Guero

The David Bowie of his generation, genre-jumper Beck Hansen has been releasing distinctive albums that balance his signature slacker mentality with his youthful aspirations for over 12 years. On his follow-up to 2002’s acclaimed buzz-kill, Sea Change, Beck’s eighth studio album, Guero, takes a mature, more musically-inclined stab at the formula that brought him immense acclaim and success on his signature album, Odelay.  

With the help of Odelay producers-turned-hotshot-electronica gods The Dust Brothers, Beck’s love affair with heavy beats, “white-boy” rap vocals and retro samples has been updated to a less exciting, albeit more musically accomplished blend of hip-hop and indie rock. After the cult success of Sea Change, Beck’s natural predilection for rebelling against expectations had him telling publications that he was working on a heavy metal album. While that might have been true at the time, the result of such sessions are not heard anywhere on the poppy, hipster-ready style mash-up of Guero.

An album as significant as Odelay was bound to be copied, but by it’s own helmsman? Guero is an interesting new phase of Beck’s career, as he’s never been the type to reference his own accomplishments. Whether or not he’s able to pull it off in a relevant way is the question.

Beginning with a blaring, static-laden riff hard enough to accompany any Samuel L. Jackson “bad mutha” strut, Beck opens Guero with his first single, “E-Pro,” a poppy, yet densely stylized return to his roots. “Que Onda Guero” secures the assumed style slant hinted at in the albums title (while this might be, more or less, Odelay Pt. 2, adding a slight backdrop of Latin influence should keep the album from ever seeming too much like a complete rehashing.

“Girl,” if released as a single, could possibly see the breakthrough success of past Beck songs “Where it’s At” and “Loser.” Driven by a catchy acoustic riff and loopy bass lines, Beck sings “O.C.”-ready lyrics to summer-party results. I’m sure Spike Jonze has already been called, and I’m sure he’s already training monkeys for the video; either way, “Girl” stands a good chance at being the song you and I both will be humming all summer long as we pump gas - or, in my case, riding my bike, thus saving a fortune in order to purchase imported Beck singles.

As Guero plays on, the songs get more eclectic and musical, often leaving Odelay in it’s Latino dust. In the early 90s, Beck didn’t stand a chance at writing a song like “Broken Drum,” and he never came close to the musical proficiency of “Missing.” White boy (guero, translated) has always had style to spare, and Guero meshes Beck’s ability to wander creatively without leaving his own brand of rock too far behind.

Though he’s rehashing his signature retro-rap-rock, Beck is still moving forward on his latest effort. He seems to understand music and composition better than ever, traits he certainly gained while working with Nigel Godrich on Sea Change‘s expansive compositions. It might be easy to make Part 2 jokes, but, in the end, Guero is one of the strongest sets of songs you’re likely to hear this year. See you in June, when you, the cast of “The O.C.,” your mom, little sister and everyone else are sweating out the day to “Girl.”     6.5/10

Written by G. William Locke