Exai
{{good article}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2023}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2013}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Exai
| type = studio
| artist = Autechre
| cover = Exai.png
| alt =
| released = 7 February 2013 (Digital)
5 March 2013 (CD/LP)
| recorded = 2010 – 2011
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = * Electronic
| length = {{Duration|m=120|s=32}} (Standard)
{{Duration|m=129|s=29}} (Japanese Edition)
| label = Warp
| producer = * Rob Brown
- Sean Booth
| prev_title = EPs 1991–2002
| prev_year = 2011
| next_title = L-event
| next_year = 2013
}}
Exai is the eleventh studio album by British electronic music duo Autechre. It was released on 7 February 2013 through Warp Records, with physical versions arriving on 5 March 2013. Prior to the release of NTS Sessions 1–4, Exai was Autechre's longest album.
Sean Booth and Rob Brown experimented with something they call "the system", a large network of software and synthesisers, during the creation of Exai. Critics responded generally positively to the album, noting its complexity and its use of sounds from previous albums. Some criticised the selection of tracks on the album and their length. Exai was followed by a companion EP named L-event which released on 28 October 2013.
Background
Brown and Booth, the duo that make up Autechre,{{cite news |last1=Tingen |first1=Paul |title=Autechre |url=https://www.soundonsound.com/people/autechre |access-date=24 January 2025 |work=Sound on Sound |date=April 2004 |archive-date=7 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161207082636/https://www.soundonsound.com/people/autechre |url-status=live }} released their first song, Cavity Job, in 1991.{{cite news |last1=Adams |first1=Gregory |title=Autechre Reissue Long-Lost Debut EP as Lego Feet |url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/autechre_reissue_long-lost_debut_ep_as_lego_feet |access-date=24 January 2025 |work=Exclaim! |date=30 November 2011 |language=en}} Their first album, Incunabula, was released in 1993 and became a surprise success.{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/autechre-mathematics-is--the-new-rocknroll-683346.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090331164931/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/autechre-mathematics-is--the-new-rocknroll-683346.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=31 March 2009 |title=Autechre: Mathematics is the new rock'n'roll |access-date=24 January 2025 | author=Mike Barnes |date=29 April 2001 |work=The Independent}} Throughout their discography, the duo gradually moved into less melodic and more experimental and glitchy music, notably with such releases as Confield, Untilted and Quaristice.{{cite news |last1=Cooper |first1=Sean |title=Autechre Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/autechre-mn0000759998#biography |access-date=24 January 2025 |work=AllMusic |language=en |archive-date=14 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250114141643/https://www.allmusic.com/artist/autechre-mn0000759998#biography |url-status=live }} Critics have described their newer sound as cold, distant and complex.{{cite news |last1=Leone |first1=Dominique |title=Autechre: Draft 7.30 Album Review |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/364-draft-730/ |access-date=24 January 2025 |work=Pitchfork |date=23 April 2003 |archive-date=25 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250125041038/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/364-draft-730/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Bola discusses the changing face of music technology and faking an analogue sound |url=https://www.musicradar.com/news/bola-discusses-the-changing-face-of-music-technology-and-faking-an-analogue-sound |access-date=24 January 2025 |work=Music Radar |date=31 July 2017 |language=en |archive-date=25 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250125041044/https://www.musicradar.com/news/bola-discusses-the-changing-face-of-music-technology-and-faking-an-analogue-sound |url-status=live }}
Recording
Brown and Booth have stated that they primarily compose their newer music utilising "the system"—a large network of synthesisers, software and other digital processes built primarily in Max.{{cite news |last1=Sherburne |first1=Philip |title=Autechre on Their Epic NTS Sessions, David Lynch, and Where Code Meets Music |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/autechre-interview-nts-sessions-david-lynch-where-code-meets-music/ |access-date=25 January 2025 |work=Pitchfork |date=9 August 2018 |archive-date=8 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190108100857/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/autechre-interview-nts-sessions-david-lynch-where-code-meets-music/ |url-status=live }} The duo have said in later interviews that the process is not entirely generative.{{cite news |last1=Pareles |first1=Jon |title=Autechre Worked in Isolation for Decades. Now It's Unintentionally Timely. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/13/arts/music/autechre-sign-interview.html |access-date=27 January 2025 |work=The New York Times |date=13 October 2020 |archive-date=14 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201014051235/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/13/arts/music/autechre-sign-interview.html |url-status=live }} Instead, human input is still required to make changes and "guide" the system during track creation.
