Reviews (page 9 of 14)
Albumi #137, 17.12.2024 Surullinen albumi, jonka Beck tiettävästi teki pitkän parisuhteen loppumisen mainingeissa. Hieno albumi kaikessa melankoliassaan, mutta ei lukeudu Beckin parhaiden joukkoon.
I enjoyed this new sound when the album first came out, a slower more acoustic sound.
I love this album. I love Beck and the fact that Sea Change is a Beck album is only part of the reason I love it so much. I would love this album if it was by a one and done I had never heard of before. But because it's a Beck album also helps make it that much better. With the complete departure of his style came an incredible, raw emotion we are not used to getting from such a whimsical artist.
Another album I was able to listen to on CD. My favourite Beck album, Lovely.
6/10
Very low-key music, sometimes sounds a little country and I heard what reminded me a lot of Pink Floyd at times. This seems like a big departure from the sound of what I'd heard form Beck. As I listened to it I thought it sounds like it was written by someone who had a break up or divorce. I looked at Wikipedia and he had just broken up with his girlfriend before this. I have to give him credit for being a talented artist/song-writer, that does come through. I'm sure if I read through the lyrics I would find a lot of introspection. This album is good in it's own space, but I just found it boring.
2002. Folk Rock. Chamber Pop. 9/10 The Golden Age/Paper Tiger/Guess I'm Doing Fine/Lonesome Tears/Lost Cause/End of the Day/It's All in Your Mind/Round the Bend/Already Dead/Sunday Sun/Little One/Side of the Road
A very pretty, very low energy album. Some days I really like it, and other days I’m just not in the mood. Lost Cause truly is a beautiful song.
I love sad Beck. Guess I’m Doing Fine is one of my all time favorites. One of the best rainy day albums in indie rock.
it is very funny that even when beck drops the eccentricity & sampling and does a more straightforward & stripped down singer songwritery album it still blows all the contemporary clowns who built their careers around that style out of the water
Different sound to what I remember Beck being like, and I'm not sure I liked it
Great but sad
Lord release me. This pity party was not expected nor is it welcome. It's a slow burn, but instead of a candle at the end of a wick, it's a noose.
Too long, got bored halfway through. I guess I don't like sad Beck.
Not what I expected at all Excellent heart break album
I could see this album growing on me in the future, but it's pretty boring on first listen. Only a handful of tracks I'd say stuck with me.
I’m not sure how Beck manages to have multiple albums on this list. It’s ok music, nothing special. Middle of the road music. Would have preferred something a little more meaty for a weekend listen. 2.5 rounded up to 3
Dreamy and dull - this was ok, nothing really captured me Great name though
Love Beck. Much more deep and nuanced than the songs heard on the radio.
The Good: an album which informs us about climate change… The Bad: wait, I misread that, Sea Change is not about climate change… The Ugly: the break-up? Let me ask you this: if an unknown artist would have released this exact album, would people have been raving about it? Because I believe that the answer to that question is a resounding NO! Which makes one wonder if this album is overrated, or if we’ve been ignorant to many other albums from unknown people which should be rated a lot higher! What we’ve learned from this album is that break-ups are always great muses for musicians, and that sadness sucks… As I was never that much into Beck, I had not heard about this album, nor had I listened to the album Odelay, which I really liked. So, I was curious about this album… and now, well, now I understand better the ol’ saying of “curiosity killed the cat”… 2* for not hating it totally, but I could have been spared this listening experience...
A bit creepy, slow, and depressing, but not too bad. Unfortunately, the album was too long and the songs all started to sound the same.
this is so frustrating because he can make some absolutely BEAUTIFUL sounds and then uses them to make nothing songs. idk it just does not hit. A lot of gorgeous instrumental passages though
It is a good album, but it is more noteworthy as a stylistic change than it is impressive on its own
So vibey! I loved this more than I thought I would.
Easy listening / indie rock. Some songs had great sound scapes.
