AAA - Ask Autechre Anything - Sean and Rob on WATMM!

[Sean Ae]

I assume you guys are probably fans of Syd Mead. Do you guys own any of his artwork?

 

Are there any past/contemporary visual artists/architects that inspire your creative juices? Besides graf artists that is.

(ie: Jeremy Geddes, Ray Caesar, Saul Bass, Frank Gehry, Egon Schiele etc.)

 

nah, not besides getting kronolog and a few other bits

i fucking wish tho

 

i really like john berkey

 

and superstudio

[mcbpete]

ah yes, that popular trick silence

you have to watch those silent people, always trying to trick you with their silence

Though I bet a lot of people have cranked their speakers wondering if there's a problem in the first 20 seconds and then -blam- the first proper beats of Xylin Room blast at insane volumes.

[Sean Ae]

At what speed do you like Weissensee against im Glück - 33 or 45? I always played it at 45 and can only enjoy it this way. Was surprised CD releases came up with 33. Some goes with RDJ/On remix.

 

yeah on is one of the few i guessed wrong first time round

prefer it fast now though

 

neu remix is 33 to me

[awepittance]

how did you get max/msp to sound so slamming on the live tours? do you run the audio channels out to anything outboard or beef it up with something outside of max/msp? With something like Max4live this would easier now adays to mix and eq/compress individual max/msp instruments in an organized way but I assume you were doing this all the way back during the confield tour.

[Sean Ae]

This is amazing!

 

Let me start off by saying Chiastic Slide is my favourite album of yours, the whole style on that album appeals tewe me loads.

 

As hip hop is one of the genre's you guys dig, do you have a favourite producer(s)?

 

Also;

 

Growing up with early era/'golden age' hip hop, did you ever feel inspired to make music like like the producers of those times; samples, dusty drums et al.

 

Have you ever messed around with a Roland SP202/303

 

Have you heard of Madlib?

 

tbh most of the hip hop i grew up with was drum machines. the first stuff i listened to was electro

but i like some late 80s sampler stuff too - mostly marley marl, ced gee, bomb squad, tuff crew, epmd

 

never used an sp-anything

 

yeah i rate madlib but he's hard to keep up with, so many things

[olo]

 

I assume you guys are probably fans of Syd Mead. Do you guys own any of his artwork?

 

Are there any past/contemporary visual artists/architects that inspire your creative juices? Besides graf artists that is.

(ie: Jeremy Geddes, Ray Caesar, Saul Bass, Frank Gehry, Egon Schiele etc.)

 

nah, not besides getting kronolog and a few other bits

i fucking wish tho

 

i really like john berkey

 

and superstudio

 

 

thats eye_dm

[Sean Ae]

Either of you seen The Man With The Iron Fists, if so what did you think of it? Should RZA stop wasting his time with movies and get back to his MV8000 instead?

 

 

yeah

 

rza pls

[mcbpete]

When you read something like this do you laugh for a very long time

 

Autechre records are purchased solely by bald men in expensive anoraks who would masturbate to a car alarm if it was re-mixed by a German. This impenetrable curtain of misanthropic noise - released with an accompanying three-track DVD that features a squabble of hopelessly pretentious video "interpretations" - is typical of the menopausal electro-manglers' dogged refusal to bow to convention and produce anything of interest to anyone not either a) bald or b) German. It bleeps. It skronks. It krrraaaanks. But mainly, it blows like a ruddy awful hurricane. Remember, kids; if it sounds like a festering hillock of tune-shy bum-wank, it's because it IS a festering hillock of tune-shy bum-wank. Avoid as you would a bald German.

[xox]

 

for me oversteps is about memory

but i'm not gonna say much more than that

 

 

nostalgia ?

[Sean Ae]

this is aeriffic

 

really brilliant this

[Rob Ae]

Hey guys! Love the music!

 

I'd like to know if there's any truth to this quote about an ep someone tried to pass off as one of your own.

 

http://www.beatport.com/release/sil-taper-sto-lend-ep/286401

 

What does tie this EP to Autechre themselves (other that it sorta does sound like them) is that some of the sounds where recycled from programed beats that were left on Roland R8 drum machine after a Warp event. Sean Booth & Rob Brown actually borrowed equipment from Derek Marin for the live show Autechre performed at a Blech party in NYC & in the process left beats on the machine. The beats were later used to create some of this recording.

