Oneohtrix Point Never's "Replica":

Since Oneohtrix Point Never’s (OPN) new album “Tranquilizer” is releasing tomorrow, I thought it would be a good idea to write about another album of his in anticipation. When finding an album  I knew would be a good introduction to him as well as be a great listening experience in general, I looked no further than “Replica.” 

When I first heard “Replica” and OPN in general, it was from listening to a different album from one of his aliases. Chuck Person’s “Chuck Person’s Eccojams Vol. 1” is the album I listened to, and it coincidentally is one of the very first albums in a genre called vaporwave.

When looking for more albums  like “Eccojams,” I looked for more albums by the person who made it and found “Replica.”. 

“Replica” turned out not to be a vaporwave album, or fit into any genre at all, yet I enjoyed it heavily. Through mostly plundered samples, the album somehow feels like it’s trying to be its own living thing and like a machine at the same time. I guess you could say it sounds like a robotic replica of a human. 

The album starts off with the songs “Andro” and “Power of Persuasion,” which are good introductions to the rest of the album. “Andro” comes in with an overwhelming sense of wonder. The samples here are very welcoming, almost like a hug. Later in the song, it sounds like it beckons the listener closer at points, as well, adding more layers of samples in its second half. “Power of Persuasion” perfectly introduces OPN’s brand of melodrama, bringing in piano melodies which often segue into bite-sized looping segments. These piano melodies and looping segments eventually meld into a singular melody before almost completely dropping out and ending with a final looping segment. 

The next song, “Sleep Dealer,” is the only song I had listened to before listening to the album in full. This song is one of the more overt examples of sounding like the music is trying to be its own living thing. The samples sort of have a glitchy effect, which sounds to me like the song is struggling at expressing a cohesive thought. The looping segments, which  are similar to “Power of Persuasion” and will be present on the rest of the album, are at their most confused point here. The almost percussive moments of the samples and almost random-sounding notes sound like the song is trying to reload a thought while in the middle of creating it. “Sleep Dealer” is also arguably the catchiest song on the album for me. 

“Remember” is almost calming initially, with a choral-sounding intro, but throughout the song, it brings in more uneasy elements. The sample repeatedly saying the title of the track adds an anxious touch as soon as it comes in, making it sound like the song itself is almost trying to remember something in an anxious fashion despite being in the background.

Later in the song, the singing eventually blends in together and another singing sample on top of the first comes in, making it sound to me like the song itself is trying to put down the first sample by bringing in a new one. This adds an air of uneasiness to me as it transitions to the next songs. 

“Replica” and “Nassau” represent the most emotional-sounding part of the album.

“Replica" starts off with a piano line that continues to loop as different synthesized elements come in. When these elements come in one by one, it sounds like the song is feeling a profound sadness. Near the end of the song, a sawtooth-sounding synth comes in, which sounds like a sort of background nervousness, like the sample in “Remember.”  

The song does a good job  adding these elements but keeping some of the space between notes of the piano loop. The space between notes really helps the song drive in an air of helplessness throughout. The sample going into a separate looping piano section on “Nassau” sounds like someone trying to explain something as normal, but strong and pulsing emotion hits them like a bus.  

“Submersible” gives us an opportunity to have a breather during the album. It does a good job of adding a calm, synth-driven song that hearkens back to OPN’s older albums while keeping the overall feel of the album.  

“Up” and “Child Soldier” are two of the more sample-heavy songs on the album. “Up” feels like a rebirth compared to the hopelessness and sudden emotion of “Replica” and “Nassau.”

“Up” begins with a looping sample of drums and fades into synths that sound cautiously optimistic. The song feels like it’s trying to bring itself to work on feeling happier through the twinkling synths near the ending.  

“Child Soldier” is a unique song in the case where the samples throughout are freer to stand on their own instead of serving a more broad, emotional synth line like previous songs on the album. The song feels like it’s trying to have a conversation with you, even though it still has trouble communicating. 

“Explain” ends the album with an ascending feel not found in other parts of the album. While it still holds some anxious-sounding elements of previous songs, such as the sawtooth synth from “Replica,” the song recognizes those elements and relates them to newfound peace on the album. No longer does the being throughout the album have uneasy feelings, but instead they found  hope and peace and can get better. 

OPN throughout “Replica” somehow crafted a story which felt like the music itself was trying to communicate its living status through emotion. When relistening to “Replica” for this review, I could feel the emotion and follow the story so closely like I did when I listened to it the first time. I cannot wait to see what story OPN tells on “Tranquilizer” on the 21^st.