Ae

Autechre are a project that I have held up high no matter what phase I was currently going through. Since thier early work to present day, the listener is eager to hear what they might come up with next. Unlike most projects, that tend to get mellower over time, they buck that trend by getting harsher, noisier, and more "industrial" than ever. They have stood the test of time, they are capable of anything. What makes them extra special, is that, even though thay could write "nice, beautiful, relaxing" tracks, that would no doubt appeal to a larger audience, they refuse to put out somrthing they have already done. Each album progresses deeper and deeper into experimental madness! If you are looking for something different, and have not yet been introduced to these guys, I would highly recommend them. Personally I would recommend starting with their first album and collect them in the order they were released, that way you can experience thier progression and innovation in the order it actually happened. Definetly check them out live, they will not dissapoint. Personally, I have seen them 4 times between 1996-2007, and have been blown away every time.

People just can't stop whining about Autechre becoming "too complicated" and "robotic". It seems that most feel as though everything after LP5 is rubbish and Incunabula was their peak of importance. Don't be a dunce. First of all, Incunabula gets very boring very quickly. It's not even a proper album, it's a compilation of early works. Amber is their first proper debut full length, and that's a bit boring as well. Things started getting interesting with Tri Repetae, and really started to trailblaze w/ Chiastic Slide. LP5 was the first record that I owned, and I was blown away by it, but only after listening to it several times. Every Ae record since then has had a gestation period of roughly two years. Meaning: Upon it's release, all the fans whine and bitch about how it's not as good as _____. Two years later it's regarded as a masterpiece... Autechre haven't released an unimportant album, ever. They're not trying to trick you, and they're not just making random noises. Listen to the music (especially LP5, Confield, Draft 7.30, Untilted, and Quaristice!) and you'll hear the most incredible beats, baselines, and melodies (yes, MELODIES) ever put to disc. It's beyond some peoples comprehension because Autechre are inventing it as they go.

For me Ae's brilliant talents had died after Chiastic Slide and Envane. I got added evidence in it watching their live performance at SeOne London on 14 April 2005 where I just was staying and thinking: "Who are these lads performing? Are they really from Ae?" With the exception of Gantz Graf all their post-1997 albums were for me just a set of incompatible sounds scattered across tracks without any logic. Sometimes I think: "Maybe it's just my personal affection for melodic music?" Wait a minute! Many of their early albums are not melodic at all, but I still like them. So something must be wrong with their new approach to writing music. Their latest sound tells me that its creators are tired and therefore they programmed some software stuff juggling with samples on purpose to prove public computers' aptitude for writing music without human participation. I have read enough comments and reviews praising them, so I guess they have found as many new devotees as they've lost old ones. But I still cherish hopes that someday they will return to their roots like it happened to FSOL lately.

if Autechre are going to make a new album, what about this one: after having spent more than a decade continuing to de-construct electronic music they will re-emerge with a beautiful ambient album full of haunting melodies and harmonic moments. a radical break away from their current style would be much appreciated - its getting repetitive - and thats the only thing that would make sense to me if those two guys were recording again. i listened to incunabula again last night and i wish booth and brown were sitting down and started committing themselves to doing music again. only something very different from their boring attempt last time round would make me wanna give them a chance again.

I love Autechre.I discovered them back in 2002.The reason is basically because i'm into electronic music and jazz but my musical tastes range from alternative to blues to anything.Although i personally hate labeling music.The first album i heard was their debut Incunabula and i was amazed with all the sound textures and electronic bleeps that that album sported.Then i bought all their other ones.My favourite of course is Tri Repetae for the reason that it's their most "out there" album...I personally disagree with a lot of people saying that their post 98 work isn't really accessible as i find it really interesting and love all the sound structures.The truth is that post Confield they've become more "robotic" and experimental but it's up there with all their best work from the first 5 albums.I will dare say that some of the EP's (EP7,Anti EP) are better than a few albums..Altho i put Tri Repetae on top.i also love their Gescom EP's excellent stuff...I trully look up to them as great influences as i continue my electronic music discoveries.

