Author: BECKBrand: Umgd/InterscopeFormat: Remixes includedRelease Date: 03-11-1998Details: Review Mutations is a deliberately low-key procession of folkish rambles that aren't interested in any grand statements. [It] is a collection of tumblin'-tumbleweeds, mellow-Acapulco-gold melodies on which Beck's drowsy voice and strummed guitar are framed by the lazy whine of a pedal steel, the wheeze of a harmonica, the occasional trumpet, and the bleeps and burps of old-school synthesizers. -- Entertainment Weekly Mutations is a delightful step backward in Beck's career, harkening to his pre- Odelay days and his first lo-fi indie album, 1993's Golden Feelings. -- People There's a warmth to [Beck's] voice that draws you in, grounding even such surreal numbers as the Zen ballad "We Live Again." In a much more subtle way, these songs ultimately insinuate themselves as insistently as "Where It's At" or "Devils Haircut." -- Los Angeles Times Though his lyrics remain too surreal and self-conscious to suit the homespun music, Beck shines in mellow mode.... -- USA Today Amazon.ca On his 1996 breakthrough album Odelay, Beck Hansen surprised a sleepy music community by blending funk, rock, rap, alternative, and electronica in ways that were both startlingly innovative and irresistibly catchy. Mutations is equally attention-grabbing but not in the gangbusters-pimp-rock-meets-indie-geek style you might expect. Reflective and plaintive, the album reveals Beck's more sentimental side with an eclectic collection of acoustic-based songs that will sound familiar to anyone who cherishes his indie-rock effort One Foot in the Grave. And don't think just because Beck's gone soft, he's gotten boring. From one song to the next, the chameleonic guru strums pensively, shimmies to a bossa nova rhythm, swirls on a psychedelic cloud, plucks Baroque strains from a harpsichord, and weeps countrified tears into a rusty tin bucket. On Mutations, Beck proves that an undistorted guitar and a bit of creativity can easily sound as exciting as two turntables and a microphone. --Jon WiederhornUPC: 731453826328EAN: 0731453826328Languages: EnglishBinding: Audio CDItem Condition: UsedVeryGood