 

You guys are amazing. Please come back to NYC at some point. I bought tickets to your Brooklyn show during the Quaristice tour and ended not being able to go. I'm still crying about it.

yeah we borrowed gear all the time R8 EPS/ASR10/desk/FX/cables, so we could just travel with memory cards n floppy's - the gear would have not tracks in after we left as i don't recall ever having to write stuff into the units, so its not possible imo, these tracks don't suggest otherwise, at least from what i can hear.

 

nice story, cos i often wondered if anyone would ever try.

[awepittance]

When you read something like this do you laugh for a very long time

 

Autechre records are purchased solely by bald men in expensive anoraks who would masturbate to a car alarm if it was re-mixed by a German. This impenetrable curtain of misanthropic noise - released with an accompanying three-track DVD that features a squabble of hopelessly pretentious video "interpretations" - is typical of the menopausal electro-manglers' dogged refusal to bow to convention and produce anything of interest to anyone not either a) bald or b) German. It bleeps. It skronks. It krrraaaanks. But mainly, it blows like a ruddy awful hurricane. Remember, kids; if it sounds like a festering hillock of tune-shy bum-wank, it's because it IS a festering hillock of tune-shy bum-wank. Avoid as you would a bald German.

 

almost as condescending as the tortoise/achilles one

[lamourfou]

thanks for answering my other questions.

 

What is this track? You played it during the second half of the Mixlr webcast.

https://soundcloud.com/soothsayer-1/autechre-webcast-oh

 

Thanks for those mixes by the way. Do you remember the one you did many years past that ended with you playing a ton of older hits/pop in rapid succession? It was like you were trying to kill popular music, it was amazing.

[Sean Ae]

Hello Sean and Rob. Just a few quick (hopefully) questions:

 

1 - Would either of you consider setting up and/or teaching a University course or lecture in any context if approached to do so?

 

2 - Were Autechre directly involved with the acapella cover version of 'Gnit' found on this Luaka Bop compilation?

 

http://www.discogs.com/Various-The-Only-Blip-Hop-Record-You-Will-Ever-Need-Vol-1/release/2138139

 

3 - Have any artists or labels you produced a remix for been like "WTF?!" upon receiving it? I'd be especially interested to know what Skinny Puppy thought of the remix you produced for them.

 

4 - Have either of you heard any of the experimental music of Canadian inventor Hugh Le Caine? For whatever reason he seems rarely mentioned in early electronic music circles. He made this track in the 1950's from a recording of a single drop of water:

 

 

Thanks! :)

 

 

1 i dunno i would probably fall asleep if i had to listen to myself giving a lecture

 

2 no

 

3 yeah them, good guess. the band were into it but the label thought we were taking the piss. only time it's ever happened

 

4 not heard of him, this sounds very good and musical, thanks

are you guys running your custom software during your .ws shows to manipulate the audio or is it all traditional mixing, etc.?

 

it's fairly trad really, no homebrew

[Friendly Foil]

Do you like Tim Hecker? New album is really good.

[Guest Refund]

 

this is aeriffic

 

really brilliant this

 

kinda reminds me of this, I think they use a similar fft method to come up with the note data (and I love how it gets more and more fsckd up and starts glitching out like crazy)

 

[Sean Ae]

This thread is so good. Much appreciation

 

1. Any further thoughts on Brian Eno? I'm sure everyone knows the classics, but what I am finding is that even his more obscure stuff is amazing (90s stuff in particular). Just curious if you are `aware` of his stuff (as most people probably are) or actually `follow` it more closely.

 

2. Any thoughts on all the super-hand-holding audio software coming out these days? I'm thinking maybe the weird "automatic drummer" feature in Logic X or things like that. On one hand, I can see you guys laughing and then forgetting about it, but on the other hand, maybe it's exciting to see how far you can abuse something that is clearly intended as a toy/for novices only.

 

I haven't used that plugin myself, I just find it frustrating that all the tech that goes into making the lamest fucking software lately. Like, just open that up a little more and beginners AND experts could really have some fun with it.

 

 

1. aware more than follow, but i like fractal zoom and what actually happened a kind of insane amount

 

2. i don't mind really, i mean it's totally stupid but i guess some people will find a way to make something mental with it. i hope. please.

 

yeah i mean it's totally shit man of course it is, what a fucking waste of resources, it's not even decent algorithms. imagine how good that could actually be if they got really into it

[Guest SPAG]

do you guys still do any remix's of other artist?

[Sean Ae]

 

 

When you found out that the Skinny Puppy remix album you were going to be on would feature 50% nu-metal is that when you guys decided to make a very abstract/noisy skinny puppy remix?

