CD Odyssey Disc 1828: Orville Peck

Hoping to hear about the new Ghost album? Well, outside of this teaser, you won’t be. I barely made it through one listen earlier this week. A terrible record from a band I otherwise love. At a recent visit to the record store I exclaimed that with their latest effort it felt like Ghost was deliberately making fun of its audience. To which a fellow Ghost fan behind me noted, “haven’t they always been doing that?”

“Yes”, I replied, “and I’ve generally enjoyed it, but this time they crossed the line.”

On to review an album I liked considerably more…

Disc 1828 is…Stampede

Artist: Orville Peck

Year of Release: 2024

What’s up with the Cover? Our titular masked cowboy, chillin’ with cool kids of various persuasions. I love Peck’s outfit, which gives me ideas for how I can repurpose my suits upon my retirement.

How I Came To Know It: Orville Peck doesn’t always work for me, but I’m sufficiently intrigued to give each of his releases a chance. Often, I move on. This time, I lingered.

How It Stacks Up: This is my only Orville Peck album (although I have been on the hunt for 2022’s “Bronco” for some time now). Until I find it, there’ll be no stacking up.

Ratings: 4 stars

Duet records tend to be a mixed bag. Some of the pairings can sound like two songs stitched together awkwardly and some just feel forced or – worse – a competition. On “Stampede” Orville Peck avoids all the common pitfalls and delivers one of the finer collaborations I’ve heard in a while.

Peck accomplishes this by making each duet a true partnership. He lets himself be immersed in the style of each collaborator, while bringing his unique sound into the mix. The result is like the design a talented barista puts on top of your latte; distinct and intricate, even as it blends into itself before your eyes.

The album’s opener is a great example. “Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other.” The song’s a duet with Willie Nelson, and despite his propensity for a more Vegas style urban cowboy delivery, Peck allows Nelson’s moseying style to take the lead. The song has a timeless sway, and a lot of heartfelt fun. Fun fact about this song for those who don’t have the benefit of liner notes – this is a cover of a 1981 single by singer/songwriter Ned Sublette. Kudos to Sublette for being so far ahead of his time to write a song about gay cowboys, but if you’ve heard the original it suffers from Sublette’s vocals which are just…OK.

Not so with Willie Nelson and Orville Peck in charge. I’m not a huge fan of Willie Nelson, but that quaver is unmistakable and as welcome here as a tall glass of lemonade on a hot day in the south. It pairs well with Peck’s rich baritone and natural showmanship. Both men command a stage with their vocals, but they do it with very different approaches. The blend is quite lovely.

A few songs later, Peck is up to similar (but different) tricks with Beck on “Death Valley High,” a song that would have been at home on Midnite Vultures except for all that Las Vegas back-country sound. This is western music yes, but it’s the kind encrusted in rhinestones. The Beck/Peck combo is also great. The two singers are again distinct, and the tradeoff between them is a delight. It is also a thoroughly groovy song that will have your head bobbing and (if driving) encourage lead in the foot.

If “Death Valley High” isn’t sufficiently groovy, fear not, because later on the record you’ll get the absolute treat of Peck pairing up with latter-day disco diva Kylie Minogue on “Midnight Ride”. This song has that Minogue-specific back beat that commands you to dance, and to do it right now. Peck channels his best Vegas Elvis vibe (which, FYI, is really good) and matches her energy groove for groove, hip shake for hip shake. Listen to this song at your peril, because it is a serious earworm.

That’s a sampling of the funkier side of the record, but there is also plenty to offer on the country side of the ledger. Peck’s collaboration with Margo Price on “You’re an Asshole, I Can’t Stand You, and I Want a Divorce” that channels “Fairytale of New York”, minus the holiday spirit.

On “Papa Was a Rodeo” Peck cuts up some serious old timey fun with Molly Tuttle. It is a bit weird where Peck says, “pick it, Molly” before her solo. Like Molly needed anyone’s permission or encouragement to be the world’s greatest living guitar player. Yeah, you heard me.

There are even songs on this record I normally dislike (Elton John’s “Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting”, Glen Campbell’s “Rhinestone Cowboy”) that in the hands of Peck are lifted up to brilliance (“Rhinestone Cowboy”) or in the case of “Saturday Night…” at least made tolerable. For the latter, I think I noticed the lyrics for the first time ever, and it helped considerably. Thanks, Bernie Taupin.

This willingness to meet multiple styles halfway could easily make for a disjointed record, but through it all Peck is the stylistic centrepiece. He has a natural charisma that oozes out of every note he sings, and he stands tall as an equal partner with some of music’s greatest legends (also, with Midland, but even that works).

While not every track is as bangin’ as “Midnight Ride” there is a balance of excellence overall. Also, it is a lot of fun, so if you don’t like fun, maybe avoid it. But seriously, that thing you have where you don’t like fun? You should get that checked out.

Best tracks: Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other, The Hurtin’ Kind, Other, Death Valley High, Papa Was a Rodeo, Midnight Ride, You’re an Asshole I Can’t Stand You (And I Want a Divorce), Rhinestone Cowboy

CD Odyssey Disc 1323: Beck

After a week spent with a single artist (Matt Patershuk) I’m eager to get a few different flavours in this week. Like at a fancy restaurant when they give you three different sorbettos for dessert. First up…something sugary-sweet.

Disc 1323 is… Colors

Artist: Beck

Year of Release: 2017

What’s up with the Cover? The debut album from the New Wave band, “Colour the Hexagon”. Nope, still Beck.

How I Came to Know It: I like Beck so when this record came out and the first couple of singles were promising, I dove in without hesitation.

How It Stacks Up:  I have ten Beck Albums. I won’t be having 11 any time soon, though, as his latest record, “Hyperspace” failed to impress. “Colors” is not remotely the best, but still manages to land at #7, bumping the three records behind it all down a spot.

Here's a full accounting since the last review:

1. Guero: 5 stars (reviewed at Disc 538)
2. Sea Change: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 520)
3. Midnite Vultures: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 348)
4. Morning Phase: 4 stars (reviewed at disc 634)
5. Modern Guilt: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 288)
6. Mellow Gold: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 962)
7. Colors:  3 stars (reviewed right here)
8. Odelay: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 789)
9. The Information: 2 stars (reviewed at Disc 150)
10. Mutations: 2 stars (reviewed at Disc 187)

Ratings: 3 stars

Beck’s got a great ear for music, but sometimes his records feel more like the work of a great producer than a great songwriter. If it sounds good that shouldn’t matter, and “Colors” has plenty of good songs. However, it also has moments that feels more like someone vainly playing with a soundboard to make a boring song more glamorous.

