Beck. 4. Where itās at takes me back to being 15 and singing it in French lessons with my best mate Steve, Odelay sounded like nothing iād heard before. Sea Change is a masterpiece. Hit and miss with some albums but when heās on form heās amazing.
Always remember being astonished at the list of instruments he olays on the sleeve notes of Odelay
Beckās a weird one. I loved Odelsy at the time and I really liked Midnite Vultures too but Iāve drifted apart from him over the years and canāt remember the last time I listened to him. To my ear thereās always a faint trace of insincerity and shallowness in what he does and thatās something that I find completely distancing. 2.
I like the idea of Beck a lot. Specifically the Midnite Vultures/Odelay stuff. Just doesnāt quite hit like I feel it should. I mean sometimes it does but oftentimes nah.
My fave Beck is Sea Change Beck tho, back to basics. Rinsed Morning Phase when it came out, really love it.
Beck is an odd one, someone Iāve never really gone back to over the years even though some of the records were super fun to me at the time. Was always great live too. But then thereās the Scientology
3 I think?
Actually played this a lot last year when in the heights of a break up
Iām going with a 4 I think. Odelay is fucking great and was a really important thing for me to hear amidst all the britpop when it came out. I fucking love Midnite Vultures and Sexx Laws is one of the best songs for dancing to or dropping into a lull in a DJ set. Honestly though, I donāt think Iāve actively heard a note heās written since Guero, just hasnāt piqued my interest for some reason. Also a scientologist.
Beckās a sure thing 5 for me, one of my all time favourite artists.
First heard him on music television in the early when I was around 13/14 with Devilās Haircut, and bought Odelay off the back of it. I basically just enjoyed the shouting at the end of the song so was not expecting the multi-genre grab bag that makes up that album, was absolutely thrilled by it. Fundamentally expanded my music taste and became āmyā artist that I would talk to all my friends about. Itās been a delight following his career and genuinely never knowing where he will go next.
Itās a shame people seemed to go off him in the mid-2000s because I think things like The Information and Modern Guilt are some of the best things he has done, this track off the latter is amazing:
I would be lying if I did not recognise he has come off the boil a bit this past decade, but there are still some treats to be had in the last two albums. Up All Night, Wow and Dreams are all great fun and Hyperspace works well as a synthy counterpoint to Morning Phase (if you remove Saw Lightning).
Had a lovely drunken night with some pals recently who I didnāt know were Beck fans. We listened to the whole of Odelay and ended up buying tickets to his show (hopefully) next year.
Not an ATD but Iāve liked pretty much everything Iāve heard by him and I really should have listened to more of his stuff (I only know Mellow Gold, Odelay and Sea Change). A high 3 point something rounded up to a 4
