Replica

For his sixth outing under the project name Oneohtrix Point Never, Brooklyn DIY wunderkind Daniel Lopatin entered a proper studio and created his most immediately accessible work so far. Which, to be fair, is not to say listeners are going to walk away from Replica humming the tunes, just that the tunes are there alongside the swirling, crackling drones. Lopatin plays more piano than before; indeed, the genuinely lovely title track has the instrument right up front, playing a meditative tune that recalls some of the post-minimalist composers of the '70s and '80s before cutting off suddenly mid-phrase. (In interviews promoting the album, Lopatin has noted seminal jazz fusion label ECM Records as a key touchstone.) Several tracks feature ghostly vocals reportedly looped and adapted from TV ads, which fit nicely with the generally low-key feel of the album. Even when a kinetic drum pattern emerges on "Nassau," over halfway through the album, it's quickly subsumed into a pacific shimmer, and the polyrhythmic first half of "Up" is closer to early '80s Peter Gabriel than modern dancefloor fodder. An album that reveals intriguing new details with every listen, Replica is Lopatin's finest work so far.