The results are in: Beck is no longer zany. Scientology-ridden, to be sure, but wacky? Fun and wild? Erm, no. And that new album of his? Modern Guilt? Not so good. Slightly weird, otherwise average pop music.
But absolutely brilliant, all the same. This brilliance does not come from the fact that the album was produced by Danger Mouse (the Gnarls Barkley producer), or that it’s “psych-rock,” but because of the way that Beck quietly expresses his sorrow and personal guilt as a performer. You see, this is above and beyond what Beck did in Sea Change, album that sounded sad and involved sad lyrics. It’s on a higher emotive tier than Depeche Mode, who combined happy pop tunes to suicide-note-esque lyrics.
Beck’s Modern Guilt has sad lyrics, a happy, upbeat tone, and a performer who is audibly struggling with where he wants to fall on the spectrum. I’ve never heard anything like it. His voice doesn’t have the emotional energy and power of songs like It’s All in Your Mind, nor the clap ‘n’ dance flow of stuff like New Pollution.
That’s right… Beck’s not quite sure where it’s at. Har.
And the fact that you can hear that feeling, through both his timbre and lyrics, is startlingly beautiful. Beck, you won me over again, you dick, this time with postmodern emoting.
“Modern guilt I’m staring at nothing/ Modern guilt I’m under lock and key”