Autechre

Among the most maligned and celebrated groups in electronic music, Autechre carry both a massive cult following and every stereotype about IDM techno on their shoulders. For the most part, it's because they're unapologetically brainy about their sound and software, a reminder of a mid-'90s Warp era of avant-garde futurism that, for the most part, doesn't exist anymore. Kudos to Sean Booth and Rob Brown for sticking to their guns. Listeners of their tenth album will discover that Autechre, in their third decade, have persevered with the same comfortable principles that characterize their entire oeuvre, but that the actual sound atop those principles has matured into something new for the duo. Oversteps is the most abstractly classical of the Autechre records. Spare, syncopated rhythms build much of the album, but the abstract and brittle spitfire beats that have been the core of their sound only really show up in the second half. A quiet, heady outing, Oversteps is the sound of Booth and Brown moving ever so glacially, pushing their own envelope.