Jump to content

Selected Ambient Works Volume II: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Content deleted Content added
Added {{Merge from}} tag
 
(762 intermediate revisions by more than 100 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Redirect|SAW II|the film|Saw II}}
{{Infobox album <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Albums -->
| Name = Selected Ambient Works Volume&nbsp;II
{{Merge from|Stone in Focus|discuss=Talk:Selected Ambient Works Volume II#Proposed merge of Stone in Focus into Selected Ambient Works Volume II|date=January 2025}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2017}}
| Type = [[Album]]
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2024}}
| Artist = [[Aphex Twin]]
{{Infobox album
| Cover = Cover_colour.jpg
| name = Selected Ambient Works Volume&nbsp;II
| Border = yes
| Released = 7 March 1994
| type = studio
| Recorded =
| artist = [[Aphex Twin]]
| Genre = [[Ambient music|Ambient techno]], [[dark ambient]], [[Ambient music|ambient]]
| cover = Selected Ambient Works Volume II cover.jpg
| border = yes
| Length = 156:32 <small>(UK CD/digital)</small><br />151:58 <small>(US CD)</small><br />166:40 <small>(vinyl/cassette)</small>
| alt =
| Label = [[Warp Records]]<br /><small>WARP21 (EU)</small><br />[[Sire Records|Sire]]/[[Warner Bros. Records]]<br /><small>45482 (rest of world)</small>
| released = {{Start date|1994|3|7|df=y}}
| Producer = [[Aphex Twin|Richard D. James]]
| genre =
| Last album = ''[[On (EP)|On]]''<br />(1993)
* [[Ambient music|Ambient]]
| This album = '''''Selected Ambient Works Volume&nbsp;II'''''<br />(1994)
* [[dark ambient]]
| Next album = ''[[Classics (Aphex Twin album)|Classics]]''<br />(1994)
* [[Electronic music|electronic]]
* [[Drone music|drone]]
* [[minimal music|minimalism]]
| length = {{Duration|m=156|s=42}} (CD)<br/>{{Duration|m=166|s=53}} (LP/MC)<br/>{{Duration|m=184|s=53}} (Expanded Edition)
| label = [[Warp Records|Warp]]
| producer = [[Aphex Twin|Richard D. James]]
| chronology = [[Aphex Twin|Richard D. James]]
| prev_title = [[On (EP)|On]]
| prev_year = 1993
| next_title = [[GAK (EP)|GAK]]
| next_year = 1994
| misc = {{Extra chronology
| artist = [[Aphex Twin]] album
| type = studio
| prev_title = [[Selected Ambient Works 85–92]]
| prev_year = 1992
| title = Selected Ambient Works Volume II
| year = 1994
| next_title = [[Classics (Aphex Twin album)|Classics]]
| next_year = 1995
}}
}}
{{Album ratings
| rev1 = [[Allmusic]]
| rev1Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{Allmusic|class=album|id=r197474/review|pure_url=yes}}</ref>
| rev2 = [[Robert Christgau]]
| rev2Score = (B-)<ref>http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=aphex+twin</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
| rev3Score ={{Rating|4|5}} <ref>http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/aphextwin/albums/album/122902/review/6067432/selected_ambient_works_volume_ii</ref>
| rev4 = ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]''
| rev4Score = {{Rating|8|10}} <ref>http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=1101279</ref>
| rev5 = adriandenning.co.uk
| rev5Score = {{Rating|9|10}} <ref>http://www.adriandenning.co.uk/aphex.html</ref>
}}
}}
'''''Selected Ambient Works Volume II''''' (often abbreviated as '''''SAW2'''''), released in 1994, is the second album by Richard D. James under his [[Aphex Twin]] [[moniker]], and is the follow-up of 1992's ''[[Selected Ambient Works 85–92]]''. The album peaked at #11 on the [[UK Albums Chart]]. It was number 62 on [[Pitchfork Media]]'s "Top 100 Albums of the 1990s".<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |editor=George-Warren, Holly and Patricia Romanowski |encyclopedia=The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll |title=Aphex Twin|accessdate=2009-03-27 |year=2005|publisher=Fireside|location=[[New York, New York]] |isbn= 978-0-7432-9201-6 |page=24}}</ref>


'''''Selected Ambient Works Volume II''''' (abbreviated as '''''SAW II''''')<ref name="saw-book">{{cite web|url=http://pitchfork.com/features/paper-trail/9388-aphex-twins-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii/|title=Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works Volume II|website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]|date=25 April 2014|access-date=22 November 2024|last=Richardson|first=Mark|archive-date=9 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160209044042/http://pitchfork.com/features/paper-trail/9388-aphex-twins-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii/|url-status=live}}</ref> is the second studio album by the British [[electronic music]] artist and producer [[Aphex Twin|Richard D. James]] under the alias of Aphex Twin. It was released on 7{{nbsp}}March 1994 through [[Warp Records]]. Its title follows James's debut ''[[Selected Ambient Works 85–92]]''. Unlike that record, most of the tracks are purely [[ambient music]], without the earlier volume's [[ambient techno]] beats. James said the music was inspired through [[lucid dream]]ing, and likened it to "standing in a [[power station]] on [[Lysergic acid diethylamide|acid]]."<ref name="DavidToop1">{{cite magazine|title=Lost in space|magazine=[[The Face (magazine)|The Face]]|publisher=[[EMAP]]|volume=2|issue=66|date=March 1994|last=Toop|first=David|author-link=David Toop}}</ref>
==Overview==
''Volume II'' differs significantly from the [[Selected Ambient Works 85–92|first volume in the series]], in that it consists of lengthy, textured ambient compositions with minimal percussion and occasional vocal samples, in a vein similar to [[Brian Eno]]'s ambient works. James described the album as being "like standing in a power station on [[LSD|acid]]"<ref name="DavidToop1">{{cite web |url=http://www.aphextwin.nu/learn/98136154898147.shtml |title=Lost in space |accessdate=2011-01-28 |last=Toop |first=David |authorlink=David Toop |year=1994 |month=March |work=[[The Face (magazine)|The Face]] |publisher=[[EMAP]] }}</ref> and went on to note that the sounds on record were inspired by [[lucid dreaming|lucid dreams]], and that upon awaking, he would attempt to re-create the sounds and record them. He claimed to have natural [[synesthesia|synaesthesia]], which contributed to this album.<ref name="DavidToop1" />


The record entered the [[Chart Information Network|{{abbr|CIN|Chart Information Network}}]]'s [[UK Dance Singles and Albums Charts|Dance Albums Chart]] at No.{{nbsp}}1 and entered the [[UK Albums Chart|Albums Chart]] at No.{{nbsp}}11.<ref name=MwMar94/><ref name=UKchart/> It was reviewed positively by most critics on release and later placed on various [[List of 1990s albums considered the best|best of the decade lists]] by publications such as ''[[Rolling Stone]]'', ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'', and ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]''.<ref name="rg2r">{{cite book|chapter=Aphex Twin|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7ctjc6UWCm4C&pg=PP43|access-date=13 June 2020|last1=Wren|first1=David|last2=Jacobs|first2=Daniel|last3=Moyse|first3=Scott|title=The Rough Guide to Rock|editor-last=Buckley|editor-first=Peter|publisher=[[Rough Guides]]|year=2003|isbn=1-8435-3105-4|pages=35–36|archive-date=19 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221219231345/https://books.google.com/books?id=7ctjc6UWCm4C&pg=PP43|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2016 ''Pitchfork'' picked ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II'' as the second greatest ambient album of all time, after [[Brian Eno]]'s ''[[Ambient 1: Music for Airports]]''. An expanded reissue of the album was released in October 2024.
===Artwork and formats===
The album proper consists of 25 tracks, all of which are officially untitled except for "Blue Calx". The liner notes present a series of images to represent the title of each track, including a [[Blue (colour)|blue]] emblem for "Blue Calx". Colour-coded [[pie chart]]s are also included to show which tracks belonged to which side of vinyl, as well as approximations of the duration of each track per side (for example, the colour of the first side is [[Mustard (color)|mustard]]). Officially, each track is named after its respective running order number,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aphextwin.nu/explore/98145218478229.shtml |title=The Aphex Twin Community: Selected Ambient Works Volume II |author=Phobiazero |publisher=AphexTwin dot NU |accessdate=5 February 2010}}</ref> but fan impetus led to each track being given a name based on the image representing it (such as "[rhubarb]" for track 3).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://warp.net/records/releases/aphex-twin/selected-ambient-works-volume-ii |title=Warp Records: Aphex Twin — Selected Ambient Works Vol II|publisher=Warp dot Net |accessdate=6 February 2010}}</ref>


== Background ==
The Sire/Warner Bros. Records edition changed several of the images, either by unblurring or replacing them; in the case of track 19, a blank square was left instead. The original images were also cropped and presented differently for the cassette pressing; several are rotated, while others show more of the original image.
=== Recording ===
In a 1994 interview with ''[[NME]]'', James stated that most of the album had been recorded in 1993, a year before the album's official release.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Kessler |first=Ted |date=8 January 1994 |title=SWING YOUR PANZERS! |magazine=[[NME]] |publisher=TI Media Ltd. |page=28}}</ref> Later that month, James told ''[[Melody Maker]]'' in another interview that the album had been recorded in his home studios in both [[London]] and [[Cornwall]].<ref>{{cite magazine |date=22 January 1994 |title=APHEX TWIN DREAMS ON |magazine=[[Melody Maker]] |page=2}}</ref> James later wrote a note on his webstore explaining that the track "Blue Calx" had also been recorded in his old home studio and was "probably the last track [he] ever recorded in that house". The track was supposedly recorded while he was visiting his parents in Cornwall.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Weidenbaum |first1=Marc |title=Aphex Twin Details SAW2 Recordings |url=https://disquiet.com/2017/08/20/aphex-twin-details-saw2-recordings/#:~:text=%3ERecorded%20in%20Linmiri%20[Lannerlog%20bedroom%20studio]%2C%20probably,quite%20fitting%20really%2C%20end%20of%20that%20era. |access-date=21 November 2024 |work=Disquiet |date=20 August 2017}}</ref> James had also revealed that track 22 ("Tassels") had been recorded with an [[EMS Synthi AKS|EMS Synthi A Mk1]] and a [[Studiomaster]] Star System. A [[Yamaha Corporation|Yamaha]] CS-5 was also used during the recording of the album, which had the [[liner notes]] for the original release written on it.<ref name="reverbsawii">{{cite web|url=https://reverb.com/news/recreating-the-synths-of-aphex-twins-selected-ambient-works-ii|title=Recreating the Synths of Aphex Twin's "Selected Ambient Works II"|website=[[Reverb.com|Reverb]]|date=7 March 2019|access-date=21 November 2024|last=Carr|first=Dan|archive-date=23 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190723182409/https://reverb.com/news/recreating-the-synths-of-aphex-twins-selected-ambient-works-ii|url-status=live}}</ref>