Beck shifts his style around a fair bit, and it is rare he goes somewhere stylistically that I won’t follow. On his previous record, “Morning Phase” he hearkened back to the pastoral sadness of “Sea Change,” with amazing results.

On “Colors” he digs into the club-inspired dance sounds of 1999’s “Midnite Vultures.” Beck has a natural feel for finding a club groove, and for the most part he succeeds, but unlike “Morning Phase” here he falls short of his earlier inspiration.

This is a good record for a sedate cocktail party, where there’s a small dance floor close to the speakers for those inclined. It would also work for a vodka commercial, where tall women wear sequined dresses and strappy heels, and bros have three-day stubble and rolled up sleeves. One of these parties where everyone does a lot of toothy smiling at one another and everyone gets hammered, but do it klassy.

First, the good news. Even the obvious and boring songs on “Colors” still have a good dance beat. There is nary a tune that is offensive to the ear and some are downright funky, particularly “I’m So Free”, with its mix of falsetto pop singing, fuzz guitar and some kind of late nineties boy-band rap styling. This is Beck at his best, taking a bunch of musical notions that shouldn’t go together and making each complementary to the others.

“Wow” is a song that captures the happy side of being gobsmacked; that moment where the glory of the now hits you smack dab in the face, and you like it. Really, it’s just a bunch of effects and lyrics. The effect is the same as listening to that very high dude giving his late-night theory of life on the back porch of a house party. This song reminds you that that dude can actually be entertaining in the right circumstances.

“Up All Night” is the radio hit pure and simple, and justifiably so. It is perfectly produced pop glory, good for dancing, driving or just that damned toffee-nosed vodka cocktail party you were at earlier. I was not at all surprise to learn it was number one on US alternative radio, whatever that is.

Unfortunately, a lot of the other tracks, while inoffensive, rely too heavily on the sound editing tricks of Beck (and co-producer Greg Kurstin) to stay afloat. It is masterfully done, but it didn’t feed my soul. “Dear Life” feeds off a latter career Beatles inspiration, but it comes across more as “Magical Mystery Tour” at its worst, than “Sgt. Pepper” at its best. “No Distraction” and “Dreams” both energy to spare, but the bones of the song didn’t hold my attention sufficient for me to enjoy all the liberally applied seasoning Beck and Kurstin later apply.

In the end, “Colors” was a good name for the record. Like the American spelling of the word, it is easy and balanced, but it can leave you wishing there were a bit more organic mystery behind all that convenience.

Best tracks: I’m So Free, Wow, Up All Night

CD Odyssey Disc 962: Beck

A long and complicated week has come to a premature end with the advent of a long weekend (for me). I’m about to have dinner with my girl but first…a music review!

Disc 962 is….Mellow Gold

Artist: Beck

Year of Release: 1994

What’s up with the Cover? A troubling combination of the Terminator and a Museum of Natural History exhibit. This particular monstrosity is armed with both a hand cannon and an extendable carbon phallus. Someone call Metallica because this is a Thing That Should Not Be.

How I Came To Know It: My friend Greg introduced me to Beck when we were roommates back in the early nineties, so I’ve known this album since it came out.

How It Stacks Up:  I have nine Beck albums. Of those nine, I had originally reserved the number three spot for “Mellow Gold,” likely because of all the pleasant memories it evoked for me from my early twenties. However the truth is that Beck has been busy making really good albums in the intervening 24 years, most of which are even better. As a result “Mellow Gold” can only manage to land in 6^th. Since this is my last Beck review (until he puts out something new) here’s the recap:

1. Guero: 5 stars (reviewed at Disc 538)
2. Sea Change: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 520)
3. Midnite Vultures: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 348)
4. Morning Phase: 4 stars (reviewed at disc 634)
5. Modern Guilt: 4 stars (reviewed at Disc 288)
6. Mellow Gold: 3 stars (reviewed right here)
7. Odelay: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 789)
8. The Information: 2 stars (reviewed at Disc 150)
9. Mutations: 2 stars (reviewed at Disc 187)

Ratings: 3 stars

When “Mellow Gold” came out it was like nothing I’d heard before; a mix of R&B groove, sampling, breaks, spoken word and rock. No one knew quite what to call it but since it was 1994 they just shrugged and said “alternative” whatever that means.

“Alternative” remains a designation Windows Media Player seems to think means something, although all it really means is “the kind of rock and roll that you hear less often on the radio.” Not so for “Mellow Gold,” which was propelled to popularity by the hit single “Loser.”

“Loser” is a pretty immense track, with an instantly recognizable guitar riff and drum beat that immediately makes your spine feel loose and relaxed. Over twenty years later it still sounds as fresh and groovy as ever. It also taught a whole generation of kids with hair in our eyes how to say “I’m a loser” in Spanish, so it was even educational.

But “Mellow Gold” is about a lot more than just “Loser.” It has a unique sound that manages to be both full of energy and yet laid back. It is like some kind of rock and roll judo, drawing on your primal rhythms and drawing you in, creating energy from negative space. It is funk without the funk.

The album is so ‘chill’ that it is like a warm bath. Like heroin, except without the horribly debilitating addiction issues and you can’t overdose from too much of it – although my room-mate Greg put that theory to the test back in the day.

I’m glad he did, though, because when I first heard this record I didn’t immediately warm to it beyond the hit single. Repeat listens made it better. For example, Beck’s lyrics at first seem nonsensical, but the more you listen the more you hear it as modern poetry, evoking an image here and there for an overall feeling, rather than a cohesive narrative. I particularly like “Pay No Mind (Snoozer)” which starts:

“Tonight the city is full of morgues

And all the toilets are overflowing”

And if night sounds unpleasant, things get worse when the sun comes out:

“The sales climb high through the garbage-pail sky

Like a giant dildo crushing the sun”

Ahem…anyway, the album features that early nineties obsession with songs in minor keys, which gives the whole record a disquieting feeling. This is nicely juxtaposed with some groovy breaks and beats that make everything feel alright.

The record is experimental throughout and while I admire that, there are times where things go too far. “Soul Sucking Jerk” would be one of the great anti-work songs of all time but it ends with increasingly bizarre production treatments, as Beck goes through the squawk-box wormhole to the point where things become cartoonish, emerging on the other side with burbling vocals that sound like they are being voiced while gargling a glass of water.  

