AIM, or Apple IBM Motorola, the three company joint venture to design and implement the PowerPC RISC computer chip. The PowerPC is found in the Power Macintosh line of computers, as well as some embedded devices.

Aim is DJ and producer Andy Turner. His obsession for music is clear and his ability to merge so many styles into a coherent whole is perhaps what impresses most: jazz (his dad was a jazz drummer), rap and hip-hop, to ethereal chilled-out blissful tunes. Intelligent and witty sampling adds to the overall feel of this unique sound.

”A keen ear for the right rapper and a demon song writing ability has seen Aim make a real difference in modern British music - showing that vision and skill can be fully appreciated in a market place that is filled with plastic (Mark Rae)

Andy Turner was born in Barrow In Furness, Cumbria. Influenced from an early age by his dad's music – being taken along to gigs and to his dad's instrument shop. By 1989 Andy had set up his own record shop focusing on up-tempo breakbeat and he was dabbling on the decks himself too. He spent a brief time as a drummer in an indie band but soon signed to Grand Central Records in the summer of 1995.

Some of his early successes include 'Concentrate', a Hacienda basement classic from the 'Pacific North West EP', the 'Soul Dive ' 12”, 'Original Stuntmaster' and 'Loop Dreams' 12”.

There followed a somewhat obsessive affair with hip-hop as his only listening material. ‘I immersed myself in hip hop for two years and didn’t listen to anything else…’ but he has more recently embraced a more eclectic mixture ‘it’s only the last couple of years that I’ve been listening to music as a whole again. I don’t see there being any problem listening to the Beta Band or Diamond D. It’s all good music to me…..I’ve heard all the hip hop now that’s going to influence me. I’m getting into different stuff now - everything from Pet Sounds to The White Stripes.’

The Albums

The first album Cold Water Music is introduced by a Barry White style voice over violins and chilled drums. The title tune ‘Cold Water Music’ is dreamy and ethereal for the first couple of bars but soon picks up with sampled male and female vocals over an urgent rhythm. Its one of those progressive tunes, something that ties “electronic music” to the very roots of classical music – the addition of another voice every four bars or so – like a Theme and Variations. “The Force” introduces the hip-hop style that permeates the Aim sound – quite a different sound to the previous track. We are transferred to another sound again with “Sail” – a beautiful chilled melody over a wonderfully crafted chord sequence. “Downstate” is funky and fast, and “Ain’t got no time to waste” is a fabulous mix of rap and horns – the trumpet in the refrain complimenting the hard vocals. ‘Fat City’ – a little ditty of samples and jazz melody. ‘True to Hip Hop’ – is what it says really – an exemplification of the style that obviously influences more than any other. ‘Demonique’ use vocals (sample?) in the style of Orff's Carmina Burana, interspersed with scratching and rap. ‘Tree, a Lock and a Cloud’ is reminiscent of Seventies chilled soul with female vocals in harmony and a muted trumpet. ‘Journey to the End of the Night’ introduced by a wailing female vocal and Cello with bongo drums building up the tempo until the rhythm kicks in. “From Here to Fame” concludes the album with a cool jazzy piano line topped by chilled rap.

Hinterland the second album continues in a similar vein but with notable progression. ‘Girl who Fell through the Ice’ features the blissful vocals of Kate Rogers over an “empty” backing for the verse and strings and bells in the chorus. ‘No Restriction’ features ‘Souls of Mischief’ with a very funky expressive rap backed by a loop on synthesiser and drums. ‘Fall Break’ is reminiscent of Bluegrass – a violin loop (sample) is built up with additional strings, piano and hip-hop vocals. ‘Guimar’ sounds like pure jazz guitar in the style of Django Reinhardt. ‘Good Disease’ features the vocals of Stephen Jones – this guy has an incredibly dreamy voice, which along with the muted trumpet, scratchy descant recorder and the vocals talking of “summer breeze” creates a blissful atmosphere. ‘Linctus’ again utilises trumpet and also saxophone over a constant crescendo and decrescendo of flutes and other wind instruments.

The ability to merge vastly different styles is something that doesn’t always work well in practice, but this is a rare exception. If you love hip-hop or rap, you will love this. If you love “chilled out grooves” you will love this. If you like jazz, you will enjoy this. If you just like good, well crafted melodies, you will adore this. Believe me, it's worth a listen…..