For Exai, the duo decided to move away from MIDI, which was used during the recording of Quaristice, stating that it "wasn't quite what [they] wanted to be doing".{{cite news |title=Exploring the parameter space: A conversation with Autechre |url=https://nialler9.com/autechre-conversation-about-music-art-funk-and-emotion-interview/ |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Nialler9 |date=23 January 2024 |archive-date=15 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241215142512/https://nialler9.com/autechre-conversation-about-music-art-funk-and-emotion-interview/ |url-status=live }} Exai and its tracks were a product of trial runs with the new system, subsequently processed and edited into completed tracks. In an interview with Resident Advisor, Booth stated that Exai was discussed as a potential project at least a year before its release.{{cite news |last1=Muggs |first1=Joe |title=Autechre: elseq et al |url=https://ra.co/features/2756 |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Resident Advisor |date=8 June 2016}} According to Booth, most of the tracks were two or three years old when the album came out.
Composition
Exai has been described as electronic, experimental,{{cite news |last1=Ryce |first1=Andrew |title=Autechre - Exai · Album Review |url=https://ra.co/reviews/12427 |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Resident Advisor |date=7 March 2013 |archive-date=4 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240504201227/https://ra.co/reviews/12427 |url-status=live }} IDM,{{cite news |last1=Knapman |first1=James |title=Autechre :: Exai (Warp) |url=https://igloomag.com/reviews/autechre-exai-warp |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Igloo Magazine |date=16 March 2013 |archive-date=15 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241215142512/https://igloomag.com/reviews/autechre-exai-warp |url-status=live }} abstract and ambient.{{cite news |last1=Kellman |first1=Andy |title=Exai - Autechre |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/exai-mw0002472542#review |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=AllMusic |language=en}} Exai is spread across 17 tracks, making it a double album.{{cite news |last1=Frame |first1=Charlie |title=Autechre — Exai |url=https://thequietus.com/quietus-reviews/autechre-exai-review/ |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=The Quietus |date=25 February 2013}} Compared to Oversteps, one critic noted Exai was a lot more complex and "intelligent". Andy Kellman of AllMusic commented that many of the tracks on Exai were thrilling, and noted their accessibility. Kellman discussed tracks such as "recks on", calling it crisp, industrial and a hybrid of beats and bass; he also said that it was among one of the heaviest tracks Autechre had produced. Reviewing Exai for BBC Music, Chris Power called the track "Flep" a unique breakbeat-powered track.{{cite news |last1=Power |first1=Chris |title=BBC - Music - Review of Autechre - Exai |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/q9j9/ |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=BBC Music |date=2013 |archive-date=15 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241215142511/https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/q9j9/ |url-status=live }} The longest track on the album, "bladelores", is an echoing atmospheric track that contains a "wave of pads" surging throughout.
{{Listen
| filename = Autechre - T ess xi.mp3
| title = "T ess xi"
| pos = left
| description = The fifth track on Exai. "T ess xi" features a synthesiser-based melody and crunching drums
}}
In a review for The Quietus, Charlie Frame called the ten-minute track "irlite (get 0)" a battle between a sub-bass and a variety of random synth stabs. Frame also discussed "bladelores", calling it a highlight of the album. The track is made up of gradually slowing beats, trance-like chords and "gritty little acid squiggles", after which it becomes more ambient before it gets "[pulled] back under" and put "back into the boggy marsh". Frame also compared the track to "Cichli" and "Garbagemx36", two previous Autechre songs, in terms of its structure. Discussing Exai for Pitchfork, Grayson Haver Currin stated that the track "T ess xi" made use of "fluorescent soul keyboards" as a basic building block in its composition. Currin also discussed "deco Loc", describing how the duo used cut-up vocal samples and other repurposed sound which created appealing soundscapes and atmospheres.
