There seems to be more than one side to Aphex Twin's back catalog. There's his early ambient work, his more drum n bass inspired material and a host of other styles that he has explored. With his Caustic Window alias he churned out 4 EPs in the early 90s that have inspired a love hate relationship amongst even his most ardent fans. Not that he necessarily sticks to one particular style under the Caustic Window moniker. Caustic Window Compilation collects the majority of the tracks from the 4 EPs and arranges them in a way that makes them easy to consume. While you generally might want to call what's here acid house, the tunes stretch the boundaries of that definition about as far as they can go. What you have here ranges from the quirky analog noodling of "Pigeon Street" to the proto-gabber-porn of "Fantasia." There is plenty to chew on between those two extremes though and that is what makes the Caustic Window Compilation so compelling.

• Music Label: Rephlex 1998/2011

reviewed by Michu Meszaros 10/2012