Oversteps | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 22 February 2010 (download) 22 March 2010 (CD/LP) [1] | |||
Recorded | 2008–2010 | |||
Genre | Ambient, IDM, electronic | |||
Length | 71:24 | |||
Label | Warp WARP210 | |||
Producer | Autechre | |||
Autechre chronology | ||||
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Oversteps is the tenth studio album by British electronic music duo Autechre, released on Warp Records in 2010. The album was made available for official download on bleep.com and the Japanese iTunes Store on 22 February 2010; the CD and deluxe vinyl editions were released on 22 March 2010. Critics were generally quite positive about Oversteps, with many considering it more focused and accessible than previous albums. Four months after its release, Oversteps was followed by a companion EP entitled Move of Ten .
In a March 2010 interview with Clash , Autechre members Sean Booth and Rob Brown said they did not know if any other music influenced the development of Oversteps; Booth commented that "I don’t own a single record that sounds like 'Oversteps'". [2] The dynamic between the duo in the studio was called "hilariously accommodating" in the same interview, with Booth stating "I don’t mind backing down". [2]
Autechre streamed a twelve-hour webcast in early March 2010, coinciding with the album's release, [3] as they had with the releases of Untilted and Quaristice .
The album artwork was created by The Designers Republic. [4] In an interview with Warp Records, Ian Anderson of tDR explained that the album's artwork was based on a life-long influence of Anderson's, that of man versus machine. The cover is based on the idea that "[people are] trying to be as effective as machines and do the tasks that we’ve developed machines to do", and that a relatively simple task for a computer but an arduous one for a human is to draw a perfect circle. [5] Anderson remarked that, in a March 2020 interview with Creative Boom editor Katy Cowan, while the duo described Oversteps as their "most unhuman album" to date, he thought that their material was more organic than their other work by comparison. [6]
The artwork was created by staff at tDR who then attempted to create perfect circles by using a variety of materials and sizes. [6] In all, seventy-two different circles were generated with paintbrushes and felt tip pens, making the covers of each format (CD, vinyl record, and in the case of digital, individual song artwork), print ad and merchandise a unique attempt at a perfectly drawn circle by a human. [5] The concept would be applied to concentric rings forming circles for Autechre's follow-up EP, Move of Ten .
Oversteps was released on 22 March 2010. [1] Before its release, numerous fake versions of the album showed up on Internet websites, just as had happened with the previous three sets. [2] Brown said it was "becoming a bit of a tradition" at the time of the album's release. [2] Oversteps peaked at number 13 on the UK Official Charts Company's Independent Albums Chart. [7] In the US, the album peaked at No. 15 and No. 46 on Billboard's Dance/Electronic Albums and Heatseekers Albums charts, respectively, the week of 10 April 2010. [8]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 76/100 [9] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [10] |
Drowned in Sound | 9/10 [11] |
musicOMH | [12] |
NME | 8/10 [13] |
Pitchfork | 7.2/10 [14] |
PopMatters | 9/10 [15] |
Q | [16] |
Resident Advisor | 3.5/5 [17] |
Tiny Mix Tapes | [18] |
Uncut | [19] |
Oversteps received generally positive reviews, with most agreeing it is one of the band's most accessible albums to date. Matt Kennedy of BBC was highly complimentary, and noted that while "Oversteps is certainly no exception to their outwardly difficult aesthetic.... Beneath the icy exterior, deceptively warm hearts beat". [20] He added that, as per usual, the album was not immediately accessible, but that repeatedly listening to it is "the only method of absorbing Oversteps' depths", concluding, "Autechre continue to test themselves and listeners alike with stunningly intricate results." [20]
Paul Clarke of Drowned in Sound agreed, saying Oversteps "initially still seems as imposing as an abandoned warehouse surrounded by nine feet of razor wire", but "does have entry points for the casual listener". [21] He compared it to mid-1990s sets by fellow IDM group Future Sound of London, saying the album's songs "all seem to blossom out of each other to immerse the listener in a synaesthetic environment." [21] He concluded his review on a similar note as Kennedy, saying, "Oversteps is still a challenging listen, and one which reveals endless layers of new detail with each spin. But it’s also their most instantly rewarding—and arguably best—album to date." [21]
Patrick Sisson of Pitchfork Media said the album recalled earlier works such as Amber , saying, "the ambience and atmospheres of Oversteps are haunting." [3] He also called the album "less rigid" and "almost organic", concluding that Autechre were "still incorporating new designs, not merely repackaging the previous products." [3]
All tracks are written by Sean Booth and Rob Brown
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "r ess" | 5:13 |
2. | "ilanders" | 5:32 |
3. | "known(1)" | 4:43 |
4. | "pt2ph8" | 4:10 |
5. | "qplay" | 4:39 |
6. | "see on see" | 4:37 |
7. | "Treale" | 6:05 |
8. | "os veix3" | 4:38 |
9. | "O=0" | 4:53 |
10. | "d-sho qub" | 6:26 |
11. | "st epreo" | 4:08 |
12. | "redfall" | 3:49 |
13. | "krYlon" | 6:09 |
14. | "Yuop" | 6:22 |
15. | "Xektses sql" (Japanese Bonus Track) | 3:01 |
Total length: | 71:24 |
Autechre are an English electronic music duo consisting of Rob Brown and Sean Booth, both from Rochdale, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1987, they are among the best known acts signed to UK electronic label Warp Records, through which all of Autechre's full-length albums have been released beginning with their 1993 debut Incunabula. They gained initial recognition when they were featured on Warp's 1992 compilation Artificial Intelligence.
