XI year old Autechre Album Released: Exai (WARP234)

[Guest Aserinsky]

keyosc still feels like a bonus track to me, however in a way that was completely intended and calculated. YJY UX seems like a natural ending to me, if I didn't have keyosc the album would still conclude at a perfectly normal and well defined point. Whereas most Japanese bonus tracks feel tacked on and completely remote from the album's perspective, keyosc certainly makes sense. But it certainly feels like a bonus, in a way that you've come across the final part and that keyosc is closure that doesn't introduce anything new, but gives a more positive perspective on the album as a whole, almost like a video game bonus where you can sense it's nothing more than the developer's having fun rather than appealing to the fans. Especially in the context of this album, which provides many nostalgic elements of video game analogies, for me this makes sense anyway.

 

I apologise if this post makes no sense, I'm extremely drunk right now

[joseph]

Damn, I need to go home and listen on my monitors. Fuck living in a college dorm!

[thehauntingsoul]

I found all the Jap tracks that weren't live recordings felt like they belonged. Medrey, Nu nr6d, Xekstes Sql (not much there but meh) and ClnChr. They all seemed to fit. This one fits as well, although I still like Medrey and Nu nr6d more for some reason.

[syd syside]

I have also noticed how well this album flows. It really works best as one complete listen with an intermission between disc 1 and 2. And when I attempt to just listen to select tracks they never have the same impact as in context. This was also the case for Actress's RIP, its core atmospheres, emotions, and rhythms are cleverly divided and paced so that each track when finishes, washed over onto the next track, mending them together in a way... despite the actual transitions not having any seamless features. Same idea I think was explored on Drukqs, the large gaps of silence provide the listener time to recall the past and configure it in their mind, so that when it is recalled it is amplified by something complimentary. And I guess I should also note Burial's newest long tracks. They also have this technical disjointed layout, but like a symphony orchestral there is a thread that keeps us attentive to the present because of the cumulative progression and build up. For example on EXAI, spl9 first 3 minutes feels a little unnecessary once the second half fully explodes, but in context to the previous track the first 3 minutes are a nice cool off. And the melodic tones throughout the album, which almost sound like symphonic elements from 2001 space odyssey, tie together the tracks like deep connective tissue or a double helix. I'll have to give a more detailed examination of how it progresses, but at the moment it certainly adds atmosphere, as well as an emotional core to each representation of time and place. And every track main structure (beats/rhythm) is nicely paced and unique.

Edited February 15, 2013 by compson

[Guest disoriental express]

 

 

I only regret for YJY UX not having better ending; the last minute is very weak (compared to the rest) and that affects the whole album.

The reason Untitled has the best ending IMO is cause Sublimit itself has the best ending ever; the last 4-5 min + the melody at the end. That's the only thing i find fault with Exai so far.

i love the ending of YJY UX! that last little blip at the end always gets me. It's like they consciously decided to make it end with a smirk and wink.

 

i consider kiosk to be the actual ending though... a very nice afterglow/cooling off song.

 

YJY UX I see as exotic/mysterious nocturne but at the same time very uplifting tune cause it opens spiritual paths in my mind and i like that state of being more than any other. The ending of Sublimit is letting me to stay in that state...a very nice aftertaste.

F# with the winks in the wrong place! The very ending is the most important moment of any album.

Yes, of course that the winky ending could be intentional but what good it brings? For me the end could easily be better if they wasn't inert at least with its melodic nature like they was. Easily?! How? If the last min or the very end took sudden turn into something even more uplifting or into a lowest melodic common denominator - something like the background melody at 3:11... and all that while in fade out, or without it...and we can smirk and wink afterwards all day.

Yes, i know! It's their music and they can do with it what ever they want but if we're talking about it let me be weird for a moment. I have rights too and one of my rights is to be a weirdo.

IMO, to be able to compose such melodies one has to be able 'see' hidden world...and that's the rarest thing.

What do i mean by 'hidden world'? Not the easiest term to explain for a non-native English speaker but the easiest for me is to compare it to the world of Schopenhauer's ideas or even Junglian God's world. I hear in their music they're able to 'see' it and that is the main and the most important capacity that differentiate Autechre from others artists IMO. So with the wink after such a precious divine moment that the track invokes i see it as they ridiculing themselves with it and all this in the intend to be cool or macho...cause they're afraid of cheesiness or something? WTF? Are they teenagers?!