===Composition===
Due to the limitations of the compact disc format, track 19 was removed from all CD pressings. This omission has since become standard, even for online retailers. The track was later included on the [[Astralwerks Records|Astralwerks]]/[[Caroline Records|Caroline]]/[[Virgin Records|Virgin]]/[[EMI|EMI Records]] compilation ''Excursions in Ambience: The Third Dimension'', titled "#19". The original Sire/Warner Bros. Records version also removed track four from the first disc. The vinyl edition came in two editions: a standard black vinyl pressing with full-colour artwork and a limited edition brown vinyl pressing with monochromatic photography (which is actually more common than the black vinyl pressing).
{{Listen
| filename = Aphex Twin - Track 3 ("Rhubarb").mp3
| title = "#3 ("Rhubarb")"
| description = The third track on the album
}}
James stated that the sounds on ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II'' were inspired by [[lucid dream]]s. He said he went to sleep in his studio and upon waking would attempt to re-create the sounds and record them. He said that he has [[synaesthesia]] which influenced the music.<ref name="DavidToop1" /> James described the album as being "like standing in a power station on acid...if you just stand in the middle of a really massive one, you get a really weird presence and you've got that hum. You just feel electricity around you. That's totally dreamlike for me. It's just like a right strange dimension."<ref name="DavidToop1"/>


''Volume II'' differs significantly from ''Selected Ambient Works 85–92'', in that it consists of lengthy, textured [[ambient music|ambient]] compositions with sparing use of percussion and occasional vocal samples, in a vein ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' related to [[Brian Eno]]'s early ambient works and [[John Cage]]'s [[minimal music|minimalism]].<ref name="rs-guide"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-aphex-twin-2-15638-324639|title=Aphex Twin – 'Syro'|website=[[NME]]|date=18 September 2014|access-date=13 June 2020|last=Pattison|first=Louis|archive-date=13 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200613084922/https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-aphex-twin-2-15638-324639|url-status=live}}</ref> The album itself makes liberal use of [[Microtonal music|microtonal]] [[musical tuning]]s, which James was investing himself in at the time.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Philp |first1=Ray |title=New Aphex Twin song 'Korg Funk 5' surfaces in interview with ex-Korg engineer Tatsuya Takahashi |url=https://ra.co/news/39480 |access-date=10 April 2024 |work=Resident Advisor |date=11 July 2017 |language=en |archive-date=22 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240922140627/https://ra.co/news/39480 |url-status=live }}</ref>
The photography is credited to Richard D. James, handwritten on an image that appears on a separate sheet of paper, which was included with many versions of the album.

[[Simon Reynolds]] commented that on ''Volume II'' James changed styles "from the idyllic, [[Erik Satie|Satie]]-esque naïveté of early tracks like '[[Analogue Bubblebath]]' to clammy, foreboding sound-paintings."<ref name="artforum">{{cite magazine|title=Chill: The New Ambient|magazine=[[Artforum International]]|volume=33|issue=5|date=January 1995|last=Reynolds|first=Simon|author-link=Simon Reynolds|page=60|issn=1086-7058}}</ref> Reynolds stated that, along with other artists such as [[Seefeel]], [[David Toop]] and [[Max Eastley]], James had moved from "rave into the vicinity of "[[Dark ambient#Isolationism|isolationism]]", a term coined by [[Kevin Martin (British musician)|Kevin Martin]] to label music that "breaks with all of ambient's feel-good premises. Isolationism is ice-olationist, offering cold comfort.<ref name="melodyreynolds">{{cite news |last1=Reynolds |first1=Simon |title=Ambient – The Buzzword of '93 |work=Melody Maker |date=Christmas 1993}}</ref> Instead of pseudopastoral peace, it evokes an uneasy silence: the uncanny calm before catastrophe, the deathly quiet of aftermath."<ref name="artforum" /> Critics elsewhere have referred to the record as dark ambient,<ref name="reverbsawii" /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.factmag.com/2011/03/25/kevin-drumms-imperial-distortion-on-vinyl/amp/|title=Kevin Drumm's Imperial Distortion on vinyl|website=[[Fact (UK magazine)|Fact]]|date=25 March 2011|access-date=19 March 2018|archive-date=19 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180319214635/https://www.factmag.com/2011/03/25/kevin-drumms-imperial-distortion-on-vinyl/amp/|url-status=live}}</ref> as well as [[drone music|drone]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/225-drukqs/|title=Aphex Twin: Drukqs|website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]|date=25 October 2001|access-date=20 September 2018|last=Seymour|first=Malcolm III|archive-date=18 March 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090318041833/http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/225-drukqs/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In a later discussion about the album, Dan Carr of ''[[Reverb.com|Reverb]]'' called the composition of track 3 ("Rhubarb") a "rhythmically shapeless piece" which is based around a "beautiful-sounding chord progression that is repeated throughout the entire song".<ref name="reverbsawii" /> Carlos Hawthorn writing for ''[[Resident Advisor]]'' noted the chilling atmosphere of track 22 ("Spots"), which featured a sample taken from an interview with a woman who had murdered her husband; the tape of the interview had been stolen from a police station by a friend of James's who worked there as a cleaner.<ref name="ra">{{cite web|url=https://www.residentadvisor.net/reviews/23648|title=Rewind: Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II|website=[[Resident Advisor]]|date=7 March 2019|access-date=22 November 2024|last=Hawthorn|first=Carlos|archive-date=7 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201107231308/https://www.residentadvisor.net/reviews/23648|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="field recording">{{cite web|url=https://aphextwin.warp.net/release/68148-aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii|title=Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II|publisher=[[Warp (record label)|Warp]]|access-date=30 January 2018|last=James|first=Richard D.|author-link=Aphex Twin|archive-date=5 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190505054454/https://aphextwin.warp.net/release/68148-aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii|url-status=live}}</ref> In a piece for ''[[The Quietus]]'', John Doran noted how track 8 ("Blur") and track 9 ("Weathered Stone") featured a "quantized pulse".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Doran |first1=John |title=Dread Magnificence: LSD, Selected Ambient Works II & The Psychic Death of Aphex Twin |url=https://thequietus.com/opinion-and-essays/black-sky-thinking/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-ii-review-reissue/ |access-date=22 November 2024 |work=The Quietus |date=4 October 2024}}</ref> A retrospective review for ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'' written by Philip Sherburne detailed that track 16 ("Grey Stripe") was made up of "pure filtered [[white noise]]", and compared it to "the dying breath of a distant star."<ref name="pitchfork">{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii/|title=Aphex Twin: ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II''|website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]|date=5 May 2019|access-date=22 November 2024|last=Sherburne|first=Philip|author-link=Philip Sherburne|archive-date=7 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190507063754/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Artwork===
[[File:Selected Ambient Works Volume II Radiator artwork.jpeg|thumb|An example of the photography seen throughout ''Volume II'' to represent its tracks]]
The artwork for the album was designed by Paul Nicholson,<ref name= "art interview">{{cite web|url=https://www.residentadvisor.net/news.aspx?id=38637|title=Aphex Twin logo designer Paul Nicholson shows more unseen sketches|website=[[Resident Advisor]]|date=6 April 2017|access-date=14 April 2017|last=Coultate|first=Aaron|archive-date=15 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170415201552/https://www.residentadvisor.net/news.aspx?id=38637|url-status=live}}</ref> who was credited as Prototype 21 in the liner notes.<ref name="sleeve-vinyl">{{cite AV media notes|title=Selected Ambient Works Volume II|others=[[Aphex Twin]]|year=1994|publisher=[[Warp (record label)|Warp]]|id=WARPLP21LTD|last=James|first=Richard D.|author-link=Aphex Twin}}</ref> None of the tracks on ''Volume II'' were given official titles; rather, each track was instead represented by a photograph in the album's artwork.<ref name="reverbsawii" /> He stated in an interview with ''[[Resident Advisor]]'' that the photographs were taken by "Richard's girlfriend at the time, Sam" and that most of the photographs were taken in a flat that the three were all living in together.<ref name= "art interview" /> The front cover of ''Volume II'' was the result of James scratching the Aphex Twin logo onto the back of a leather travel case using a razor and a compass, which Sam took a picture of.<ref name="saw-book" /><ref>{{cite news |last1=Yalcinkaya |first1=Gunseli |title=Mysterious Aphex Twin logos appear in destinations across the world |url=https://www.dezeen.com/2018/08/06/aphex-twin-collapse-logo-paul-nicholson-graphics-design/ |access-date=22 November 2024 |work=Dezeen |date=6 August 2018}}</ref>

Nicholson said that the pie charts and size of the photographs in the artwork were "related to the track signatures, how long they were."<ref name= "art interview"/> The timecodes of a track would be converted into a decimal, then into the percentage of the total length of the side of the record the track is on, and then into a degree to be used on the pie chart.<ref name= "art interview"/> All six pie charts were colour-coded, and those colours were used throughout the artwork, including the textless CD and vinyl labels.<ref name="pitchfork" />

Discussing the artwork for ''[[Bandcamp#Bandcamp Daily|Bandcamp Daily]]'', Andy Beta said that the cover looked like "the side of an alien ship", and compared the [[sepia tone]]s seen on the cover to it being "burnished by solar radiation exposure".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Beta |first1=Andy |title=The Road to Aphex Twin’s "Selected Ambient Works Volume II" |url=https://daily.bandcamp.com/lists/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-list |access-date=26 November 2024 |work=Bandcamp Daily |date=16 October 2024}}</ref> On the topic of the photography seen throughout the album, Beta called them "blurry" and compared them to "snapshots from [a] distant planet". Philip Sherburne of ''Pitchfork'' called the logo on the cover a relic from "some strange future-past", and compared the cover to "alien markings discovered on some weathered desert pyramid".<ref name="pitchfork" /> He also called the photography "cryptic".

==Release==
''Selected Ambient Works Volume II'' was released on double [[compact disc|CD]], double [[Cassette tape|cassette]] and triple [[Phonograph record|LP]] on 7 March 1994 by [[Warp (record label)|Warp]] in the United Kingdom,<ref name="allmusic" /><ref name=warp-release>{{cite web|url=http://warp.net/records/releases/aphex-twin/selected-ambient-works-volume-ii|title=Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Volume II|publisher=[[Warp (record label)|Warp]]|access-date=7 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091118192738/http://warp.net/records/releases/aphex-twin/selected-ambient-works-volume-ii|archive-date=18 November 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> and on 12 April 1994 on double CD by [[Sire Records|Sire]] in Australia, Japan and the United States.<ref name=CMJmar94a>{{cite news|title=Progressive Retail|location=Great Neck, NY|editor-last=McLoughlin|editor-first=Megan|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/CMJ/IDX/CMJ-New-Music-Report-1994-03-21-IDX-21.pdf|work=[[CMJ#CMJ New Music Report|CMJ New Music Report]]|publisher=College Media Inc.|date=21 March 1994|access-date=4 September 2022|archive-date=4 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220904214900/https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/CMJ/IDX/CMJ-New-Music-Report-1994-03-21-IDX-21.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Stone in Focus|The 19th track]] is omitted from all versions of the original release's CD pressings due to [[Compact disc#Physical details|space limitations]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Weidenbaum |first1=Marc |title=Aphex Twin SAW2 Countdown: Track 19 ("Stone in Focus") |url=https://gizmodo.com/aphex-twin-saw2-countdown-track-19-stone-in-focus-1509628752 |access-date=25 November 2024 |work=Gizmodo |date=27 January 2014}}</ref> It entered the [[Chart Information Network|{{abbr|CIN|Chart Information Network}}]]'s [[UK Dance Singles and Albums Charts|Dance Albums Chart]] at No.{{nbsp}}1 and remained in the top five for six weeks,<ref name=MwMar94>{{cite news |title=Dance Albums|editor-last=Redmond|editor-first=Steve|location=London|page=22|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Music-Week-IDX/IDX/1994/Music-Week-1994-03-19-IDX-30.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240730154053/https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Music-Week-IDX/IDX/1994/Music-Week-1994-03-19-IDX-30.pdf|archive-date=30 July 2024|url-status=live|work=[[Music Week]] |publisher=Spotlight Publications |date=19 March 1994}}</ref><ref name=MwApr94>{{cite news |title=Dance Albums|editor-last=Redmond|editor-first=Steve|location=London|page=30|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Music-Week-IDX/IDX/1994/Music-Week-1994-04-23-IDX-38.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240730154028/https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Music-Week-IDX/IDX/1994/Music-Week-1994-04-23-IDX-38.pdf|archive-date=30 July 2024|url-status=live|work=[[Music Week]] |publisher=Spotlight Publications |date=23 April 1994}}</ref> and entered the [[UK Albums Chart|Albums Chart]] at No.{{nbsp}}11.<ref name=UKchart>{{cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/albums/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii/|title=Selected Ambient Works Volume II|website=Official Charts|location=London|publisher=[[Official Charts Company]]|access-date=20 September 2018|archive-date=3 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403164659/http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/27567/aphex-twin/|url-status=live}}</ref> By July 1994 the album had sold over 60,000 copies outside the United States.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YAgEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA131|title=Ambient Figureheads|magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|volume=106|issue=30|date=23 July 1994|access-date=2 May 2018|last=Pride|first=Dominic|page=131|archive-date=13 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200613230018/https://books.google.com/books?id=YAgEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA131|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 6 March 2012 ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II'' was reissued on vinyl by [[record label]] 1972.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Spice |first1=Anton |title=Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works Volume II given limited triple vinyl repress |url=https://thevinylfactory.com/news/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-vinyl/ |website=The Vinyl Factory |access-date=10 October 2024}}</ref> The master for this release was made from a US CD copy however, which omitted both the 4th and 19th tracks.<ref name="allmusic"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://exclaim.ca/music/article/aphex_twins_selected_ambient_works_volume_ii_to_get_vinyl_reissue|title=Aphex Twin's 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II' to Get Vinyl Reissue|website=[[Exclaim!]]|date=13 January 2012|access-date=8 February 2016|last=Hughes|first=Josiah|archive-date=7 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307062335/http://exclaim.ca/music/article/aphex_twins_selected_ambient_works_volume_ii_to_get_vinyl_reissue|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2017 James added the album to his own web store, and not only included a 26th track titled "[[Th1 (evnslower)|th1 [evnslower]]]", but made the 19th track available in a digital format for the first time since its inclusion on an ambient music CD compilation, ''Excursions in Ambience: The Third Dimension'', which was released in 1994.<ref name="field recording"/>

