Review Summary: Autechre are no longer the whacky and abstract characters of musical experimentation, they are peaceful and emotional innovators of electronic music.
Autechre have done it once more – experimental and fairly intelligent electronic music with their second full album in the space of a measly few months. “Move Of Ten” in comparison to their previous 2010 album “Oversteps”, brings about a sense of confusion and utter diversity of musical dimensions, whereas in “Oversteps”, one could describe it as an intelligent ambient style of production.
Though the style of electronic music has changed with a few varieties, it is a typical Autechre piece of ten tracks with their familiar outrageousness, despite the hypnotic album art and the most obscure track titles. We just all say, without even looking at the artist’s name, “This is Autechre” when we see the first track “Etchogon-S”. This track brings about a dimension of irregular electro-bass that frequently change octaves throughout the piece with the most irritating yet illuminating irregular beats...so irregular, that the whole sound, as a whole, becomes a regular flow of random, but structured rhythms and sounds.
My anthem of the day for Autechre, not yet fitting in with the IDM hall of fame, but still a great piece, is “Y7” that presents the listener with sensual bubbles and a flow of futuristic and fresh sounds – almost like an insomniac’s lullaby. With a constant bass-line tapping throughout the whole recording, there comes a reverb-garage effect of ambience to finish this fine piece.
Like “Etchogon-S”, “PCE Freeze 2.8i” is, in its most abstract fashion, obscure in the addition of lazer-like effects, but controls a constant and comprehensive beat. That can be the main flaw of this album – the constant racket of pointless beats. They have made redemption for that fault and presented us with this zapping, exhilarating, yet monotonous draft of sounds.
“Rew (1)” is certainly a step-up from Sean Booth and Rob Brown’s usual work when it comes to obscure sounds of, what some might call it, “Intelligent Dance Music”. There’s an understandable beat, there’s a hidden melody that is missing a vocalist that could really do wonders in either future or contemporary charts. Without the voice of a person, it’s the call of an ambient background piece that is broad-minded for the impatient and the patient.
Unfortunately, in a lot of successful artists’ works, one will always come across pieces that should never be released until their retirement. When the eager Autechre fan waited patiently by the computer or by their local music store for the next album, they didn’t want to put up with “nth Dafuseder.b”, a lazy, background piece with the addition of a soft drum & bass solution, the solvent of a gritty foundation sound and a few taps of a button here and there. “No Border” brought about the similar results though slightly more energy to the created sounds. And perhaps “Cep puiqMX” wasn’t a great finish to this new album either. Once again, gritty, irregular drum beats that sounded like a burning fire, just didn’t hit my musical G-spot.
Saying so, there was more good to this release than bad. “Iris Was A Pupil” is a therapeutic piece by the Experimental band. For once there is no structure of any beat – there is no beat. It beholds lazer effects that storm through the mind and conceives a sense of tranquillity to the body. It’s like a fine amalgamation of Pantha Du Prince and a tint of Higher Intelligence Agency with the collaboration of Autechre’s finest.
“M62” is a great example on how Autechre could, in the future, commercialise themselves a little bit more, with their strenuous and understandable beats, their aesthetically pleasing tuning of electronic music and a constant flow of easy-listening. The only fault I could really make is that if you’re not the patient and sound music-lover, “Move Of Ten” will really push you off the IDM boat!
Album Rating: 7.7/10