Lee Wang of Slant called the album's closer "YJY UX" a moody and empty ambient track featuring "groaning" basslines.{{cite news |last1=Wang |first1=Lee |title=Review: Autechre, 'Exai' |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/autechre-exai/ |access-date=25 January 2025 |work=Slant |date=3 March 2013}} Wang also noted "T ess xi", a track reminiscent of Chiastic Slide. Andrew Ryce of Resident Advisor compared the melody of "jatevee C" to Incunabula, and characterised the rhythm of the track "tuinorizn" as stuttering dubstep. Josh Becker of Beats Per Minute called the song "cloudline" a "malformed ode to trip-hop".{{cite news |last1=Becker |first1=Josh |title=Album Review: Autechre – Exai |url=https://beatsperminute.com/album-review-autechre-exai/ |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Beats Per Minute |date=11 March 2013 |archive-date=26 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250126141844/https://beatsperminute.com/album-review-autechre-exai/ |url-status=live }} Becker also compared "Fleure" to "Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors" by Radiohead, both exemplifying the genre of glitch music.
Release
Exai was announced on 13 December 2012, originally planned for release on 5 March 2013.{{cite news |title=Warp / Records / Autechre / New album 'Exai' announced |url=http://warp.net/records/autechre/exai |work=Warp Records |access-date=15 December 2024 |date=13 December 2012 |archive-date=13 December 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121213200341/http://warp.net/records/autechre/exai}} The album was released unexpectedly early though digital platforms on 7 February 2013.{{cite news |title=Autechre releases new album a month early |url=https://www.factmag.com/2013/02/07/autechre-releases-new-album-a-month-early/ |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Fact |date=7 February 2013}} Exai was officially released on 2xCD by Beat Records in Japan on 27 February 2013, and on 4xLP and 2xCD by Warp on 5 March 2013.{{cite journal | url=https://www.spin.com/2012/12/autechre-new-two-hour-album-exai/ | author=McGovern, Kyle | title=Autechre Ready Two-Hour, Double-Disc Album 'Exai' | journal=Spin | date=13 December 2012 | accessdate=13 December 2012}}{{cite news |last1=Battan |first1=Carrie |title=Autechre Announce New, Two-Hour-Long Album |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/48942-autechre-announce-new-two-hour-long-album/ |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Pitchfork |date=13 December 2012 |archive-date=15 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241215142511/https://pitchfork.com/news/48942-autechre-announce-new-two-hour-long-album/ |url-status=live }}
Autechre typically release companion projects to accompany their albums;{{cite news |last1=Hughes |first1=Josiah |title=Autechre Drop Surprise New Album 'PLUS' |url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/autechre_drop_surprise_new_album_plus |access-date=26 January 2025 |work=Autechre Drop Surprise New Album 'PLUS' │ Exclaim! |issue=Exclaim! |date=28 October 2020 |language=en |archive-date=26 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250126141630/https://exclaim.ca/music/article/autechre_drop_surprise_new_album_plus |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Autechre: New Album Details |url=https://thequietus.com/news/autechre-new-album-details-exai/ |access-date=26 January 2025 |work=The Quietus |date=13 December 2012 |archive-date=26 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250126141825/https://thequietus.com/news/autechre-new-album-details-exai/ |url-status=live }} this includes Cichlisuite for Chiastic Slide,{{cite news |last1=Langley |first1=Keir |title=Cichlisuite - Autechre |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/cichlisuite-mw0001011387#review |access-date=26 January 2025 |work=AllMusic |language=en}} EP7 for LP5{{cite news |last1=Schreiber |first1=Ryan |title=Autechre: EP7 Album Review |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/363-ep7/ |access-date=26 January 2025 |work=Pitchfork |date=6 July 1999}} and Move of Ten for Oversteps.{{cite news |last1=Richardson |first1=Mark |title=Autechre: Move of Ten Album Review |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/14461-move-of-ten/ |access-date=26 January 2025 |work=Pitchfork |date=15 July 2010 |archive-date=28 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241228054813/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/14461-move-of-ten/ |url-status=live }} A companion EP to Exai, titled L-event, was announced on 16 September 2013,{{cite news |last1=Neyland |first1=Nick |title=Autechre: L-event EP Album Review |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/18672-autechre-l-event-ep/ |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Pitchfork |date=28 October 2013 |archive-date=15 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241215142512/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/18672-autechre-l-event-ep/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Autechre announce L-Event EP out next month on Warp |url=https://www.factmag.com/2013/09/16/autechre-announce-l-event-ep-out-next-month-on-warp/ |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Fact |date=16 September 2013 |archive-date=15 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250115215928/https://www.factmag.com/2013/09/16/autechre-announce-l-event-ep-out-next-month-on-warp/ |url-status=live }} releasing on 11 October 2013 on digital platforms and on 28 October 2013 on both CD and LP.