Modern Guilt

by 
AlbumJul 08 / 200810 songs, 33m 30s
Alternative Rock Indie Rock
Popular
7.0 / 10

More direct and consistent than his last two scattershot LPs, Beck's latest-- produced by Danger Mouse-- finds the disillusioned L.A. hippie struggling to balance his deathly 21st century outlook with his more crowd-pleasing inclinations.

C

Over the past decade, Beck has wrestled with two fairly distinct musical personas, giving each one entire albums to gestate: There's the hip-hop-embracing, sample-crazy fun-lover (Midnite Vultures, Guero) and then there's the master of atmospheric downer-folk (Mutations, Sea Change). His last disc, 2006's The Informati…

Check out our album review of Artist's Modern Guilt on Rolling Stone.com.

At first glance, it seems like the teaming of Beck and Danger Mouse is a perfect pairing of postmodern pranksters, as neither musician has shaken the first impression he's made: for most, Beck is still seen as that ironic Loser, trawling through pop culture's junk heap, while Danger Mouse is the maverick of The Grey Album, the mash-up of the Beatles and Jay-Z that reads like a joke but doesn't play like one.

This album’s brief 10 tracks prove that Beck’s almost always more interesting when he’s not having fun.

6 / 10

I don’t mean to suggest midlife crisis for Beck, but his new release, Modern Guilt, doesn't compare to the genre-defying musical precedent he has...

<p>(XL)</p>

Album Reviews: Beck - Modern Guilt

8 / 10