FLASHBACK: Beck

Very few acts can stand the test of time. Actually that’s a lie, acts great bands are still just as lively today as they were in their hey day and we’ve told you that quite a bit!

And now, let me take you back into the years where LIVE rocked the radio waves, most of us were still running around in nappies, and it was cool to be an outcast. Let me take you back to the 1990s.

Now back then there was a guy named BECK. He mixed social critism with music, experimented like there was no tomorrow and finally made a name for himself by mixing tracks that originated from a variety of genres. BECK himself plays and extremely long list of instruments including slide guitar, harmonica and the sitar, which he began playing whilst growing up with his brother and artist mother in Los Angeles.

In 1994 BECK got his big break with the single ‘Loser’ and he has simply escalated in the art world ever since. His latest works to date include the soundtrack for the action-comic-book film Scott Pilgrim Vs The World, a new project entitled Song Reader of which is compiled completely of sheet music, and a collaboration with CHILDISH GAMBINO.

But now, let me show you why BECK is a musical visionary, because honestly, his own music is one of the best things that ever happened to the 90s. Trust me.

LOSER

‘Loser’, the very start of BECK’s rise to stardom. Released in 1993, ‘Loser’ was a bit different from the rest of the music being played on the radio at the time which was either manically depressing, or cheesy as hell. Opening with a few raw banjo notes, and a casual drum beat, BECK shows the world how different he is from regular artists of the time, he even says so in the lyrics, “in the time of chimpanzees I was a monkey”.

A sitar is brought in during the verse making a diverse range of instruments mould together to create a track that you just cannot forget, which is probably why everybody liked it, because no one else was using instruments like that in mainstream radio. The chorus might sound a bit worrying, “I’m a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me?” but BECK’s lyrics have a subtle beauty about them which you can’t really hear until you listen to the song carefully. I say this because during the song you’ll focus on the instruments at first because they stick out like deer antlers.

WHERE IT’S AT

Here is another song that was greatly recognized in the 1990s.You will have most definitely heard the guitar riff from ‘Where It’s At’ somewhere in your life time because it is probably one of the most catchy guitar riffs of all time. It also sounds like the intro to a reality television show. BECK  has a knack for the cruisey drum beats because ‘Where It’s At’ like ‘Loser’, is a track that is best playing whilst drinking a beer in the backyard on a relaxing Friday afternoon.

The lyrics of the chorus are very simple, “I’ve got two turntables and a microphone,” sung twice, and that’s it, that’s all that’s needed to create a song that will get stuck in your head. The best part of the song would be when BECK himself slips in a little line saying “that was a good drum break,” after the first chorus, it has nothing to do with the track, but it’s just something of a hidden gem I think.

SUMMERTIME

Now this is some of BECK’s later works from, well not that long ago. ‘Summertime’ is actually a track featured on the Scott Pilgrim soundtrack that BECK wrote for the film, and the actors play in the film. But BECK’s original version is so much better. The track has a grungier sound than BECK’s other albums but that aspect of ‘Summertime’ gives it a bit of an edge, or rough surface.

The lyrics sound like your typical BECK track, simple but still having a subtle artistic meaning that probably wouldn’t be noticed if people didn’t realize what they actually were. The slight distortion in the vocals adds a digital effect to ‘Summertime’ which I think makes the track because it’s scratchy tone gives it that extra rev that the song wouldn’t have if it was just clear, regular vocals.

DEVIL’S HAIRCUT

‘Devil’s Haircut’ is one of BECK’s harder tracks, using a solid rock sound to create a hard shell for the track. The verse is pushed through by a single beat which sounds like aboriginal clap sticks but is broken up by a crunchy guitar and BECK’s own calm voice. I’ll take a moment here to highlight the fact that BECK always sounds relaxed, in every song, he’s a very chilled out vocalist. The chorus again is very simple consisting of the lyric, “I’ve got a devil’s haircut, in my mind,” and think of that what you will.

Some might say it makes no sense, some might say it’s catchy and won’t leave them alone. I personally think it’s funny. BECK and his simple lyrics show the world that yeah, lyrics can be simple but they also don’t have to make sense to everyone. As long as you get it, then everything works. One thing I like about BECK is the fact that he does his own thing, and ‘Devil’s Haircut’ reminds me of that by being a track that fills me with joy, and lets me know that hey, I’m weird the world can deal with it.

Words By Lauren Payne

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