Critiques CD: Autechre | Exai

Exai is a sprawling 117.59 minute, 17 track opus that listeners not entirely dedicated to post-industrial machine noise might find best consumed in byte size pieces. Even though Exai is almost an anti-album, Autechre’s ear for pretty melodies juxtaposed with errant glitches, hyper-rhythms and sonic sinkholes is as well honed as ever. Obliquely reminiscent of experimental German dub, disconcerted classical music, freeform jazz and the outer reaches of psychedelic prog (without the grand unifying themes), it's easy uneasy listening and a distillation of Autechre’s sonic universe. If this is Autechre maturing as the rest of the world catches up with their past, bring it on.