Strummer521

The Review I promised Adidasss:

The Information - Beck

The album begins with the countoff: “One, two, you know what to do,” and it proves truly fitting. Beck knows exactly what to do and this becomes apparent as soon as the drums kick in carrying with them the airtight groove of “Elevator Music”. Nothing much is new here, as Beck spits nonsense rhymes in his too cocky to be energetic mumbling half-drawl. He’s still got that classic easygoing swagger that makes anything he says seem cooler than it would coming from anyone else, and he still has that uncanny wizard-like ability to seamlessly blend the influences of an extremely wide array of genres. His influences are usually not easily recognized, since his sound is so difficult to categorize, but somehow “Strange Apparition” winds up sounding exactly like the Rolling Stones in their golden period and could easily be mistaken for an out-take from Beggar’s Banquet or Exile on Main Street. But despite that particular song’s alt-country leanings, this disc is first and foremost, what Beck says that he set out to make it: a hip-hop album, or at least his equivalent of one. This is clearly evidenced in “Cellphone’s Dead” in which 80's synth-funk is skillfully simulated over an old-school style breakbeat. A bit of psychedelia can be found in “Soldier Jane”. From this point on the songs mostly lose their distinctiveness save a catchy chorus here (“Nausea”) and a slick bass line there (“Dark Star”). There are some nifty falsetto back-up vocals in “No Complaints” that recall the Velvet Underground, a band which Beck has name-checked as an inspiration of sorts, but pop song-craft touches like that are not enough to save the lack of accessibility and/or the lackluster material to be found on much of the album’s second half. “1000BPM” sounds obnoxious with its overzealous junkyard instrumentation and somewhat abrasively distorted vocals. It is at this point that it can safely be said that the album has devolved into a brand of off-center noise-rock that few are likely to appreciate. “Movie Theme” starts off sounding like intentional cheese which will be a waste of time, but turns into an atmospheric piece of ambient pop nicely augmented by acoustic guitars which contrast nicely with the synthesizers and drum-machine beat. This would have been a great place to end The album. Unfortunately, Beck has other plans and listeners are subjected to (or treated to, depending on the individual’s perspective) a ten-minute suite called “The Horrible Fanfare/Landslide/Exoskeleton”. Like much of this album after track four, it can’t really be said that this song is bad, but neither can it be said that it’s undeniably worth your time. Inconsistent albums like this are what itunes is for. Listeners should capitalize on this new technology by purchasing the high-quality songs on the disc (of which there certainly are a few) and forget the rest. The album itself is essential for hardcore fans and completists only. Everyone else should be satisfied still listening to “Girl”.

__________________