Beck - Modern Guilt ******
Beck in recent years has earnt the tag of the "Modern day Dylan" an assumption not to be taken lightly, over the years everyones favorite Scientologist has reinvented himself so many times its hard to keep track, you had the slacker folk boy-wonder, the hip-hop grunge anti-icon, the psychadelic pop man, the smooth acoustic genius and so on... But with his latest career twist it seems he has finally settled and made what he was born to do. Beck emerges from modern guilt the paranoid conspiritor and guitar hero, not only is it his best album to date, its his cleverest, his darkest, his most edgy, and i can guarentee in years to come his most influential, he has created his masterwork amongst a sea of haunting vocals, screaming guitars and apocalyptic lyrics.
The album starts on a feel that seems suprisingly beck-ish, a mid tempo acoustic number entitled "Orphans" full of his trademark mastery of sampling, layering and creating a huge sounding track, but beneath the surface it sounds almost stripped back for a Beck song, there are no annoying hip hop noises or obnoxious beeping, just an ultra modern folk song that would have worked in the 60's as well as it does now, with backing vocals from Chan Marhshall it adds to the haunting ghost-like feel of the song, you feel completly immersed in what Beck has created, drawn in by the simplicity of its complexion. Gamma Ray sounds like a 60's surf classic with apocalyptic scientology-inspired lyrics
The feel continues through the album, each track jam packed full of sound, but it feels so natural, ambient keyboards and earthy basslines turn tracks like Chemtrails and Replica into hypnotic siren-songs, accompanied by Becks eerie falsetto it sounds like the music is coming from mother nature herself, even the screaming guitar solo at the end of Chemtrails, which rivals Johnny Greenwood in terms of wierdness still sounds so right, a bat's screech in the forrest of Beck.
The album contains Beck's most biting work, he has turned viciously anti-everything in Modern Guilt, the title track is an apathetic look at modern society, whilst in Youthless he takes an equally cold approach;
There's a million horses dragging down a monolith. With these trademarks so bereaved. Tied my leg to a barricade, with a plastic hand grenade. They tried to turn emotion into noise .
But despite his apparent distance the album still speaks to you on a personal level, beck makes himself appealing in the stranges of ways, and the album becomes very very addictive, this album is probably the most impressive of 2008, in terms of originality, conceptuality, and its sheer musical brilliance, Beck elevates himself miles above the competition with his ever unique uniquity.
Beck changed his usual producer (radiohead mastermind Nigel Godrich) to one of the most in demand contemporary music producers, Danger mouse. Which has a big part to play in the overall feel of the album, there is no "fat" to accompany this pork chop, coming in at little more than half an hour and only 10 tracks, but there isn't a feeling that somthing is missing, every second placed on the album feels just right, as if only what was utterly neccesary was added, and a rich palette of songs is created in what seems like no time at all. It will be interesting to see if artist and produce keep up their partnership, as this is only the beginning. Beck is totally reborn in Modern Guilt. if you thought you had heard it all think again, this record will blow your mind.
And yes, it gets 6 stars, its that good.
Essential Tracks - Orphans, Gamma Ray, Chemtrails, Volcano
Like Modern Guilt? Check out
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