The first half of the record is a fair bit better than the second, making the record fade a little despite clocking in at a restrained 37 minutes. The major exception here is “Beercan” which appears late and is one of rock’s great songs. A groovy drum beat and a bunch of weird sounds and vocal affectations that somehow all come together and make you want to dance. Midway through Beck hits you with a chorus of:

“Winos throwing Frisbees at the sun

Put my soul between a bun

Now I'm hungry now I'm drunk

Now I'm running like a flaming pig”

Exactly! What exactly? It doesn’t matter, because Beck has the groove. While he can’t resist the urge to mess with it, you forgive him his excesses because for the most part, it works.

Best tracks: Loser, Pay No Mind (Snoozer), Fuckin’ With My Head, Truck Drivin’ Neighbours Downstairs, Beercan

CD Odyssey Disc 789: Beck

I’ve just finished another long day in a week where I expect a lot more of the same. I always make time for music, though!

Disc 789 is….Odelay

Artist: Beck

Year of Release: 1996

What’s up with the Cover? A dog agility competition. Why, I have no idea. This is one of those dogs that looks a lot like a mop. Sometimes when I see dog breeds I want to go back a couple hundred years and find the people who started doing it and ask them, “what the hell were you thinking?” Seeing this mop dog was definitely one of those times.

How I Came To Know It: I don’t remember. I knew Beck through my old room-mate Greg but I don’t think I bought “Odelay” until a couple years after it came out. I am an avowed Beck fan now, and buy whatever he releases right away.

How It Stacks Up: I have nine Beck albums. Of those, I’m going to put “Odelay” pretty far down the list. I’ll say seventh, bumping “The Information” (reviewed way back at Disc 150) down to eighth spot.

Ratings: 3 stars

“Odelay” was a critical darling and remains so to this day, so I’m going to say something fairly heretical and call it good, but not great. This is a record filled with all of Beck’s mad genius, but it would succeed better with a bit of restraint.

No one can take a group of disparate sounds and turn them into something funky and listenable like Beck, and “Odelay” is his first full foray into pushing his own limits. Critics loved the novelty of the album, and even almost twenty years later, “Odelay” still sounds as innovative as anything you’ll hear today.

“Odelay” features all the regular rock instruments, throws in horns and pianos, fuzzy feedback, beeps, bloops and bings and somehow turns it all into music.

When it hits on all cylinders – as it does on “”Where It’s At” it is pure genius. This song has a soulful organ riff right out of Motown, mixed with Beck’s deadpan rap-style, hand-claps, squawk box, robot voices and samples (mostly of himself). The whole thing creates a collage of sound that is irresistible to both your lower spine and your frontal lobes. Even the interludes of jazz horn fits perfectly. The weirdly self-referential sample of someone saying “that was a good drum break” is so perfect that I can’t imagine a version of the song where someone didn’t interject with a random opinion about the drum break right at that moment.

Regrettably, the album is also packed with songs that are so close to genius, but that Beck feels the need to deconstruct or otherwise wreck in the final minute.

“Novacane” is an amazing concoction of Motown groove and Beastie Boy-style rap and scratch fury. I want so bad to love this song, and for the most part I do. But then three-quarters of the way through Beck decides to destroy his own creation, replacing the beauty of the song with shrieking feedback, and then some computer noises that sound like an annoying nineties modem.

“High 5 (Rock the Catskills)” gets its modem on even sooner, starting halfway through. After a while it returns to being what I would call “a song” but alas, it was now too late for me to give a damn. Note to the artist: that modem screech isn’t the sound of you making a connection with me, it’s the sound of you losing one.

“Sissyneck” does a similar trick in the middle of the song, but fortunately it is kept to a couple of seconds and kind of works. “Jack-Ass” is a stripped down song that is slow and easy until Beck decides to end it all with five seconds worth of a donkey braying. “Hotwax” ends with some dungeon master type character introducing himself as “the enchanting wizard of rhythm”. Everywhere I turn there are amazing songs being despoiled with one extra bit of clever they don’t need.

The record ends with a beautiful, if slightly meandering track, called “Ramshackle” which is a bit too long, but still very pretty. It properly ends at 4:40 or so, but then there’s an extra two minutes of silence, followed by another minute full of beeps and whirrs. Of course there is.

And yet this album is so full of long moments of genius – including on all those songs I just complained about – that you can’t help but like it overall. Those moments easily earn the three stars, but all the modem sounds and the creative winky-faces mar enough tracks that I can’t rate it any higher than that.

Best tracks:  Devil’s Haircut, Where It’s At, Sissyneck,

CD Odyssey Disc 646: Various Artists

I’ve bought a lot of music lately (more than usual) and along the way discovered a few new (to me) bands I highly recommend. This week’s love affair is with Imelda May, an Irish rockabilly artist who is as talented as she is beautiful. I’ve been listening to her 2010 “Mayhem” album every day this week – often twice a day.

That’s this week’s recommendation, although not this week’s review. The review, as ever, was determined randomly because damn it that’s just more fun.

Disc 646 is….Return of the Grievous Angel: A Tribute to Gram Parsons

Artist: Various

Year of Release: 1999

What’s up with the Cover? It’s Gram Parson’s suit or at least an artistic rendition of it. Gram used to wear a white rockabilly suit that looked like this.

Here is Gram in happier times wearing the jacket the cover is based on. Way to rock the ladies on your lapels, Gram. Where the hell is that detail on the cover?

How I Came To Know It: I was looking for some Gram Parsons one day and the record store dudes cleverly had this stored in his section. When I saw that not only was Parsons stalwart Emmylou Harris featured, but also Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams and a whole bunch of my other favourite artists, I bought it without hesitation.

How It Stacks Up:  While it isn’t exactly a best of, as a collection of covers it can’t really stack up against Gram Parsons doing his own stuff.

Rating:  This is also a bit of a gray area. It isn’t a ‘best of’ per se, so I’ve decided to go ahead and give it a grade. That grade is…3 stars, but almost 4

Every now and then a rare artist comes along who just has a knack for writing great songs. Gram Parsons was one of those, and his untimely death in 1973 denied us of his talent all too early. Fortunately he wrote a bunch of tracks before he was gone, and on “Return of the Grievous Angel” a bunch of fairly well known artists pay tribute to him.

If you are going to do a tribute record of a songwriter of Gram Parson’s stature you better get artists with sufficient presence and ability to do his memory proud. “Return” has a pretty impressive lineup that includes the Cowboy Junkies, Beck, Steve Earle, Sheryl Crow, Elvis Costello, Lucinda Williams, Wilco and of course Parson collaborator and confidante Emmylou Harris.

