Autechre ‎– Oversteps

In 2009 I was horified truly by one of the worst news: The Designers Republic, the legendary group of designers whose work for me personally is the best thing that could happen for the contemporary art since Kasmimir Malevich's discovery of Suprematism, are broke. The global economic crisis made it all possible. That was surely the final nail in the coffin of a once great label called WARP, which has literally killed itself more with a more poppy music fixation since about 2004. This decline was crowned by questionable decisions, eg the limited (to 100 pieces) version of Autechres previous album Quaristice. Within 12 hours it was sold out (price around 30 pounds). The rest of the fans stood dumb by having the wonderful option to buy either the stripped-down standard version of the album or the special edition (packaging made of steel) from clever traders who bought up more pieces of the special edition to offer them for horenden prices (300, 400 or even 1,000 pounds). The question is, what has even persuaded Autechre to participate in this regard (easy money??). However, one should forget the past and sometimes forgive. The year 2010 seems to be full of surprises.
The best news right away: The Designers Republic is back. Thank God! Yes! This time with an artwork that looks like a variation of the artwork of AFX´s Hangable Auto Bulb compilation. The second good news: no more LIMITED SPECIAL EDITIONS. Great! Ok, but we will this black hole painted on the cover swallow ourselfs with its music? Yes, definitely. With Oversteps, Sean and Rob released one of their most melodic albums since ... hmmm, Tri-Repetae? Fans of Autechre already struggled to describe the sound of Autechres past albums, because the group always tried to move the boundaries of innovation in modern electronic music.
Let's try to descibe Oversteps:
Oversteps is like (Terminator 2 fans take note) a "mimetic poly-alloy", music like liquid metal. Take the concept of "Eutow" (intricate, catchy melodies, simple beat), mix it with the Autechres latest music detours (Untitled, Quaristice) and the atmosphere of Confield. But don`t be misled the title of the album: Oversteps has nothing to do with the latest UK music style called "Dubstep". As always Autechre create their own sound far away from common music structures. Many beats on Oversteps sound simple melody jumps. They are organic, but on the other hand also artificial. "known (1)" for example sounds like an artificial clarinet session. Then "Ilander" boasts with "evil" melodies and beats. If you take a close listen to "O = 0" you might think to hear a tuba and between "d-sho qub" and "st epreo" a human chorus seems to sneak in. Tracks such as "r ess" or "pt2ph8" then again invite for a simple chill. Unlike Quaristice, the beatless ambient tracks (of which "Oversteps" consists for the most part) are no longer simple sounds and minimal soundscapes (in the vein of Pan (a) Sonic), but of beautiful sloping melodies which take the listener on a journey into future worlds. Influences of some of Autechre's favorite bands, like Coil and Throbbing Gristle are quite noticeable, but Sean and Rob still stay true to their distinctive indescribable trademark sound.
I they could only "step over" to such labels like Rephlex, Skam or Planet Mu which did not sell out....

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I don't like the album at all. After Confield Autechre lost their souls completely..

Soul is back in IDM. I really love Confield, but Oversteps and Move of Ten are so full of life...

On the pre-release for this album almost all of the discussion about Oversteps was positive. Something that is pretty rare for a band that has always divided opinion. The comments suggested that they had produced a more accessible album, more melodic and ambient orientated, with a move from the harsh dymamics of albums in recent years. This is all true but were the results worth the hype?

There is no doubt that Oversteps represents a break from more recent material. The most notable changes are an increasing emphasis on higher frequencies, an more use of fizz and static to create atmosphere and frequent use of almost Gamelan-like chimes to provide the melodic backgound.

The opening track Ress builds from silence with the introduction of ominous synths, buzzing electronics and stuttering percussion. Quite a dark start. Things go downhill on Known(1) where the high pitched strings and plinky keys make for a really unpleasant listen. I would far rather listen to tracks on previous albums which deliver sheer force and intensity where the thrills make up for the often ugly nature of the music. Known(1) is just ugly.

See on See on the other hand is a stunning piece of music. Quite unlike anything they have ever produced. Proof that Autechre can make beautiful music. The sparkling, chiming atmospherics and warm melodic hooks represent a new avenue for future releases. The next track Treale maintains a similar vibe but toughens things up with a punchy baseline and robotic melodies.

Elsewhere through there is too much filler on this release. Tracks come and go without grabbing the attention and there is a suprising lack of ideas on show compared with the previous album Quaristice which delivered mind boggling diversity across 20 tracks.