{{cite web |title=Autechre - L-event. |url=https://bleep.com/release/46422-autechre-l-event |website=Bleep |access-date=19 May 2025 |date=11 October 2013}}{{cite web |title=Warp / Records / Releases / Autechre / L-event |url=https://warp.net/records/releases/autechre/l-event |website=Warp Records |access-date=19 May 2025 |archive-date=2 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002041610/http://warp.net:80/records/releases/autechre/l-event |url-status=live}}
Reception
{{Album ratings
| MC = 80/100{{cite web | url=http://www.metacritic.com/music/exai/autechre/critic-reviews | title=Critic Reviews for Exai | publisher=Metacritic | access-date=3 March 2013 | archive-date=5 March 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130305231255/http://www.metacritic.com/music/exai/autechre/critic-reviews | url-status=live }}
| rev1 = AllMusic
| rev2 = Beats Per Minute
| rev3 = Calgary Herald
| rev3score = {{rating|4|5}}{{cite news |last1=Marchand |first1=Francois |title=Now Hear This |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/488202792/ |access-date=25 January 2025 |work=Calgary Herald |date=5 March 2013 |location=Alberta, Canada |page=41 |archive-date=26 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250126141743/https://www.newspapers.com/image/488202792/ |url-status=live }}
| rev4 = Clash
| rev4score = 8/10{{cite news |last1=Bennett |first1=Matthew |title=Autechre - Exai |url=https://www.clashmusic.com/reviews/autechre-exai/ |access-date=25 January 2025 |work=Clash |date=4 March 2013}}
| rev5 = Exclaim!
| rev5score = 7/10{{cite news |last1=Storring |first1=Nick |title=Autechre│Exclaim! |url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/autechre-exai |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Exclaim! |date=4 March 2013 |language=en}}
| rev6 = The Line of Best Fit
| rev6score = 7.5/10{{cite news |last1=Hannan |first1=Thomas |title=Autechre – Exai |url=https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/reviews/albums/autechre-exai-119723 |access-date=20 May 2025 |work=The Line of Best Fit |date=5 March 2013}}
| rev7 = Mixmag
| rev7score = {{rating|4|5}}{{cite web |last1=Muggs |first1=Joe |title=AUTECHRE |url=https://mixmag.net/words/reviews/albums/autechre |website=Mixmag |accessdate=8 March 2013 |date=8 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130311160209/https://mixmag.net/words/reviews/albums/autechre |archive-date=11 March 2013 }}
| rev8 = Pitchfork
| rev8score = 5.9/10{{cite news |last1=Haver Currin |first1=Grayson |title=Autechre: Exai Album Review |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/17691-autechre-exai/ |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=Pitchfork |date=19 February 2013 |archive-date=15 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241215142512/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/17691-autechre-exai/ |url-status=live }}
| rev9 = PopMatters
| rev9score = 9/10{{cite news |last1=Fenwick |first1=Tom |title=Autechre: Exai |url=https://www.popmatters.com/168929-autechreexai-2495774104.html |access-date=25 January 2025 |work=PopMatters |date=6 March 2013 |archive-date=26 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250126142312/https://www.popmatters.com/168929-autechreexai-2495774104.html |url-status=live }}
| rev10 = Record Collector
| rev10score = {{rating|4|5}}{{cite web |last1=Atkins |first1=Jamie |title=Exai - Autechre |url=https://recordcollectormag.com/reviews/album/exai |website=Record Collector |accessdate=25 February 2013 |date=25 February 2013}}
| rev11 = Resident Advisor
| rev12 = The Skinny
| rev12score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite news |last1=Shukla |first1=Mark |title=Autechre – Exai – Album Review |url=https://www.theskinny.co.uk/music/reviews/albums/autechre-exai-album_review |access-date=20 May 2025 |work=The Skinny |date=13 February 2013 |language=en}}
| rev13 = Slant
| rev14 = The Irish Times
| rev14score = {{rating|3|5}}{{cite news |last1=Carroll |first1=Jim |title=Autechre: Exai |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/autechre-exai-1.1327252 |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=The Irish Times |date=6 March 2013 |language=en |archive-date=27 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250127215413/https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/autechre-exai-1.1327252 |url-status=live }}
}}
Exai was received positively by critics. At Metacritic, which aggregates scores from mainstream critics, Exai has an average score of 80 based on 26 reviews, indicating a score of "generally favorable".