Their work – and that of the other artists on the album – is strong, and while I don’t really care for the Cowboy Junkies treatment of “Ooh Las Vegas” it was at least the most innovative. I similarly didn’t like Elvis Costello trying to add his jazzy flavour to “Sleepless Nights.” Costello sings it as earnestly as he can and you can tell the love is there, but he’s just not suited for this kind of music, despite how much he wants to be.

For the most part, the artists do Parsons ‘straight up’ with very similar arrangements and treatments as he originally used. They are all very good (it is hard to screw up a Gram Parsons song) but in some places I found myself preferring the original. In the case of Beck and Emmylou’s duet on “Sin City” not only prefer the original Flying Burrito Brothers version, but the Emmylou solo version from 1975’s “Elite Hotel” as well.

There are more than a few standouts. Emmylou gets Gram Parsons like few do, and her gentle treatment of “She” alongside Chrissie Hynde and the Pretenders is a great way to start the record. On “Juanita” her background vocals elevate Sheryl Crow beautifully as well and make a song I often gloss over in Parson’s collection standout even more.

Evan Dando and Julianna Hatfield do a great version of “$1,000 Wedding” which has some pretty guitar work, and although I’ve not always been a Whiskeytown fan, their version of “A Song For You” has the perfect mix of desperation and energy the song calls for.

I would have preferred Steve Earle sing “High Fashion Queen” solo, as Chris Hillman’s voice is just too forgettable taking alternating verses. Fortunately David Crosby wisely takes a back seat on his duet of “Return of the Grievous Angel” with Lucinda Williams. Williams is just as much a tortured genius as Parsons and her angst and sandpapery voice add a whole new level to the song.

I would have liked the album to end with Gillian Welch’s treatment of “Hickory Wind” which has a threadbare arrangement that lets her pure bluegrass vocals cut through like the warm summer wind she sings about. I couldn’t imagine a better end.

That is, until we hear the Rolling Creekdippers sing “In My Hour of Darkness.” This song closes a Gram Parson’s collection as fittingly as Tennyson compilations always end with “Crossing the Bar.” In “Crossing the Bar” the poet imagines a heavenly journey ahead, whereas Parsons’ lyrics see only the darkness and unknown. It is the right way to end a tribute album for someone who left us too soon.

“In My Hour of Darkness” is a song about loss on a record that not only makes you contemplate the great artistic loss of Gram parsons, but also those who are gone from our own lives. It is gracefully delivered and deeply affecting but as I sat listening to the Rolling Creekdippers sing it, there was a small part of me that couldn’t help but want to hear Gram’s voice instead. For that reason, I’ll hold this review to three stars by the narrowest of margins.

Best tracks:   She, $1000 Wedding, Juanita, Return of the Grievous Angel, A Song For You, Hickory Wind, In My Hour of Darkness

CD Odyssey Disc 634: Beck

Earlier this week I was thinking about giving up the guitar since I rarely find or make any time to practice. But then as I puzzled through Springsteen’s “Tougher Than The Rest” with my teacher, Josh, I realized that it isn’t just about being able to play well that draws me to the guitar. It is also about having a deeper understanding of all the music that I love. That alone kept me going. Learning an instrument is doing for music what getting an English degree did for poetry; it is making me appreciate it more.

So on to an album I definitely appreciated.

Disc 634 is….Morning Phase

Artist: Beck

Year of Release: 2014

What’s up with the Cover? Beck’s hat against the dappled morning sun gives him a kind of black halo. Groovy.

How I Came To Know It: I’ve been a Beck fan for a long time, and this was just me buying his latest record.

How It Stacks Up:  I have nine Beck albums (I’m missing a couple of his early obscure ones). “Morning Phase” is his best album since 2005’s “Guero.” I rank it 5^th, just behind “Midnite Vultures” and bumping lesser albums like “Modern Guilt,” “The Information,” “Odelay” and “Mutations” all down a slot.

Rating:  4 stars

With its simple melodies, atmospheric reverb and stories of heartache “Morning Phase” is a natural sequel to Beck’s 2002 album “Sea Change”. The main difference is there is an acceptance in “Morning Phase” that adds an element of cheer to the record that the deeply morose “Sea Change” never manages.

Like “Sea Change” the songs are about the breakdown of relationships, and how sometimes the people you know best are the very same people you have a hard time communicating with. Instead of the hopeless lack of understanding that can happen when love collapses, these songs have a refreshing self-awareness in them.

Beck is not blaming anyone other than himself here, and yet the songs manage to avoid straying into self-loathing. Instead this is a mature record from an artist that understands that all you can do when something has gone wrong is look in the mirror and see what you can salvage in terms of a lesson.

There is a sliver of hope on “Morning Phase” that supposes that somehow at the end of the darkness there is a chance the two doomed lovers could once again be together. On “Morning” Beck sees the natural world collapsing around him:

“Mountains are falling

They don’t have nowhere to go

The ocean’s a diamond

That only shines when you’re alone.”

Yet the song asks goes on to ask “Can we start it all over again?” Maybe it is impossible, but Beck nevertheless holds onto that hope, without feeling like it is the only thing he has to cling to. On “Unforgiven” he sings “somewhere unforgiven/I will wait for you” suggesting he’ll stick it out for a while and see if love comes back to him. It never feels desperate and he refuses to use his grief as a weapon. Instead, he simply says he will hold onto hope, come what may. If only we could all experience loss with such grace.

This quality of grace is reinforced by the music, which is soothing and reassuring. The production is thick and dreamy, with layered effects that give Beck’s vocals a choir-like quality. The melodies are simple, and Beck plays around inside chord structures to evoke a lot of different emotions all at once – exactly the type of thing the heart feels when it experiences loss. On “Turn Away” the vocal effects are so seamless it reminds you of the sixties harmonies of Simon and Garfunkel or the Mamas and the Papas.

Even at his darkest, on a song like “Wave” where Beck sings about isolation, the isolation feels more like a warm bath in the sea than a man alone and adrift.

Beck’s guitar work is particularly pretty throughout the record, with lots of slow chord strums broadening the sound. Beck employs a large string section as well, adding depth where the guitar alone can’t hold the mood.

The album’s best song, “Heart is a Drum,” is a perfect example of how Beck pulls hope out of an album that is essentially about a lack of communication. Musically, it has a simple picking pattern on an acoustic guitar that had me thinking strongly of the quieter moments on Pink Floyd’s “The Wall,” particularly “Goodbye Blue Sky.” Even as the heart sinks with the setting sun, even as grief threatens to pull you under, Beck reminds us that we are strangely united in in our isolation, or as he puts it:

“Your heart is a drum

Keeping time with everyone.”

Walking to work listening to this song I felt I could just reach out and hug everyone I passed. Since I didn’t want to be arrested I refrained, but the thought was there.