 

nah we had no idea what the rest was gonna be like

it was just weird, we didn't get any parts we just had this cd sent to us, and the track wasn't our thing at all, and we had been messing with soundedit a lot so we thought it would be fun to chuck it into soundedit and see what came out the other end

is prob the weirdest mix we've ever done tho

 

nice, macromedia soundedit for old mac? You guys ever use Hyperprism around that time too?

 

 

yeah good old sound edit 16

yeah we had hyperprism but i dunno if we ever used it on a release

i think by the time i got it fatboy slim was already hammering it so it was like, straight in the bin

Edited November 5, 2013 by Sean Ae

[Guest skyking]

Do you both rate William Gibson's work? Maybe even met him IRL?

Could you imagine yourselves making a soundtrack to Cunningham's 'Neuromancer' (which is cancelled, sadly)?

Also, Quake or Unreal Tournament (this is important)?

 

Love u both, no homo!

[Sam]

On the Eno note can I recommend this - it's a beaut ;)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UivDfbLSJ5M

[nizzleone]

- Have you guys ever started a track and abandoned it because it didn't sound "autechreish" even though some might consider it good?

 

- When using something open ended like a Nord Modular or MAX, do you ever tweak presets in the interest of time, or do you most often start from the ground up.

[SUPiERo]

 

can you name my left foot?

pic related - it's proper fukkd

sprane 3

 

 

 

Hello, Rob and Sean! Thank you so much, that the answer to the questions of fans here

Excuse my bad english, I'm from Russia

Please answer my questions:

1. 2 weeks ago I got married. The best gift for me and my wife would be if you wrote a few words on my photos. Certainly no need to print and scan photo. Just draw something in Paint, if not difficult. Received an unusual electronic signature. Here's a link to the photo:

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/5/o9s3.jpg/

2. Which track Autechre us to include? He will always be associated with our Honeymoon

3. We fall in love with photography. Please give the name of my camera

4. What are your favorite wine and cheese?

5. FC Barcelona or Real Madrid? Cristiano Ronaldo or Messi?

6. Porsche or Ferrari?

7. What is the most surrealistic place in the world where you've been?

8. What are 5 albums Autechre would you take to a desert island?

P/S/: My wife and I will be perfectly happy if you follow our small request and answer our questions.

P/P/S: You - the most brilliant artists in the world! Thank you for what you are! We wish you good health, great shape and good mood! In addition to new albums waiting for your boxes with rarities, remixes and live performances! Come to Moscow! In advance many great big thank you!

 

this can't be real, can it?

 

Sorry. May be at least a couple of questions answer?

 

hahha just messing.

 

re the wedding, u could ask a professional instead tho'

 

Sean pls

[Rob Ae]

when working with tdr, do they give you formal presentations on their thoughts about the art they produced according to your guidelines or is it more of a PDF back and forth collab of sorts?

yeah Ian's big on the epic deluge of concepts and ideas - before hearing the work sometimes, while also being capable of trashing it all for a hunch, pdf/response tennis tends to occur towards the very end, say when its all about specific tones or something like that.

 

id has differed over the years though

[Sean Ae]

 

Hey guys! Love the music!

 

I'd like to know if there's any truth to this quote about an ep someone tried to pass off as one of your own.

 

http://www.beatport.com/release/sil-taper-sto-lend-ep/286401

 

What does tie this EP to Autechre themselves (other that it sorta does sound like them) is that some of the sounds where recycled from programed beats that were left on Roland R8 drum machine after a Warp event. Sean Booth & Rob Brown actually borrowed equipment from Derek Marin for the live show Autechre performed at a Blech party in NYC & in the process left beats on the machine. The beats were later used to create some of this recording.

 

You guys are amazing. Please come back to NYC at some point. I bought tickets to your Brooklyn show during the Quaristice tour and ended not being able to go. I'm still crying about it.

yeah we borrowed gear all the time R8 EPS/ASR10/desk/FX/cables, so we could just travel with memory cards n floppy's - the gear would have not tracks in after we left as i don't recall ever having to write stuff into the units, so its not possible imo, these tracks don't suggest otherwise, at least from what i can hear.

 

nice story, cos i often wondered if anyone would ever try.

 

 

nah it's sort of legit actually

cos the r8 keeps the patterns from the last track loaded, so like, 1/4 of the set i think

 

the problem is tho, i wasn't using any r8 sounds that night. the patterns were triggering the nord and the r8 audio wasn't hooked up. so all the sounds would be wrong, not even the right type of sound cos they would be whatever sounds happened to be on the pads, and the note numbers on the nord would have nothing to do with the r8, so you'd have like, a cymbal where a nord kick would be or something, it doesn't really translate unless u also have a nord there with our memory card in it