Boards of Canada is the Scottish duo of brothers Michael Sandison and Marcus Eoin Sandison, formed in Edinburgh in 1986 and long at home on Warp Records. Music Has the Right to Children (1998) is the defining IDM-ambient statement — warm analog synths and deteriorated tape haze — with Geogaddi (2002) close behind. Explore Boards of Canada vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
Boards of Canada formed in Edinburgh in 1986 around brothers Michael Sandison and Marcus Eoin Sandison. After a long period of underground releases on Skam and their own Music70 imprint, they signed to Warp Records and released their debut album Music Has the Right to Children in 1998, which became a defining IDM and ambient electronic release. They have remained on Warp since, with new music appearing only at long intervals.
Boards of Canada's sound combines ambient, downtempo, IDM, and electronica with vintage analog synthesizer textures, deteriorated tape aesthetics, and frequent references to childhood memory, nature documentaries, and the Canadian National Film Board (the source of the band's name).
Warp pressings of the Boards of Canada catalog have been issued in multiple anniversary editions and color variants. Original pressings of Music Has the Right to Children are widely collected.
Listeners new to Boards of Canada typically start with Music Has the Right to Children (1998) or Tomorrow's Harvest (2013).