“The Information” and “Modern Guilt” are both good records, but on “Morning Phase” Beck has returned to his finest form by somehow softening even love’s hardest lessons.

Best tracks:   Morning, Heart is a Drum, Say Goodbye, Unforgiven, Turn Away, Country Down

CD Odyssey Disc 538: Beck

I had a draining day today.  I couldn’t really put my finger on it, just the feeling of being pulled in a lot of directions.

Of course, staying up to write this blog entry is one more thing to get done, but it is a fun thing and if I’m being fair to the day, it was as full of fun moments like this as anything else.  As the saying goes:

“Two men look through the same bars

One sees the mud and one the stars.”

Here’s a disc that always puts me on the positive side of that half-full glass.

Disc 538 is…. Guero

Artist: Beck

Year of Release: 2005

What’s up with the Cover?  A drawing by someone named Marcel Dzama.  I find this cover equal parts obtuse and smug and in case it wasn’t clear – no, I don’t like it. 

How I Came To Know It:  I was already a Beck fan so this was just me buying another album by him when it came out.  

How It Stacks Up:  We have eight Beck albums, and this is one is my favourite.  Number one, baby!  I know I just finished giving “Sea Change” that designation, but I’ve got to bump “Guero” just ahead of that.

Rating:  5 stars

Some albums are just perfect for certain seasons, and “Guero” is the perfect summer album.  This is a top-down, beach-Frisbee, ice-cream-in-the-park kind of album.  It makes me feel young and carefree when I listen to it, and gives me a musical respite from all the various tasks and responsibilities that face me.  It is an album for feeling good.

It is quite a departure from his other great work, “Sea Change” (reviewed recently back at Disc 520.  “Sea Change” is tinged with sadness and self-reflection, feeling like it was conceived underwater.

“Guero” is like a surfer riding the top of that same ocean.  It has the funky syncopation and rapid fire free association poetry-rap of his first big album, “Mellow Gold,” but it incorporates all the musical experiments he has tried on the four intervening album as well.  The funk of “MidniteVultures” is here, toned down to fit into a more summer pop flavour, and less nightclub focused.  The strange technological samples and beats of “Odelay” and “Mutations” are used, but they are worked a lot more seamlessly into the song.

On top of all of these influences, Beck weaves in Mexican-flavoured pop and, unless I’m mistaken, the ghost of Dick Dale.  Not the guitar style, so much as an update to Dale’s effortless beach party vibe.

In short, this is a record that borrows from a lot of influences, mixes Beck’s own copious musical knowledge and somehow creates something wholly new that doesn’t ever sound bloated or pretentious (except, as noted above, the unfortunate cover art).

The free and easy feel is upheld by songs like “Que Onda Guero” with its distinctive Latin feel, but also “Girl,” “Black Tambourine” and “Scarecrow” which are all songs for driving fast with your hair blowing in the wind.

Beck finds room for songs that push the album in different directions, while maintaining the overall feel of the record as well.  “Hell, Yes” is a techno-sample driven song that takes a lot of the lessons learned on 1996’s “Odelay” and just makes them demonstrably more…listenable.  Yes, music snobs, I just put “Odelay” in its place.  That album may be innovative, but it isn’t easy to listen to, and being enjoyable to the ear should always be an important part of music.

“Hell, Yes” is a joy to listen to, with odd drum beats and a variety of samples that apart sound like a jumble, but collectively form into a catchy and extremely innovative riff as good as any straightforward rock song.  When I hear the sample of a young girl saying matter-of-factly “Your beat is nice/your beat is correct” I always find myself smiling and agreeing with her assessment.  In fact, she’s so convincing that in the years since first hearing “Guero” Sheila and I will both indicate our approval of something by using this phrase.  It is a bit weird, but hey – so are we.

Going in another direction is “Farewell Ride” which has all the slow groove of “Guero” but incorporates some of the grim finality that made “Sea Change” such a brilliant album.  While this song is ostensibly about two horses taking a coffin to the cemetery, it is hard not to draw drug allusions:

“Two white horses in a line

Taking me for my farewell ride.”

Horse being a slang expression for heroin, it is easy to imagine two lines of it putting someone into overdose or – in this case – a farewell ride.  The fact that it is never spelled out as such makes me appreciate it more.

I’m not in the habit of giving an album like this five stars without it “changing me somehow” (see the ‘rules’ sidebar), but “Guero” just doesn’t hit any wrong notes.  It is only thirteen songs long, I like every one of them in some way or other, and as a collection it takes you for a nice ride and leaves you relaxed at the end of it, like a warm breeze on a summer day that carries away your troubles.  Sometimes, that's all you need in life.

Best tracks:  I like all the tracks, but in particular I like Que Onda Guero, Girl, Black Tambourine, Hell Yes, Scarecrow, Got It Alone, and Farewell Ride,

CD Odyssey Disc 520: Beck

It is fitting that I should review a somber album focused on loss next, since that’s my mood today.  Last night my step-father Lawrence died.  He died of pneumonia, but as some readers may know he was in the midst of a lengthy decline from dementia.

The terrible degradation of his mind has now mercifully ended, but it doesn’t lessen how much I’m going to miss him.  He was a wonderful, gentle and soft-spoken man who took me into his home with open arms and loved me like a father should love a son.

It was his birthday last week (we are fellow Geminis) and I called him to wish him well.  I’m not sure if he knew who I was anymore, but it was great to hear his voice one last time and say goodbye, even if I didn't know it at the time.

Disc 520 is…. Sea Change

Artist: Beck

Year of Release: 2002

What’s up with the Cover?  If you’re going to go with the ‘Giant Head Cover’ then keep it simple, like Gordon Lightfoot does.  I don’t like the addition of whimsical splashes of colour, nor do I think asking Beck to comb his hair for the photo shoot would have been unreasonable.

How I Came To Know It:  No story here.  I was already a Beck fan and just drilling through his album collection.  I can’t remember if I heard good things about this record or if I did, from whom, but they would have been telling the truth.

How It Stacks Up:  We have eight Beck albums, and the top of the order is crowded, but I’ve got to put “Sea Change” the best of them all at #1.

Also, by way of errata, I note that I neglected to stack up “Midnite Vultures” back at Disc 348.  Oops.  I’d put "Midnite Vultures" at #4, just edging out “Modern Guilt”.

Rating:  4 stars but almost 5.

Whatever it is about breakups, they can result in some truly amazing art, and “Sea Change” fits that description chronicling Beck’s emotional journey through heartbreak.