===Expanded Edition===
On 18 June 2024 James announced that ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II'' would be reissued as ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition)'' on digital, triple CD, 4xLP and double cassette formats.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Muk |first1=Isaac |title=Warp reissues an expanded version of Aphex Twin’s seminal album, ‘Selected Ambient Works Volume II’ |url=https://crackmagazine.net/2024/06/warp-reissue-aphex-twin-album-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii/ |access-date=25 November 2024 |work=Crack Magazine |date=18 June 2024}}</ref> The music had also been [[remaster]]ed by [[Matt Colton]].<ref name=2024linernotes>{{Cite AV media notes |title=Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition) |title-link=Selected Ambient Works Volume II |first=Richard |last=D. James |author-link=Aphex Twin |date=2024 |page=12 |type=CD liner notes |publisher=[[Warp Records]] |id=WARPCD21R}}</ref> A 4xLP deluxe boxset was also available which came in a hinged oak case with an etched copper plate on top, along with a booklet of design sketches.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Duran |first1=Anagricel |title=Aphex Twin announces 30th anniversary box set of classic 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II' |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/aphex-twin-announces-30th-anniversary-box-set-of-classic-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-3766729 |website=NME |date=18 June 2024 |access-date=27 September 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Buckle |first1=Becky |title=Aphex Twin announces expanded 30th-anniversary reissue of ‘Selected Ambient Works Volume II’ |url=https://mixmag.net/read/aphex-twin-unveils-30th-anniversary-edition-of-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-news |access-date=25 November 2024 |work=Mixmag |date=19 June 2024}}</ref> The cassettes were originally released as [[Compact Cassette tape types and formulations#Type II|type II chrome cassettes]]<ref>{{cite web |last1=Byrne |first1=Niall |title=Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II expanded edition announced |url=https://nialler9.com/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-expanded-edition-announced/ |website=Nialler9 |date=18 June 2024 |access-date=27 September 2024}}</ref> and were limited to 250 total copies.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Coney |first1=Brian |title=Aphex Twin announces 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II' vinyl reissue and expanded edition |url=https://djmag.com/news/aphex-twin-announces-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-vinyl-reissue-and-expanded-edition |website=DJ Mag |date=19 June 2024 |access-date=27 September 2024}}</ref> This cassette variant sold out on the day of announcement. The 19th track which had been previously excluded from CD pressings was released on streaming for the first time on the day of the re-release's announcement.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Aphex Twin (@AphexTwin) on X |url=https://x.com/AphexTwin/status/1803379705640526227 |access-date=20 June 2024 |archive-date=22 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240922140627/https://x.com/AphexTwin/status/1803379705640526227 |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 4 September 2024 James released the track "th1 [evnslower]" onto streaming platforms.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lindert |first1=Hattie |title=Aphex Twin's 'th1 [evnslower]' gets first official release |url=https://ra.co/news/81220 |website=Resident Advisor |access-date=26 September 2024}}</ref> This track had previously been released on 2 November 2015 through James' [[Aphex Twin SoundCloud demos|SoundCloud archive]]. On the same day of the release, Warp Records and James announced that listening parties for ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition)'' would take place at [[record shop]]s across the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Ireland.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Guttridge-Hewitt |first1=Martin |title=Aphex Twin’s ‘th1 [evnslower]’ released on streaming for the first time: Listen |url=https://djmag.com/news/aphex-twins-th1-evnslower-released-streaming-first-time-listen |access-date=20 November 2024 |work=DJ |date=5 September 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite tweet |author=Warp Records |user=warprecords |number=1831339633663455728 |title=Sign up for updates on forthcoming album listenings in select locations.}}</ref> After the success of the chrome cassettes, Warp began production of a cassette variant made with ferric tape instead.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Ross |first1=Gemma |title=Previously unreleased Aphex Twin track 'th1 [evnslower]' lands on Warp Records |url=https://mixmag.net/read/unreleased-aphex-twin-track-th1-evnslower-warp-records-news |website=Mixmag |access-date=27 September 2024}}</ref> On 2 October 2024 James released the [[Single (music)|single]] "#3 / Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev" onto streaming platforms.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Yopko |first1=Nick |title=Aphex Twin Reimagines Track From 1994 Album, "Selected Ambient Works Volume II": Listen |url=https://edm.com/music-releases/aphex-twin-rhubarb-orc-19-53-rev |website=EDM |date=2 October 2024 |access-date=9 October 2024}}</ref>

On 4 October 2024 ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition)'' was officially released<ref>{{cite tweet |author=Aphex Twin |user=aphextwin |number=1842232901712199771 |title=SELECTED AMBIENT WORKS II (EXPANDED EDITION). RELEASED TODAY.}}</ref> and included both the two bonus tracks along with the previously excluded 19th track.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition), by Aphex Twin |url=https://aphextwin.bandcamp.com/album/selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-expanded-edition |access-date=19 June 2024 |website=Aphex Twin |language=en |archive-date=22 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240922140627/https://aphextwin.bandcamp.com/album/selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-expanded-edition |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Torres |first=Eric |date=18 June 2024 |title=Aphex Twin Announces Selected Ambient Works Volume 2 Expanded Edition |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/aphex-twin-announces-selected-ambient-works-volume-2-expanded-edition/ |access-date=19 June 2024 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=22 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240922140627/https://pitchfork.com/news/aphex-twin-announces-selected-ambient-works-volume-2-expanded-edition/ |url-status=live }}</ref> James dedicated the re-release to his mother Lorna, who had died in 2022.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Zhu |first1=Edward |title=Rediscovering Aphex Twin's cult classic: Selected Ambient Works Volume II turns 30 |url=https://www.jhunewsletter.com/article/2024/10/rediscovering-aphex-twins-cult-classic-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-turns-30 |access-date=18 November 2024 |work=The Johns Hopkins News-Letter |date=27 October 2024}}</ref><ref name="2024linernotes"/> On 8 October 2024 Warp Records confirmed that another listening party for the album would happen on 25 October 2024, this time taking place at [[Tate Modern]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Cetin |first1=Marissa |title=Aphex Twin 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II' free listening party announced for London's Tate Modern |url=https://djmag.com/news/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-free-listening-party-announced-londons-tate-modern |website=DJ Mag |date=8 October 2024 |access-date=9 October 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Muk |first1=Isaac |title=Free listening party for Aphex Twin's expanded reissue of 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II' announced at Tate Modern |url=https://crackmagazine.net/2024/10/free-listening-party-aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-tate/ |website=Crack Magazine |date=8 October 2024 |access-date=9 October 2024}}</ref>

==Reception==
{{Music ratings
| rev1 = ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]''
| rev1score = {{Rating|3.5|4}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4227873.html|title=Compilations Of Music To Rave By|newspaper=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]|date=8 May 1994|access-date=16 October 2016|last=DeRogatis|first=Jim|author-link=Jim DeRogatis|url-access=subscription|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228191858/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4227873.html|archive-date=28 February 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| rev2 = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''
| rev2score = C<ref name="ew">{{cite magazine|url=http://www.ew.com/article/1994/04/15/selected-ambient-works-volume-ii|title=Selected Ambient Works Volume II|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|date=15 April 1994|access-date=7 February 2016|last=Aaron|first=Charles|author-link=Charles Aaron|archive-date=18 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220118190252/https://ew.com/article/1994/04/15/selected-ambient-works-volume-ii/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]''
| rev3score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Vol. II|magazine=[[Q (magazine)|Q]]|issue=365|date=November 2016|page=100}}</ref>
| rev4 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
| rev4score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="rs-review">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/aphextwin/albums/album/122902/review/6067432/selected_ambient_works_volume_ii|title=Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Volume II|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=30 June 1994|access-date=7 February 2016|last=Wiederhorn|first=Jon|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080222163323/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/aphextwin/albums/album/122902/review/6067432/selected_ambient_works_volume_ii|archive-date=22 February 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| rev5 = ''[[Select (magazine)|Select]]''
| rev5score = 4/5<ref name="select review">{{cite magazine|title=Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Volume II|magazine=[[Select (magazine)|Select]]|issue=46|date=April 1994|last=Collis|first=Clark|page=89}}</ref>
| rev6 = ''[[The Village Voice]]''
| rev6score = B−<ref name="christgau">{{cite news|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv594-94.php|title=Consumer Guide|newspaper=[[The Village Voice]]|date=31 May 1994|access-date=13 February 2016|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|archive-date=25 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211125100026/http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv594-94.php|url-status=live}}</ref>
}}
''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'' gave the album a positive review, with critic [[Simon Reynolds]] stating that the album has "plenty of the shimmeringly euphoric and majestically melancholy tunes that have won James so many devout fans," but that it "will leave you not so much blissed as spooked out."<ref name="spin-review">{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-GJOt0bM2-YC&pg=RA1-PA74|title=Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Part II|magazine=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]|volume=9|issue=12|date=March 1994|access-date=13 June 2020|last=Reynolds|first=Simon|author-link=Simon Reynolds|editor-last=Marks|editor-first=Craig|page=74|issn=0886-3032|archive-date=23 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230423053921/https://books.google.com/books?id=-GJOt0bM2-YC&pg=RA1-PA74|url-status=live}}</ref> ''[[Rolling Stone]]''{{'}}s Jon Wiederhorn stated that "While many of his disciples have done little more than propel [[New-age music|New Age]] atmospheres into the computer age, producing comforting but often emotionless [[elevator music]], James has used the medium to confront his shadowy demons, exploring realms of spooky, textured sound."<ref name="rs-review" /> He concluded that the album "provides a visionary perspective on ambient electronic music."<ref name="rs-review" /><ref>{{cite web |last1=Beta |first1=Andy |title=Richard D. James: 10 Essential Releases |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/9512-richard-d-james-10-essential-records/ |website=Pitchfork |date=29 September 2014 |access-date=26 October 2021 |archive-date=26 October 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211026201214/https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/9512-richard-d-james-10-essential-records/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Clark Collis of ''[[Select (magazine)|Select]]'' stated that "Anyone who thinks they know what to expect on the basis of 'Volume I' might care to sit down, have a nice cup of tea and prepare themselves for a shock."<ref name="select review" /> Collis noted the album was not successful "as a conventional dance record", but "as an album to wallow in at 5 am while watching the wallpaper conduct a heated argument with the lightshade, it is indeed the knees of the bee."<ref name="select review" />

