Will the real Beck Hansen please stand up?
Shapeshifter, decoy, moving target. The notion of permanence has never been part of Beck’s DNA. We know the chameleon-like jumps from Odelay’s sampladelic collage to Midnite Vultures’ decadent funk, but every so often, at his own discretion, we are invited into a very different sound world of his own making.
In 2002, Sea Change unexpectedly traded the party-boy energy for graceful, atmospheric heartbreak, a cinematic masterpiece that redefined him as an artist. Twelve years later, Morning Phase recaptured that same confessional magic, earning him an Album of the Year Grammy before he retreated once again behind the misguided (to my ears, at least) synthetic pop gloss of Colors(2017) and Hyperspace (2019).
Now, after a seven-year studio break, Ride Lonesome completes a trilogy spanning a quarter of a century, saddling up Sea Change and Morning Phasein the "serious" introspective corner of his discography.
Self-produced and performed alongside the key musicians from those two predecessor records, Ride Lonesome wraps a cosmic, romantic take on Americana in elaborate orchestral accompaniment. Its instrumental palette is extraordinarily rich, with finger-picked guitars and sweeping slide nestled up against violas, cellos, piano, harmonica, glockenspiel, synth and more, all anchored by gorgeously layered vocals that caress like soft velvet.
The album works elegantly as a continuous, conceptual piece, as we listeners are guided through the spectacular, vast soundscapes of "Disappearing Act" and "Failed Words," the psychic, existential canyons of the mind on "For Your Love," and the crushingly beautiful closer "Beyond The Light."
It amounts to a magical, swirling landscape, proving once again that when Beck stops hiding he crafts some of the most breathtaking music of his career, and Ride Lonesome is one of the prettiest records you'll hear all year.
Ride Lonesome is out now on vinyl & CD
