Oneohtrix Point Never

Morrow vs. Hajduch

Morrow vs. Hajduch: Oneohtrix Point Never’s Replica

Scott Morrow is ALARM’s music editor. Patrick Hajduch is a very important lawyer. Each week they debate the merits of a different album.

Oneohtrix Point Never: ReplicaOneohtrix Point Never: Replica (Software / Mexican Summer, 11/8/11)

Oneohtrix Point Never: “Replica”

[audio:http://alarm-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Oneohtrix_Point_Never_Replica.mp3|titles=Oneohtrix Point Never: “Replica”]

Hajduch: One-man experimental electronic project Oneohtrix Point Never is discussed in the same breath with all the other John Carpenter / kosmische / synthesizer music that has garnered attention the past few years (most notably, the oft-mentioned-here Emeralds). However, during that time, the Oneohtrix sound has wandered further and further from the reservation, incorporating blistering noise and looped samples. Replica continues this trend, layering the mournful polysynth washes with odd, clipped samples from television commercials.

Morrow: We talked about Daniel Lopatin‘s collaborative Ford & Lopatin (with Joel Ford of Tigercity) back in June, but that was a much more ’80s-influenced and synth-heavy album. Replica is very ambient, and though it may seem shapeless at first, there are all sorts of sampled melodies percolating beneath the surface. To those unaccustomed to this style, the album can come off as inaccessible or difficult to appreciate, but if you spend some time and immerse yourself in the waves of sound, it should grow on you. The subtlety of the music is best served with repeated listens.

Morrow vs. Hajduch

Morrow vs. Hajduch: Ford & Lopatin’s Channel Pressure

Scott Morrow is ALARM’s music editor. Patrick Hajduch is a very important lawyer. Each week they debate the merits of a different album.

Ford & Lopatin: Channel PressureFord & Lopatin: Channel Pressure (Software / Mexican Summer, 6/7/11)

Ford & Lopatin: “World of Regret”

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Hajduch: Ford & Lopatin (formerly Games) is comprised of Daniel Lopatin (a.k.a. Oneohtrix Point Never) and Joel Ford (from indie/’80s-pastiche band Tigercity).  Their music together is a jittery, looped amalgam of trashy ’80s vibes.  Riffs and vocals are recorded, deconstructed, down-sampled, and smashed back together.  Their previous output as Games was a hypnotic series of tightly looped samples from synth-pop hits that never existed.

Channel Pressure takes the conceit a step further, adding occasional lyrics and the nebulous idea of a concept album.  If you toned down the funk (and the length) of the poppier songs from Daft Punk‘s Discovery, and made them a bit more spastic, you’d approach the sound of Channel Pressure.

Morrow: To me, it sounds like Prefuse 73 twisting around the Miami Vice theme.  The ’80s synth sounds and fake drum hits are out of control.  Between those elements, the airy pop vocals, and the deep, bouncy bass, Channel Pressure has enough nostalgia to unleash a torrent of endorphins for anyone born before 1988. (Entertainingly, one song is titled “Too Much MIDI (Please Forgive Me).”)

But there’s enough of a modern and experimental twist (hence the slightly stretched Prefuse comparison), and that prevents it from being strict homage.

Tim Hecker

Tim Hecker: Reluctant Neo Eno

Montreal-based ambient electronic artist Tim Hecker recorded his most recent album, Ravedeath, 1972, in one day with a single church organ in Iceland. Then came the real work: meticulous editing, rearranging, and layering.

Morrow vs. Hajduch

Morrow vs. Hajduch: †‡†’s untitled CD-R

Scott Morrow is ALARM’s music editor. Patrick Hajduch is a very important lawyer. Each week they debate the merits of a different album.

†‡† CD-R†‡†: untitled CD-R (Disaro, 9/9/10)

†‡†: “Goth BB”
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Morrow: Verbalized and alternately written as Ritualz, †‡† is an unnamed man from an unknown location, making a relatively dark and/or Gothic version of electronic dance music.  He has been lumped with the “witch house” scene, which also has been dubbed “drag,” “haunted house,” and a few other things.

His sound is comparable to contemporaries like Salem, oOoOO, Mater Suspiria Vision, etc., and he’s far from the only one with the very-difficult-to-Google name.  There’s also I††, ▲▲▲, and other random combinations of symbols.

Morrow vs. Hajduch

Morrow vs. Hajduch: Roll the Dice

Scott Morrow is ALARM’s music editor. Patrick Hajduch is a very important lawyer. Each week they debate the merits of a different album.

Roll the Dice: s/t LPRoll the Dice: s/t LP (Digitalis, 6/8/10 — digital copies available via iTunes)

Roll the Dice: “The New Black”
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Hajduch: Swedish duo Roll the Dice are not a household name, but you may have heard their work as individuals before. Malcolm Pardon “continously composes for film and television,” while Peder Mannerfelt has long written music as The Subliminal Kid and most recently contributed to Fever Ray‘s album and touring line-up. Together, they make meditative, arpeggiated drone music using only synth and piano.