R Plus Seven

R Plus Seven
Studio album by Oneohtrix Point Never
Released October 1, 2013
Genre Ambient, experimental, electronic, plunderphonics
Length 42:56
Label Warp
Producer Daniel Lopatin, Paul Corley
Oneohtrix Point Never chronology

Instrumental Tourist
(2012)		 R Plus Seven
(2013)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source Rating
Metacritic 81/100[1]
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [2]
Clash [3]
Consequence of Sound [4]
Filter (86/100)[5]
Mojo [6]
Pitchfork (8.4/10)[7]
Rolling Stone [8]
The Skinny [9]
Spin [10]
The Wire Positive[11]

R Plus Seven is a 2013 album by American musician Oneohtrix Point Never, his debut release on Warp Records. The album title is a reference to the French procedural writing technique Oulipo, which can involve the "N+7" technique of replacing any noun with the seventh one to follow it in the dictionary.[12]

Background

Having previously released albums on various labels, including his own, Software, Daniel Lopatin's signing to Warp Records was announced in June 2013.[13]

Prior to the release of 'R Plus Seven', Dan Lopatin collaborated with various artists on a number of music videos and revisions to pointnever.com, including Nate Boyce,[14] Takeshi Murata[15] and Jon Rafman.[16]

The cover art is a still taken from the 1982 film 'Le ravissement de Frank N. Stein', by Swiss animator Georges Schwizgebel.[17]

Critical reception

Upon its release, R Plus Seven was acclaimed by music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received an average score of 81, which indicates "universal acclaim", based on 30 reviews.[1] On the album, Heather Phares of Allmusic wrote: "For the most part, the album showcases Oneohtrix Point Never's restlessness and ambition in flattering ways; if it's equal parts mystifying and beautiful, it's also a puzzle well worth trying to figure out."[2] Sasha Geffen of Consequence of Sound stated: "R Plus Seven might be the first album to crystallize the simultaneous joy and terror inherent in a life of constant connection and constant surveillance"[4] Mark Richardson of Pitchfork awarded the album with "best new music" tag and wrote: "R Plus Seven doesn’t have quite the disembodied weirdness of Replica, but it’s no less accomplished, another intriguing chapter from an artist whose work remains alive with possibility."[7] Marty Sartini Garner of Filter also compared the album to the artist's previous work: "R Plus Seven isn’t the masterpiece of technical error that its predecessor was; it’s the dissection of a heart."[5] Andy Beta of Spin wrote: "With his first album for Warp, OPN proves his mettle amid labelmates like Aphex Twin and Flying Lotus."[10] Bram E. Gieben of The Skinny stated: "A visionary artist at the height of his powers, this is in many ways his most accessible and uplifting work so far," while also adding that "each track contains distinct movements, bearing out the occasional comparisons made between Lopatin's work and classical composition."[9]

Nevertheless, Louis Pattison of NME was mixed in his assessment of the record: "There are a few moments of elegant sensuality--like the tumbling, androgynous voices of 'He She'--but by and large it's like one of Jeff Koons' uber-kitsch sculptures: gleaming, opulent, but kinda hard to love."[18] Andy Battaglia of Rolling Stone described the album as "holy music, even if wholly weird," while comparing it to the works of composers Philip Glass and Steve Reich in terms of rhythm and repetition.[8]

Track listing

All music composed by Daniel Lopatin.

No. Title Length
1. "Boring Angel"   4:16
2. "Americans"   5:17
3. "He She"   1:32
4. "Inside World"   3:53
5. "Zebra"   6:44
6. "Along"   5:23
7. "Problem Areas"   3:06
8. "Cryo"   2:47
9. "Still Life"   4:53
10. "Chrome Country"   5:05

Japanese bonus track

No. Title Length
11. "Gone"   1:06

Personnel

R Plus Seven personnel, as adapted from Allmusic.[19]

Technical personnel
Artwork and design

Charts

Chart (2013) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[20] 111
UK Albums (OCC)[21] 134
UK Dance Albums (OCC)[22] 28
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[23] 37
US Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[24] 11
US Top Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[25] 16

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "R Plus Seven - Oneohtrix Point Never Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic". Metacritic.com. Retrieved 2014-10-26.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Phares, Heather. "R Plus Seven Oneohtrix Point Never". Allmusic. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  3. ↑ Diver, Mike (2013-09-16). "Oneohtrix Point Never - R Plus Seven". Clash. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Geffen, Sasha (2013-10-03). "Album Review: Oneohtrix Point Never - R Plus Seven". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2013-10-03.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Sartini Garner, Marty (2013-10-11). "Oneohtrix Point Never 'R Plus Seven' Album Review". Filter magazine, issue 53 (Fall 2013). Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  6. ↑ Worthy, Stephen (2013-10-20). "'R Plus Seven' Album Review". Mojo magazine, issue 240 (November 2013), p.89. Retrieved 2013-10-20.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Richardson, Mark (2013-10-04). "Oneohtrix Point Never R Plus Seven". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Battaglia, Andy (2013-10-01). "'R Plus Seven' Album Review". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Gieben, Bram E. (2013-09-10). "Oneohtrix Point Never - R Plus Seven – review". The Skinny. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Beta, Andy (2013-10-02). "Oneohtrix Point Never and Nicolas Jaar's Darkside Serve Up Noirish, Sensuous Hypnosis". Spin. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  11. ↑ Keenan, David (2013-10-11). "Oneohtrix Point Never 'R Plus Seven' album review". The Wire magazine, issue 355 (September 2013). Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  12. ↑ "Simulacra & Simulation: An interview with Oneohtrix Point Never". 2013-10-01. Retrieved 2014-02-09.
  13. ↑ "Warp Debut 'R Plus Seven' out in September". 2013-06-19. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  14. ↑ "Watch 'Still Life' (Excerpt) Video from Nate Boyce". 2013-06-25. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  15. ↑ "Listen to 'Problem Areas', the first track taken from 'R Plus Seven' out in September". 2013-08-01. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  16. ↑ "Watch 'Still Life (Betamale)' video and stream 'R Plus Seven' in full on NPR". 2013-09-25. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
  17. ↑ "Oneohtrix Point Never – R Plus Seven". Discogs. Retrieved February 11, 2014.
  18. ↑ Pattison, Louis (September 27, 2013). "Oneohtrix Point Never - 'R Plus Seven'". NME. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  19. ↑ "Oneohtrix Point Never – R Plus Seven". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 October 2013.
  20. ↑ "Oneohtrix Point Never – R Plus Seven" (in Dutch). Ultratop.be. Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  21. ↑ "CHART: CLUK Update 12.10.2013 (wk40)". zobbel.de. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  22. ↑ "2013-10-12 Top 40 Dance Albums Archive". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  23. ↑ "2013-10-12 Top 40 Independent Albums Archive | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  24. ↑ "Oneohtrix Point Never Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Dance/Electronic Albums for Oneohtrix Point Never. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  25. ↑ "Oneohtrix Point Never Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Top Heatseekers Albums for Oneohtrix Point Never. Retrieved October 26, 2014.

External links