The record couldn’t be more different than the party-time funk flavouring of “Midnite Vultures” and shares much more in common with 1998’s “Mutations.” (Reviewed way back at Disc 187.)  “Mutations” was a bit detached for my tastes, with a lot of strange sampled sounds and experimental takes on traditional genres that left it unfocused.

All of these problems are solved with “Sea Change” which is driven by real instrumentation, and strength of song writing.  These songs are so beautifully simple they could pass as folk music, if it weren’t for Beck’s decision to put in some atmospheric reverb and background sound.  Although I love simple arrangements, the added elements are in just the right proportion, not overpowering the songs themselves, but instead adding to them. This is one of Beck’s most guitar-centric albums, with a lot of acoustic work but steel guitar, string sections, chimes and even a glockenspiel make an appearance to add depth and resonance to the melodies.

Beck’s voice is also as good as I’ve heard it, ranging from pop crooner on “The Golden Age” to Nick Cave confessional on “Paper Tiger.”  Because of Beck’s brilliance at co-opting musical styles and his innovative production decisions I think people often overlook how good a singer he is.  On “Sea Change” he allows himself to emotionally invest in his delivery and it makes it all the better.

It is an album that should be listened to cohesively, in the order presented.  The latter half of the album is slightly weaker on its own (and held it just out of five star territory) but when taken together it forms a perfect bit of mood music.

Lyrically, this is also the strongest of Beck’s albums, as he charts the often numbing quality of grief in all its various forms.  “Golden Age” summarizes the lack of future direction:

“And the sun don’t shine even when its day

You gotta drive all night just to feel like you’re okay

These days I barely get by

I don’t even try.”

“Guess I’m Doing Fine” covers that paradox of feeling both sad and awkwardly okay at the same time:

“It’s only lies that I’m living

It’s only tears that I’m crying

It’s only you that I’m losing

Guess I’m doing fine.”

And “Paper Tiger” takes on the finality of loss:

“There’s one road to the morning

There’s one road to the truth

There’s one road back to civilization

But there’s no road back to you.”

The imagery of driving and barren highways recurs throughout the album and helps give it a cohesive quality of moving forward, without knowing where you’re going.  If you’ve had your heart broken, this image will resonate.  However, “Sea Change” is definitely not is a driving album, because no matter how quiet your car is you will miss some of the more subtle bass notes.  It is best for head phones or a quiet sit in the living room.  I listened to it while painting, which was just the right amount of meditative distraction.  Do not put this album on at a party unless you want your guests to finish their drinks and go home.

However, if you want to explore a journey into thoughtful grieving (and we all want that sometimes) then this is as good a journey as you’ll find.

Best tracks:  The Golden Age, Paper Tiger, Guess I’m Doing Fine, Lost Cause, Little One

CD Odyssey Disc 348: Beck

It would seem my bold claim that I'll be doing more reviews will have to wait until after the holiday season. Between work and the many social engagements that crop up around Christmas I have had zero free time lately. On the plus side, this next album has received a lot of listens since I haven't had time to review it and replace it with the next one.

Disc 348 is...Midnite Vultures

Artist: Beck

Year of Release: 1999

What’s Up With The Cover?: That's a good question. I think this cover is trying to suggest a party vibe, but all I get is a vaguely weird music video made in a booth at the mall.

How I Came To Know It: I have known Beck since "Mellow Gold," but this particular record is a favourite of my friend Nick, who often suggested I get it. After many years of foolishly not taking his advice, I finally did so about six or seven years ago.

How It Stacks Up: I have eight Beck albums, which is most of them, and certainly all of the major releases.

Rating: 4 stars

Anyone who knows Beck knows that he is never afraid to reinvent his sound, and each of his albums has a distinct sound. "Midnite Vultures" is no exception (note that as an American, Beck enjoys misspelling 'midnight').

In this case, Beck has decided to meld his vaguely techno beats with a very strong funk influence. This is an album so funky in fact, that George Clinton would be proud of what is accomplished. Sometimes the funky riffs are driven by traditional r&b instrumentation, and soulful singing, and other times he relies on sampled sounds and drum-machine sounds you might expect to hear on a techno-record. Whatever the blend, it works to get your feet moving and your head bobbing.

While "Midnite Vultures" isn't my favourite Beck album, I think it is the most musical. He can sometimes add in strange sound samples just to be clever, but on "Midnite Vultures" every odd whistle, whirr and vibrating spring is only there if it makes the song flow better. I wish Beck had taken the same approach on the more expiremental "Odelay," but as noted earlier, he isn't an artist that likes to do the same thing twice.

If you are looking for a deep and meaningful message, or some deeper insight into the human condition then this record will disappoint you. This record is one big hedonistic journey: a record about partying, best suited for playing while partying. This is not in any way intended to be an insult; "Midnite Vultures" is one of the best party albums you'll hear.

I've been walking to and from work listening to this album for three days and have heard it at least four times through. I like it more and more with each listen, but I also have less to say about it with each listen.

"Midnite Vultures" is a record where you'll hear how much fun it is to mix together 'peaches and cream', 'milk and honey' and (surprisingly) 'nicotine and gravy'. You'll also have explained how it feels to 'sit around and get real paid' and just what 'hollywood freaks' do when no one is looking (answer: have a very good time). The most serious Beck gets is on "Debra", a song that Ron Burgundy would call "baby-making music," that sounds like it could've been written in 1975 and topped the R&B charts. In the song Beck soullfully croons in falsetto to his girl, Jenny:

"I wanna get with you - you, you, you...
And your sister - I think her name's Debra."

So, yeah - not very serious at all. But not everything in life has to be serious. "Midnite Vultures" is a fine reminder that in a serious world full of serious problems, there should always be room for some fuschia pvc pants and a catchy beat.

Best tracks: Nicotine & Gravy, Mixed Bizness, Peaches & Cream, Milk & Honey, Beautiful Way, Debra

CD Odyssey Disc 288: Beck

Today I managed to get some driving in, which quickly got me through this next album, which was a pretty short one. As you may know, I am a fan of albums not running overlong, so I was pretty happy.

Disc 288 is...Modern Guilt

Artist: Beck

Year of Release: 2008

What’s Up With The Cover?: This cover reminds me of one of those photos that fans send in to get mounted on the side of Jones Soda bottles. It just has that kind of arbitrary, off-the-cuff kind of look. I like it, and I like the clear label at the top. It would be hard not to note the title and artist for this record.

How I Came To Know It: This is the latest Beck album, so when it came out I was already a long-standing fan, so having this album is just me buying it as a matter of course. Not every story is one of strange discovery, people.

