THE ORB VS AUTECHRE POLL

this is like picking between your arm and your leg!!

i never understood if this was a "remove from history" type of thing or "rest of your life" or "desert island disc" type thing or not.

like, if i had to pick one for the desert island, i'd pick the live one with the flying sheep, no problem. or maybe just the ultraworld one. yeah, no problem. anything with "little fluffy clouds" on it. "spanish castles" and "star 6 7 8 9" and that long "blue room" track is cool too. and OOBE, that's why i said the live one.

that said, 90% of autechre's catalog blows doors on everything post "uforb"

here's an interesting one:

orb remixes vs autechre remixes

just voted - vahid OTM. despite owning extremely large swaths of both of their discographies (all major releases/singles, most remixes), i voted for the Orb. because i haven't touched any of my Ae stuff in years, and i've been listening to the Orb a whole bunch lately, thanks to the UFOrb remaster. the orb also came first for me - 89, while autechre came sometime in 91/92 or so i believe. me & the orb simply go back further.

i actually listen to things in this order

"little fluffy clouds" / material + killing joke remixes about once a week

parts of "tri repetae", "chiastic slide" and certain gescom tracks or remixes about once a month

all other orb stuff about once every six months

all other autechre almost never

ha, i was listening to ultraworld earlier

i pick autechre, because for me tri repetae was one of those "paradigm shifting" albums which that thread i'm not gonna postto is about

I'm not a big Orb fan, but for me Autechre represents the worst of IDM (cold, soulless noodling), so I'll have to choose the former.

basically agree w. tuomas. cue ilm "aaaaaah, cold and soulless is good, not bad like you thought" post.

Orb, very obviously.

Cold yes soulless no. This is like picking between my appendix and my brain.

To be honest I have nothing agains coldness as such, I love stuff like Monolake, but with Autechre the coldness relates to their "abstract for abstractness' sake" aesthetics, and unlike with Monolake it doesn't seem to carry any other value with it. It's like those Kazimir Malevich paintings with nothing but a square or a rectangle in them - I see what their trying to do, and while I can appreciate the basic idea, the actual piece does nothing to me.

90s Orb > 90s Autechre > being beaten up > 00s Autechre > 00s Orb

Autechre a few half decent tracks, though I agree with Tuomas "cold & soulless". Something about the orb rubs me up the wrong way, everything I've ever heard by them I've found to be half-assed, lazy and intensely annoying. Autechre win for me, though it's not much of a win, you know?

But they have some awesome melodies hidden beneath all that abstraction. Pir on EP7 for example is incredibly haunting, if you can get over the crazy-ass drumkit falling down the stairs rhythm. (xp to tuomas)

But they have some awesome melodies hidden beneath all that abstraction.

YES!
Seconding Pir on EP7. Lots of beautiful Autechre stuff is everywhere. Dropp, also on EP7 is gorgeous as is almost every track on LP5. I feel like the two groups can't really be compared since their musical goals are very different. Autechre is where I discovered that electronic precision and emotion can coexist.

"Amber" is cold and soulless? The "Anvil Vapre EP"? The "Garbage" EP?

I'm also with Vahid here ... "Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld" is the best thing that either group has done, but Autechre's career >> The Orb's career. That said, if this is a desert island issue, then I'll quickly overdose on "Ultraworld" with the exception of songs like "Spanish Castles in Space", whereas Autechre can give me quality + quantity + more variability.

orb remixes vs autechre remixes

Now THIS is tough.

I don't know any Orb remixes... whaddya recommend?

They have two 2xCD remix collections, so I'd definitely recommend those. As for my favourites, it always comes down to Maurizio, "Ploy (Battersea Was An Island Of Mud Mix)" vs Erasure, "Ship Of Fools (Orbital Southsea Isles Of Holy Beats Mix)".

Autechre.

I don't know the Orb terribly well, pretty much just the album I've got -- Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld. I definitely need to give it more listens, but some of just sounds really dated to me in a way that say, early Aphex Twin, doesn't. Or it sounds dated in a bad way whereas Selected Ambient Works Vol. 1 sounds dated in a good, very interesting way. When I feel like listening to early 90s ambient techno I usually just listen to those early Aphex albums.

