Beck
Mutations
(DGC)
Pity the poor record companies, struggling to move product
for ingrate artists who selfishly insist on behaving, well, artistic.
Beck Hansen should hang his head in shame. I mean, what are we
to make of Mutations? Void of his signature hip-hop beats, light
on emotional irony and rife with acoustic guitars, it's almost
as if Mr. Hansen is trying to express himself. But the wily marketing
folks at Geffen Records showed him. They let everyone within
earshot know that Mutations is not - repeat, not - the heir to
Mr. Hansen's mega-selling Odelay. Rumor has it that if Mr. Hansen
stays from the fold again, Geffen will force the lad to release
his childish experiments under an assumed name, reportedly a
glyph. So take heart, music consumers. There are brave people
out there battling to keep the unfamiliar at bay.
Rating: 7
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