I'm reaching 200 albums this week. That's a great achievement. "Sea Change" was a brilliant album. I loved the first half of it. Before listening to this album, the only song by Beck I heard was "Loser". 4 stars for "Sea Change."
Might be my favorite Beck album. Great, confessional songs with enough catchy pop elements to keep it lively.
Surprisingly better than I remembered...though I've never sat down and listened to the whole thing critically. It was rich and sad and weird.
Tylsä. Ei välttis huono mut tylsä.
I like sad songs but Jesus Christ. It's like if you pulled all the interesting instrumentation out of Radiohead and made the lyrics less weird. Not for me. No thank you.
Very 2000s, nostalgic folksy rock, no stand outs.
Yeah good, dude is going through some stuff and it’s quite melancholic and chilled. Solid 3 I’d say
THE GOLDEN AGE - 6.4/10 PAPER TIGER - 8.1/10 GUESS I'M DOING FINE 5.7/10 LONESOME TEARS - 7.4/10 LOST CAUSE - 6.6/10 END OF THE DAY- 6.1/10 IT'S ALL IN YOUR MIND - 6.7/10 ROUND THE BEND - 5.2/10 ALREADY DEAD - 6.2/10 SUNDAY SUN - 6.5/10 LITTLE ONE - 6.2/10 SIDE OF THE ROAD - 5.6/10
A fine, gentle album.
i, for one, quite like mellow sad beck
Nudne i żałosne 2/5
It's like Beck has a psychotic break and writes a tightly focused singer/songwriter album. This one is really good. I like how the electronic and eclectic elements are still here, but they're used as support. I also pick up on some big Pink Floyd and Beatles vibes but through the lense of Nick Drake.
Somber, sad, lush string sections, gentle guitar-picking. It all sounds beautiful, but at times, the songs morph into one sorrowful mush. It feels like the record could be a couple tracks shorter and still fully convey the heartbreak and emptiness that Beck experiences. Standout Tracks: Golden Age, Paper Tiger, Lonesome Tears, Sunday Sun
Solid album, one or two times i found myself bored of the energy and instrumental but every other song kept me interested.
I don't remember honestly
Depressing.
Mixed feelings, maybe I need to listen to it again. Some nice sounds though
this was my first experience with Beck in a full album context, and while I knew going in that this was him in a more serious, contemplative mood than normal, I wasn't ready to be as moved as I was by a lot of these songs! when I saw Nigel Godrich handled production duties and read about this album's despondent break-up themes, that obviously made me think of Radiohead, but I came away from this feeling far more parallels between Beck and Nick Drake. of course, Beck and Godrich's sound is a lot more expansive owing to the higher production value, but the mellow acoustic vibe, the string arrangements, even Beck's singing, all brought albums like Five Leaves Left and Bryter Layter to mind. the run from tracks 1-5 here is by far the strongest (that little keyboard melody on "Golden Age" is so perfect!), but I was also pretty blown away by "Round the Bend". on an album full of great string sections, that song probably has my favorite. it's the most haunting song on the entire album, and it really stood out for that reason. I'm excited to see what else Beck's discography has to offer; hopefully I can catch him in a better mood next time! strong 8/10.
Okay-ish
After hearing Odelay all the way through for the first time recently, and not really enjoying it, I was a bit nervous. Thankfully this album was less irritating due to Beck not inundating the listener with annoying sound effects that was driving a neurodivergent person like me insane. I found myself enjoying this album much better, and really enjoying the more toned down, somber tone Beck was relaying through the music.