Other reviews were less favourable. [[Robert Christgau]], writing in ''[[The Village Voice]]'', wrote that "James is rarely as rich as good [[Brian Eno|[Brian] Eno]], not to mention good Eno-[[Jon Hassell|Hassell]] or Eno-[[Harold Budd|Budd]]".<ref name="christgau" /> ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' critic [[Charles Aaron]] wrote that "At its best [the album] is an avant-garde score in search of a postapocalyptic theater piece, à la [[Philip Glass]]. More often, it's chamber music for humorless cyber-nerds".<ref name="ew" />

===Retrospective views===
{{Music ratings
| subtitle = Retrospective reviews
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/selected-ambient-works-vol-2-mw0000111038|title=''Selected Ambient Works, Vol. 2'' – Aphex Twin|publisher=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=7 February 2016|last=Erlewine|first=Stephen Thomas|author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine|archive-date=17 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220117100224/https://www.allmusic.com/album/selected-ambient-works-vol-2-mw0000111038|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev2 = ''[[The Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]''
| rev2score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite book |title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Encyclopedia of Popular Music]] |last=Larkin |first=Colin |author-link=Colin Larkin (writer) |location=London |publisher=[[Omnibus Press]] |edition=5th concise |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-85712-595-8 |chapter=Aphex Twin}}</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]''
| rev3score = 10/10<ref name="pitchfork" />
| rev4 = ''[[Resident Advisor]]''
| rev4score = 5/5<ref name="ra" />
| rev5 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
| rev5score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="rs-guide">{{cite book|chapter=Aphex Twin|last=Frere-Jones|first=Sasha|author-link=Sasha Frere-Jones|title=The New Rolling Stone Album Guide|title-link=The Rolling Stone Album Guide|editor1-last=Brackett|editor1-first=Nathan|editor2-last=Hoard|editor2-first=Christian|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|edition=4th|year=2004|isbn=0-7432-0169-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/21 21–23]}}</ref>
| rev6 = ''[[Spin Alternative Record Guide]]''
| rev6score = 8/10<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Aphex Twin |last=Reynolds |first=Simon |author-link=Simon Reynolds |title=[[Spin Alternative Record Guide]] |editor1-last=Weisbard |editor1-first=Eric |editor2-last=Marks |editor2-first=Craig |location=New York City |publisher=[[Vintage Books]] |year=1995 |isbn=0-679-75574-8 |pages=15–16}}</ref>
| rev7 = ''[[Tom Hull - on the Web]]''
| rev7score = B<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hull |first=Tom |author-link=Tom Hull (critic) |date=September 2012 |title=Recycled Goods (#100) |url=https://tomhull.com/ocston/arch/cg/cg12-09.php |access-date=2024-11-21 |website=tomhull.com}}</ref>
}}
At the end of the decade ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II'' was included on several publications' lists of [[List of 1990s albums considered the best|top albums of the 1990s]], including ''Rolling Stone'' and ''Spin''.<ref name="spins90slist" /><ref name="rs-1990s" /> Polls conducted in 1996 and 2001 by [[Hyperreal.org]] placed the record as the first and second respectively of all-time ambient records.<ref>{{cite web |last=Renick |first=Kevin|date=January 2002 |title=Classic Ambient Recordings: The 2001 Survey|url=http://music.hyperreal.org/epsilon/info/2001_classic_ambient.html|archive-date=3 February 2011|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110203001010/http://music.hyperreal.org/epsilon/info/2001_classic_ambient.html|website=Epsilon |publisher=[[Hyperreal.org|Hyperreal]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Roy |first=Darryl Stephen|date=1 September 1996 |title=Ambient Albums|url=http://music.hyperreal.org/epsilon/info/1996_recommended_ambient.html|archive-date=30 June 2010|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100630084328/http://music.hyperreal.org/epsilon/info/1996_recommended_ambient.html |website=Epsilon |publisher=[[Hyperreal.org|Hyperreal]]}}</ref> Commenting on the audience's reaction of the album in 1999, Simon Reynolds stated that "many in the Aphex cult were thrown for a loop" and that "Aphex aficionados remain divided" on the album.<ref name="spins90slist">{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bGjsvmNt8UgC&pg=PA148|title=The Greatest Albums of the '90s — 56. Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works 85–92 / Selected Ambient Works Volume II|magazine=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]|volume=15|issue=9|date=September 1999|access-date=13 June 2020|last=Reynolds|first=Simon|page=148|issn=0886-3032|archive-date=19 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221219231435/https://books.google.com/books?id=bGjsvmNt8UgC&pg=PA148|url-status=live}}</ref> David Fricke, Rob Sheffield, and Ann Powers of ''Rolling Stone'' stated the album was James creating "an enriched, wraparound style of burp-and-whoosh programming, the perfect soundtrack for pulling the pieces of your brain back together after spilling them all over the club floor. The first dance album to celebrate the rhythms in your head."<ref name="rs-1990s">{{cite magazine|title=Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works, Volume II|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|issue=812|date=13 May 1999|last1=Sheffield|first1=Rob|author-link1=Rob Sheffield|last2=Powers|first2=Ann|author-link2=Ann Powers|last3=Fricke|first3=David|author-link3=David Fricke|page=79|issn=0035-791X}}</ref> ''Spin'' placed both ''[[Selected Ambient Works 85–92]]'' and ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II'' at number 56 on its list of the top albums of the 1990s, calling it "an awe-inspiring feat of avant-techno texturology".<ref name="spins90slist" />

Alex Linhardt of ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'' placed the album at number 62 on its list of top albums of the 1990s, stating that it "spurred on one of the great trajectories of pop music in the 1990s, influencing everyone from [[Radiohead]] to [[Timbaland]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/5923-top-100-albums-of-the-1990s/4/|title=Top 100 Albums of the 1990s|website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]|date=17 November 2003|access-date=8 February 2016|last=Linhardt|first=Alex|archive-date=24 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160324114606/https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/5923-top-100-albums-of-the-1990s/?page=4|url-status=dead}}</ref> It was later ranked the album second on the website's 2016 list of the best [[ambient music]] albums of all time, after [[Brian Eno]]'s ''[[Ambient 1: Music for Airports]]'' by Philip Sherburne.<ref name="Best">{{cite web |last=Sherburne |first=Philip |title=The 50 Best Ambient Albums of All Time |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/9948-the-50-best-ambient-albums-of-all-time/?page=5 |website=Pitchfork |date=26 September 2016 |access-date=21 April 2023 |archive-date=20 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200920044343/https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/9948-the-50-best-ambient-albums-of-all-time/?page=5 |url-status=live }}</ref> Giving added historical context of ''Volume II'' initially confusing some listeners expecting a techno LP based on its name, Carlos Hawthorn of ''[[Resident Advisor]]'' gave the album a 5/5 for its 25th anniversary, stating that it brought "atmospheres to life with intensely vivid sonic textures" and "[as] artists and fans alike, we all owe something to this strange masterpiece."<ref name="ra"/> Talking about the album for ''[[The Quietus]]'', Ned Raggett said "Seen from twenty years on, to restate the start a touch, the singularity of something like [Volume II] in James’s career seems both necessary and understandable; yet another indulgence in an approach, albeit one that has and continues to resonate, dig deep."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Raggett |first1=Ned |title=Lingering Memory: Aphex Twin’s Selected Ambient Works II, 25 Years On |url=https://thequietus.com/opinion-and-essays/anniversary/aphex-twin-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-review/ |access-date=21 November 2024 |work=The Quietus |date=20 February 2014}}</ref>

===Legacy and influence===
Mark Richardson of ''Pitchfork'' noted that ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II'' was "a very early example of a record being anticipated, experienced, and, ultimately, analyzed in minute detail through online communication."<ref name="saw-book" /> ''Pitchfork'' noted that the [[electronic mailing list]] titled [[Intelligent dance music|IDM]] had a profound influence on how the album would be received in the future, noting the community's influence in relation to the album's mysterious non-titles.<ref name="saw-book" /> List member Greg Eden, who kept a detailed discography, gave the tracks names based on a word or two that related to the corresponding images.<ref name="saw-book" /> Eden would later go on to work for Warp Records.<ref name="saw-book" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://warp.net/news/words-about-body-riddle-by-greg-eden/|title=Words About Body Riddle|publisher=[[Warp (record label)|Warp]]|date=16 December 2008|access-date=8 February 2016|last=Eden|first=Greg|archive-date=20 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150920105605/http://warp.net/news/words-about-body-riddle-by-greg-eden/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Simon Reynolds wrote that the album signalled a shift in [[techno]] and ambient music toward a darker sound reminiscent of [[Brian Eno]]'s notion of "environmental music".<ref name=Reynolds-Energy-Flash>{{cite book|title=Energy Flash: A Journey Through Rave Music and Dance Culture|last=Reynolds|first=Simon|author-link=Simon Reynolds|publisher=Soft Skull Press|year=2012|isbn=978-1-5937-6407-4|page=178}}</ref>

[[Marc Weidenbaum]], a music journalist and former editor of ''[[Pulse! (magazine)|Pulse!]]'', released a book about the album for the [[33⅓]] series on 13 February 2013.<ref name="saw-book" /><ref name="dummy" /> The series is made up of short books inspired by or focused on albums, and are generally written as longform essays.<ref name="dummy">{{cite web|url=http://www.dummymag.com/news/kanye-west-bjork-j-dilla-and-more-to-be-featured-in-upcoming-33-book-series|title=Kanye West, Bjork, J Dilla and more to be featured in a 33⅓ book series|website=Dummy|date=26 July 2013|access-date=8 February 2016|archive-date=15 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315122647/http://www.dummymag.com/news/kanye-west-bjork-j-dilla-and-more-to-be-featured-in-upcoming-33-book-series|url-status=live}}</ref> The book itself covers the events before, during and after the record's release. It also covers the tracks within ''Volume II'', discussing the sounds of each track.<ref name="saw-book" />


