Autechre has marked their 20th anniversary with their eleventh record. Exai=”XI,” get it? In terms of imaginative titles, that’s right up there with Van Halen II or Chicago LXIV. However, this record lacks appearances by Peter Cetera or Sammy Hagar. That may or may not be an important distinction, depending on your tastes.
It’s a long one, clocking in right at two hours. At that length, some inconsistency might be expected, but this is cohesive in a way none of their records has been since Confield. If I had to compare it with anything, I’d say it’s a less haunted and more assertive cousin to Oversteps.
It’s always tempting to seek a concept in their records. Confield was about abstraction in texture, Untilted pushed rhythmic boundaries, and Oversteps focused on melodic complexity. If there’s such a theme here, it’s in the sound design itself. The palette is less alien and more visceral, and it’s as if they’ve laid off many of the algorithmic tweaks. Continued...