- Daniel Lopatin is on a winning streak. The past decade has seen him become one of modern electronics' most critically acclaimed artists, for both his work under the Oneohtrix Point Never name as well as a myriad of other genre dabbling pseudonyms. With his original soundtrack for last year’s Good Time receiving widespread attention, Age Of seems poised to capitalize on this heightened cultural relevance.
However, decidedly retro-futurist pastiches can be a big ask sometimes. The record is littered with synthetic harpsichord, contrived vocal passages, and sports cover art straight out of a Twilight Zone episode. It simultaneously feels more human than Oneohtrix's coldest moments, yet, perhaps unsurprisingly, completely disconnected from our reality.
The album’s first half establishes an ethereal world of sound, bouncing between ambient, minimalist, and Baroque influences, often within the same track. Unfortunately, these musical reference points only distract from OPN’s lackluster songwriting abilities. On surface level, the production is immersive and beautiful, but repeated listens highlight a lack of cohesion.
Take Toys 2 for example, the record’s longest cut spends its time wandering through a series of disjointed ambient moments. It’s an enjoyable listen at the time but, like much of the record, leaves me feeling somewhat empty. The track listing too seems almost randomly generated, with sporadic individual sections aimlessly colliding into each other.
Age Of’s vocals are another sticking point for me, with both Lopatin and guest singer ANOHNI popping up multiple times to varying effect. I feel the eccentric sung melodies on Same bring a lot of character, but find the vapid auto-crooned lead of Babylon to be utterly unbearable. It once again speaks to the record’s lack of cohesion that this single feature is responsible for both my most and least favourite moments.
Luckily, things pick up a bit in the second half with Warning and We’ll Take It showcasing excellent compositional control. This album is actually full of beautiful melodies, but often fails to develop them into anything interesting. This often makes most songs feel like understated interludes, even when I’m not sure that was the intention. Though, Oneohtrix’s production is so good that Age Of is still an enjoyable listen, even if it fails to coalesce into an effective album.
I’m reminded of both Kanye’s Yeezus and Björk’s Utopia, records which present a sonic world that’s intriguingly unique, but inherently flawed. Age Of sounds like a computerized fairytale, but one that’s at times too intangible to have real impact. Lopatin’s skills at manipulating sound are clearly improving, but moving his art forward also exposes some glaring weaknesses. Still, you have to respect the guy for continuing to push himself, and fans are sure to enjoy wherever he goes next.
- Boddhi Farmer.