Autechre
Move of Ten

The time has come to put the final point on the examination that has involved what is undoubtedly one of the brightest entities in the entire history of music: Autechre. We do it with the latest release from this legendary duo, "Move of Ten," which comes shortly after the disappointing "Oversteps" and once again marks a significant change of direction in their artistic journey. We do it with the hope, in the future, of being able to fill this database again, perhaps with new records, new experiments, and new evolutions of an intricate and decidedly fascinating story. 

We were talking about "Oversteps," a disjointed and objectively bland album that could only incite fear for this other - very temporally close - release, labeled by the duo themselves as an EP but, in reality, a true album considering its 45-plus minutes of duration.

What immediately strikes the ear is the strengthening return of the rhythmic component, which had diminished in previous works and is now, not infrequently, pushed to the limit, reminiscent of the rhythmically disorienting and eccentric offerings of the whirlwind "Untilted". The two are inspired, and it shows, and maybe aware of the shortcomings of "Oversteps," they decide to now flaunt all their most potent weapons: heavy experimentation, cutting-edge technology, innovative ideas, brilliant rhythms, elaborate sounds, and plots so adventurous and complex that they render untouchable prog suites akin to the most harmless chart pop.

And so, it's not surprising that the work, as typical of the two Englishmen, starts immediately at full throttle, without various distractions, without epic introductions, without any deep and cinematic scapes; what we hear on the neurotic "Etchogon-S" are Autechre at the top of their form, with brains in ferment; introverted rhythms and indecipherable metrics where shards of wild percussive elements with an improvised aftertaste seem to rain from everywhere, constantly gaining the upper hand over those menacing and amorphous FM progressions which were the main topic of "Oversteps," now reduced to mere 'background,' partly recalling the paranoid delusions and double physical-formal nature of the much-cited "Confield". Feared specters return forcefully on the equally cryptic "y7", accompanied by those of "Quaristice", specifically the aseptic and hypnotic acidisms that characterized the multifaceted album released two years prior.

A frenzied and disconcerting beginning that pushes even further with the masterpiece "pce freeze 2.8i", the absolute pinnacle of the work and among the highest peaks of the entire output by Ae; the lugubrious and twilight rhythm with Jam Master Jay-esque hues reminds us that hip hop continues to represent an evident inspiration for the two, while simultaneously the cutting-edge noise and the algorithmic-modular miasma reaffirm the overwhelming technological supremacy over the rest of the IDM scene, or supposed so, still lagging behind the drill, click'n'cuts or the so-called 'pointless mangling,' also known as self-indulgence. "rew (1)" instead seems like crunk cleansed of gold and gaudiness; a deconstructed and deboned crunk, or rather grotesque and hysterical hip hop, not too subtly aimed at dislocating the psyche through psychedelic mantras marrying psychology with a shamanism whose chromatisms are now primitive, now futuristic-sci-fi.

This is the Autechre we prefer, those who manage to sound different not only from this same scene but also from themselves, album after album, track after track. Ideas abound, an inexhaustible flow of mental gymnastics that prompts reflection, reflection on the why and how third musical entities, be they bands, singer-songwriters, or producers, limit themselves to repeating the same arguments for albums, if not years. After all, without the element of surprise, the constant research into sound and form, the fleeing from rules and genres, there would be no reason to approach them.

"Move of Ten" reaffirms all this, and does so clearly and directly. The kaleidoscopic FM melodrama of "iris was a pupil" recalls "Oversteps" in every way, even in the deliberately lowercase title, almost to reaffirm its hyperbolically stretched and minimal essence; "ylm0" is cosmic, gentle, jovial, and not too far removed from the more organic dreamscapes of Cluster; atrocious drones, crystalline sinusoids, and unexpected exotic veins lay a borderline carpet to the suppressed and mecharoic breaks of "nth Dafuseder.b", while "no border" and "M62" instead seem to rest the spirits, boasting a relaxed, vibrant, and never intrusive climate. Hints of humanity that seem to persist in the same "Cep puiqMX", which opens with an intro of crimson and fairy-tale tones, distilling krautrock and colossal OSTs, only to then shift to completely different paths, populated by hallucinated atmospheres and atonal textures, brutally ruined rhythmic fragments and macabre post-industrial drills making it, in fact, the most indecipherable piece of the entire album.

Nowadays, Autechre are somewhat the personification of electronics itself, its own disturbances and contradictions, its being machine and its only presumed lack of soul. Concepts already met on the monumental "Untilted," and I must say well embraced in this latest effort, a piece of great stature that allows us to glimpse a future as rosy as ever, as well as a desire to explore and break down barriers that seems to be increasingly looming, necessary, and probably, physiological.