Discography

Singles

Albums

Remixes

  • Statik Sound System - Amazed by You (Cup of Tea) 1997
  • Lil' Kim - Crush on You (East West) 1998
  • Deadbeats - Got it Going on (20:20 D-Vision) 1999
  • Rae & Christian feat YZ - Now I Lay (Grand central) 1999
  • Lemn - Advise for the Living (Yo' mama) 1999
  • St Etienne - How we used to Live (Mantra) 1999/ 2000
  • Mucho Macho - Easy Living (Wiiija) 1999/2000
  • Raissa - How Long do I Get (Polydor) 2000
  • The Controls - Shere Khan (Smile) 2000
  • Archive - Cloud in the Sky (Independiente) 2000
  • Down to the Bone - Right on Baby, yeah (Internal Bass) 2000
  • Freddy Fresh- All About The Groove (Eye Q) 2000
  • Midnight Special - Midnight Special (Out Of The Loop) 2000
  • Eyedentity - Heavy Interference (Blue Room) 2000
  • Texas - Once in a Lifetime (Mercury) 2001
  • Thunderbugs- Isn’t It Time You Were Mine (Epic) 2001
  • Ian Brown - Love Like a Fountain (Polydor) 2001

www.aim-hinterland.com

A.I.M. or Advanced Idea Mechanics aka THEM, first appeared in Marvel Comics Strange Tales #146.

AIM is a unique secret society of scientists and their lackeys who have the anarchic goal of overthrowing all world governments through the use of technology. AIM is headed by The Scientist Supreme, a post that has been filled by many different people. As it is a secret society, all members wear identity concealing yellow uniforms and helmets, and the Scientist Supreme is anonymous, having no other title or name. Their goal regularly brings the group into conflict with the superheroes of the Marvel Comics Universe. It follows the general formula of a faceless, far-reaching and unremittingly evil corporation/society that has a single supervillain type goal: world domination. Ironically, AIM consists of brilliant scientists and technicians, none of which has enough smarts to avoid super-hero types until after their sinister plans have reached fruition.

The History of A.I.M.

During World War II, the infamous Nazi Baron Wolfgang von Strucker formed a secret subversive society called HYDRA. Strucker gathered together scientists that shared his goals and formed AIM to develop advanced weapons and technologies for HYDRA. This mindtrust would provide HYDRA with most of its supervillainous weapons until the end of the war.

With Allied Victory came disaster for HYDRA. Driven underground, it regrouped and existed secretly, plotting to return. AIM survived HYDRA's initial defeat but splintered into several factions. It played the role of legitimate business in order to survive. Having never been official labeled as the technological research division of HYDRA, it escaped the stigma that forced the organization underground. AIM prospered during this time, growing in size and making great advances in various fields, including robotics, bioengineering, bionics, and physics. The scientists publicly incorporated their organization under the name of Advanced Idea Mechanics. AIM's subversive goals and activities remained hidden from the world. The appearance that AIM was simply an "international cartel dealing with the development and marketing of new technological products" took shape. AIM also curried favor in the U.S. Government, as a supplier of hardware and weapon to governmental and quasi-governmental agencies.

HYDRA, after quietly rebuilding and amassing AIM created weaponry, re-emerged and tried to take over the world. SHIELD rose to the challenge and defeated HYDRA, driving them underground again. After this initial defeat, AIM attempted to discredit SHIELD Director Nicholas Fury, in order to keep its connection with HYDRA secret. This attempt, publicly led by Count Bomag Royale, failed, and Fury exposed AIM as a subversive organization, but never officially exposing the HYDRA link.

Fury and SHIELD believed it had put an end to AIM's operation. However, much of the organization escaped capture. During the time between SHIELD's exposure and the destruction of HYDRA Island, an important development occurred: The creation of MODOK (Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing), an artificially mutated human being with an enormous head and a stunted body who possesses superhuman intelligence and various psionic abilities. Modok was originally an ordinary AIM member who was selected by AIM's leader to be the subject of vast bionic experiments.

After being transformed, MODOK slew the Scientist Supreme and seized control of AIM. Upon the demise of Baron Strucker and the deaths of most of HYDRA's leading members in the destruction of HYDRA Island, AIM, now under the leadership of MODOK, severed its ties with HYDRA, and has remained an independent organization ever since. This division from HYDRA also split AIM in half, into pro- and anti-MODOK camps. For years AIM existed merely to serve MODOK's ambitions for power. Under his leadership, AIM stagnated intellectually, created no truly impressive weapon, and launched no major attack on any nation.

Other cadres spent their time either attacking MODOK or working on esoteric technological weaponry. After years of following MODOK's whims, the main body of AIM revolted against his dictatorship and ousted him from the organization, eventually using the Serpent Squad to dispose of him. With all parts of the organization re-united, AIM returned to technological advancement as a means for world conquest. Today AIM remains at odds with HYDRA, with both following different ideological paths and attempting different tactics to control the same planet.

Major Achievements of A.I.M.

AIM has created several major instruments of deadly potential which stand out above the rest. The first is the Super-Adaptoid, an android capable of duplicating the form and superhuman powers of another being.

