Selected Ambient Works 85–92

James began experimenting with musical instruments, such as his family's piano, at an early age. He later created music using a ZX Spectrum home computer and a sampler, and began reassembling and modifying his own synthesisers. James's first release was the 12" EP Analogue Bubblebath, released on Mighty Force in September 1991. It was played on the influential London radio station Kiss FM, giving it wide exposure in the dance music scene. It gained distribution in continental Europe, and was heard by Renaat Vandepapeliere, the head of R&S Records, at that time one of the leading European rave labels. James visited him in Belgium, bringing a box full of cassettes of his music. From these cassettes they picked tracks for two records, including Selected Ambient Works 85–92. ==Composition==

According to James, Selected Ambient Works 85–92 was recorded between 1985 and 1992, beginning when he was fourteen, The album differs from ambient music by musicians such as Brian Eno. According to The Independent, it pays homage to the "refracted minimalism" of the composers Philip Glass and Karlheinz Stockhausen. Commentators categorised Selected Ambient Works 85–92 as ambient techno, He likened the "fuzzy melodies and blurred female vocal" of the opening track, "Xtal", to the shoegaze artists Seefeel and My Bloody Valentine. Rolling Stone Pat Blashill said the album combined "lush soundscapes with oceanic beats and bass lines". "Tha" features a "murk[y]" beat and "underwater" sound, according to Dayal. Writing for Slant Magazine, Sal Cinquemani noted the use of "diffusive synth chords" throughout, and the "pop sensibility" on tracks such as "Pulsewidth" and "Ptolemy". ==Release==

Selected Ambient Works 8592 was released on 9 November 1992 through Apollo, In the UK, it was initially available only via import because a licensing deal between R&S and Outer Rhythm had collapsed earlier in the year. The import release was priced as high as £20 (). James left R&S after the release as he had signed to Warp Records and also wanted to focus on his own label, Rephlex Records. Selected Ambient Works 8592 entered the Chart Information Network|'s Dance Albums Chart at number 6 on 26December 1992. It was still in the top 10 when James's next album, Surfing on Sine Waves (using the alias Polygon Window), was released in January 1993, and he briefly had two records in the Dance Top 10 under different pseudonyms. By June 1993 Selected Ambient Works 85–92 had sold 30,000 copies. The album sleeve displays the Aphex Twin symbol, which was designed by Paul Nicholson, who was also a stage dancer at several of James's live gigs around this period. Nicholson said they wanted the logo to be an "amorphic and soft" form with "no sharp lines". According to James, the design was a collaborative effort: ==Reception and legacy==

Selected Ambient Works 8592 received acclaim and almost immediately acquired a "huge underground reputation". Andrew Smith, reviewing the album for Melody Maker, wrote: "Not since Kraftwerk has an artist understood texture in this way, made electronic music sound so organic and resonant, so full of life." The album's stature grew in the decades following. It has been described as a defining electronica and ambient record Peter Manning, in his book Electronic and Computer Music, wrote that James "managed finally to elevate [electronic music's] status to the mainstream consciousness of the general public". Selected Ambient Works 85–92 expanded the scope of ambient music and, according to Savage, it "defined a new techno primitive romanticism". Ten years later NME included it in their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time at No.121. In 2012 Fact named it the greatest album of the 1990s. Selected Ambient Works 8592 re-entered the dance chart after the release of Aphex Twin's 2014 album Syro. In 2015 Spin placed Selected Ambient Works 85–92 the 204th-best album released in the preceding 30 years. In 2017 Pitchfork named it the best IDM album. It was also included in the 2018 edition of the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. In 2022 The Independent described it as a landmark 1990s record. ==Track listing==

Credits adapted from Selected Ambient Works 8592 liner notes. • Richard D. James – writing, production ==Charts==