For studio album No. 10, English electronic music duo Autechre decided to experiment a little.

Oversteps is a sprawling masterpiece for the IDM (intelligent dance music, a subgenre of electronica that is full of stuttering, nontraditional instruments and experimentation) genre. From the gloomy album opener "r ess," we are presented with what Aphex Twin could have sounded like if Richard D. James actually did have a twin.

These songs sound very little like each other; there are some post-industrial cuts like "qplay" and "ilanders," but there's also more ambient music like "see on see" and "O=0."

This album is a bit more mellow than other Autechre releases like Chiastic Slide or Draft 7.30. They retain their traditional feel with "st epreo" and "redfall" at the end of the album, while final song "Yuop" sounds more like an experiment with feedback manipulation than anything else.

Oversteps isn't an incredibly remarkable album. Over their 23-year history they've influenced a lot of other artists, but it seems like they're struggling to maintain the sonic fire that once was their trademark. Squarepusher and u-Ziq have also been slowing down, but fortunately, new artists like Aliceffekt and Kid606 are pushing boundaries and releasing innovative music that shows a bright future for experimental electronica, even if that future is lacking Autechre.

Vaughn Fortier-Shultz is a sophomore at Academy for Technology and the Classics. You can reach him at moosemanxl@gmail.com.