Music Review: Autechre - Incunabula(1993)

The debut album of one of the most important Electronic music artists of the past generation, Autechre, Incunabula is more of a collection of early works than a proper album, but because the style is relatively the same throughout the works, it makes perfect sense listened to as an organic album. Autechere are a remarkable duo of electronic musicians(Rob Brown and Sean Booth), not least because of the slow-burning progression of their career from experimental dance floor music(such as this album) to music of such cerebral complexity later in their career that some fans found it incomprehensible(the album Confield). Incunabula (the plural of the latin word incunabulum, which means in the early stages of development) finds them at a fairly accessible period, expertly mixing dance-floor ready beats with cerebral sounds and unconventional structures. Taking a cue from the minimalist art music aesthetic, Autechre gradually builds their tracks up layer by layer, over time, giving them a strange mix of surrealism and detail that no other electronic artists have quite been able to achieve. Over time, their formula has been explored, deepened, and interpolated to such an expert degree that all of their albums have rewards to be found on them if you are open to new ways of musical thinking. Incunabula lays the groundwork for all to follow, but even the groundwork is made with such skill that this is a 90's classic. Don't miss it. Incunabula on amazon