots of contemporary IDM. And despite its somewhat primitive origins, the final product remains among the most interesting ever created with a keyboard and a computer.5

According to Anthony Tognazzini, writing for AllMusic, Selected Ambient Works 85-92 is “(o)ne of the indisputable classics of electronica, and a defining document for ambient music in particular” and “(t)his landmark recording is one of the essential building blocks of any electronica collection.”6

In 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Rod Stanley wrote:

Any raver worth their air-conditioned sneakers or, indeed, anyone with more than a passing interest in electronic music, should have a well-worn copy of Selected Ambient Works 85-92 in their collection. It was a watershed for dance music, its sparse beats and haunting synth lines sounding as intoxicating and otherworldly today as they ever did.7

Enjoy and listen without prejudice.
“And just remember, different people have peculiar tastes”
~ Lou Reed

Cheers!

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Charts

• Peak on Billboard 200 album chart: n/a
• Singles on Billboard Hot 100 chart: n/a
• RIAA certification: n/a

Released on February 10, 1992. Here’s what else was happening:

Pop Culture

• Number one song: “I’m Too Sexy” by Right Said Fred8
• Number one album: Ropin’ the Wind by Garth Brooks9
• Number one movie: Medicine Man by John McTiernan10
• Most watched TV programs: 60 Minutes, Roseanne, Murphy Brown, Cheers, Coach11
• NYT bestseller, fiction: Hideaway by Dean R. Koontz12
• NYT bestseller, non-fiction: Revolution from Within by Gloria Steinem13

Some other albums released that week

• Generation Terrorists by Manic Street Preachers
• That What Is Not by Public Image Ltd
• Black Eyed Man by Cowboy Junkies
• Return of the Funky Man by Lord Finesse
• Saturday Morning with Riders by Riders in the Sky
• Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell by Social Distortion
• Propeller by Guided by Voices14

Sport

• Feb 8 XVI Winter Olympic Games opens in Albertville, France.
• Feb 10 Mike Tyson convicted of raping Desiree Washington in Indiana.
• Feb 16 34th Daytona 500: Davey Allison joins father Bobby as a race winner; Richard Petty and A. J. Foyt's final drives in the event.15

Notable Births

• Feb 5 Neymar, Brazilian soccer forward (world record transfer fee $263m FC Barcelona to PSG), born in Mogi das Cruzes, São Paulo.
• Feb 11 Taylor Lautner, American actor (Jacob in "The Twilight Saga"), born in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
• Feb 14 Freddie Highmore, English actor (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; August Rush; The Good Doctor), born in Camden Town, London.16

Historical Events

• 01 Feb Bush and Yeltsin Declare End of Cold War: President George H. W. Bush meets with Russian President Boris Yeltsin at Camp David, formally announcing the official end of the Cold War, marking a significant diplomatic milestone in global geopolitics.
• 03 Feb De Klerk and Mandela Receive Peace Prize: South African leaders F.W. de Klerk and Nelson Mandela were jointly awarded the prestigious Felix Houphouet-Boigny Peace Prize at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, recognizing their collaborative efforts towards ending apartheid and promoting reconciliation.
• 07 Feb Formation of the European Union: The European Union is officially established through the Maastricht Treaty, marking a significant milestone in European political and economic integration. Twelve countries from the European Community signed the treaty, creating a new framework for cooperation and shared governance.17

Notable Deaths

• Feb 8 Denny Wright, British jazz guitarist, dies at 67.
• Feb 10 Alex Haley, American writer (Autobiography of Malcolm X, Roots), dies at 70.
• Feb 13 Dorothy Tree [Triebitz], American actress (Abe Lincoln in Illinois; Confessions Of A Nazi Spy; The Asphalt Jungle), dies of heart failure at 85.18