Sea Change [LP]

by Beck

Overview

Beck has always been known for his ever-changing moods -- particularly since they often arrived one after another on one album, sometimes within one song -- yet the shift between the neon glitz of Midnite Vultures and the lush, somber Sea Change is startling, and not just because it finds him in full-on singer/songwriter mode, abandoning all of the postmodern pranksterism of its predecessor. What's startling about Sea Change is how it brings everything that's run beneath the surface of Beck's music to the forefront, as if he's unafraid to not just reveal emotions, but to elliptically examine them in this wonderfully melancholy song cycle. If, on most albums prior to this, Beck's music was a sonic kaleidoscope -- each song shifting familiar and forgotten sounds into colorful, unpredictable combinations -- this discards genre-hopping in favor of focus, and the concentration pays off gloriously, resulting in not just his best album, but one of the greatest late-night, brokenhearted albums in pop. This, as many reviews and promotional interviews have noted, is indeed a breakup album, but it's not a bitter listen; it has a wearily beautiful sound, a comforting, consoling sadness. His words are often evocative, but not nearly as evocative as the music itself, which is rooted equally in country-rock (not alt-country), early-'70s singer/songwriterism, and baroque British psychedelia. With producer Nigel Godrich, Beck has created a warm, enveloping sound, with his acoustic guitar supported by grand string arrangements straight out of Paul Buckmaster, eerie harmonies, and gentle keyboards among other subtler touches that give this record a richness that unveils more with each listen. Surely, some may bemoan the absence of the careening, free-form experimentalism of Odelay, but Beck's gifts as a songwriter, singer, and musician have never been as brilliant as they are here. As Sea Change is playing, it feels as if Beck singing to you alone, revealing painful, intimate secrets that mirror your own. It's a genuine masterpiece in an era with too damn few of them. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	12/02/2016
Label:	Interscope / Polydor
UPC:	0602557034905
Rank:	131

Tracks

Disc 1

1. The Golden Age
2. Paper Tiger
3. Guess I'm Doing Fine
4. Lonesome Tears
5. Lost Cause
6. End of the Day

Disc 2

7. It's All in Your Mind
8. Round the Bend
9. Already Dead
10. Sunday Sun
11. Little One
12. Side of the Road

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Beck   Primary Artist,Banjo,Piano,Vocals,Harmonica,Keyboards,Wurlitzer,Percussion,Synthesizer,Glockenspiel,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Vocals (Background)
Justin Meldal-Johnsen   Piano,Percussion,Glockenspiel,Bass (Upright),Bass (Electric),Guitar (Electric),Vocals (Background)
James Gadson   Drums
Smokey Hormel   Piano,Saxophone,Percussion,Bamboo Flute,Slide Guitar,Bamboo Saxophone,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Vocals (Background)
Joey Waronker   Drums,Beatbox,Keyboards,Percussion,Human Beatbox,Vocals (Background)
Jason Falkner   Percussion,Guitar (Electric),Vocals (Background)
Suzie Katayama   Cello
Nigel Godrich   Keyboards,Percussion,Synthesizer
David Campbell   Conductor
Roger Manning   Banjo,Piano,Clavinet,Harmonium,Wurlitzer,Percussion,Synthesizer,Glockenspiel,Indian Banjo,Vocals (Background)
David Cambell   Conductor

Technical Credits

Bob Ludwig   Mastering
Beck   Design,Composer,Art Direction,String Arrangements
Elliot Scheiner   Surround Mix
Smokey Hormel   Tape Recorders
Darrell Thorp   Assistant Engineer
Nigel Godrich   Mixing,Engineer,Producer,Sonic Treatments,String Arrangements
David Campbell   String Arrangements
Kevin Reagan   Design,Art Direction
Jeremy Blake   Artwork
Ekaterina Kenney   Creative Director
Autumn de Wilde   Cover Photo
Paul Bishow   Executive Producer
David Cambell   String Arrangements
Beck Hansen   Composer