Skip to main content

Beck

23
Beck
Beck

With just two turntables and microphone Beck became one of the most popular artists of all time, becoming more popular than Jeff Beck somehow. Okay, maybe more than the turntables and microphone, there was harmonicas and acoustic guitars and strings and the like. From 1988 to 1992 Beck would record and self release tapes. Equal parts Daniel Johnston, early Bob Dylan, and Neil Young. He would finally get to indie-label status with 1993’s Golden Feeling. 1994’s Stereopathetic Soulmanure followed, as did 1994’s One Foot In The Grave (containing the awesome song “Rowboat”, which Johnny Cash would later cover.). But where a lot of people, including myself, really see his discography starting, the Beck we all know and love today, is with 1994’s Mellow Gold, containing the hit “Loser”. I remember being at Best Buy and trying to get into Beck, and the guy working there suggested this one. Although it is a personal favorite of mine, it is a hard sell and entry point for any new Beck fan. It is a beautiful portrait of where Beck was at the moment, a perfect snapshot: still rooted in his lo-fi DIY roots, but about to master the studio and make it his next instrument. Beck’s single “Loser” brought him into the mainstream where he would stay until today. After Mellow Gold came my personal favorite, 1996’s Odelay. One of the best albums from the 90’s, scratch that, one of the best albums ever, it is a magic-carpet-ride through samples and strong songwriting. “Where It’s At”, “Jackass”, “Devils Haircut”… this album never grows old. It’s timeless. 1998’s disco-funk-R&B fusion Midnite Vultures could (and should!) be considered the greatest album dedicated to partying ever. 2002’s emotional Sea Change gave all future musicians the perfect blueprint for what a break up album should feel and sound like. Odelay’s spiritual companion piece Guero (Spanish slang for “white-boy”)  came next, and was the first Beck album I bought (and was also his best performing album: reaching #2 on the Billboard charts.) 2006’s The Information and 2008’s Danger Mouse produced Modern Guilt was a double-hitter, and then the Grammy award winning and Sea Change companion piece (in sound if not spirit) Morning Phase. Finally, to get all caught up to speed, 2014’s Colors and last year’s (2019’s) Hyper Space. From Odelay to Guero, Beck really ignited an artistic streak like no other. Never failing to hop genres; Country, hip-hop, funk, ballads, it’s all there. It’s hard to believe Beck will be 50 this year, he seems ageless, as does his music. I had the pleasure of seeing Beck in St. Louis in 2014 and it was one of the best concerts I’ve seen. He is a true showman. I mean- don’t forget his legendary dance moves. Though he may be seen as major-label-lifer now, a mean shit, he is a Grammy winner after all, before he was mainstream he was a drifter. His backstory is interesting: When his parents split, he and his younger brother stayed with their mother. Beck dropped out of school at the age of 14 and drifted around for about a decade, ending up back in Los Angeles. While playing some open mic events, he got noticed by the little local label, Bong Load Custom Records. In 1993, "Loser" was released to the world in a limited pressing of 500 copies and sent out to radio DJs across the U.S. The song became quite popular, and Geffen signed Beck in November of 1993, giving him the freedom to work with independent labels and to make "uncommercial" music. He is the Chameleon of Indie Rock… or at least he was at one point. Three’s nor a genre he hasn't hit. Don’t forget personal favorite "MTV Makes Me Wanna Smoke Crack". His hidden gems and b-sides are just as beautiful as the hits. That's how you know you have a true artist. I would check out his discography. As far as where to start, it all depends on what kind of mood you're in. Like I said, there’s no genre this man hasn’t dipped his toes in. And god-bless him for that. That takes nerve. Some musicians play it safe, and Beck is not one to do that. Beck: From DIY cassette tape demos, to indie labels, to Grammy's... All hands on deck… let’s give it up for...

Beck


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Björk

28 Björk Björk If Billie Holiday is an American treasure, well, if you were to put that treasure underwater, froze it, thawed it out centuries into the future and doused some acid & baking soda on it, out of that treasure chest would come Björk. Originally gaining fame in her home of Iceland with her band, the Sugarcubes, Björk was bound to break solo & she did just that with 1993's Debut . Following that was 1995's Post , 97's Homogenic , 2001's Vespertine, 2004's  Medúlla , 2007's Volta , 2011's Biophilia  (the first album where I was truly a fan), 2015's Vulnicura and 2017's Utopia . There's a lot to unpack there... you can't skip her first three or four albums, they're all amazing. I like Volta  just because it seems to be the loosest (and most fun) album she has. Vulnicura  was her break up album, with Björk expressing that the album reflects her feelings before and after her breakup and the healing process. Her legacy...
Post a Comment
Read more

Eels

91 EELS EELS After a couple of song-rich, keyboard-dominated albums released under the Man Called E moniker, Mark Everett morphed into the trio Eels with 1996’s [DreamWorks Records released] Beautiful Freak . At its best, the debut gave a trip-hop twist to the California singer/songwriter tradition; at its worst, it suggests one more bummed-out wise guy’s take on Beck’s collage-style rock. With a sense of humor that skews toward cynicism that’s alleviated occasionally by bouts of sincerity, Everett is not the likeliest subject to make a transcendent album about death. But he nearly pulls it off on 1998’s Electro-Shock Blues . The music is somber but not sedate, with bursts of saxophone, off-kilter orchestration, and outright noise evoking the turbulence beneath the deadpan vocals. The singer battles not only depression but also his penchant for irony, and his struggle to move beyond them makes for a fascinating if sometimes morbidly downcast listen. On 2000’s Daisies of the ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Elton John

93 Elton John Elton John The Elton Run is a great road-trip game: Using the radio’s scan and seek buttons, see how long you can keep a continuous streak of Elton hits rolling. It’s been proven possible to follow the Elton Run up I-95 from Virginia all the way to Boston. The hazard: One sixth of your listening will be devoted to “ Your Song ,” Elton’s most overplayed standard even though everybody is over it at this point (Sample lyrics: “If I was a sculptor / But then again, no,” I think we can all agree we don’t need to hear that cheesy line anymore.) But Elton has a staggering number of hits; At least one in the Top 40 every year from 1970 through 1995 (!). With his electric boots and mohair suits, he’s the prima of all donnas, sitting like a princess perched in his electric chair. He entertains by picking brains. He sells his soul by dropping names. And for all his camp flamboyance, he’s aged into the most beloved entertainer on earth. Elton’s got about a million compilatio...
Post a Comment
Read more