The concept of the album and its name, Aleph-1, derive from the theories of German mathematician Georg Cantor, who was a teacher in Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, a city, to which Alva Noto is deeply connected with through his family.

A reviewer of Boomkat stated "Always cause for no small amount of excitement, a new release from Carsten Nicolai tends to be a pretty significant event for the electronic music community.

The most immediately striking aspect of this music is the presence of a pronounced melodic element, something that's previously barely featured in Nicolai's solo recordings.

This manifests itself by replacing the abrupt prickling static soundset of the Transrapid/Transspray/Transvision triptych with more resonant, rounded tones, with simple, sustaining waves evolving gradually over the course of each piece within a network of looping, modulating phrases.

There's a subtlety and precision at work throughout Aleph-1, and after spending some time with these pieces you'll find yourself thoroughly absorbed by their awkward, immense beauty".