Respect

One of my all time favorite artists, and in my opinion - the best act out there for the genre. Whats the genre you ask? Well its evolved over the years... But I'd classify it as complex IDM. Not your typical IDM mind you.. No not anymore. Autechre's releases keep getting more and more difficult to enjoy. Of course all of their albums and EPs can be appreciated if given the chance.. just not all in the same way.

Their first 3 albums are the timeless records that people can seem to pop in and enjoy at any given time. These were more simple times for Autechre - where their music was more ambient and downtempo. What followed from there was less accessable music. Still good, but much harder to enjoy. I don't know anyone who just listens to albums like Confield or Draft 7.0 just for fun.. No, you must be in the mood for these clickly, noisey and i even dare say insane beats.

Sure there are other artists that have been going down the same road (Aphex Twin, Plaid, Boards of Canada, etc...) but no one has been able to keep pushing the boundary as far as Autechre has. Their music, which you might think sounds like jibberish will one day click with you if you give it the chance.

Autechre.....What can I say? If you listen to any form of modern (meaning average, similar) idm, it was and is inspired by Autechre (and VERY few others). Granular synthesis, droned out Nord synths, intense compression, dsp cleanliness to the point of mind melting confusion. Common are the spastic, intricately, sterilized metallic/pseudo-acoustic forms of audio that intoxicate the listener, leaving them wondering 'how do they do that?'. There are literally hundreds if not thousands of bedroom musicians (me included) that aspire to grasp the ability to manipulate sound as Autechre does. And Ae keeps ahead of their own 'scene' in such a way that a lot of their older listeners lose grasp or just dont get any of the new ideas involved in Ae's newer albums. Funny, but that does justify the term 'intelligent dance music'. Some people just want the same sound like they are use to, to adhere to their own expectations. Autechre is one of the few groups who re-invent their sound with great care with out consideration for the trendy listener. Techno music,in the beginning, was first made for dance floors. Autechre makes techno for the dancing within your own mind. Which can be at any place, any time, regardless of wether there is a dancefloor present.

Their earlier releases are the most interesting -- almost everything from Incunabula up to LP5.
Confield is where things start to get iffy. It's a good album, but much more austere, and difficult to enjoy in the same way as their previous work. Most of the melody now seems to be in the rhythm section.
Draft 7.30 is probably their weakest to date: all the repetition of the early stuff, but with little of the evolution.
Untilted seems like an improvement so far, but I'll have to listen more.

Interestingly, I saw them live recently, and was blown away. Their set was not at all similar to their recorded work. So if they ever release a live album, I'm in. :)

Well.. difficult, this. I want to credit Autechre, but at the same time, as above, I really feel like mentioning that I also think the later, more over-experimentalizing Autechre albums didnt fill any "purpose" with me either. 90s techno was always experimental and artful, but was almost always very focused on, and inspired by an actual purpose; dancefloor, meditation, listenmusic, and so on.
Autechre've basically gone much the same way Aphex Twin did, into oblivion in search for a higher status within music, or art, I guess (I'll admit I haven't heard any of their latest works after having been slightly put off).
But anyway, sad things said; main point is, the reason why I even mention anything negative here, is because of how much I liked their first albums. Amber and Tri Repetae really captured me, they were really excellently made, professional and soulful, experimental, even funky. Excellent toneworks and atmospherics are thick throughout. Real testaments to the powerful fusion of purpose and art 90s techno/ambient/etc was.
So.. it's a bit as with Star Wars and the Matrix, great works that at first feel diminished by the disappointment of following work. Eventually you forget about the Jar-Ja.. I mean, disappointment, and just return to enjoying the spirit of the original works. =)

Autechre=Innovation+Abstraction
Their Music has (mainly) roots in Industrial and Hip-Hop.
Their remix-work is amazing. Sometimes it's hard to identify the artist, which was remixed by Autechre (Only FSOL and The Orb make as good remixes as Autechre).