I saw Autechre live around the time of this release and they blew me away with their densely complex, cranium crushing assult. The follow up album Move of Ten however failed to deliver anywhere near as much of that intensity so I'm really hoping they get around to releasing a live album.

Rob and Sean acheived legendary status years ago and remain serious players but for me at least 2010 was not the best for their recorded output.

it took almost twenty years for autechre to make an attempt to break out of the experimental techno scene. the statement here is clear - we want to be treated as contemporary composers. is that justified? the answer is dripping in irony, for their mid to late 90s output is justification enough. nonetheless, i've enjoyed this record considerably more than i've enjoyed the last few.

it's difficult to know what to make of the third track; it would be preposterous to suggest that booth/brown are unfamiliar with horse rotorvator, and equally preposterous to suggest that their fan base is as well, so the fact that it is more or less a direct rip on "the first five minutes after death" is a little bit hard to parse. is it meant as a cover? a tribute? why not label it as such? as it is, it's a rather brazen statement of something, but i'm not sure what that statement is.

despite the coil rip, the major influence here must be richard d. james and his very early work at that. the record is not void of beats, but long passages of it are. the segments that do have beats treat the percussion in parallel with the melodies in a rather tight manner, playfully interjecting them as a part of the composition and not as a means of structure. the end result is describable as nothing more or less than electronic jazz, complete with digital analogues to rolls, fills and brush work.

the centrepiece of the record, however, is the analog and digital sequencer parts, which are more heavily reverberated than anything i've ever heard them produce. they're also more written than anything i've heard them produce. autechre's general style dominates, but i'm also hearing, for the first time, influences from such sources as ravel, budd and satie - and possibly thirlwell as inspiration.

autechre always stood out as being difficult and unmarketable, impossible for most people to listen to, let alone enjoy. this is their first record geared towards a general audience, and while the changes in sound are significant, they pull the shift off admirably. i'm going to explain this by a heightened level of maturity, which the young may frown upon but the old recognize as inevitable; if you're looking for blistering and bizarre electronic noise to dance to, this is certainly not it but if you're looking for a set of electronic compositions that exist roughly within the contemporary sphere of both production and composition techniques then you may find something of value within this.

i wasn't sure what to make of quaristice; i had downloaded and deleted it, not at all impressed by it's apparent aimlessness. however, oversteps positions quaristice as a transitional record, one where they were simultaneously going over old ground and moving towards this record. sometimes, context improves a record; i'll have to give it another shot. this record appears to be the first one after the transition, and i can't stress enough how profound the transition really is.

i'd like to hear them run with this. it's a good first try at something completely different but, like most first tries, it could perhaps be improved with a little bit more time and experience. i, for one, must admit to being rather excited about their future plans because if they keep walking down this path the end result could very well be something incredibly profound.

once again autechre captivate their audience. confield i understood although can never fully listen and feel i grasp any real fondness to the album. when draft came out i appreciated the direction. untitled release felt like a live album and not a studio album. quartice hinted at potential. well they have pleasently come full circle and i am pleased to have this album. no doubt i will always buy their albums but the last 3 albums this is what i was waiting for. perhaps what long time fans have been waiting for. experimenting in beats might be futuristic. experimenting in melodies might be boring to some. but lets face it. we want to listen to music. beats have and always will loose their attraction with more listens. melodies always gain favor after time. i have no doubt this album will grow on any listener as to the Untitled will stale after time. Oversteps is a fantastic tradition. Now what if they can do both though? beats and melodies? like on amber or tri-repeate?! for now i am liking this downtempo autechre-ness. reminds me of more bola style...
nice to see autechre making it happen once again

Autechre have never been ones to disappoint and with their newest album, Oversteps, they've managed to bring back a lot of the magic from their much cherished 90's albums. I'll start with the fact that Oversteps is very easy on the ears. There are no relentless mayhem of beats interwoven with each other like Autechre has provided us on their last several albums. No, this time around it seems they've finally come full circle with their sound and reverted to a much more ambient electronica that got them to become IDM masters to begin with. Tracks like r ess will jog your brain with memories of Amber while the ending track, Yuop, is very similar in sound and structure to those fantastic ending tracks found of Chiastic Slide and LP5. Its also worth noting that there is a recurring sound throughout the album of a strange organ chime. I can't really describe its true sound but its almost majestic and magical in sound. A very nice touch to the album. Autechre are back and better then ever.