Untilted is the eighth studio album by the British electronic music duo Autechre. It was released on 18 April 2005 through Warp Records and on 9 April by Beat Records in Japan.
The album saw Autechre members Sean Booth and Rob Brown continue to move back to traditional rhythms and consistent beats, no longer feeling limited by set rhythms. Compared to their previous albums, no generative music was used in its production. Before its release, a fake version of the album was distributed.
Untilted received mixed reviews from critics. While many reviewers enjoyed the general sound of the album and the ideas presented, others were more critical and thought of the music as unenjoyable and boring. The duo would tour in support of the album.
Background and recording
In Draft 7.30, Autechre's previous album, the duo began to move back to more traditional rhythms for their music rather than experimental ones. The duo would use a variety of different sequences all running at the same time during the creation of Untilted. They would use different mixes of drum machines, old MIDI and analogue sequencers, as well as MPCs.
Contrastingly, no generative music was used during the production of the album like on Confield. A variety of samples were used throughout the album.
Music
Untilted has been described as abstract, electronic, IDM and experimental. In comparison to the duo's other works, such as Draft 7.30 and Gantz Graf, Untilted has a greater focus on rhythm and consistent beats. "Ipacial Section" establishes a "frantic" rhythm, with different elements being introduced over time, until the track "[sounds] much different than it did to begin with". McKeating said the track "sounds more blood than oil" because of its "pitchshifted electro making a lengthy riff that drives the tune along". The track was composed through "a drum machine up and running, 16-grid style, no swing or anything, everything just completely straight". The album was released slightly earlier on CD on 9 April through Beat Records, only in Japan. The album's artwork was created by Alex Rutterford. The tour would last for seven weeks and saw them play in Europe, the United States and Japan.
Booth would move from Suffolk to Manchester after the conclusion of the tour, with Brown noting this put their studio "in limbo for a while".
Reception
Untilted received mixed reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which aggregates scores from mainstream critics, Untilted has an average score of 69 based on 20 reviews, indicating mixed or average reviews. Writing for Exclaim!, Heidi Chapson wrote there is "something unsettling and disturbing about the erratic heart-palpitating beats of Untilted that makes it too intriguing to just ignore". T'cha Dunlevy of The Gazette noted that the album was "music for electronica sleuths ready to work for their epiphanies" and that the duo were not "concerned with your comfort zone".
- Rob Brown – production
- Sean Booth – production
- Noel Summerville – mastering
- Alex Rutterford – design
Charts
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|+ Chart performance for Untilted
! scope="col"| Chart (2005)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
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References
External links
- Untilted at the official Warp discography (features audio clips).