I purchased a copy of Turnabout Records’ classic compilation of early electronic and musique concrète sounds for $2 at a barren and depressed feeling antique store when I was 18 years old. The timing could not have been better for me, as I had been obsessed with Warp Records for a bit (during a golden age when Autechre, Squarepusher, and Aphex Twin were all doing some of the best work of their careers, even up to now) and anything that was related to electronic music caught my attention pretty easily. Flipping through the stack of aged, unwanted “101 Strings” LPs was feeling like the usual waste of time until I happened upon this vivid blue and red psychedelic cover.

Of course, the simple title of “ELECTRONIC MUSIC” in all caps meant that I had to have it. Although I had never heard of Andres Lewin-Richter, Ilhan Mimaroglu, or Tzvi Avni, seeing Walter Carlos’ name was enough to make me feel like I knew what I was getting into. Ultimately, I got more than I had bargained for as this was only the first (and cheapest) of many more vintage experimental music LPs that I would track down and obsess over. I still stop and linger on this one for a minute or so every time I’m flipping through records in my relatively small collection. The impact of hearing this stuff for the first time is still felt, and the cover is damn near perfect.