Favorite beck album. Incredible
Beck is an artist that has been on my list to listen to for a while. Three songs in I thought to myself- "man, this kind of sucks." I didn't really like any of this. Too mopey sad boy. 3.25/10 (1.75/5)
Love Beck. This album was quite a change for me when it came out. Didn't appreciate it much at the time, but it has grown on me over time. 4/5
gorgeous and so sad
Sea Change I bought a hooky version of this on CD from a bloke selling counterfeit albums on the street outside the Staten Island Ferry Terminal in Manhattan in November 2002 while visiting Mackie. I often wonder why he chose this album to copy and that spot to sell it. It doesn’t really say carefree fun loving New York excursion. Anyhow, funding crack addictions aside, it’s a truly excellent album, up there with Odelay and Midnite Vultures as my favourites of his. The difference between Midnite Vultures’ dynamic soul/funk and Prince-esque vibrancy and energy and Sea Change’s intimate, sometimes bleak, focused and concentrated folk and country-dappled melancholy is starkly brilliant. While all the songs are thematically and tonally similar, they don’t feel repetitive at all, gently lapping and swaying with each other over the course of the album, all with slight variations in instrumentation, tempo and arrangement. The playing is great, sympathetic and rather lovely little guitar and keyboard embellishments and the string arrangements are fantastic, from the pastoral to the vaguely middle eastern. The first three songs really grabbed me when I first listened, the country guitar on The Golden Age evoking Lonesome Me, Paper Tiger’s shuffling percussion, guitar and string arrangement are superb, and Guess I’m Doing Fine’s melancholy melody accented by the reverb and guitar is brilliant. It remains excellent after that, each track is great, but some highlights for me are It’s All in Your Mind with its ghostly and reverb guitar piano, Round the Bends use of upright bass, the fingerpicking of Already Dead, Little One with it’s heavier oppressive guitars, and Side of the Road, a great bit of downbeat country-folk melancholia. All through the album you can pick up the influences and references - I’m sure Sunday Sun is a Nick Drake reference to Saturday Sun, but there’s bits of Neil, Dylan, other folk and country as well as some electronica inflected rhythms and drums, adding to the subtle variance of the songs. It’s a great sad album as well as being just a great album. Easily a 5, clive 🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊 Playlist submission: The Golden Age
Too depressing for me! Cheer up, Beck, it wouldn’t kill you to sing a song with some tempo you know!
Enjoyed this, but maybe not as much as I did the previous Beck album. Simpsons: Yes (and Futurama etc)
Good monging out music. But generally it's just OK.
I'm not surprised Beck's girlfriend broke up with him if he is this depressing in his day-to-day life.
I liked it, not as Much as his other album with the cool looking dog but it was fun. Turns out Beck is more than just a head in a jar
Tedious Pap
I generally like morose music and Beck is talented but this is boring disguised as depressing. Too long, too monotonous and really nothing to delineate one song from another. If I am suffering from insomnia I will remember this album though
Sad music can be quite beautiful, but this isn't quite there. There's something about it that's missing but I can't quite put my finger on what. I thought 'Paper Tiger' and 'Little One' were the best tracks for their use of strings and they build up nicely to an epic ending. I find Beck's vocals to be quite pleasant to listen to. Not bad by any means but it's a bit long for an album where every song sounds very similar to each other. Some good moments, but a little boring in places.
You wanna know something funny? Because it's been nearly 9 months since I got Guero for the album project, a child could have been conceived and born in between my first and second times listening to a Beck album. The child would've been born a bit prematurely, but they'd live, so I'll count it. Anyways, here's my second ever Beck album! I liked Guero well enough, but Sea Change is definitely an album that appeals to me more personally. The two albums are pretty different. This album goes in a much simpler direction, but that's not a bad thing. The writing in these songs isn't as abstract as the more typical Beck song, but it's not like it's dumbed down or anything. The lyrics still have depth to them, just in a clearer way. The sound is nice in both the instrumental and vocal fronts. The production is solid. The album definitely feels like a Nigel Godrich production, but it still stands out from other artists and bands he worked with like Radiohead. The songs are all pretty good. The tone is consistently solid. This is just a nice album. I really like it. Maybe the last Beck album on the list will be even better. Who knows? Strong 4/5.
Great and chill album!
Bit long for an album where every song sounds the same. Big meh from me.
