Selected Ambient Works Volume II
Album by
Aphex Twin
‧ 1994
Selected Ambient Works Volume II (abbreviated as SAW II) is a studio album by the British electronic music artist and producer Aphex Twin. It was released on 7 March 1994 through Warp Records. Its title follows James's ambient techno debut Selected Ambient Works 85–92, but Volume II largely features purely ambient music. James was inspired by lucid dreaming and likened the album to "standing in a power station on acid." Most of the tracks on Selected Ambient Works Volume II were untitled and represented with abstract photographs and pie charts. Fan-named, unofficial titles are still widely used today.
The record entered the CIN's Dance Albums Chart at No. 1 and the Albums Chart at No. 11. The album had a polarised reception from critics upon release. Contemporary critical reviews focus on its largely beatless composition and the repetition throughout. Retrospective reviews of the album are positive, and have described its major role in the evolution of ambient music and electronica. In 2016, Pitchfork picked Selected Ambient Works Volume II as the second greatest ambient album of all time, after Brian Eno's Ambient 1: Music for Airports. A remastered and expanded reissue of the album was released in October 2024 with two bonus tracks.
The record entered the CIN's Dance Albums Chart at No. 1 and the Albums Chart at No. 11. The album had a polarised reception from critics upon release. Contemporary critical reviews focus on its largely beatless composition and the repetition throughout. Retrospective reviews of the album are positive, and have described its major role in the evolution of ambient music and electronica. In 2016, Pitchfork picked Selected Ambient Works Volume II as the second greatest ambient album of all time, after Brian Eno's Ambient 1: Music for Airports. A remastered and expanded reissue of the album was released in October 2024 with two bonus tracks.
Songs (24)
1.
[Cliffs]
07:28
mp3
320 kbps
2.
[Radiator]
06:34
mp3
320 kbps
3.
[Rhubarb]
07:44
mp3
320 kbps
4.
[Hankie]
04:40
mp3
320 kbps
5.
[Grass]
08:55
mp3
320 kbps
6.
[Mold]
03:31
mp3
320 kbps
7.
[Curtains]
08:51
mp3
320 kbps
8.
Blur
05:08
mp3
320 kbps
9.
[Weathered Stone]
06:55
mp3
320 kbps
10.
[Tree]
09:58
mp3
320 kbps
11.
[Domino]
07:18
mp3
320 kbps
12.
[White Blur 1]
02:42
mp3
320 kbps
13.
Blue Calx
07:20
mp3
320 kbps
14.
[Parallel Stripes]
08:00
mp3
320 kbps
15.
Shiny Metal Rods
05:34
mp3
320 kbps
16.
[Grey Stripe]
04:46
mp3
320 kbps
17.
[Z Twig]
02:05
mp3
320 kbps
18.
[Windowsill]
07:17
mp3
320 kbps
19.
[Hexagon]
05:58
mp3
320 kbps
20.
Lichen
04:15
mp3
320 kbps
21.
[Spots]
07:09
mp3
320 kbps
22.
[Tassels]
07:30
mp3
320 kbps
23.
[White Blur 2]
11:27
mp3
320 kbps
24.
[Matchsticks]
05:42
mp3
320 kbps