How It Stacks Up: I have eight Beck albums, and I enjoy them all in different ways. I'd put "Modern Guilt" about 4th or 5th, but that is not to say it is a bad album, just that I like Beck, so at some level all his records are good, and competition at the top is fierce.

Rating: 4 stars.

I had only had this record very briefly before seeing Beck on the same tour, when he played the Royal Theatre in Victoria. The Royal is a beautiful old venue dating from a period long before people plugged in their guitars. As a result, it is ingeniously built to project non-amplified sound.

Regrettably, many a sound man has come in since and over-amped the venue, with the result being a muddy reverb beating off the walls of the place. Such was the case with Beck, who for the first half of the show was practically unrecognizeable. At one point he performed Dylan's "Leopard Skin Pill Box Hat" and I couldn't even recognize it. Trust me when I say that unless it is Bob Dylan doing that (deliberately) it isn't any fun.

Fortunately, the sound guy got his act together about halfway through so the concert was not bad the rest of the way. Still, it soured me on this record unfairly at the time of its release.

The CD Odyssey allowed me to rehabilitate its reputation, and take it for what it is - a well constructed, well produced work, and a comeback for Beck, two years after 2006's relatively average "The Information" (reviewed back at Disc 150).

While I enjoyed "The Information", the record's front end far exceeded its second side, and Beck too often relied on his over-used sampling of modern sounds of technology (phone bells, modem squeals, etc.).

"Modern Guilt" repairs most of these mistakes. Beck is back with some very groovy beats that have your feet tapping, particularly on songs like the title track, and the irresistably funky and infectious "Soul Of A Man". When he does incorporate odd electronic sounds, they are done in an understated way that add to the music rather than jar you out of it.

Beck also adds some very organic sounding piano and guitar which serve to soften the edges of his electronically infused music. Beck can trend toward sounding cold and unengaging, and while "Modern Guilt" walks close to this line, it is the little decisions Beck makes in arrangement and production that keeps it from going over. A shout out to co-producer Danger Mouse is in order at this point, I suppose.

The record also makes you want to move and dance around, although it is more of a 'dance in the livingroom' kind of feel, than something that would lead to a bump n' grind at the local nightclub.

Lyrically, Beck delivers his usual stream of consciousness style. His phrasing makes it harder to focus on the lyrics and follow them along, but they serve to augment the mood of the music well. When I took the time to pull out the liner notes I was surprised to see the lyrics are more linear than usual, and often come together to make coherent points along the way - never a given in a Beck song. I particularly like "Walls" as a song that summarizes some of the themes of decay and lack of direction on the record:

"You got warheads stacked in the kitchen
You treat distraction like it's a religion
With a rattlesnake step in your rhythm
We do the best with the souls we've been given."

Add to this the exceptional brevity to the record (the whole album consists of just 10 tracks, and clocks in at just under 33 minutes), and you end up with a tight little package of songs. To accomplish brevity in an era where the chief 'hard' delivery system is a disc that can hold 80 minutes of music is a stroke of genius all its own, and was enough to lift this record from a high 3 out of 5, to a low 4.

Best tracks: Gamma Ray, Modern Guilt, Walls, Profanity Prayers

CD Odyssey Disc 187: Beck

From Black Metal to Alt Pop, the Odyssey gets around. This time we return to Beck, which I haven't reviewed since Disc 150 (The Information).

Disc 187 is...Mutations
Artist: Beck

Year of Release: 1998

What’s Up With The Cover?: It's Beck from the waist up, sporting an odd combination of T-shirt and cling wrap. Oh, and a vacant stare.

How I Came To Know It: As I noted when I reviewed "The Information" at Disc 150, I've known Beck since my room-mate and friend Greg brought home "Mellow Gold" in 1993. "Mutations" came fairly late to the collection - it came out in 1998, but I probably bought it around 2005.

How It Stacks Up: I have to admit, not that well. It is an OK album, but of the eight Beck albums I own, I'd have to put it 8th...er, someone has to be last, right?

Rating: 2 stars.

"Mutations" is my least favourite Beck album, but it still has its moments. On this album I noticed Beck composes relatively simple pop songs, and what makes them interesting is his willingness to use odd arrangements, and strange sounds as musical instruments. He also has a talent for composing catchy songs in minor keys. There is an art to this, not easily mastered, but Beck is a skilled practitioner. Stylistically it reminded me heavily of another of his album's "Sea Change" which I absolutely love.

About a third of the time, I enjoy Beck's quirky quirky sounds and innovative production. About a third of the time, I only notice it when I'm looking for it, and about a third of the time it is annoying.

On this record I found him experimenting with traditional music, while putting his own twist on it. "Tropicalia" has a kind of latin dance beat and "Bottle of Blues" and "Sing It Again" have country and western sounds mixed into their sound. I admire the effort, but none of these songs particularly grabbed me.

Also, like "The Information", "Mutations'" last track is a rambling eleven minute time waster called "Static". Know when to say when, Beck! I'd have rather listened to the first five minutes of this song and then six minutes of actual static. That way I'd know when to push 'stop' instead of vainly waiting for something good to happen later in the song.

There are a couple of tracks that rise above this album's mediocrity - so much that I was seriously tempted to give it 3 stars (but did not give in to temptation). In particular, the record opens with the best song by far, "Cold Brains." The song starts with an alien-sounding reverberating synthesizer. Classic Beck, and in the third subset of this stuff that I like. The opening lines:

"Cold brains, unmoved
Untouched, unglued
Alone at last
No thoughts, no mind
To rot behind"

set a bleak tone that had me excited for what was to follow. The second track "Nobody's Fault But My Own" is a decent, if inferior follow up to "Cold Brains", which still had me hoping for better things to come.

Unfortunately, the rest of the record doesn't hold up for me at the same level. The talent is unmistakeable, but for the most part I wasn't emotionally moved.

Best tracks: Cold Brains, Nobody's Fault But My Own, Canceled Check (sic).

CD Odyssey Disc 151: Soundtrack

The latest disc in the Odyssey is actually one I've been specifically dreading since I began this project. Only Sheila's Barry Manilow compilation frightens me more.

Disc 151 is...Moulin Rouge Soundtrack
Artist: Various

Year of Release: 2001

What’s Up With The Cover?: It is the movie poster - designed no doubt to have a 'bohemian' feel I guess as covers go, it is alright, and even a bit stylish.

How I Came To Know It: Sheila saw the movie and really liked it. She bought the soundtrack as a result.