F# coitus reservatus!

the hidden world.... yes i believe i know what you mean. the difference, the flow.

 

i feel like the end is finally letting go. it's a kind of paradox between what was and what is. once we reach a certain state and style, everything becomes equal in a way. i feel that at least. warm and neon eons are awake.

[syd syside]

basically this album is so fucking good I can't belive my ear

 

 

Edited February 15, 2013 by compson

[Guest disoriental express]

PILOTWINGS

[sweepstakes]

after a few more listens i'm realizing how much the flanger effect plays a role. Seems to be one of the most prominent features of the whole work, crazy automated flangers of all different styles.

after a few more listens i'm realizing how much the flanger effect plays a role. Seems to be one of the most prominent features of the whole work, crazy automated flangers of all different styles.

I was going to mention this too. Lots and lots of comb filter. I think that's how they got those thick pads in "jatevee C" too.

[syd syside]

I WANNA FLY LIKE AN EAGLE

[jules]

ok spl9...you fucking win

[auxien]

ok spl9...you fucking win

 

best song on the album without a doubt. it's the Pen Expers of this era.

[thehauntingsoul]

I love the blurry fusion between 4 notes that occurs exactly at 2:43 in spl9. In context, it's got this implied melody in the last 4 notes (established at 2:21) that you know should play out but instead it gets fused into fm noise and is really indistinguishable. Hopefully you can tell the two notes I'm talking about. This does my head in every time. They play around in this domain with a few chunks of the track, having melodies fizzle away and become implied melodies with only trace remnants leftover. Love this effect.

Edited February 15, 2013 by thehauntingsoul

[encey]

I caught myself humming the melody from nodezsh and it was in that moment I realized how amazing it really is. If that track hasn't clicked with you yet, give it another listen and focus entirely on the melodies in the first half before it morphs into sheer terror. Lots of half-octave jumps and fun stuff like that. (Check around 2:22 for the exact melody I'm talking about)

 

It hasn't clicked yet, although I really get into the drums toward the back half (4:45 on) when you can really follow how the syncopation works (it's in the front half too, but they give you so few hits it's harder to follow without tapping or counting). I still can't really hear what you're talking about as a melody with an actual line to it, as opposed to an ambient string of notes.

 

Ps: Awepittance your post makes me want to go back to Chicago bad, where my monitor speakers are! I just have a shitty laptop and some not-so-great headphones. So I've had a bit of an attenuated sense of Exai's real sonic range.

[awepittance]

this album more than any other autechre album i've listened to drastically benefits from good speakers in a small room. I have OK home stereo speakers upstairs with a subwoofer but the room itself is so big i was loosing a lot of the clarity. Go back to chicago asap

[encey]

Spring break, it's on!

 

I like Jatavee Chutapanyaphramachittaramakrishnam the best -- hard-hitting drums, awesome bass-driven melodies, compact structure, says what it has to say, slaps your ass and moves on. Awesome track! And Tess xi of the Durbervilles is a great follow-up!

[syd syside]

First time I heard irlite and the following this was essentially my reaction, though a bit more mental breakdown/jack torrance

 

 

After saturating this album with quite a lot of attention, it still is surprising and isn't tiring. So while it may still be early and this post is redundant and repetitive, I am going to continue to emphasize how pleased I am with this album, plus this thread's enthusiasm has been genuinely fun and enlightening. Some have said that if this were to be released under a no-name musician there would not be this much excitement, and to that I have to ask, why would it be preferable to have less excitement towards any form of creativity of this caliber? I understand that it is true that WATMM has a fanboy approach to certain artists, but everyone has their most sacred. Which does not have to entail putting things in competition against each other. This thread represents more than just the excitement for one album, it reveals the bridges between our worlds and makes humans all the more strange and interesting.

Edited February 15, 2013 by compson

[awepittance]

not that there isn't truth to what you're saying but if someone posted Irlite (Get 0) to the YLC forum i can see the comments

 

'turn down the flanger, a little too much of it, maybe turn down the LFO speed so we can actually hear it breath instead of it constantly glitching out'

 

'that synth is too loud, sounds cheesy so high in the mix'

 

 

While the creativity at play here is pretty remarkable, people are still giving it the care it's getting because it's Autechre

Edited February 15, 2013 by Awepittance

[goDel]

 

Some have said that if this were to be released under a no-name musician there would not be this much excitement, and to that I have to ask, why would it be preferable to have less excitement towards any form of creativity of this caliber?