You could say the same about Autechre, that they're dated, that you can't get more stereotypically late-90s/early 00s IDM than them. But most of their stuff holds up incredibly well. Mind you I definitely prefer their 90s work to their 00s work.

So it's not a fair vote for me, since I know a lot more of Autechre's albums than Orb's. But the heights of Tri Repetae++ alone would make me vote Autechre.

I think the "dated" criticisms are a bit unfair ... Autechre might sound "stereotypical" and dated because 49328 other groups ripped them off so faithfully, which is hardly Autechre's fault.

i agree - i said that "you could say the same about autechre" but that i ultimately don't think they sound dated.

Autechre might sound "stereotypical" and dated because 49328 other groups ripped them off so faithfully, which is hardly Autechre's fault.

and this is very OTM

æ releases i like: everything 93-97, the peel sessions, confield, that 8 hr radio broadcast
orb releases i like: none. fuck those cheesy bastards

something about the orb is kind of cheesy

everything sounds dated when you're an old fart!!!!!!!!!!

i think an autechre live lp would trounce orb live 93 and that's one of my top orb albums.

this poll = stuffed animals vs. HAL

I'm voting for The Orb, but only because I own Orb albums and have never, to my knowledge, heard a note of Autechre's music. I'm not proud of that, but even if I had, The Orb would still win if only for the fact that Alex Paterson was a Killing Joke roadie.

so Orb in a landslide then? I'm surprised!

also Alex if you've ever been around white noise, a dot matrix printer or a a yamaha FM keyboard made in 1991, chances are you've heard quite a bit of autechre's music

Orb 00's is WAAYYYYYY > Ae 00's -- the Kompakt album cements that...(never mind the fact that it's basically a Thomas Fehlmann album...)

Autechre has some fucking garbage tracks

I'm not sure I understand the whole Killing Joke / Julian Cope affinity from the KLF / Orb circle... weird development

http://static.rateyourmusic.com/album_images/34110.jpg

x-post

autechre mainly for LP5 which is one of my few favorite 'IDM' albums

i never liked tri repetetae as much as a lot of people seem to, though i do love the first 2 tracks on it and a few of the others

I'm wondering if the Orb will get any revivalism going on due to Panda Bear proppage. As far as 'Person Pitch' is 'dub pop' in places you can hear it's Paterson type dub.

doubtful

I liked Alex Patterson's recent interview about his favourite views of London observed from travelling by public transport (trains and buses).

x-post

I guess as long as Paterson keeps on sporadically putting out really shit records not..

the new Orb album is great and the newish Orbessions vol2 is also great listening. Orb all the way.

No Autechre album in 2 years, even though I didn't rate the last two some news in that direction would still make me :)

I've always liked Autechre way better than The Orb...more serious/innovative with definitely more interesting sounds. The only Orb piece that has stuck with me is "Little Fluffy Clouds".

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Cold yes soulless no. This is like picking between my appendix and my brain.

-- ledge, Monday, November 19, 2007 12:01 PM (1 month ago)

huh?

autechre

I've never met an autechre fan who was as smart as listening to autechre made them think they were

what about me? you never met me.

this poll is a quiz for all the autechre fans I've never met

what was your answer, finally?

i picked autechre, for some dumb reason.

worst Orb track ever? 'Mickey Mars'

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

lots of votes! too bad lurkers are RONG

so, how about that new orb record

It's pretty good

i had no idea they'd put as much stuff out as they have done since 'Cydonia'

hahaha steve I had a similar reaction "they're still working!?! after that mickey mars bullshit?!?" as if techno musicians get fired

This is nonsensical. I do not understand you people.

