Time Warp Wednesday: Sea Change from Beck

Sea Change is Beck’s breakup record. By saying this, I certainly do not intend criticism. This is a great record. Released in September 2002, this album was inspired by the split with his long-time girlfriend. The album’s title reflects Beck’s life, but also the music itself. It is really free of the sampling and quirky lyrics that made him famous. Instead we have here a beautiful, melancholy album filled with strings and more of an emphasis on acoustic instruments. In addition, the lyrics are really wonderful. Take “Lost Cause” for instance. “Your sorry eyes cut through the bone / They make it hard to leave you alone.” OR, “I Guess I’m Doing Fine.” “There’s a bluebird at the window / I can’t hear the song he sings / All the jewels in Heaven / Don’t look the same to me.” This powerful, personal writing really makes this one of Beck’s great records.

Check out this recent version of "Lost Cause."

Read More...

Walls

Wow! Take Beck and mix in Danger Mouse and Cat Power and you get “Walls” off Modern Guilt. While I’m loving the whole record, “Walls” has become my latest musical obsession. Thankfully, repeat and headphones exists. The beats, melody, and lyrics work so well together. This song is dark and speaks to the lassitude that so many of us in our country feel now. “Some days we get a thrill in our brains / Some days it turns into malaise / You see your face in the veneer / Reflected on the surface of fear,” the songs open.

Thinking about this song after listening to Barack Obama’s amazing speech last night, I can’t help but to feel how this song, and really the whole album, is a reflection of our lives after 8 years of W—and damage that has been done to us and the rest of the world, not just physically or financially, but more important spiritually.

Here’s a live version of the tune from the Outside Lands Festival.

Read More...