Is chronological the best way to go?

Do it backward and lie to yourself. Then do it forward.

Alright I just bought Confield and Cichlisuite today... lol all these albums are so tempting.

Let's see if i can make it through all of Confield in one piece...

yeesland, characi and tilapia are 3 of my fav ae tracks, cichlisuite is great. pencha is fun too, krib sounds too gay

to me it has been:

1: amber

2: incunabula & tri repetae

3: chiastic slide

4: lp5

5: confield & garbage/anvil vapre/peel session

now i'm on ep7 & draft.

it's magic to continue to discover them.

I've probably written about this a good handful of times as this thread has been done at least 5 times before but here it goes anyways.

Autechre, (moreso than any other artist I have yet to come across) have always striven to create albums that are totally different than their previous works, yet somehow they all seem to occupy the same sonic space. It's like some space sci-fi serial or something. No matter how far away you get from the other albums in mood, energy, flow, and structure, the sounds maintain a consistent atmosphere that is almost imperceptible to a first time listener, but really holds their works together in a coherent way. This allows the long metamorphosis of Autechre's music to always remain quintessentially Autechre, regardless of how much it changes.

For this reason, you should listen to it chronologically.

Really, can anyone think of another artist or band that changes their style as radically as Autechre have/do without alienating their entire fan base?

  On 3/23/2011 at 4:49 PM, mcbpete said:

  On 3/23/2011 at 12:28 AM, sergeantk said:

The one full track I heard, Cfern, actually terrified me... I don't think i've ever heard a more unsettling melody in music, and thats out of EVERYTHING ive heard - electronic, metal, classical, and whatever else you could imagine having unsettling melodies. (Maybe Schoenberg's Kammersymphonie is more unsettling - MAYBE).

You probably don't want to check out Parhelic Triangle then - it's pretty much the soundtrack to accompany some midnight tribal sacrifice (or Bine which is probably the sound that goes through someone's mind before they go postal). Listening back to Cfern after all this time I hear it more as something mischievous and plotting than scary.

honestly, that whole album is creepy and weird in many ways. Cfern isn't that bad to me, mostly cause of the xylophone/synth bass melodies being a little goofy, but it's still got a lingering undercurrent of strangeness. Pen Expers isn't so bad, but it is still so abrasive that it doesn't lose the unsettling mood the album keeps you in.

i know, i know. you're all like 'but what about Eiditic Casein? that one IS goofy, but it's still a little off kilter, just enough to not let one get too comfortable within the context of the song. and i think all the others speak for themselves, really.

maybe i'm just used to it, but most of the melodic content in confield just sounds really pretty to me, except maybe bine or lentic catachresis (though the beginning is beautiful in a black metal melody kind of way). eg., the lovely reverbed melody in uviol, or the pads in pen expers, or the tiny little synth in parhelic triangle that surfaces towards the end.

ah, confield. can't wait for warmer weather so i can bust it out on a long walk through a field again. it's one of my favourite summer albums.

My first Autechre purchase was Incunabula...I hated it but I bought LP5 cos i'd heard Rae. Then, I got EP7 and Confield a few days later and loved them all...I don't think it's too important to go chronologically, hasn't affected my opinion I don't think.

Confield is a lush album and I didn't struggle with it at all...it's scary but beautiful scary like

I started with Quaristice. Which was weird.

Then Oversteps, Move of Ten, Amber, EP7, and most recently Draft 7.30.

Favorite is probably Quaristice, possibly Amber though. And Draft gets better with every listen.

I purchased these in this order because those are the order I found them in stores. What should I get next?

I haven't heard anything from any of the other records

If you like Amber, grab Tri Repetae, one of my favourite albums ever.

