It’s familiar territory Autechre have covered before but more visceral. Metallic labyrinth sounds, glitchy scratch sprees, gates gating each other, frequency modulation, the works. This is the sound of machines working intricately, aggressively and gracefully. It’s a terrifying and awe induced display of electronica. Remarkably, Autechre continue to develop and NTS Sessions 1-4 is their best record in years. Surely, this is the highest peak of Autechre’s power.
A disregard for convention
Autechre are up there with the brainiest of duos around. Their sound is so rich in complexity, words barely scratch the surface for descriptions. Few duos have made a career from creating an arch nemesis listening experience. One listens to Autechre and questions what they’re listening too. If it’s improv, if it’s code generating music, what is it they feel and why they like it and why they find Autechre so difficult, what is this music world?
Brown and Booth have always had a disregard for convention and repetitive melody has usually been kept in the periphery. You reward yourself in finding nuggets of Autechre melody and wrestle with the mutated electronic body they mould. Autechre tap into an obsessive listening experience many bands have rarely graced. When they hook you in, it’s a pleasurable experience yet an inhumane one. You feel close to emotion while remaining artificially detached. It’s the most logical emotive experience in music one finds difficult to articulate—close to the definition of irrational.
I doubt Autechre knowingly understand their sound and what’s to be found as they jam. It’s likely the result in making music which pushes the parameters of their system capability. We’ve came to be in shock and awe of Autechre, simultaneously respecting and slandering them in the past. Albums Quaristice, Oversteps and Exai have received love and hate in equal measure, such is the ambitious morphing nature of their sound.
Now we’re here with the 8-hour mammoth NTS Sessions 1-4, originally broadcast in April this year on London based station NTS Radio. After the four broadcasts, at 2-hours a piece, the band immediately released the sessions digitally and then announced physical versions, CD and LP pressings to be released in July 2018.
Machines working intricately
It’s familiar territory Autechre have covered before but more visceral. Metallic labyrinth sounds, glitchy scratch sprees, gates gating each other, frequency modulation, the works. This is the sound of machines working intricately, aggressively and gracefully. It’s a terrifying and awe induced display of electronica. The duo use Max/MSP to compose their music, a visual programming language which has “machines learning, the composers learning and if all goes to plan, the listeners learning too” writes Andrew Nosnitsky of Pitchfork. A key difference in NTS 1-4‘s sound compared to Autechre’s previous work is that it feels like the completed version of past material, “as if the preceding decades of work were acts of research leading to this point,” said Mark Smith of Resident Advisor. Put another way, the palette is the same yet the execution highly refined.
It cannot be disputed how purposeful every session is to one another. NTS 1 starts slow, NTS 2 walks into a groove, NTS 3 lumbers into dance and NTS 4 rests in a summit of beauty. The tracks have elements of coherence, there’s time signatures and pulse here, even as they are hard to find.
Bottomless and never ending
NTS 1 shows Autechre’s softer side, introducing us to a metallic world with a slow build up. Tones collide with reverberation and synth creating a sound environment. “Gonk Steady One” has electronic glitch and bass fitting neatly into place. NTS 1 finishes as it started, softly in ambience. NTS 2 ups the anti. The tempo increases with pulsation and groove. Serious groove—there’s danceable tracks here. “xflood” has an otherworldly sound design, with a jitter broken kick and snare rhythm. In its background an ominous tone of ghostliness rises. “gonk tuf hi” contains a high density of sonic complexion with kick rhythm. NTS 3 gets more playful. “splesh” has a bass drone and a slow emerging melody. “tt1pd” could be Autechre’s best track, full of sonic layering and complexity. Its dark beginnings become an irresistible muscular metallic rhythm. “g 1 e 1” sounds like a prepared piano, much like something from Move Of Ten. It gives a soothing end to NTS 3. NTS 4 finishes in compelling beauty. “Column Thirteen” radiates a peculiar beauty, reaching into something that feels bottomless and never ending.
The immersive nature of NTS 1-4 is captivating. It’s an electronic maze becoming clearer, showing glimpses of a post-dance world we’re yet to be part of. Remarkably, Autechre continue to develop and NTS Sessions 1-4 is their best record in years. Surely, this is the highest peak of Autechre’s power.
NTS Sessions 1-4 is available on Warp.