Despite really liking that as our thread killer I want to hear more justification for this decision

This is nonsensical. I do not understand you people.

don't look at me man I voted Orb in '07 all the way

Autechre's great but the Orb are infinitely more fun

Can't believe the amount of votes

IDM lurkers everywhere. I don't even think I remembered to vote (and how this cannot be the Orb is beyond me--"Blue Room" alone>>>>>>>>>>>anything Autechre has ever done!)

i'm one of these infamous lurker i'm afraid.

sorry but i've barely listened to the orb in years. i downloaded their kompakt album from a couple of years back...which was nice but might as well have been a thomas fehlmann lp. recently had another listen to uf orb but sounded dated to these ears.

i can't remember if i voted for in this, but u.f.orb ends with the sound of an elephant shitting which has to count for something.

I love the Orb to death, but I'm really confused and bothered by the fact that I have yet to see a single review of their new album or talk to anyone who has heard it.

Yeah, it's eerie. It's not even listen on AMG. I have it and I really like it, but I probably like Okie Dokie and Bicycles & Tricycles more.

listen = listed

I voted Orb, too.

well technically it's only been released in Japan, right? I know for certain it isn't out domestically in the US, and i'm pretty damn sure it's not out in the UK or europe either...

I got the UFOrb remaster for Xmas and recently had another listen to uf orb but sounded dated to these ears dude wants to get his ears traded in for some shits that work.

(also, y'know, reexamine his shonky aesthetic compass and stuff but hey ho this is always a waste of breath nicht war?)

I voted Orb, if only for the first album and even if only for "Little Fluffy Clouds."

still not seeing why sounding 'dated' (as in 'of it's time') is a problem.

i guess sounding 'dated' isn't neccessarily a bad thing - i might pull out uf orb once in a while. but only for nostalgic reasons.

Yeah, I'm like that with Mozart.

i love confield but this is orb all day

orblivion is my jamz

orblivion almost makes me want to watch that david thewlis movie

anybody check out that "Transit Kings" supergroup bullshit? Was it as awful as it seems like it should have been?

I think I might just go splurge and get the new one on import along with both uforb + ultraworld deluxe editions

and what can you explain why nobody has ever taken a two-bar from "Eutow" for to make a rap song

or, even better, 'Foil'

I just splurged

I am on the verge of buying all these Orb albums from Amazon.

UFOrb has kicked my butt all day and I haven't even put the remix disc on.

I just ordered everything that isn't available from the MP3 store, dan

well and the kompakt one since I prefer my fehlmann mixed way in the background, I'm not really a big fan of his other solo stuff

maybe Autechre should do a Back To Mine. it would probably be half Motown.

Hmmn. Why doesn't the deluxe edition of UFOrb include the awesome bonus disc that was on the US first pressings? I guess I won't be "upgrading" anytime soon.

seriously, it doesn't even have the full version of "blue room"

bicycles & tricycles is GOOD, folks

I would also have something to say about the new one if my computer had a WORKING OPTICAL DRIVE

Fucking hell boys. This is an absurd argument. As good as the Orb are/is Autechre are in another league. It's like comparing aluminium against a MacBook Pro.

autechre's output post-'99 could just as easily come out of a fucking radio telescope.

It's like comparing aluminium against a MacBook Pro.

perfectly useful material for building all manner of things versus an overpriced contraption for starbucks sipping blogger cunts?

Is it worth 20 fine canadian dollars to see Autechre live? Probably not, huh? Never seen any of the big 90's warp acts, or anyone of the sort, but for $20, you better take me back in time by 10 years when there would be a more of guarantee of being interesting.

I spend most of my working week in a dimly lit room going back and forth between boredom and frustration along with a bunch of other dudes who know lots about computers so an autechre live show sounds like something I would bill overtime for, not pay to see

Burned.

And anyways, this poll was clearly rigged by Diebold. It's clear that The Orb is the superior candidate.

bullshit results

^^^ correct

has anyone heard the Pomme Fritz 2CD reissue? it's my favorite Orb release, and I'm tempted, but my feelings would be really hurt if the second disc ended up being pointless

i have heard it and it is at least as good as the original disc. i also really love the bonus disc for Orbus Terrerum or whatever the one with the map is called.