I started with Incunabula and, being their least abrasive work, it was a good starter. That said, I've always found Quaristice to be a bit of a sampler so I think that could work too. Hearing all the mixed feedback about EP7 prior to hearing any ae led me to believe it would be difficult but I'd certainly try it before Confield or Draft

i remember fondly the days before i had all the ae albums. there's always more to discover though, from live sets to remixes to gescom.

ae lps/eps are just a cut above everything else though.

except melve, fuck that shit

Am I strange in never having found EP7 to be difficult? I hear people say it is all the time, but I fell in love on first listen (Dropp, I believe, being the first song I'd ever heard of AE)

  On 7/7/2011 at 1:25 AM, Sprigg said:

Am I strange in never having found EP7 to be difficult? I hear people say it is all the time, but I fell in love on first listen (Dropp, I believe, being the first song I'd ever heard of AE)

I totally agree with you. EP7 was the 3rd Autechre I got (after Incunabula and LP5) and I was completely blown away by it. I think it's because at the time i'd never heard anything quite like it. Was my favourite Autechre release for a long, long time...times change though

Thanks for the tips - Think Ill seek out Tri next and then maybe Confield

chronological is definitely the way i went, i found incunabula used at my record shop, started there, then bought amber and tri rep and went from there

  On 7/6/2011 at 9:22 PM, theSun said:

there's always more to discover though, from live sets to remixes to gescom.

I wish that were true for me...

  On 7/7/2011 at 1:25 AM, Sprigg said:

Am I strange in never having found EP7 to be difficult? I hear people say it is all the time, but I fell in love on first listen (Dropp, I believe, being the first song I'd ever heard of AE)

Yeah EP7 is one of my favorites as well, still very unique in their catalog and has only grown with time.

  On 7/11/2011 at 2:13 PM, six said:

  On 7/6/2011 at 9:22 PM, theSun said:

there's always more to discover though, from live sets to remixes to gescom.

 

I wish that were true for me...

Hahaha, and as I continue reading I discover there's a new track out as of yesterday. Well played Sean and Rob, well played...

  On 7/7/2011 at 5:00 PM, YELLOW said:

chronological is definitely the way i went, i found incunabula used at my record shop, started there, then bought amber and tri rep and went from there

Nice! I've only found two record stores here, and neither has what could even remotely be considered a good electronic section.

  On 7/11/2011 at 2:43 PM, six said:

  On 7/11/2011 at 2:13 PM, six said:

  On 7/6/2011 at 9:22 PM, theSun said:

there's always more to discover though, from live sets to remixes to gescom.

 

I wish that were true for me...

 

Hahaha, and as I continue reading I discover there's a new track out as of yesterday. Well played Sean and Rob, well played...

honestly, i thought i had most of their stuff, but i usually find 1 or 2 that i've never heard before every month or so on this very forum.

srsly tho, laxir remix collection

As far as I know I've heard every track they've ever formally released, according to discogs, WATMM, and other fan sites. Including remixes, aliases, and rare non-album tracks. I suppose I missed a few of the live sets but unless it's good quality I'll pass on hearing every single one.

Yeah, chronologically is the best way. Safest, too, if you think about it.

I remember I hated AE for years because all anyone tried to play me was Gantz Graf and Confield, mostly as an attempt to "freak me out". I just didn't GET IT. Then I heard Amber, enjoyed it, and Chiastic was what really blew my mind. From there, I started at the beginning and went through to...Untilted, which was the newest at the time. Been a huge fan ever since.

In my early days, the albums that frightened me the most were Untilted, Confield and Gantz Graf

  On 7/28/2011 at 4:15 AM, usagi said:

I wasn't gonna mention that but it's pertinent to the "omg confield is the horrorshow soundtrack to a mental breakdown" discussion

Yeah, it's funny how perceptions can be affected like that. I can understand how people might think Confield is this scary impenetrable fortress of sound, but to me it will forever remain the soundtrack to lovely summer/autumn days out in the sun, going for long walks in parks. Can't wait until the weather warms up again, might organise some ae-picnics. Hah!

its funny cause I'm still getting advice in this topic even though i've had their whole discog for quite some time now

Not that its a bad thing, you guys rock