How It Stacks Up: I can never keep track of how many soundtracks I have. Let's say 23. In this case, I definitely liked the movie more than the soundtrack, and I didn't like the movie all that much. Of the 23 soundtracks, I'd put this one at 21 or 22. Yes - there is at least one (and probably two) worse. Let's not talk about those until we absolutely have to.

Rating: 1 stars.

Baz Lurhmann's "Moulin Rouge" is the "Gone With The Wind" of our generation. By this I mean it is over-rated, enjoyed almost exclusively by women, but is nevertheless inflicted on men the world over. In fairness, you do get to see Nicole Kidman dance around in naughty lingerie, which is more than you can say for anything in "Gone With the Wind".

Lest this seem terribly unfair to you, I would remind you that we inflict "Glengarry, Glenross" on our girlfriends without a second thought. Turnaround is fair play.

That might be fair, but having to listen to this soundtrack with my top down was grossly unfair. At one point I was in the car, decked out in my Blue Oyster Cult band shirt, and caught in a McDonald's lineup meekly listening to "Lady Marmalade" for all to see.

This was not the CD Odyssey's proudest moment.

On to the music, which is a handy representation of some of the biggest problems in modern pop. It isn't that these songs are bad - it is that they are derivative.

I am reading a book right now called "You Are Not a Gadget" which actually points out how our approach to internet culture actively encourages mash ups and derivations of other people's unique art. "Moulin Rouge" certainly seems to be an early harbinger of this trend.

"The Elephant Love Medley" is just a mix of about a dozen previously written love songs, mashed together to form some sort of a "love me/don't love me" duet. It is a fun and entertaining scene in the movie, and it even sounds good until you remember the reason it sounds good is the quality of the original songs. In fact, they are better left well enough alone. It is clever, but I'm not sure clever is enough here.

The songs that sound good, are generally passable remakes that don't offer a lot new. Of note is "Your Song" sung competently by Ewan McGregor. It is a great performance if you are rating him as "actor attempting singing" but if you actually hold him up against Elton John's original, it comes off as merely OK.

"Lady Marmalade" is better, as Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya and Pink are all, you know, singers. If I loved AM radio, I'd be really excited to hear them sing their little hearts out. Instead, this song is best avoided unless you are enjoying the video with the sound turned off.

Of all the songs, I was pleasantly surprised that the best was Beck doing a remake of David Bowie's "Diamond Dogs". Beck's futuristic detached sound matched the Bowie song well, and gave it an interesting update.

Another more pleasant note belongs to Nicole Kidman, who has a suprisingly rich tone for another actor turned singer. Also, the liner notes include a picture of her from that "Sparkling Diamonds" mash up early in the movie. The song is another abomination of pop culture devouring itself, but the outfit is...um...inspiring, even if the song is not.

Overall, this album is an average pop album, and I could almost forgive its other transgressions and give it two stars until I got to the end, and had to endure David Bowie teaming up with Massive Attack for the movie's theme "Nature Boy". This song is a cringeworthy bucket of bathos at track 1, and adding the mind-numbing technobeats of Massive Attack's not-so-massive attack does not help it along at track 15. The more I hear those guys, the less I like them.

I guess I'm just not feel terribly charitable, so this album is getting 1 star from me, but I'll freely admit it deserves two if you are being fair. Then again, was it fair that I got marmaladed in the Macdonald's drive through? Was it fair to Massively Attack me right at the end of the album?

But, sometimes life's not fair, Baz Luhrmann. This would be one of those times.

Best tracks: Beck's "Diamond Dogs".

CD Odyssey Disc 150: Beck

It would seem I have a lot of music that is hard to categorize. Categories are so limiting anyway - I'm reading a book partly about this right now!

It has been suggested that I add "alternative" as a category. I'm tempted, but I am resisting it because I think alternative is always either pop or rock at some level. It is also an overused term in music reviews, and I refuse to succumb!

OK, I've eased along this review enough, methinks.

Disc 150 is...The Information
Artist: Beck

Year of Release: 2006

What’s Up With The Cover?: Now there's a question. For this album, Beck just put it out with blank graph-paper both on the front and inside sleeve. The album comes with a bunch of stickers that you can put on yourself, thus letting you do your own album art. This is very cool.

I haven't actually decorated this record yet but don't misunderstand my motives - I'm not saving this for collection purposes. I'm a firm believer that life is to be lived outside the package. It is just that the various graphics that the CD provides aren't very inspiring to either myself or Sheila. Here's a picture of all of them:
Maybe I'll go buy my own stickers and use those instead. I think Beck would actually like that.

How I Came To Know It: I have been listening to Beck ever since Greg brought home "Mellow Gold" when "I'm a Loser" was a hit back in 1993. "The Information" is just us buying up all his records. I bought this one when it came out.

How It Stacks Up: We have eight Beck albums, which are all of them, unless he just put something out. Of the eight, "The Information" is not one of my favourites. I'd put it 6th or 7th.

Rating: 2 stars.

Beck defies description quite often, and his albums are often very different from one another. "The Information" is a blend of groovy back beats coupled with his sort of monotone rap-style that he's been doing since he got started.

"The Information" begins well and the first four songs, ("Elevator Music", "Think I'm In Love", "Cellphone's Dead" and "Strange Apparition") are all pretty strong. I thought I was heading for a solid three star review. I particularly like the piano tinkling in "Strange Apparition."

I believe Beck is at his best when he puts together a song in a fairly traditional manner, and then spices it up with a bit of strange electronica. In this way, he is like the recently reviewed Tom Waits; turning a strong pop song into something unique with some brave and inspired production.

Sadly, the strength at the front end of the record doesn't hold up throughout, and a lot of what follows is largely forgettable. Part of this is that the songs aren't consistently strong, and so all you're left with are the odd electronic sounds.

At other times, Beck overdoes the expirementation. I find the electronic noises he samples from everyday life particularly annoying. This is why his critically favoured album, "Odelay" tends to annoy me as well. "The Information" tends to go down the same road in places. Not quite as bad as the pervasive modem connection sounds in "Odelay" but still clearly noises that aren't intended to be musical.

I admire Beck for trying to make them musical, but it can feel like he's trying to push a square peg through a round hole. This is a fun activity when you're young, and they foolishly leave you with that shape-toy unsupervised. Trust me - that square peg will fit if you work at it!

It just doesn't fit quite so well with the music on this record. On the strength of "side A" this record gets 2 stars, and almost claimed 3, but right at the end he added this long, rambling 10 minute plus track of weirdness, titled "The Horrible Fanfare/Landslide/Exoskeleton" (yes that's one song). That put it just south of three. Know when to say when, Beck.

Best tracks: Think I'm In Love, Cellphone's Dead, Strange Apparition.