The second instrument was the Cosmic Cube, an unimaginably powerful object capable of restructuring reality. AIM manufactured the containing device - the cube - not the reality-transforming energy itself, whose nature and origin remain mysteries.

The success of the MODOK experiment is debatable, but it did create two supremely intelligent and evil creatures, MODOK and MODAM.

AIM also has at its disposal vast technical resources, which includes an elaborate network of underwater bases, vehicles capable of space flight, and the sort of off-the-wall weaponry only comic book writers can come up with. All members of AIM are fanatics, with individual members often choosing suicide over capture.

Those Damned Heroes!

Commonly a foe for Iron Man, Captain America, SHIELD and the Avengers, AIM remains a relic of Silver Age of Comic Book villains. Created during the Cold War, when large scale secret enemies (eg. Serpent Society, HYDRA, the Molemen, Atlantis) seemed truly frightening, AIM has fallen into the shadows, underused by today's comic writers.

During its peak, Nick Fury and SHEILD were the main adversaries of AIM. Fury first exposed AIM as a subversive organization, and HYDRA was the major adversary of SHIELD, therefore so was AIM.

Iron Man is another continual foe. AIM scored a major victory against his alter ego, Tony Stark, when it infected Stark's dream project, a space station, with a virus that made human habitation of the station impossible.

AIM operatives, who are fascinated by the alien technology, have a real love-hate relationship with Quasar and his Quantum Bands. AIM is determined to attain them at all costs.

Captain America, by way of the Red Skull, has had major troubles at the hands of the Cosmic Cube, AIM's prize invention.

A Prime Example of A.I.M thinking.

AIM annexed the Caribbean island of Boca Caliente by vaporizing half of it with a microwave beam transmission, and bombing the other half into submission as seen in Iron Man #207. Using Boca Caliente as its main base of operations, AIM has been producing high-tech weapons and selling them to anyone without asking what the purchaser plans on using them for. Better living through technology!
'Aim' is a wonderful bit of adspeak that enables (mostly financial) companies to strongly imply something they have no way of proving (or even no intention of honouring) without forming a legally binding statement.

Examples include
  • Mail order: We aim to deliver the very next day
  • Savings plans: We aim to make you richer
  • Supermarkets: If there's ever more than one person ahead of you in the queue, we aim to open an additional checkout
This is taken to extremes by insurance companies, with such spurious statements as:
The AA aim to find you the best quote they can, from their range of leading insurers

What can we gather from this? The AA is going to try to resell the most appropriate plan offered by the insurers they have a relationship with. I'd be pretty shocked to find an insurance broker that didn't. The implication, however, is that a quote from the AA is likely to be the cheapest available.

This is the closest you can come to telling a bare-faced lie on British TV without incurring the wrath of the Advertising Standards Authority.

Aim (#), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Aimed (#); p. pr. & vb. n. Aiming.] [OE. amen, aimen, eimen, to guess at, to estimate, to aim, OF. esmer, asmer, fr. L. aestimare to estimate; or perh. fr. OF. aesmer; (L. ad) + esmer. See Estimate.]

1.

To point or direct a missile weapon, or a weapon which propels as missile, towards an object or spot with the intent of hitting it; as, to aim at a fox, or at a target.

2.

To direct the indention or purpose; to attempt the accomplishment of a purpose; to try to gain; to endeavor; -- followed by at, or by an infinitive; as, to aim at distinction; to aim to do well.

Aim'st thou at princes? Pope.

3.

To guess or conjecture.

[Obs.]

Shak.

 

© Webster 1913.


Aim, v. t.

To direct or point, as a weapon, at a particular object; to direct, as a missile, an act, or a proceeding, at, to, or against an object; as, to aim a musket or an arrow, the fist or a blow (at something); to aim a satire or a reflection (at some person or vice).

 

© Webster 1913.


Aim, n. [Cf. OF. esme estimation, fr. esmer. See Aim, v. i.]

1.

The pointing of a weapon, as a gun, a dart, or an arrow, in the line of direction with the object intended to be struck; the line of fire; the direction of anything, as a spear, a blow, a discourse, a remark, towards a particular point or object, with a view to strike or affect it.

Each at the head leveled his deadly aim. Milton.

2.

The point intended to be hit, or object intended to be attained or affected.

To be the aim of every dangerous shot. Shak.

3.

Intention; purpose; design; scheme.

How oft ambitious aims are crossed! Pope.

4.

Conjecture; guess.

[Obs.]

What you would work me to, I have some aim. Shak.

To cry aim Archery, to encourage. [Obs.]

Shak.

Syn. -- End; object; scope; drift; design; purpose; intention; scheme; tendency; aspiration.

 

© Webster 1913.

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