Magic Oneohtrix Point Never is a study on change and seeking meaning in the unwanted. Drawing from pop, new age, and easy listening, with a thoughtful and curious experimentation, Magic… turns simple sounds into lush compositions that pull you in and carry you through an unforgettable album.
Magic... is built on a constant sensation of change and transformation. Instrumental or sample heavy interludes appear between many songs, giving a sort of tonal context to be interpreted through the following track. Some, like “Bow Ecco”, provide a raw musical framework for what will come next. Others, like the four “Cross Talk” interludes, exude a chaotic energy that is reminiscent of a Lizzie Fitch & Ryan Trecartin film.
The songs often feel like vignettes, sliding and morphing through their time. “Auto and Allo”, for example, starts with a chaotic, arhythmic scattering of chimes and vocal sampling before melting into a cascade of synths, strings, and effected singing. Similarly, “The Whether Channel” spends its first half oscillating between a soft melody built by swelling synths decorated with a rhythmless bleeping, and a buzzy, chaotic mash of saws, plucked strings, and pads. Seamlessly, it moves from these contrasting tones into a disconcerting mash of distorted vocal samples before giving way to a rap section which pulls apart at the seams, the vocals disintegrating into a bit mashed buzz.
This micro-movement approach to composition keeps the fabric of the album cohesive, even when tonal shifts between individual tracks are enormous. “No Nightmares” feels almost like it could have been pulled from a radio hit, but tonally smashes into “Cross Talk III”, a collage of disconcerting and highly processed vocal samples, which in turn leads into the chaotic introduction of “Tales from the Trash Stratum”. Despite the wildly different tones and instrumentation, these shifts feel right - they serve to underline the thesis of transformation and change that carries us through the album.
As infatuated as I am with these shifts, it’s easy for me to imagine someone unfamiliar with Oneohtrix Point Never’s work being overwhelmed - it’s certainly not a deeply accessible work. While I find myself carried by the rapid shifting not only from song to song, but even within individual tracks, I can imagine hearing the album and becoming frustrated and anxious from the lack of closure. This lack of closure, though, is integral to the themes of the album. Change is often anxiety-inducing and uncertain, and it happens faster than we can be ready for it. Magic Oneohtrix Point Never embraces the uncertainty of change, and revels in both the anxiety and beauty of it.
Magic Oneohtrix Point Never is available now from Warp Records.