Oversteps

Autechre | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 23, 2010)
• Original Release Date: 2010
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Warp Records
• ASIN: B0035BMK5Y
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #126,724 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Legendary electronic duo AUTECHRE return w' their new album '(Oversteps)'. Creating mingled, hallucinogenic, occult soundscapes, Autechre's push their machines into new realms of space, time and imagination. Consisting of Sean Booth and Rob Brown, Autechre is the changing, challenging result of their "brutally co-operative" relationship. A platform for compulsive and cerebral dance music, Autechre practically invented IDM in the 1990's, alongside contemporaries such as APHEX TWIN and SQUAREPUSHER. All throughout Autechre's music, there is a sense of local colour - from Lancashire to Yorkshire, from the cold, unclubby outside of Manchester to the electronic heart of Sheffield, then to other places, inside and out, and beyond. There is a suggestion of personality, of something surprisingly down to earth, of the everyday, of the moderately helpful, of even the instructional. Their newest collection, '(Oversteps)', reforms old ideas, echoes specific loops and grains, reprises calculations, develops various moods, connects similar stresses and symptoms, perfects certain systems, while at the same time bravely inventing new possibilities, resisting bad habits, and penetrating new uncontaminated areas. After more than twenty years of trailblazing sounds, Autechre still make the music of tomorrow.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Step forward, March 23, 2010

By 

Catfood03 (in front of my computer typing reviews) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Oversteps (Audio CD)

The pre-release buzz from both fans and critics of Autechre's music on their 10th album, Oversteps, had some comparisons to their earliest work, more specifically their sophomore album Amber. While not totally off-base that comparison is merely a reference point for the direction the band has now embarked upon. Like the aforementioned classic, Oversteps could be heard as a return to form, but that would diminish the great records that the duo has released leading up to this point.

For once the focus is not on Autechre's trademark mind-bending warped beats and percussion, but the melodic notes that have been more often than not pushed back into the mix throughout the band's past discography. Perhaps taking a cue from the positive responses from the minority of ambient tracks that graced 2008's Quaristice, the new album now has these in greater abundance. It's an exciting change of pace. The beats, when they do appear, have greater punch to it. All the tracks (whether with beats or not) are dense, restless and convey a variety of emotion.

I find it difficult to explain Autechre's songs into words, partly because the elements that are referenced ("techno", "hip-hop", etc) are filtered into highly fractured compositions. I can only say that "r ess", "see on see", "treale", "qplay", "d-sho qub", "redfall" and "yuop" made strong favorable impressions on first listen and I'm sure will be joined by many others with repeated spins.

My only criticism of this recording is that some of the percussive elements sound a bit overly compressed (in "ilanders" and "st epreo" particularly, but elsewhere as well). Autechre have always left some of the rougher edges of their sound remain unpolished, but I think the music all around could benefit from more clarity in this regard. A minor complaint that does not detract form the overall quality of this release.

Oversteps is an unexpected surprise, showing a side of Autechre not heard in years, yet seamlessly integrated in the language of the band's music as it has progressed to this point.

Final Rating: 4.5 stars (I'm loving it more and more since my initial rating!)

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A word about other editions of Oversteps currently available:

VINYL EDITION:
The LP version is a double album set. For those wondering about the high price tag than most double-album sets should know that there is a greater standard quality to the packaging. The outer jacket is a sturdy, heavy-set slipcase that holds the three inner sleeves inside. Two of these houses each record and a third that holds a double-sided poster (with the large black dot on the front and the track list on the back). The music itself is pressed on 180 gram vinyl, which is a bit heavier than standard albums and provides a cleaner, warmer sound. I experienced few problems with any excessive pops or clicks of my copy that sometimes accompany LP playback.

JAPAN EDITION:
The Japan imported edition includes a bonus track called "Xektses sql". A little bit of subdued noise thrown in at the end that makes for a nice comedown from the intensity of "Yuop". It reminds me of the second half of "Sublimit" (from Untilted) in that it has a submerged quality to it. It has these bursts of muffled feedback which makes it really interesting, but at only 3 minutes its over fairly quickly. There's no real melody in it to speak of, which makes for one of the weaker tracks overall. This CD edition is not sold through the US Amazon store, but is available at Amazon's Japan store and other import sellers as well.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not a return to form, but a return to greatness., May 30, 2010

By 

J. Rayne "noetic echoes" (Frederick, MD, United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Oversteps (MP3 Download)

Like many others, I had given Ae's last couple of releases a miss. I shelved Untilted after only a listen or two, and never even bothered picking up Quaristice. But then I saw the buzz around Oversteps and started listening to previews...and that's when the majestic, sweeping, rolling pads of "ilanders" hit me. And suddenly I was listening to "Rettic AC" from Chiastic Slide all over again, which is nothing short of amazing. I'm still trying to decide whether or not I like "known(1)" yet, but otherwise this album is definitely the best thing they've made since ep7, and certainly one of their strongest albums overall. If you're a fan of their mid-career work then you owe it to yourself to pick up Oversteps post-haste.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars restored my faith in them, bigtime, August 2, 2010

By 

Johnny Utah (from the band "Blues Hammer") - See all my reviews

This review is from: Oversteps (Audio CD)

I had been getting pretty sick of autechre over the years, more and more thinking that they might have run their course, and then this album comes along which was a completely unexpected and most welcome surprise. It's still autechre, for sure, and some of the patterns and loops are familiar, but for some reason it rings fresh and really hits the spot.

If I had to describe this album in a nutshell I might say "a more groovy update of the Terminator soundtrack". There are some great, melodic and dare-I-say borderline "emotional" musical sequences on here that help everything to resonate more than their other recent efforts. But it also still has that beautifully cold and calculated menace to it, like only these guys can do. It's a fine line, but they walk it better here than at any time in recent memory.