Here’s an early Christmas present for Aphex Twin fans: a new compilation of his tracks is available for streaming as from today (December 17).
The collection is called Music From The Merch Desk (2016 – 2023) and it compiles all the various hard-to-get vinyl releases he has thrown out over the last decade.
Previously, the only way to purchase these was to attend an Aphex Twin live show or DJ set where (as the title suggests) they were available exclusively from the merch desk. So this will be the first time many fans will have heard the 38 tracks in question – only certifiable Aphex nuts can claim to have even half of the tracks on the album.
Merch Desk arrives exactly eight years after the first of these vinyl releases – Houston, TX 12: 17: 16. James titled them all with date stamps of when and where he played, in this case at Houston’s Day for Night festival. Since then releases have followed at London shows in 2017, 2019 and 2023, along with dates in Manchester in 2019 and Barcelona in 2023.
As you’d expect all of these super rare releases have gone on to be sold on Discogs and ebay for exorbitant amounts – we’re talking three figures and more.
It’s been a fairly quiet year for Richard D James. Until the news of this latest compilation, he’s released no new music in 2024. There has been the thirtieth anniversary ‘expanded’ edition of Selected Ambient Works Volume II for which Warp Records held a listening event at Tate Modern back in October.
@joshjacko6 ♬ original sound - Josh
There have been no high profile performances, although he did DJ at a friend’s wedding in August. According to those who attended he had known the groom for years and agreed to play as a wedding gift. And no, it wasn’t an ordinary wedding set – no Dancing Queen, nor Groove Is In the Heart. The clip that’s surfaced online sees him playing The Bells by drum n’ bass producer Jonny L.