==Track listing==
==Track listing==
Due to all of the tracks being untitled,<ref name="saw-book" /> digital releases of the album simply number the songs from 1 to 24.<ref>{{cite web |title=Selected Ambient Works, Vol. II |url=https://open.spotify.com/album/1EHmRVzsyd1KRifjOY79gH?go=1&sp_cid=59ec9c8ac83063ffab1afa1bf398b23b&utm_source=embed_player_p&utm_medium=desktop |publisher=Spotify |access-date=21 March 2024 |archive-date=3 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240403212657/https://open.spotify.com/album/1EHmRVzsyd1KRifjOY79gH?go=1&sp_cid=59ec9c8ac83063ffab1afa1bf398b23b&nd=1&dlsi=4f533450b75442e8 |url-status=live }}</ref> Unofficial titles based on the photographs created by a fan are widely used and are noted below.<ref name="saw-book" /><ref name="33&1/3">{{cite book |last1=Weidenbaum |first1=Marc |title=Selected Ambient Works Volume II |date=2014 |series=[[33⅓]] |publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]] |location=London/New York |isbn=9781623567637 |pages=67–71 |url=https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/aphex-twins-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-9781623568900/ |access-date=30 May 2022 |archive-date=30 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220530152039/https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/aphex-twins-selected-ambient-works-volume-ii-9781623568900/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
{{Track listing

| collapsed = no
'''Vinyl and cassette release'''
| headline = Compact disc one, vinyl sides one to three, and cassette sides one and two

| extra_column = Corresponding Image
Sides indicated are for the vinyl edition.
| all_writing = [[Richard D. James]]
{{track listing
| total_length = <small>Warp&nbsp;CD, vinyl, cassette:</small> 79:32 <br><small>Sire CD:</small> 74:58
| headline = Side one
| title1 =
|title_width = 40%
| extra1 = Cliffs
| all_writing = Richard D. James.<ref name="sleeve-vinyl"/>
| length1 = 7:27
| extra_column= Unofficial title
| title2 =
| extra1 = cliffs
| extra2 = Radiator
| length2 = 6:34
| length1 = 7:27
| extra2 = radiator{{efn|officially named on Warp's ''Peel Session 2''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Grech |first1=Aaron |title=Warp Records Announces WXAXRXP Sessions Box Set Featuring Boards of Canada's One and Only Radio Session, Aphex Twin, Flying Lotus and More |url=https://music.mxdwn.com/2019/09/18/news/warp-records-announces-wxaxrxp-sessions-box-set-featuring-boards-of-canadas-one-and-only-radio-session-aphex-twin-flying-lotus-and-more/ |website=MXDWN |date=18 September 2019 |access-date=9 October 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Keeling |first1=Ryan |title=Various - WXAXRXP Sessions |url=https://ra.co/reviews/24415 |website=Resident Advisor |access-date=9 October 2024}}</ref>}}
| title3 =
| length2 = 6:34
| extra3 = Rhubarb
| extra3 = rhubarb{{efn|name=expanded|officially named on the ''Expanded Edition''.<ref name="2024linernotes"/>}}
| length3 = 7:44
| title4 =
| length3 = 7:44
| extra4 = hankie
| note4 = omitted from US CD
| length4 = 4:39
| extra4 = Hankie
| length4 = 4:34
| total_length = 26:24
| title5 =
| extra5 = Grass
| length5 = 8:55
| title6 =
| extra6 = Mould
| length6 = 3:31
| title7 =
| extra7 = Curtains
| length7 = 8:51
| title8 =
| extra8 = Blur
| length8 = 5:08
| title9 =
| extra9 = Weathered Stone
| length9 = 6:54
| title10 =
| extra10 = Tree
| length10 = 9:58
| title11 =
| extra11 = Domino
| length11 = 7:18
| title12 =
| extra12 = White Blur 1
| length12 = 2:38
}}
}}
{{track listing
| headline = Side two
|title_width = 40%
| extra_column= Unofficial title


| extra5 = grass
{{Track listing
| collapsed = no
| length5 = 8:55

| headline = Compact disc two, vinyl sides four to six, and cassette sides three and four
| extra6 = mould
| extra_column = Corresponding Image
| length6 = 3:31
| total_length = <small>CDs:</small> 77:00<br> <small>Vinyl, cassette:</small> 87:08

| title13 = Blue Calx
| extra7 = curtains
| extra13 = Blue Calx
| length13 = 7:20
| length7 = 8:51

| title14 =
| extra8 = blur
| extra14 = Parallel Stripes
| length14 = 8:00
| length8 = 5:08

| title15 =
| total_length = 26:25
| extra15 = Shiny Metal Rods
| length15 = 5:34
| title16 =
| extra16 = Grey Stripe
| length16 = 4:45
| title17 =
| extra17 = Z Twig
| length17 = 2:05
| title18 =
| extra18 = Windowsill
| length18 = 7:17
| title19 =
| note19 = vinyl and cassette versions only
| extra19 = Stone in Focus
| length19 = 10:08
| title20 =
| extra20 = Hexagon
| length20 = 5:57
| title21 =
| extra21 = Lichen
| length21 = 4:15
| title22 =
| extra22 = Spots
| length22 = 7:09
| title23 =
| extra23 = Tassels
| length23 = 7:30
| title24 =
| extra24 = White Blur 2
| length24 = 11:27
| title25 =
| extra25 = Matchsticks
| length25 = 5:41
}}
}}
{{track listing
| headline = Side three
|title_width = 40%
| extra_column= Unofficial title


| extra9 = weathered stone
===Formatting notes===
| length9 = 6:54
The cassette version of the album featured six songs on each side, barring side three, which contained seven (tracks 13–19). The vinyl version featured four songs on each side, excluding side four, which contained five (tracks 13–17).


| extra10 = tree
== Remixes and covers==
| length10 = 9:58
* Track 2 was later released on the compilation album ''[[26 Mixes for Cash]]'' in a version with beats, titled "SAW2 CD1 TRK2 (Original Mix)". It was originally recorded for Richard's [[John Peel|Peel Session]] in 1995.
* Track 7 was jointly remixed with [[LFO (band)|LFO]]'s track "Simon from Sydney" by [[Pram (band)|Pram]] on the compilation ''[[Warp 10: Influences, Classics, Remixes|Warp 10+3 Remixes]]''. Track 1 was also remixed for this collection by [[Four Tet]].
* Cover versions of "Blue Calx" and track 1, played on acoustic instruments by the Western classical new-music ensemble [[Alarm Will Sound]], appeared on its album ''[[Acoustica: Alarm Will Sound performs Aphex Twin]]'' in 2005.
* New York electronica artist [[Wisp (musician)|Wisp]] remixed four tracks from this album on his 2004 EP, ''SAW 2 Reworked'', and has since released music on [[Rephlex Records]], a record label co-owned by Richard D. James.


| extra11 = domino
==Media featuring tracks from the album==
| length11 = 7:18
* Tracks 5, 7, 8, 14, and 19 are heavily sampled from in the soundtrack to the [[Fallout (series)|Fallout]] video game series.
* Track 1 was used in the film ''[[Manic (film)|Manic]]''.
* Track 3 appeared as part of the [[BBC]]'s digital widescreen test transmission, which was on loop for many months as the service was introduced across the UK. The track was featured on the 2007 award-winning Canadian documentary ''[[Sharkwater]]''.
* Track 8 was used in the closing credits of the final episode of season 3 of The Sopranos, ''[[Army of One (The Sopranos)|Army of One]]''.
* Track 17, with the corresponding image Z Twig, was used extensively in ''[[Grand Theft Auto IV]]'', including for the trailers and in the game itself on "[[Grand Theft Auto IV soundtrack|The Journey]]" radio station.
* Many tracks from the album are used in the comedy series ''[[Blue Jam]]'' and ''[[Jam (TV series)|Jam]]''.
* Track 19 appears as the main theme along with Track 1 in the popular horror modification Afraid of Monsters for the game ''[[Half-Life]]''.
* Tracks 3 and 19 were used in the [[Adobe Flash|Flash]] cartoon series ''[[Salad Fingers]]''.
* Track 14 was used in the film "[[Eat Pray Love]]".
* Track 15 was used in a SAAB commercial for the “cat-eye facelift” featured the track “Shiny Metal Rods”
* Track 10 can be heard on series 3, episode 3 of "Thomas" on the british teen drama ''[[Skins (TV series)|Skins]]''.
*Many tracks from the album appear on the documentary "Devil's Playground"


| extra12 = white blur 1
===Personnel===
| length12 = 2:43


| total_length = 26:53
[[Aphex Twin]] - synthesizers, photography, production
}}
{{track listing
| headline = Side four
|title_width = 40%
| extra_column= Unofficial title


| title13 = Blue Calx {{efn|officially named on the compilation album, ''The Philosophy of Sound and Machine''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Weidenbaum |first1=Marc |title=Aphex Twin SAW2 Countdown: Track 13 ("Blue Calx") |url=https://gizmodo.com/aphex-twin-saw2-countdown-track-13-blue-calx-1514195004 |website=Gizmodo |date=2 February 2014 |access-date=10 October 2024}}</ref>}}
==Charts==
| length13 = 7:20
{|class="wikitable sortable"

!Chart (1994)
| extra14 = parallel stripes
!Peak<br />position
| length14 = 8:00

| extra15 = shiny metal rods
| length15 = 5:33

| extra16 = grey stripe
| length16 = 4:45

| extra17 = z twig
| length17 = 2:05

| total_length = 27:43
}}
{{track listing
| headline = Side five
|title_width = 40%
| extra_column= Unofficial title

| extra18 = windowsill
| length18 = 7:16

| extra19 = [[stone in focus]]
| length19 = 10:11

| extra20 = hexagon
| length20 = 5:58

| extra21 = lichen
| length21 = 4:15

| total_length = 27:40
}}
{{track listing
| headline = Side six
|title_width = 40%
| extra_column= Unofficial title

| extra22 = spots
| length22 = 7:09

| extra23 = tassels
| length23 = 7:30

| extra24 = white blur 2
| length24 = 11:27

| extra25 = matchsticks
| length25 = 5:41

| total_length = 31:47
}}

'''CD release{{efn|name=fn1|omits track #19, "stone in focus", due to the capacity limit of the CD format.}}'''
{{track listing
| headline = Disc one
|title_width = 40%
| all_writing = Richard D. James.<ref name="sleeve-vinyl"/>
| extra_column= Unofficial title
| extra1 = cliffs
| length1 = 7:27
| extra2 = radiator
| length2 = 6:34
| extra3 = rhubarb
| length3 = 7:44
| extra4 = hankie
| note4 = {{efn|track #4 is omitted from US pressings.}}
| length4 = 4:39
| extra5 = grass
| length5 = 8:55
| extra6 = mould
| length6 = 3:31
| extra7 = curtains
| length7 = 8:51
| extra8 = blur
| length8 = 5:08
| extra9 = weathered stone
| length9 = 6:54
| extra10 = tree
| length10 = 9:58
| extra11 = domino
| length11 = 7:18
| extra12 = white blur 1
| length12 = 2:43
| total_length = 79:42
}}
{{track listing
| headline = Disc two
|title_width = 40%
| extra_column= Unofficial title
| title1 = Blue Calx
| length1 = 7:20
| extra2 = parallel stripes
| length2 = 8:00
| extra3 = shiny metal rods
| length3 = 5:33
| extra4 = grey stripe
| length4 = 4:45
| extra5 = z twig
| length5 = 2:05
| extra6 = windowsill
| length6 = 7:16
| extra7 = hexagon
| length7 = 5:58
| extra8 = lichen
| length8 = 4:15
| extra9 = spots
| length9 = 7:10
| extra10 = tassels
| length10 = 7:30
| extra11 = white blur 2
| length11 = 11:27
| extra12 = matchsticks
| length12 = 5:41
| total_length = 77:00
}}