 

That's a good reason to stop taking those "some" serious. The album released anonymously would make just a big impact (given the same distribution!!!) as it currently is. I suspect the people who reason that way are a bit butt hurt because their work hasn't been as successful, even though they (themselves!!!) think it should be. In other words, they're judging reality through their own narcissistic glasses.

 

Talent will always get the recognition it deserves. And self-criticism is a virtue.

 

And lets be blunt here, distribution has never been as easy as it currently is. So if people aren't making any impact, they're either just not that good, or are stupid in the distribution department. (Let's make it simple for a change)

[awepittance]

 

 

Some have said that if this were to be released under a no-name musician there would not be this much excitement, and to that I have to ask, why would it be preferable to have less excitement towards any form of creativity of this caliber?

 

That's a good reason to stop taking those "some" serious.

 

really? you think if someone self published this on watmm it would be getting the same rave reviews? IT wouldn't be panned but the amount of people fawning over it would be significantly less, i don't see that as a bad thing. Autechre have worked for over 20 years to establish their brand and deserve any fawning over their music they get, but i think it's a little silly and even naive to make the assertion you just did.

 

I think it's also completely and utterly wrong to say that distribution is as easy now so therefore nobody who makes music this good would have a hard time getting attention for it. Promotion and establishing ones self as an artist who makes good quality music takes a lot of time and energy. The music still has to get in the hands of the right people, and even if it does those people still have to find a reason to carefully listen to it with an open mind.

 

'talent will get the recognition it deserves' <--- maybe in a ideal world it would but there are plenty of very talented artists out there who work their whole lives creating that don't get recognized.

Edited February 15, 2013 by Awepittance

[goDel]

watmm? think bigger. don't publish it on watmm.

 

i'd agree it would take an anonymous artist longer if he isn't backed by a label like warp giving some credibility. but an album like that would be picked up and recognised for what it is. the mouth-to-mouth recognition would take considerable longer time to reach people. And Ae simply doesn't need all the mouth-to-mouth within the community. outside they still do though, so it's all relative, of course. it might take a long time before shakira is blasting vekoS through her car-speakers.

 

how easy would it be for someone like RDJ - or the talent of - to release an album anonymously and have all of watmm raving about it?

Edited February 15, 2013 by goDel

[goDel]

too late to edit: speaking of mouth-to-mouth, someone should tweet skrillex to listen to vekoS. if the skrillex endorces it, shakira will follow shortly!

[syd syside]

Sure, Autechre's name around here is seen as a reliable, mostly consistent, great electronic band, but I am not sure if it can be always assumed that would be the case (negative comments @ irlite in YLC). As I think new material by AE, Afx, Boc, being highly anticipated, is measured with more scrutiny than if it were to be released by a no-name on YLC. Watmmers don't all stand together on their views on those artists, sure, but generally there is some level of appreciation for all of them... therefore their output has been the major component to expectations and with that and their individual personal styles, new material is embraced because it can be placed in contrast to prior memories that are of influence or euphoria. There's something grand with hearing each release when they are first out and awaiting to see what will be explored next. Perhaps that is the wrong way to look at it, but you can't really get into a stimulating conversation very often with someone you just met. It is much more likely that you can achieve that with someone you know, so you can vaguely anticipate the responses and configure your receptors to better adapt and play along in the conversation. tldr.. A constant familiar fog

[Mindphaser]

This wouldn`t be half as good without Bladelores in the centre of the album. That change of pace into more of their old school sound/vibe really benefits the album as a whole.

[goDel]

also, remember the guy from russia who supposedly posted older unreleased saw-stuff from RDJ? how long did that take to have everyone take a peek and listen?

[priangle]

not that there isn't truth to what you're saying but if someone posted Irlite (Get 0) to the YLC forum i can see the comments

 

'turn down the flanger, a little too much of it, maybe turn down the LFO speed so we can actually hear it breath instead of it constantly glitching out'

 

'that synth is too loud, sounds cheesy so high in the mix'

 

 

While the creativity at play here is pretty remarkable, people are still giving it the care it's getting because it's Autechre

 

yeah i have a feeling that S&R know that people (to a certain degree) will force themselves to love their new material, so they could do some stupid trollface things in their tracks