Richard David James, known professionally as Aphex Twin, is a British musician, composer and DJ. He is known for his idiosyncratic work in electronic styles such as techno, ambient, and jungle. Journalists from publications including Mixmag, The New York Times, NME, Fact, Clash and The Guardian have called James one of the most influential and important artists in contemporary electronic music.
James performing in March 2008
James grew up in Cornwall (pictured: Cornwall's Chapel Porth, seen on the cover and referenced in the liner notes of James's 1993 album Surfing on Sine Waves).
James performing in 2008
Street art promoting the Syro album in New York City.
Ambient music is a genre of music that emphasizes tone and atmosphere over traditional musical structure or rhythm. It may lack net composition, beat, or structured melody. It uses textural layers of sound that can reward both passive and active listening and encourage a sense of calm or contemplation. The genre is said to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual", or "unobtrusive" quality. Nature soundscapes may be included, and the sounds of acoustic instruments such as the piano, strings and flute may be emulated through a synthesizer.
Minimoog Voyager XL, owned by Brian Eno
Sounds of natural habitats are common in YouTube uploads, with their thumbnails typically having images of natural landscapes to attract listeners.