Warp Records is a British independent record label founded in Sheffield in 1989 by record store employees Steve Beckett and Rob Mitchell and record producer Robert Gordon. It is currently based in London.
Music Has the Right to Children is the debut studio album by Scottish electronic music duo Boards of Canada, released on 20 April 1998 in the United Kingdom by Warp and Skam Records and in the United States by Matador. The album was produced at Hexagon Sun, the duo's personal recording studio in Pentland Hills, and continued their distinctive style of electronica, featuring vintage synthesisers, degraded analogue production, found sounds and samples, and hip hop-inspired rhythms that had been featured on their first two EPs Twoism (1995) and Hi Scores (1996).
Incunabula is the debut studio album by English electronic music duo Autechre, released by UK label Warp on 29 November 1993, and again by Wax Trax! on 25 January 1994 in the United States.
Amber is the second studio album by English electronic music duo Autechre, released on 7 November 1994 by Warp. It was the first Autechre album to be composed entirely of new material, as their debut album Incunabula (1993) was a compilation of older tracks.
Tri Repetae is the third studio album by English electronic music duo Autechre, released on 6 November 1995 by Warp in the United Kingdom. In contrast to the duo's previous albums, Incunabula (1993) and Amber (1994), Tri Repetae features a distinct style that incorporates more minimal rhythms and spacious melodies.
The untitled fifth studio album by English electronic music duo Autechre, commonly known as LP5, was released on 13 July 1998 on Warp. No title was printed anywhere within the artwork, so it became known as LP5 in line with the later EP EP7; it has also been called Autechre, as well as Album, as listed on promotional copies.
Confield is the sixth album by British electronic music duo Autechre, released on 30 April 2001 by Warp Records.
Draft 7.30 is the seventh album by English electronic music duo Autechre, released on 7 April 2003 by Warp Records.
EP7 is the seventh EP by the electronic music group Autechre, released by Warp Records on 7 June 1999. It is classified as an EP by the band despite being long enough to qualify as an album. The record was released in two parts on vinyl, named EP7.1 and EP7.2. The name of this EP prompted Warp Records to give the name LP5 to the previously released untitled album by the band.
Untilted is the eighth studio album by the British IDM duo Autechre. The record was released 18 April 2005 in Europe and 19 April 2005 in North America by Warp Records, while Beat Records released it in Japan on 9 April 2005. The album charted at #199 in the UK. The cover art for the album was created by Alex Rutterford.
Quaristice is the ninth studio album by British electronic music duo Autechre, initially released on 29 January 2008 by Warp Records. It was made available for download via bleep.com in FLAC and MP3 format on 29 January 2008 and then received a physical release on 3 March 2008.
Move of Ten is an EP by British electronic music duo Autechre, announced on 25 May 2010 and released by Warp Records in June–July 2010, only a few months after Oversteps, Autechre's tenth major album. Move of Ten features packaging and artwork by The Designers Republic, and was released in mp3 as well as 16- and 24-bit WAV formats on 14 June 2010 via the bleep.com online music store. A release on CD and two (separate) 12"s followed on 12 July.
Exai is the eleventh studio album by British electronic music duo Autechre, released on Warp Records. The double album was released in digital form on 7 February 2013, with double CD and quadruple vinyl versions released on 5 March 2013. At the time of its release, Exai was Autechre's longest album to date.
L-event is an EP by electronic music duo Autechre, released on Warp Records on 28 October 2013. The EP is a companion to Autechre's double album Exai, which was released earlier in the same year.
AE_LIVE is a series of live recordings by British electronic music duo Autechre, initially released on 29 October 2015 by Warp Records. As of 2019, it consists of 28 soundboard recordings, each roughly an hour long, made during their 2014-2015 live tour. Said tour had its inception at Warp Records' 25th anniversary Warp25 celebration in Krakow, Poland on 20 September 2014, the duo's first live show since 2011. The recordings are accompanied by individualized abstract geometric artwork produced by The Designers Republic.
elseq 1–5 is the twelfth studio album by British electronic music duo Autechre, released by Warp Records on 19 May 2016. The album consists of five segments, each roughly 50 minutes in length. All five were made available for individual or group purchase as a digital download only, making it Autechre's first album without a physical release.
AE_LIVE 2016/2018 is a series of live recordings by British electronic music duo Autechre, released on 7 April 2020 by Warp Records. It consists of 7 soundboard recordings made during their live tours in 2016 and 2018. The 2016 dates were recorded during Autechre's European "onesix" tour, and the 2018 dates were recorded during a short tour of Australia, Japan and Ireland. Autechre has said some dates from these tours were not recorded due to technical difficulties. Both tours feature variations of the same set. AE_LIVE 2016/2018 follows the previous series AE_LIVE, which features a different set performed during 2014 and 2015.
Sign is the fourteenth studio album by British electronic music duo Autechre. It was announced by Warp Records on 2 September 2020 via their Twitter page, and was released on 16 October 2020. The album was broadcast for the first time on 8 October on the Autechre website. Shortly after, it was made available as a digital download to those who pre-ordered. The cover and packaging artwork was created by The Designers Republic.
Plus is the fifteenth full-length studio album by British electronic music duo Autechre. It was released digitally, without any prior announcement, on 28 October 2020, twelve days after the release of Sign, the band's preceding album. Plus was released on physical formats on 20 November 2020. The cover and packaging artwork was created by The Designers Republic, and pairs with the artwork for Sign.