Not my fav from Beck but still great. This album was a massive tone shift. He can do anything
Not bad but pretty boring from the usual Beck music.
ok
Initial thoughts: a solid 4, but I had not listened to it for many years and had forgotten how good this album is - perhaps I like it so much due to the chamber pop elements, but the songs themselves are very strong as well.
I found this to be quite boring at first, but on second listen I enjoyed it a lot more.
The beauty is definitely there, e.g. Lost Cause, but - I hate to say it - the album as a whole tends to boredom.
This is the first time I've listened to this album since it came out 22 years ago. I thought it was awful when I first heard it. This wasn't the Beck I grew up with! 22 years later I really liked it. I didn't understand the maturity that an artist wants to go through. A different way of telling their stories and sharing their art. This is an album I would buy on vinyl if I saw it out in the wild and one of the first from the 1001 that I don't already own that I wish I did.
Fine album, a little surprise to be honest.
Wederom ideaal voor op een koude, regenachtige herfstdag. Ik kende enkel de cover van dit album en zelfs geen enkel nummer. Wijs album. Sad album wel, maar soms mag dat. 4.4
I was expecting something idiosyncratic in the vein of Becks earlier albums so I was surprised when I instead got a melancholy alt country album. Sad but beautiful. It also matched my november vibe perfectly.
Sea Change by sad, mellow Beck showing his incredible range. I borrowed this CD from the A’dale library shortly after it was released. Not at all what I expected, but liked it a lot. (I think more back then than this time around). First three songs get the album off to a strong start, but it fades from there. Songs become similar and depressing. Good album to fall asleep by… L = (1.5*s) J = (2.6*s) Ave = (2.1*s)
I love this album and hearing it live at the Hollywood Bowl was amazing. Even in standard format the strings and instrumental backing are really lush and well thought out. For those who criticize this one, Beck didn't sacrifice any of his creativity here, this is a beautiful sonic achievement in all the best ways. Even if this isn't your vibe, it shows his incredible range and it really deserves to be played again (and again) because you just can't get it all in one listen. The songwriting, the lyrics, the swell, the layering, the minimal guitar playing, the whole combo, really impressive. No skips at all, really unique with each song serving a purpose, will always love this one. Easy 4.25 for me.
I'm not a big fan of the (sea) change for Beck on this album...but only because it is so far removed from his norm which I love so much. The album is good for what its going for though...a broken hearted, ballad heavy epic. "Already Dead" was best track but I just wasn't sad enough at the time while listening. I do love that this Loser (baby) from the 90s can produce a raw, emotional album and blow critics away...Beck is just a music genius. Another album I would hope to never have to play again cause I'm up the junction. Better live at the Hollywood Bowl with full orchestra...solid 2.
I'm a big fan of Beck but this one is a little too sappy and melodramatic for me. It lacks so much of his unique creativity that sets his music apart from any other artist. It's clear that a lot of this was written from a place of pain and despair as it doesn't sound like Beck is having fun at any point on this album. In a vacuum Sea Change is a pretty good album, its just my least preferred version of Beck. I much prefer when he is integrating strange sounds and cryptic lyrics in an alt-pop rock style. I can see how it could be a critical darling, but for me it gets shelved as there are so many other Beck albums I'll reach for before Sea Change. I can take it or leave it personally. 2.59 stars
The quintessential Xennial breakup album, but admittedly not for everyone.
Decent depending on the mood
Mood music
Melancholic and emotional without being sad, if that makes sense. I have not really listened to Beck before, but this is something that I really would have enjoyed in college. There's something, musically, that's keeping me from loving this album. I'm not 100% sure what it is, but it just doesn't resonate with me. It is very good, and a style/mood that I really enjoy, so I'll be saving it for another listen later. I do know that if it was more synthetic/produced, rather than live instruments, I would like it much less. Favorite Song(s): Guess I'm Doing Fine, Sunday Sun, Side of the Road
Lost Cause
No private session used for spotify. I bought this album when it first came out. Listened to in regularly to start off a Sunday morning.