{{Track listing
| headline = 2024 Expanded Edition bonus tracks{{efn|also includes vinyl track #19 on all formats.}}
| title_width = 80%
| title26 = [[Th1 (evnslower)|th1 [evnslower]]]{{efn|officially named on the ''Expanded Edition'' and on SoundCloud.<ref name="2024linernotes"/>}}
| length26 = 11:07
| title27 = Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev{{efn|name=expanded}}
| length27 = 6:41
| total_length = 17:48
}}

==Personnel==
Credits adapted from liner notes unless noted.<ref name="sleeve-vinyl"/>
* [[Aphex Twin|Richard D. James]] – writer, producer, liner notes, photography
* Prototype 21 [Paul Nicholson] – designer
* "Sam" – photography [uncredited]<ref name= "art interview"/>

Expanded Edition credits:<ref name="2024linernotes"/>
* Marek Moś – conductor, arranger (on "Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev")
* AUKSO Tychy Chamber Orchestra – performer (on "Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev")
* Octava Ensemble – performer (on "Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev")
* [[Matt Colton]] – remastering

== Charts ==
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+ Chart performance for ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II''
! scope="col"| Chart (1994)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
{{album chart|UK2|11|date=19940313|rowheader=true|access-date=22 March 2024}}
|-
|-
!scope="row"|UK [[UK Dance Singles and Albums Charts|Dance Albums Chart]] ([[Official Charts Company|CIN]])<ref name=MwMar94/>
|[[UK Albums Chart]]
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|11<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chartstats.com/albuminfo.php?id=12664 |title=Chart Stats - The Aphex Twin - Selected Ambient Works Vol II |publisher=ChartStats.com |accessdate=30 August 2009}}</ref>
|}
|}

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+ 2024 chart performance for ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II''
! scope="col"| Chart (2024)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
! scope="row"| Australian Albums ([[ARIA Charts|ARIA]])<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.aria.com.au/charts/albums-chart/2024-10-14|title=ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart|publisher=[[Australian Recording Industry Association]]|date=14 October 2024|access-date=11 October 2024}}</ref>
| 46
|-
{{album chart|Flanders|5|artist=Aphex Twin|album=Selected Ambient Works Volume II|rowheader=true|access-date=13 October 2024}}
|-
{{album chart|Wallonia|26|artist=Aphex Twin|album=Selected Ambient Works Volume II|rowheader=true|access-date=13 October 2024}}
|-
{{album chart|Netherlands|14|artist=Aphex Twin|album=Selected Ambient Works Volume II|rowheader=true|access-date=12 October 2024}}
|-
{{album chart|Germany4|13|id=23478|artist=Aphex Twin|album=Selected Ambient Works Volume II|rowheader=true|access-date=11 October 2024}}
|-
{{album chart|Ireland|97|M|url=http://www.irma.ie/index.cfm?page=irish-charts&chart=Albums|title=Irish Albums Chart: 11 October 2024|publisher=[[Irish Recorded Music Association]]|rowheader=true|access-date=12 October 2024}}
|-
{{album chart|Oricon|37|date=2024<!-- keep YYYY-MM-DD -->-10-14/p/4|rowheader=true|access-date=9 October 2024}}
|-
! scope="row"| Japanese Hot Albums (''[[Billboard Japan]]'')<ref>{{cite web|url=http://billboard-japan.com/charts/detail?a=hot_albums&year=2024&month=10&day=14|title=Billboard Japan Hot Albums – Week of October 9, 2024|website=[[Billboard Japan]]|language=ja|access-date=9 October 2024}}</ref>
| 50
|-
{{album chart|Scotland|7|date=20241011|rowheader=true|access-date=12 October 2024}}
|-
! scope="row"| Swedish Physical Albums ([[Sverigetopplistan]])<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sverigetopplistan.se/chart/234?dspy=2024&dspp=41|title=Veckolista Album Fysiskt, vecka 41|publisher=[[Sverigetopplistan]]|access-date=12 October 2024}}</ref>
| 14
|-
{{album chart|UK2|21|date=20241011|rowheader=true|access-date=12 October 2024|refname=UK2024}}
|-
{{album chart|UKDance|1|date=20241011|rowheader=true|access-date=12 October 2024}}
|-
{{album chart|UKIndependent|5|date=20241011|rowheader=true|access-date=12 October 2024}}
|-
{{album chart|Billboard200|135|artist=Aphex Twin|rowheader=true|access-date=15 October 2024}}
|-
{{album chart|BillboardDanceElectronic|3|artist=Aphex Twin|rowheader=true|access-date=15 October 2024}}
|}

==Certifications==
{{certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II''}}
{{certification Table Entry|type=album|region=United Kingdom|artist=Aphex Twin|title=Selected Ambient Works – Vol Ii|award=Silver|certyear=2020|relyear=1996|id=16386-2691-2|access-date=1 May 2020}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|nosales=true|noshipments=true}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{reflist}}


== External links ==
==External links==
*[http://warp.net/records/releases/aphex-twin/selected-ambient-works-volume-ii ''Selected Ambient Works Volume II''] at the Warp Records website
* {{Discogs master|481|Selected Ambient Works Volume II}}
*[http://www.discogs.com/release/54978 More pictures of the brown vinyl edition]
*[http://www.discogs.com/release/59922 Information on ''Excursions In Ambience: The Third Dimension'']


{{Richard David James}}
{{Aphex Twin}}

{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Selected Ambient Works Volume Ii}}
[[Category:Aphex Twin albums]]
[[Category:Aphex Twin albums]]
[[Category:1994 albums]]
[[Category:1994 albums]]
[[Category:Warp (record label) albums]]
[[Category:Warp Records albums]]
[[Category:Sire Records albums]]
[[Category:Sire Records albums]]
[[Category:Ambient techno albums]]
[[Category:Ambient albums]]
[[Category:Double albums]]
[[Category:Sequel albums]]

[[de:Selected Ambient Works Vol. II]]
[[es:Selected Ambient Works II]]
[[fr:Selected Ambient Works Volume II]]
[[it:Selected Ambient Works Volume II]]

Latest revision as of 15:04, 6 January 2025

Selected Ambient Works Volume II
Studio album by
Released7 March 1994 (1994-03-07)
Genre
Length156:42 (CD)
166:53 (LP/MC)
184:53 (Expanded Edition)
LabelWarp
ProducerRichard D. James
Richard D. James chronology
On
(1993)
Selected Ambient Works Volume II
(1994)
GAK
(1994)
Aphex Twin album chronology
Selected Ambient Works 85–92
(1992)
Selected Ambient Works Volume II
(1994)
Classics
(1995)

Selected Ambient Works Volume II (abbreviated as SAW II)[1] is the second studio album by the British electronic music artist and producer Richard D. James under the alias of Aphex Twin. It was released on 7 March 1994 through Warp Records. Its title follows James's debut Selected Ambient Works 85–92. Unlike that record, most of the tracks are purely ambient music, without the earlier volume's ambient techno beats. James said the music was inspired through lucid dreaming, and likened it to "standing in a power station on acid."[2]

The record entered the CIN's Dance Albums Chart at No. 1 and entered the Albums Chart at No. 11.[3][4] It was reviewed positively by most critics on release and later placed on various best of the decade lists by publications such as Rolling Stone, Spin, and Pitchfork.[5] In 2016 Pitchfork picked Selected Ambient Works Volume II as the second greatest ambient album of all time, after Brian Eno's Ambient 1: Music for Airports. An expanded reissue of the album was released in October 2024.

Background

[edit]

Recording

[edit]

In a 1994 interview with NME, James stated that most of the album had been recorded in 1993, a year before the album's official release.[6] Later that month, James told Melody Maker in another interview that the album had been recorded in his home studios in both London and Cornwall.[7] James later wrote a note on his webstore explaining that the track "Blue Calx" had also been recorded in his old home studio and was "probably the last track [he] ever recorded in that house". The track was supposedly recorded while he was visiting his parents in Cornwall.[8] James had also revealed that track 22 ("Tassels") had been recorded with an EMS Synthi A Mk1 and a Studiomaster Star System. A Yamaha CS-5 was also used during the recording of the album, which had the liner notes for the original release written on it.[9]

Composition

[edit]

James stated that the sounds on Selected Ambient Works Volume II were inspired by lucid dreams. He said he went to sleep in his studio and upon waking would attempt to re-create the sounds and record them. He said that he has synaesthesia which influenced the music.[2] James described the album as being "like standing in a power station on acid...if you just stand in the middle of a really massive one, you get a really weird presence and you've got that hum. You just feel electricity around you. That's totally dreamlike for me. It's just like a right strange dimension."[2]

Volume II differs significantly from Selected Ambient Works 85–92, in that it consists of lengthy, textured ambient compositions with sparing use of percussion and occasional vocal samples, in a vein Rolling Stone related to Brian Eno's early ambient works and John Cage's minimalism.[10][11] The album itself makes liberal use of microtonal musical tunings, which James was investing himself in at the time.[12]

Simon Reynolds commented that on Volume II James changed styles "from the idyllic, Satie-esque naïveté of early tracks like 'Analogue Bubblebath' to clammy, foreboding sound-paintings."[13] Reynolds stated that, along with other artists such as Seefeel, David Toop and Max Eastley, James had moved from "rave into the vicinity of "isolationism", a term coined by Kevin Martin to label music that "breaks with all of ambient's feel-good premises. Isolationism is ice-olationist, offering cold comfort.[14] Instead of pseudopastoral peace, it evokes an uneasy silence: the uncanny calm before catastrophe, the deathly quiet of aftermath."[13] Critics elsewhere have referred to the record as dark ambient,[9][15] as well as drone.[16]

In a later discussion about the album, Dan Carr of Reverb called the composition of track 3 ("Rhubarb") a "rhythmically shapeless piece" which is based around a "beautiful-sounding chord progression that is repeated throughout the entire song".[9] Carlos Hawthorn writing for Resident Advisor noted the chilling atmosphere of track 22 ("Spots"), which featured a sample taken from an interview with a woman who had murdered her husband; the tape of the interview had been stolen from a police station by a friend of James's who worked there as a cleaner.[17][18] In a piece for The Quietus, John Doran noted how track 8 ("Blur") and track 9 ("Weathered Stone") featured a "quantized pulse".[19] A retrospective review for Pitchfork written by Philip Sherburne detailed that track 16 ("Grey Stripe") was made up of "pure filtered white noise", and compared it to "the dying breath of a distant star."[20]

Artwork

[edit]
An example of the photography seen throughout Volume II to represent its tracks

The artwork for the album was designed by Paul Nicholson,[21] who was credited as Prototype 21 in the liner notes.[22] None of the tracks on Volume II were given official titles; rather, each track was instead represented by a photograph in the album's artwork.[9] He stated in an interview with Resident Advisor that the photographs were taken by "Richard's girlfriend at the time, Sam" and that most of the photographs were taken in a flat that the three were all living in together.[21] The front cover of Volume II was the result of James scratching the Aphex Twin logo onto the back of a leather travel case using a razor and a compass, which Sam took a picture of.[1][23]

Nicholson said that the pie charts and size of the photographs in the artwork were "related to the track signatures, how long they were."[21] The timecodes of a track would be converted into a decimal, then into the percentage of the total length of the side of the record the track is on, and then into a degree to be used on the pie chart.[21] All six pie charts were colour-coded, and those colours were used throughout the artwork, including the textless CD and vinyl labels.[20]

Discussing the artwork for Bandcamp Daily, Andy Beta said that the cover looked like "the side of an alien ship", and compared the sepia tones seen on the cover to it being "burnished by solar radiation exposure".[24] On the topic of the photography seen throughout the album, Beta called them "blurry" and compared them to "snapshots from [a] distant planet". Philip Sherburne of Pitchfork called the logo on the cover a relic from "some strange future-past", and compared the cover to "alien markings discovered on some weathered desert pyramid".[20] He also called the photography "cryptic".

