2008 Woodie Awards
The Information: Beck continues to innovate
CD Review
Caitlin Saraphis
Issue date: 10/10/06 Section: Arts & Entertainment
Beck has always been one of those artists who gave his listeners more than just his music. His music videos are always edgy, interesting, and/or visually attractive (if you haven't seen the robot video for "Hell Yes" check it out on YouTube right away).
This ability to be artsy while still remaining interesting to a large number of people has earned him iconic status in the indie world. With his latest album, The Information, released on Oct. 3, his love of giving his listeners other artistic mediums to appreciate has gotten him into some difficulties. The U.K.'s Official Chart Company - the British equivalent of Billboard - has denied The Information the right to chart because it has an unfair advantage over other albums. This advantage comes in the form of a DVD with music videos designed for each song, and packaging that includes one of four sets of stickers designed by Beck that allows the buyer to design their own cover art. Apparently, this could make more people buy this record than would have otherwise, something the O.C.C. deems unfair, despite the fact that record companies have been trying to find ways to entice consumers to buy CDs ever since record sales started dropping back in 2001.
Of course, there is more to The Information than just the packaging, and it seems likely that the music will be enough to persuade people to purchase it without any help from fancy packaging. Though it has been ten years since the release of Odelay, Beck has definitely not used The Information as an excuse to walk down memory lane, rehashing old sounds. It is more ambient and mellow than most of Beck's previous releases; while it still has that funky-yet-folky sound fans have come to expect from him, many of the songs have a substantial Britrock twist.
As usual, Beck has done an incredible job of creating an album that contains both innovative songs, full of sound effects and random beat changes - such as "1000 BPM" and "Cellphone's Dead" - with catchy pop songs that appeal to the masses - such as "Movie Theme" and "No Complaints." The Information is different enough from anything else out there to be interesting and yet similar enough to Beck's other releases to still be engaging.
The O.C.C. needs to remember that bands have been releasing albums with unusual packaging for years now; Jethro Tull's Thick as a Brick and Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti are just two that spring to mind in a long list. Weird liner notes have never been and likely never will be enough to make anyone buy an album if the music isn't worth listening to. With fifteen tracks and just over an hour of original, well-performed untypical music, The Information already had an unfair advantage over its competition.
This ability to be artsy while still remaining interesting to a large number of people has earned him iconic status in the indie world. With his latest album, The Information, released on Oct. 3, his love of giving his listeners other artistic mediums to appreciate has gotten him into some difficulties. The U.K.'s Official Chart Company - the British equivalent of Billboard - has denied The Information the right to chart because it has an unfair advantage over other albums. This advantage comes in the form of a DVD with music videos designed for each song, and packaging that includes one of four sets of stickers designed by Beck that allows the buyer to design their own cover art. Apparently, this could make more people buy this record than would have otherwise, something the O.C.C. deems unfair, despite the fact that record companies have been trying to find ways to entice consumers to buy CDs ever since record sales started dropping back in 2001.
Of course, there is more to The Information than just the packaging, and it seems likely that the music will be enough to persuade people to purchase it without any help from fancy packaging. Though it has been ten years since the release of Odelay, Beck has definitely not used The Information as an excuse to walk down memory lane, rehashing old sounds. It is more ambient and mellow than most of Beck's previous releases; while it still has that funky-yet-folky sound fans have come to expect from him, many of the songs have a substantial Britrock twist.
As usual, Beck has done an incredible job of creating an album that contains both innovative songs, full of sound effects and random beat changes - such as "1000 BPM" and "Cellphone's Dead" - with catchy pop songs that appeal to the masses - such as "Movie Theme" and "No Complaints." The Information is different enough from anything else out there to be interesting and yet similar enough to Beck's other releases to still be engaging.
The O.C.C. needs to remember that bands have been releasing albums with unusual packaging for years now; Jethro Tull's Thick as a Brick and Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti are just two that spring to mind in a long list. Weird liner notes have never been and likely never will be enough to make anyone buy an album if the music isn't worth listening to. With fifteen tracks and just over an hour of original, well-performed untypical music, The Information already had an unfair advantage over its competition.
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