Matthew Bennett of Clash gave Exai an 8/10, lauding the mixture of Autechre's older hip-hop sound with their newer programming. Lee Wang of Slant gave the album 4/5, writing that the album represented a "career-spanning work" that drew inspiration and ideas from throughout their discography. Brandon Bussolini of XLR8R wrote that the album "more consistently evokes the club" than other projects the duo had previously released.{{cite news |last1=Bussolini |first1=Brandon |title=Autechre Exai |url=https://xlr8r.com/reviews/exai/ |access-date=15 December 2024 |work=XLR8R |date=5 March 2013 |archive-date=26 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250126141638/https://xlr8r.com/reviews/exai/ |url-status=live }} For Exclaim!, Nick Storring stated that Exai was not cutting edge, but still full of detail and intensity. Thomas Hannan of The Line of Best Fit said the album could "really do with being broken up in to as many chunks as possible", but recommended people to listen to it, saying "there's always room in one's collection for records as smart as this".
Andrew Ryce of Resident Advisor compared the tracks on Exai to data overload, more prominent than on their previous projects. Concluding his review, Ryce felt the duo were more confident in their sound, but showed its real cohesion only in its "resistance to linearity and conventional melody". Tom Fenwick of PopMatters stated how Exai didn't mark a major shift in the duo's sound, but instead expanded on it and offered "unfathomable depths" for dedicated listeners. In a review for The Quietus, Charlie Frame commented that Exai drew ideas from entire Autechre's discography, while sound-wise remaining very similar to the projects such as Oversteps and Move of Ten. In the Calgary Herald review, Francois Marchand gave the album 4/5 stars; while Marchand noted the relatively unapproachable nature of Exai for new listeners, he highlighted it as one of the duo's most accessible albums.
Both Grayson Haver Currin (Pitchfork) and Andy Kellman (AllMusic) criticised Exai's tracklist, noting some songs should be shortened or cut out entirely. Mixmag{{'}}s Joe Muggs wrote that understanding the album wasn't easy, but nevertheless rewarding to the listener. Josh Becker of Beats Per Minute gave a positive review, praising the album's ability to "impl[y] melody" rather than displaying it outright. Writing for The Irish Times, Jim Carroll gave the album three stars, praising Exai for being as intense as other releases from the duo and their openness to take risks. Mark Shukla of The Skinny called Exai a "thrilling renewal that leaves them perfectly poised for whatever leap they may choose to make next". For BBC Music, Chris Power called the album "often abrasive and fidgety" and said it was easy to see it as the "first chapter of late-period Autechre" due to the duo revisiting past sounds with new focus.
Track listing
{{tracklist
| headline = Exai track listing
| all_writing = Sean Booth and Rob Brown
| title1 = Fleure
| length1 = 4:51
| title2 = irlite (get 0)
| length2 = 10:01
| title3 = prac-f
| length3 = 4:20
| title4 = jatevee C
| length4 = 4:14
| title5 = T ess xi
| length5 = 6:43
| title6 = vekoS
| length6 = 6:42
| title7 = Flep
| length7 = 6:43
| title8 = tuinorizn
| length8 = 3:40
| title9 = bladelores
| length9 = 12:20
| title10 = 1 1 is
| length10 = 7:18
| title11 = nodezsh
| length11 = 8:40
| title12 = runrepik
| length12 = 4:35
| title13 = spl9
| length13 = 7:06
| title14 = cloudline
| length14 = 10:13
| title15 = deco Loc
| length15 = 5:27
| title16 = recks on
| length16 = 9:22
| title17 = YJY UX
| length17 = 8:24
| total_length = 120:32
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = Japanese bonus track
| title18 = 18 (keyosc)
| length18 = 8:57
| total_length = 129:29
}}
Release history
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Autechre}}
{{Authority control}}