2003-08-10
... ? Sonar Festival 2003 | Overload Media | electronic music and wired cultureThankfully Aphex Twin hit the mark, for me at least. Initial thoughts were that he might let rip with a So Solid pastiche, but instead the Twin eased the crowd into a steady groove with a techno-tinged selection - sounding a little pedestrian at times - before bolting through harder loops, rugged breaks and broken electro terrain. Midway through, his set broke down into five or so minutes of pure, undulating bass tones, creating what was perhaps the most intense bottom-end experience I’ve ever had the pleasure of damaging my ears to. When he then dropped a jungle bomb the whole arena went nuts. True to form, following an old skool-meets-new school junglist tumult, the conceited Cornishman descended into an edgy gabba/pop/noise mashup that made Hellfish sound like a DJ at the waltzers. We left, unable to talk properly for about half an hour.
