Music analysis is most often applied to works from the Western classical tradition, but the same tools can offer fresh perspectives when turned toward alternative and experimental genres. In this article, I explore how topic analysis—a method that identifies stylistic markers or „musical codes“—can be used to examine the work of Aphex Twin, an artist whose music often feels as though it comes from another world entirely.
Aphex Twin’s compositions can seem to be difficult to define, yet they share similarities in sound, rhythm, and texture. By analyzing selected topics that emerge from his music, I hope to show how even unconventional works can be described through classical analytical techniques.
Classical analysis traditionally focuses on music from the past centuries, but its methods can also be applied to more recent and alternative genres. Let’s consider so-called topic analysis in this respect.
“Topics are conventional musical figures or styles that function as signs. Their meanings derive from social associations or generic conventions.”[1]
Using this method is like identifying the musical “code” or stylistic marker. It refers to a particular genre, setting, or emotion that listeners might recognize. This can be especially useful for contextualizing some music or even shedding light on one’s own compositions.
I thought it could be interesting to try this method on a genre that music analysis is not commonly used for.
“The Holy Grail for a music fan, I think, is to hear music from another planet, which has not been influenced by us whatsoever.”[2]
Attempting to analyze Aphex Twin using classical music analysis might be like trying to open a banana with a bottle opener—what’s the point? Is there a point? For composers or producers, it could be an amusing experiment or perhaps a way to shed light on his compositional approach while drawing connections to other musical ideas. Some writers have also approached Aphex Twin’s work through a more classical or formal analytical methods, highlighting connections to other musical ideas, as explored in the Lyon Papers article on Aphex Twin.[3]
According to Wikipedia[4], Aphex Twin has released around 55 albums and EPs under various monikers. He is a music factory and in 2015 he uploaded around several hundred additional tracks to SoundCloud saying afterwards:
„I’ve got all this music and I thought if I died what the fuck would my kids do? What would my wife do? They’d get really stressed out and they wouldn’t know what to do with it all. So I just thought I’d give it away, then they don’t have to think about it.“[5]
He has stated that he doesn’t really know music theory or music notation, which makes it even more interesting to examine his work through a classical lens.[6]
Kofi Agawu defines topics in relation to music in the following way:
“Topics may enable an account of the form or inner dynamic of a work, its expressive stance, or even its structure. The use of identical or similar topics within or between works may provide insight into a work’s strategy or larger aspects of style. And the shapes of individual topics may enhance appreciation of the sonic quality of a given work and the nature of a composer’s rhetoric.”[7]
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