Admittedly, I’m not the biggest Beck fan. That said I know he’s had an extensive career emerging with a folky hip-hop sound with an acid trip-like undertones that quickly turned to a more funk-oriented genre mix that kept you guessing over the years. From what I’ve heard his live performance is out of control. I can only base this on one of the MTV Video Music Awards (remember those things?) performance where he played New Pollution and it was insane, but that’s literally all I can recall from his past. I honestly say I really liked his more subdued indie rock album “Modern Guilt” which was produced by Danger Mouse and had a lot of great songs that I personally connected musically. His other more popular albums such as Odelay, Mutations, Midnight Vultures, Sea Change, etc… are all great but whether or not I listened to those albums once or maybe even not at all for whatever reason I was late to the game on the Beck bandwagon.
His new album, however, struck me in a sort of way that I didn’t expect. It seemed as though all of his previous efforts were all wrapped up and reinvented for 2017! Tracks like “Dreams” and “Wow” came out a while ago as singles and ranged from high energy indie rock to Kendrick Lamar inspired hip-hop. His latest album “Colors” dropped a few weeks back and this is Beck truly at his best. Unorthodox, unconventional, WEIRD… these might be words you use to describe this album, however, there’s no denying the hooks and catchiness of this amazing album. To type out exactly all of the instruments, arrangements, and twists and turns on this album wouldn’t do it justice. Instead, I recommend you stream it at the bottom and really immerse yourself in the amazing journey that is “Colors.” Suggested Tracks: “Dear Life”,”Wow”, “Colors” & “Up All Night.”
His artistry doesn’t know limits as the album cover, website (pictured above) and even the lyric videos all have a comprehensive branded feel. It’s innovative, it’s fresh and the design elements are completely inspiring in my opinion as a designer. Even his lyric videos that are immersed in slime (which for you fellow old people out there: Slime is this new tween obsession that is all over youtube, Instagram and other social media outlets. I suggest you google search it now because this is the type of thing that kids are into currently) showing that he has his finger on the pulse to attract an entirely new generation of fans. All in all, a killer album encapsulated by amazing product branding and design excellence. Listen to it below now and get inspired!
