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Not since "LP5" has being impressed been so obviously secondary to enjoyment.
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Even while Quaristice is in some ways the most listenable album they've created in a decade, it's ultimately no easier to parse, and can be very rough going indeed if you're not in the mood for their peculiar world.
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UncutIt's their best since 1995's "LP5." [Apr 2008, p.83]
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Quaristice demonstrates Autechre’s ability to pop in every few years with a firm grasp on the present state of electronic music and a strong sense of the compositional.
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MojoIt's a fantastic collection, there's still nothing else remotely like it. [Apr 2008, p.104]
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Q MagazineWhile the maverick spirit that drives this pair is admirable, it doesn't make the end result any more enjoyable. [Apr 2008, p.102]
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There are ideas here that could have been developed into a stunning 10-track album. Unfortunately, Quaristice contains 20 ‘tunes’, many of them elusively experimental ear-tormenters.
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Autechre albums have been famously challenging in the past, but Quaristice is an easier way in, and impresses with its structure, its continued innovation in texture and in the way every sound remains vital, even in the course of a seventy minute album.
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Under The RadarThe music is challenging to be sure, but cannot be disregarded outright due to several moments where everything seems to click. [Spring 2008, p.88]
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Quaristice, though it contains plenty of ingenuity and microscopic beauty across its 20 tracks, often feels trapped by its own twitchy algorithms.
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Its layers upon layers of ideas and electronic noise require a level of repeat digestion far, far removed from the instant gratification and heart-on-sleeve emotions dominating the musical landscape. And that’s never a bad thing when done with the innate skill and passion for progression heard here.
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Get past glitchy irritants like 'SonDEremawe' and an artful payoff of cerebral, booty-shaking decadence awaits on their ninth album.
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Quaristice seems most comfortable amidst the modern scrum, a soundtrack for mundane urban maneuvers.
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After many detailed listens, the record feels like their strongest yet, a bold statement considering the importance of their previous works.
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When you have to think this hard about music, it becomes a somewhat joyless ride, especially since Booth and Brown deny the listener a single danceable beat until track 10.
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Quaristice can occasionally be on the sloggish side. However, there's a lot to admire in such a brazen display of accomplishment, and, while it may not be looking to court the most gushing of affection, this will undoubtedly prove to be one of '08's most singular releases.
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There’s a more tangible sense of calm on Quaristice (Warp), the ninth full-length release by Sean Booth and Rob Brown, electronic programmers who record together as Autechre. But it flickers and fluctuates, often dissolving out of frame.
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FilterThe album is a suprisingly wonderful effort--perhaps even the duo's best in a decade. [Winter 2008, p.96]
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Quaristice--the band’s 9th full length, with about as many EPs--is probably the best album Autechre could have created at this point in their career.
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At times it feels like a lot is going on, others not so much. The pieces are all there, but it just doesn't add up to more than the sum of its parts.
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Delusions of AdequacyQuaristice does an excellent job of mixing the two sides of Autechre into one cohesive running narrative.
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Quaristice demands to be heard, but stubbornly refuses to be the soundtrack of your life. That's art, and perhaps it's only pegged as "difficult" because it won't sing along with you; neither will the Chrysler Building, but that doesn't make it any less beautiful.
User score distribution:
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Positive: 20 out of 25
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Mixed: 3 out of 25
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Negative: 2 out of 25
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AndreD.Mar 10, 2008
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EricC.May 5, 2008
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MatthewB.Mar 27, 2008