Release

[edit]

Selected Ambient Works Volume II was released on double CD, double cassette and triple LP on 7 March 1994 by Warp in the United Kingdom,[25][26] and on 12 April 1994 on double CD by Sire in Australia, Japan and the United States.[27] The 19th track is omitted from all versions of the original release's CD pressings due to space limitations.[28] It entered the CIN's Dance Albums Chart at No. 1 and remained in the top five for six weeks,[3][29] and entered the Albums Chart at No. 11.[4] By July 1994 the album had sold over 60,000 copies outside the United States.[30]

On 6 March 2012 Selected Ambient Works Volume II was reissued on vinyl by record label 1972.[31] The master for this release was made from a US CD copy however, which omitted both the 4th and 19th tracks.[25][32] In 2017 James added the album to his own web store, and not only included a 26th track titled "th1 [evnslower]", but made the 19th track available in a digital format for the first time since its inclusion on an ambient music CD compilation, Excursions in Ambience: The Third Dimension, which was released in 1994.[18]

Expanded Edition

[edit]

On 18 June 2024 James announced that Selected Ambient Works Volume II would be reissued as Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition) on digital, triple CD, 4xLP and double cassette formats.[33] The music had also been remastered by Matt Colton.[34] A 4xLP deluxe boxset was also available which came in a hinged oak case with an etched copper plate on top, along with a booklet of design sketches.[35][36] The cassettes were originally released as type II chrome cassettes[37] and were limited to 250 total copies.[38] This cassette variant sold out on the day of announcement. The 19th track which had been previously excluded from CD pressings was released on streaming for the first time on the day of the re-release's announcement.[39]

On 4 September 2024 James released the track "th1 [evnslower]" onto streaming platforms.[40] This track had previously been released on 2 November 2015 through James' SoundCloud archive. On the same day of the release, Warp Records and James announced that listening parties for Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition) would take place at record shops across the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Ireland.[41][42] After the success of the chrome cassettes, Warp began production of a cassette variant made with ferric tape instead.[43] On 2 October 2024 James released the single "#3 / Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev" onto streaming platforms.[44]

On 4 October 2024 Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition) was officially released[45] and included both the two bonus tracks along with the previously excluded 19th track.[46][47] James dedicated the re-release to his mother Lorna, who had died in 2022.[48][34] On 8 October 2024 Warp Records confirmed that another listening party for the album would happen on 25 October 2024, this time taking place at Tate Modern.[49][50]

Reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Chicago Sun-Times[51]
Entertainment WeeklyC[52]
Q[53]
Rolling Stone[54]
Select4/5[55]
The Village VoiceB−[56]

Spin gave the album a positive review, with critic Simon Reynolds stating that the album has "plenty of the shimmeringly euphoric and majestically melancholy tunes that have won James so many devout fans," but that it "will leave you not so much blissed as spooked out."[57] Rolling Stone's Jon Wiederhorn stated that "While many of his disciples have done little more than propel New Age atmospheres into the computer age, producing comforting but often emotionless elevator music, James has used the medium to confront his shadowy demons, exploring realms of spooky, textured sound."[54] He concluded that the album "provides a visionary perspective on ambient electronic music."[54][58] Clark Collis of Select stated that "Anyone who thinks they know what to expect on the basis of 'Volume I' might care to sit down, have a nice cup of tea and prepare themselves for a shock."[55] Collis noted the album was not successful "as a conventional dance record", but "as an album to wallow in at 5 am while watching the wallpaper conduct a heated argument with the lightshade, it is indeed the knees of the bee."[55]

Other reviews were less favourable. Robert Christgau, writing in The Village Voice, wrote that "James is rarely as rich as good [Brian] Eno, not to mention good Eno-Hassell or Eno-Budd".[56] Entertainment Weekly critic Charles Aaron wrote that "At its best [the album] is an avant-garde score in search of a postapocalyptic theater piece, à la Philip Glass. More often, it's chamber music for humorless cyber-nerds".[52]

Retrospective views

[edit]
Professional ratings
Retrospective reviews
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[25]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[59]
Pitchfork10/10[20]
Resident Advisor5/5[17]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[10]
Spin Alternative Record Guide8/10[60]
Tom Hull - on the WebB[61]

At the end of the decade Selected Ambient Works Volume II was included on several publications' lists of top albums of the 1990s, including Rolling Stone and Spin.[62][63] Polls conducted in 1996 and 2001 by Hyperreal.org placed the record as the first and second respectively of all-time ambient records.[64][65] Commenting on the audience's reaction of the album in 1999, Simon Reynolds stated that "many in the Aphex cult were thrown for a loop" and that "Aphex aficionados remain divided" on the album.[62] David Fricke, Rob Sheffield, and Ann Powers of Rolling Stone stated the album was James creating "an enriched, wraparound style of burp-and-whoosh programming, the perfect soundtrack for pulling the pieces of your brain back together after spilling them all over the club floor. The first dance album to celebrate the rhythms in your head."[63] Spin placed both Selected Ambient Works 85–92 and Selected Ambient Works Volume II at number 56 on its list of the top albums of the 1990s, calling it "an awe-inspiring feat of avant-techno texturology".[62]

Alex Linhardt of Pitchfork placed the album at number 62 on its list of top albums of the 1990s, stating that it "spurred on one of the great trajectories of pop music in the 1990s, influencing everyone from Radiohead to Timbaland".[66] It was later ranked the album second on the website's 2016 list of the best ambient music albums of all time, after Brian Eno's Ambient 1: Music for Airports by Philip Sherburne.[67] Giving added historical context of Volume II initially confusing some listeners expecting a techno LP based on its name, Carlos Hawthorn of Resident Advisor gave the album a 5/5 for its 25th anniversary, stating that it brought "atmospheres to life with intensely vivid sonic textures" and "[as] artists and fans alike, we all owe something to this strange masterpiece."[17] Talking about the album for The Quietus, Ned Raggett said "Seen from twenty years on, to restate the start a touch, the singularity of something like [Volume II] in James’s career seems both necessary and understandable; yet another indulgence in an approach, albeit one that has and continues to resonate, dig deep."[68]

Legacy and influence

[edit]

Mark Richardson of Pitchfork noted that Selected Ambient Works Volume II was "a very early example of a record being anticipated, experienced, and, ultimately, analyzed in minute detail through online communication."[1] Pitchfork noted that the electronic mailing list titled IDM had a profound influence on how the album would be received in the future, noting the community's influence in relation to the album's mysterious non-titles.[1] List member Greg Eden, who kept a detailed discography, gave the tracks names based on a word or two that related to the corresponding images.[1] Eden would later go on to work for Warp Records.[1][69]

Simon Reynolds wrote that the album signalled a shift in techno and ambient music toward a darker sound reminiscent of Brian Eno's notion of "environmental music".[70]

Marc Weidenbaum, a music journalist and former editor of Pulse!, released a book about the album for the 33⅓ series on 13 February 2013.[1][71] The series is made up of short books inspired by or focused on albums, and are generally written as longform essays.[71] The book itself covers the events before, during and after the record's release. It also covers the tracks within Volume II, discussing the sounds of each track.[1]

Track listing

[edit]

Due to all of the tracks being untitled,[1] digital releases of the album simply number the songs from 1 to 24.[72] Unofficial titles based on the photographs created by a fan are widely used and are noted below.[1][73]

Vinyl and cassette release

Sides indicated are for the vinyl edition.

All tracks are written by Richard D. James.[22]

Side one
No.TitleUnofficial titleLength
1.Untitledcliffs7:27
2.Untitledradiator[a]6:34
3.Untitledrhubarb[b]7:44
4.Untitledhankie4:39
Total length:26:24
Side two
No.TitleUnofficial titleLength
5.Untitledgrass8:55
6.Untitledmould3:31
7.Untitledcurtains8:51
8.Untitledblur5:08
Total length:26:25
Side three
No.TitleUnofficial titleLength
9.Untitledweathered stone6:54
10.Untitledtree9:58
11.Untitleddomino7:18
12.Untitledwhite blur 12:43
Total length:26:53
Side four
No.TitleUnofficial titleLength
13."Blue Calx [c]" 7:20
14.Untitledparallel stripes8:00
15.Untitledshiny metal rods5:33
16.Untitledgrey stripe4:45
17.Untitledz twig2:05
Total length:27:43
Side five
No.TitleUnofficial titleLength
18.Untitledwindowsill7:16
19.Untitledstone in focus10:11
20.Untitledhexagon5:58
21.Untitledlichen4:15
Total length:27:40
Side six
No.TitleUnofficial titleLength
22.Untitledspots7:09
23.Untitledtassels7:30
24.Untitledwhite blur 211:27
25.Untitledmatchsticks5:41
Total length:31:47

CD release[d]

All tracks are written by Richard D. James.[22]

Disc one
No.TitleUnofficial titleLength
1.Untitledcliffs7:27
2.Untitledradiator6:34
3.Untitledrhubarb7:44
4.Untitled ([e])hankie4:39
5.Untitledgrass8:55
6.Untitledmould3:31
7.Untitledcurtains8:51
8.Untitledblur5:08
9.Untitledweathered stone6:54
10.Untitledtree9:58
11.Untitleddomino7:18
12.Untitledwhite blur 12:43
Total length:79:42
Disc two
No.TitleUnofficial titleLength
1."Blue Calx" 7:20
2.Untitledparallel stripes8:00
3.Untitledshiny metal rods5:33
4.Untitledgrey stripe4:45
5.Untitledz twig2:05
6.Untitledwindowsill7:16
7.Untitledhexagon5:58
8.Untitledlichen4:15
9.Untitledspots7:10
10.Untitledtassels7:30
11.Untitledwhite blur 211:27
12.Untitledmatchsticks5:41
Total length:77:00
2024 Expanded Edition bonus tracks[f]
No.TitleLength
26."th1 [evnslower][g]"11:07
27."Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev[b]"6:41
Total length:17:48

Personnel

[edit]

Credits adapted from liner notes unless noted.[22]

  • Richard D. James – writer, producer, liner notes, photography
  • Prototype 21 [Paul Nicholson] – designer
  • "Sam" – photography [uncredited][21]

Expanded Edition credits:[34]

  • Marek Moś – conductor, arranger (on "Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev")
  • AUKSO Tychy Chamber Orchestra – performer (on "Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev")
  • Octava Ensemble – performer (on "Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev")
  • Matt Colton – remastering

Charts

[edit]
Chart performance for Selected Ambient Works Volume II
Chart (1994) Peak
position
UK Albums (OCC)[77] 11
UK Dance Albums Chart (CIN)[3] 1
2024 chart performance for Selected Ambient Works Volume II
Chart (2024) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[78] 46
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[79] 5
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[80] 26
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[81] 14
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[82] 13
Irish Albums (IRMA)[83] 97
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[84] 37
Japanese Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[85] 50
Scottish Albums (OCC)[86] 7
Swedish Physical Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[87] 14
UK Albums (OCC)[88] 21
UK Dance Albums (OCC)[89] 1
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[90] 5
US Billboard 200[91] 135
US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[92] 3

