Richard D. James’ newest has been shrouded in mystery, numerous 3D versions of his logo appearing worldwide last month before his label alluded to the project with an Instagram post of the same 3D logo with the EP’s title. The official announcement came shortly after with single “T69 Collapse” and an accompanying visual that was set to premiere on Adult Swim but didn’t pass the Harding Test, which measures photosensitive epilepsy provocative images for television, so it instead premiered online.
Seconds into the video it’s easy to see why as the backend of a computer begins to glitch, slowly segueing into a collapsing city equipped with flashing lights, blinking collages, and dizzying vacuums in the shape of the producer’s logo. The single doesn’t deter much from his usual oddities either continually pushing the edge of what analog can sound like into a hodgepodge of intense and playful rhythms.
The EP follows 2014’s full-length Syro and 2016’s EP Cheetah. Earlier this year BBC Radio 4 premiered a documentary on the producer “The Cult of Aphex Twin” which trails some of the mysteries behind him albeit James himself makes no appearance in the film.
Listen to Collapse in its entirety below.