Not great, didn’t listen to everything. Voice sounds different than his face looks. All songs sound the same.
This was really good, and not at all what i expected.
Good chill out album. 4/5
I started out waving my hand at in front of my eyes whilst saying “This is not the Beck you’re looking for”. “Where’s the upbeat, funky Beck I know and love?’l shouted to myself. Then I bade myself to “Slow down, listen, don’t be hasty, lay your expectations aside, be open, stop eating chocolate chips from the bag”. And I slowed down, settled into a ‘Morning Phase’ state of mind and got along with it all. And now, a sure sign of positive personal growth and resilience, I like both Becks
One of my favourite albums of all time. I listen to this weekly. The production on this is excellent and I think it is one of the best sounding albums ever. Although the songs are generally about loss and loneliness, I find there is a beauty and wistfulness that o keep returning to.
Music to listen to while you kick back in a warm bath, enjoying a bottle of wine, and just let the Beck-ness of it all wash over you. And then when you're nice and toasty, pop open a vein...
For me Beck is the pop prankster who did lo-fi stuff like MTV Makes Me Want To Smock Crack (and Loser) and then cleaned up his sound and made weird electrofunk masterpieces like Sexx Laws. The Serious Singer Songwriter Beck never did it for me. This is particularly dull. And very long.
A monotonous break up album with many easy-on-ears ballads that'll sound good on a night drive. Didn't like Beck's nasal whiny vocals. Lyrically just meh. Nigel Godrich's production gives it a polished sound, hence listenable.
thought it would be shit as the list compiler clearly has a hardon for beck, but actually its a really nice album
Nice background music
Rubbish. Didn't even notice it had stopped.
This was a beautiful album. Mournful and understated, I really like this version of Beck. He should have his heart broken more often and write albums from the resulting chasm of sadness. I'm sure certain billionaires will attest that this is a money-making strategy.
This was not what I was expecting at all. I haven’t listened to much Beck except for his mid-90s stuff, but this was great with a hint country in there. Sad and moving music. I liked it just enough.
- one of the greatest artists of our time -
I like weird electronic Beck, not slow sleepy beck
Guess Im Doing Fine
Tough album for me to rate. I wasn’t familiar with this album prior to the listen, so, like others, I was thrown off by the lack of breakbeats and samples. The obvious theme and feel of the album is melancholy. It’s a sad one to sit through, but it is a shockingly beautiful album at the same time. In some ways, I think it may be better than anything I’d heard from him in the past. There’s so much emotion, and the songs have so much tension, especially with the layering strings. But, I just don’t know how much I’ll revisit this album, as I usually prefer more upbeat music. I’m at like a 3.5
Oh, a sad album. Plodding and a bit forgettable. Not for me, I am afraid so not something I'll play again.
I never really enjoy Beck’s downtempo stuff as much. This has some great songs for when you’re just in that kind of mood, but there’s a ton of filler that all sounds like each other. Cut the run time by a third, and gain a star.
There are a couple of interesting songs here but overall I find it pretty dull. 3 stars or C-.
Surprised. Loved it. Will listen again.
Loved it.
Really good. I had no idea there was such production and thought with Beck. Mellow and a good voice.
This bored me. Too one note and too long. Clearly I prefer quirky Beck
Definitely a mood album, all sad songs, I didn't dislike any just can't imagine listening to this album very often
Wenn ich beschließe mein irdischen Dasein zu beenden, werde ich zur Sicherheit nochmal diese Platte hören. Erinnert mich an Nick Drake. Und der hat es ja geschafft.
not my vibe, but not bad
Beck has some wonderful lyrics and great engineering skills, some of his later stuff is better.
I love this era of beck. Beautiful instrumentals mixed with his hauntingly calm voice.
Not for me a bit boring and meh
Good, but the alt rock that leaves my brain as soon as the song ends
pretty good album, it is mastered beautifully, but overall it goes on for too long... Favourite Song = Its all in your mind
★★★★½
Enjoyed it. I'm not a huge fan of latter-day Beck, but it was fun.