Certifications

[edit]
Certifications for Selected Ambient Works Volume II
Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[93] Silver 60,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ officially named on Warp's Peel Session 2.[74][75]
  2. ^ a b officially named on the Expanded Edition.[34]
  3. ^ officially named on the compilation album, The Philosophy of Sound and Machine.[76]
  4. ^ omits track #19, "stone in focus", due to the capacity limit of the CD format.
  5. ^ track #4 is omitted from US pressings.
  6. ^ also includes vinyl track #19 on all formats.
  7. ^ officially named on the Expanded Edition and on SoundCloud.[34]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Richardson, Mark (25 April 2014). "Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works Volume II". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 9 February 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Toop, David (March 1994). "Lost in space". The Face. Vol. 2, no. 66. EMAP.
  3. ^ a b c Redmond, Steve, ed. (19 March 1994). "Dance Albums" (PDF). Music Week. London: Spotlight Publications. p. 22. Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 July 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Selected Ambient Works Volume II". Official Charts. London: Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  5. ^ Wren, David; Jacobs, Daniel; Moyse, Scott (2003). "Aphex Twin". In Buckley, Peter (ed.). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. pp. 35–36. ISBN 1-8435-3105-4. Archived from the original on 19 December 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  6. ^ Kessler, Ted (8 January 1994). "SWING YOUR PANZERS!". NME. TI Media Ltd. p. 28.
  7. ^ "APHEX TWIN DREAMS ON". Melody Maker. 22 January 1994. p. 2.
  8. ^ Weidenbaum, Marc (20 August 2017). "Aphex Twin Details SAW2 Recordings". Disquiet. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  9. ^ a b c d Carr, Dan (7 March 2019). "Recreating the Synths of Aphex Twin's "Selected Ambient Works II"". Reverb. Archived from the original on 23 July 2019. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  10. ^ a b Frere-Jones, Sasha (2004). "Aphex Twin". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 21–23. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  11. ^ Pattison, Louis (18 September 2014). "Aphex Twin – 'Syro'". NME. Archived from the original on 13 June 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  12. ^ Philp, Ray (11 July 2017). "New Aphex Twin song 'Korg Funk 5' surfaces in interview with ex-Korg engineer Tatsuya Takahashi". Resident Advisor. Archived from the original on 22 September 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  13. ^ a b Reynolds, Simon (January 1995). "Chill: The New Ambient". Artforum International. Vol. 33, no. 5. p. 60. ISSN 1086-7058.
  14. ^ Reynolds, Simon (Christmas 1993). "Ambient – The Buzzword of '93". Melody Maker.
  15. ^ "Kevin Drumm's Imperial Distortion on vinyl". Fact. 25 March 2011. Archived from the original on 19 March 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  16. ^ Seymour, Malcolm III (25 October 2001). "Aphex Twin: Drukqs". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 18 March 2009. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  17. ^ a b c Hawthorn, Carlos (7 March 2019). "Rewind: Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II". Resident Advisor. Archived from the original on 7 November 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  18. ^ a b James, Richard D. "Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II". Warp. Archived from the original on 5 May 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
  19. ^ Doran, John (4 October 2024). "Dread Magnificence: LSD, Selected Ambient Works II & The Psychic Death of Aphex Twin". The Quietus. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  20. ^ a b c d Sherburne, Philip (5 May 2019). "Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Volume II". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 7 May 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  21. ^ a b c d e Coultate, Aaron (6 April 2017). "Aphex Twin logo designer Paul Nicholson shows more unseen sketches". Resident Advisor. Archived from the original on 15 April 2017. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
  22. ^ a b c d James, Richard D. (1994). Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Media notes). Aphex Twin. Warp. WARPLP21LTD.
  23. ^ Yalcinkaya, Gunseli (6 August 2018). "Mysterious Aphex Twin logos appear in destinations across the world". Dezeen. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  24. ^ Beta, Andy (16 October 2024). "The Road to Aphex Twin's "Selected Ambient Works Volume II"". Bandcamp Daily. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
  25. ^ a b c Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Selected Ambient Works, Vol. 2 – Aphex Twin". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 17 January 2022. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  26. ^ "Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Volume II". Warp. Archived from the original on 18 November 2009. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  27. ^ McLoughlin, Megan, ed. (21 March 1994). "Progressive Retail" (PDF). CMJ New Music Report. Great Neck, NY: College Media Inc. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
  28. ^ Weidenbaum, Marc (27 January 2014). "Aphex Twin SAW2 Countdown: Track 19 ("Stone in Focus")". Gizmodo. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  29. ^ Redmond, Steve, ed. (23 April 1994). "Dance Albums" (PDF). Music Week. London: Spotlight Publications. p. 30. Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 July 2024.
  30. ^ Pride, Dominic (23 July 1994). "Ambient Figureheads". Billboard. Vol. 106, no. 30. p. 131. Archived from the original on 13 June 2020. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
  31. ^ Spice, Anton. "Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works Volume II given limited triple vinyl repress". The Vinyl Factory. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  32. ^ Hughes, Josiah (13 January 2012). "Aphex Twin's 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II' to Get Vinyl Reissue". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  33. ^ Muk, Isaac (18 June 2024). "Warp reissues an expanded version of Aphex Twin's seminal album, 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II'". Crack Magazine. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  34. ^ a b c d e D. James, Richard (2024). Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition) (CD liner notes). Warp Records. p. 12. WARPCD21R.
  35. ^ Duran, Anagricel (18 June 2024). "Aphex Twin announces 30th anniversary box set of classic 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II'". NME. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  36. ^ Buckle, Becky (19 June 2024). "Aphex Twin announces expanded 30th-anniversary reissue of 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II'". Mixmag. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  37. ^ Byrne, Niall (18 June 2024). "Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II expanded edition announced". Nialler9. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  38. ^ Coney, Brian (19 June 2024). "Aphex Twin announces 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II' vinyl reissue and expanded edition". DJ Mag. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  39. ^ "Aphex Twin (@AphexTwin) on X". Archived from the original on 22 September 2024. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  40. ^ Lindert, Hattie. "Aphex Twin's 'th1 [evnslower]' gets first official release". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
  41. ^ Guttridge-Hewitt, Martin (5 September 2024). "Aphex Twin's 'th1 [evnslower]' released on streaming for the first time: Listen". DJ. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  42. ^ Warp Records [@warprecords] (4 September 2024). "Sign up for updates on forthcoming album listenings in select locations" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  43. ^ Ross, Gemma. "Previously unreleased Aphex Twin track 'th1 [evnslower]' lands on Warp Records". Mixmag. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  44. ^ Yopko, Nick (2 October 2024). "Aphex Twin Reimagines Track From 1994 Album, "Selected Ambient Works Volume II": Listen". EDM. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  45. ^ Aphex Twin [@aphextwin] (4 October 2024). "SELECTED AMBIENT WORKS II (EXPANDED EDITION). RELEASED TODAY" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  46. ^ "Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition), by Aphex Twin". Aphex Twin. Archived from the original on 22 September 2024. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
  47. ^ Torres, Eric (18 June 2024). "Aphex Twin Announces Selected Ambient Works Volume 2 Expanded Edition". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 22 September 2024. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
  48. ^ Zhu, Edward (27 October 2024). "Rediscovering Aphex Twin's cult classic: Selected Ambient Works Volume II turns 30". The Johns Hopkins News-Letter. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  49. ^ Cetin, Marissa (8 October 2024). "Aphex Twin 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II' free listening party announced for London's Tate Modern". DJ Mag. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  50. ^ Muk, Isaac (8 October 2024). "Free listening party for Aphex Twin's expanded reissue of 'Selected Ambient Works Volume II' announced at Tate Modern". Crack Magazine. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  51. ^ DeRogatis, Jim (8 May 1994). "Compilations Of Music To Rave By". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on 28 February 2017. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  52. ^ a b Aaron, Charles (15 April 1994). "Selected Ambient Works Volume II". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 18 January 2022. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  53. ^ "Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Vol. II". Q. No. 365. November 2016. p. 100.
  54. ^ a b c Wiederhorn, Jon (30 June 1994). "Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Volume II". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 22 February 2008. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  55. ^ a b c Collis, Clark (April 1994). "Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Volume II". Select. No. 46. p. 89.
  56. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (31 May 1994). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on 25 November 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  57. ^ Reynolds, Simon (March 1994). Marks, Craig (ed.). "Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Part II". Spin. Vol. 9, no. 12. p. 74. ISSN 0886-3032. Archived from the original on 23 April 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  58. ^ Beta, Andy (29 September 2014). "Richard D. James: 10 Essential Releases". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 26 October 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
  59. ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). "Aphex Twin". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  60. ^ Reynolds, Simon (1995). "Aphex Twin". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. New York City: Vintage Books. pp. 15–16. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  61. ^ Hull, Tom (September 2012). "Recycled Goods (#100)". tomhull.com. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  62. ^ a b c Reynolds, Simon (September 1999). "The Greatest Albums of the '90s — 56. Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works 85–92 / Selected Ambient Works Volume II". Spin. Vol. 15, no. 9. p. 148. ISSN 0886-3032. Archived from the original on 19 December 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  63. ^ a b Sheffield, Rob; Powers, Ann; Fricke, David (13 May 1999). "Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works, Volume II". Rolling Stone. No. 812. p. 79. ISSN 0035-791X.
  64. ^ Renick, Kevin (January 2002). "Classic Ambient Recordings: The 2001 Survey". Epsilon. Hyperreal. Archived from the original on 3 February 2011.
  65. ^ Roy, Darryl Stephen (1 September 1996). "Ambient Albums". Epsilon. Hyperreal. Archived from the original on 30 June 2010.
  66. ^ Linhardt, Alex (17 November 2003). "Top 100 Albums of the 1990s". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 24 March 2016. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  67. ^ Sherburne, Philip (26 September 2016). "The 50 Best Ambient Albums of All Time". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  68. ^ Raggett, Ned (20 February 2014). "Lingering Memory: Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works II, 25 Years On". The Quietus. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  69. ^ Eden, Greg (16 December 2008). "Words About Body Riddle". Warp. Archived from the original on 20 September 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  70. ^ Reynolds, Simon (2012). Energy Flash: A Journey Through Rave Music and Dance Culture. Soft Skull Press. p. 178. ISBN 978-1-5937-6407-4.
  71. ^ a b "Kanye West, Bjork, J Dilla and more to be featured in a 33⅓ book series". Dummy. 26 July 2013. Archived from the original on 15 March 2016. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  72. ^ "Selected Ambient Works, Vol. II". Spotify. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  73. ^ Weidenbaum, Marc (2014). Selected Ambient Works Volume II. 33⅓. London/New York: Bloomsbury Publishing. pp. 67–71. ISBN 9781623567637. Archived from the original on 30 May 2022. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  74. ^ Grech, Aaron (18 September 2019). "Warp Records Announces WXAXRXP Sessions Box Set Featuring Boards of Canada's One and Only Radio Session, Aphex Twin, Flying Lotus and More". MXDWN. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  75. ^ Keeling, Ryan. "Various - WXAXRXP Sessions". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  76. ^ Weidenbaum, Marc (2 February 2014). "Aphex Twin SAW2 Countdown: Track 13 ("Blue Calx")". Gizmodo. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  77. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  78. ^ "ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. 14 October 2024. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  79. ^ "Ultratop.be – Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  80. ^ "Ultratop.be – Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  81. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  82. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  83. ^ "Irish Albums Chart: 11 October 2024". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  84. ^ "Oricon Top 50 Albums: 2024-10-14/p/4" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  85. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot Albums – Week of October 9, 2024". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  86. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  87. ^ "Veckolista Album Fysiskt, vecka 41". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  88. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  89. ^ "Official Dance Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  90. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  91. ^ "Aphex Twin Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
  92. ^ "Aphex Twin Chart History (Top Dance/Electronic Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
  93. ^ "British album certifications – Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works – Vol Ii". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
[edit]