Not the worst thing I’ve heard but I wouldn’t listen again
The album can feel a bit repetitive, and some tracks blend together in a way that makes it hard for them to stand out. I found myself zoning out at times, which makes it harder to stay engaged. It’s a good album for when you’re in the mood for something mellow but it might not be one I’d put on repeat.
Not what I was expecting from Mr Sex Laws. I enjoyed listening to it. Probably not one that I will come back and choose - but it's a great album. I love the orchestral sounds and the way a lot of songs just sort of disintergrate. I'm rounding it up to 4.
Never heard this before. Not what I was expecting. Accessible, memorable, and heartfelt. A strong 4 stars.
This was fine for a chill album. Certainly more accessible than some of Beck's other stuff. 3.1
This is a chill masterpiece that helps reduce stress and keep me grounded.
Easy album to listen to. I've never paid much attention to Beck but this is decently done. Hard to give it notes. I'm not the target but I can't see anything wrong with it.
I was ready to just dismiss this. In the past he has made more unique creative choices that worked. This feels a little more standard and subdued, but with great compositions. Not much to complain about just nothing pops out for me. A cohesive package of an album.
chill folk music. feels a bit too barebones for me. almost like background music in an open world game sometimes
Lovely but it drags just a bit. His monotone voice without any range gets tiresome.
When autoplay continued after this album completed, and played Missing from Guero. I didn't realise it had changed albums and thought "ah, I like this one more than the other tracks.". So yeah, I prefer Guero (and Odelay). This is good, but not great. I prefer slightly livelier Beck.
I do like the style but none of the tracks really spoke to me that much I think I'll give it another listen
Much different, in a very good way, than I was expecting. More guitar, less electronica. Dinged it as the songs sound fairly similar which is understandable based on the influence on the album.
The mood I was hoping for. 4/5
After a single play through this hits along the high 3, low 4 territory. Something like a 7.7/10. Compared to the other Beck albums on the list, this is my least favorite. It is also the most melancholy and "mature" sounding of the bunch. Beck trades in his breakbeat samples and electronic effects for acoustic guitar, sweeping strings, and occasional southern twang. Across all of it, Beck's sleepy vocals drone away. The effect is a placid album that holds a middle line all the way through with only a few notable exceptions. Of those exceptions, Paper Tiger calls to a similar vibe that late-career Radiohead conjures with a clean shifting drum beat, sweeping strings, and echoey vocals. Little One (possibly the best track here) is another standout for its brighter/psych feeling production. I could see this being a good album for a long car ride on a sunny day. The whole thing feels like a sad smile.
Very different Beck album compared to his others. This one reminded me a lot of Radiohead; maybe Kid A? Gloomy for sure, not quite my cut of the jib, but I enjoyed it as a whole. Could see this being a 4 in the right environment, but it'll settle for a 3 today.
Slower and more folky than I remember most Beck albums being. This one was a very easy listen and the beginning really was quite good. Started to taper off towards the end, could have been the music or could have been the mind numbing task I was doing at work. But anyways this was still a strong album. I wish I could go back and re-rate the other Beck albums because now listening to him more I think I have grown to appreciate his style much more.
Listened to this one a bunch going through my initial Radiohead phase, as the producer is the same and gives off a nice melancholy vibe. Definitely very different from the albums we've listened to so far as this is more of a mature sound, but I can still dig it. Standouts are Lonesome Tears, Lost Cause, and my personal favorite Little One.
Bored
3/5 - slow and sad but enjoyable Standout tracks: - End of the day 4/5 - I like Beck's voice in this and guess I'm doing fine
Rating: 4/10 Beck is such an eclectic artist and decides to make a very boring and one-dimensional album. Very disappointing.
Sad rock music. Not bad, but nothing particularly interesting either. Stand-out: Lost Cause
LOVED THIS!
I'll never be a huge Beck fan but this was a decent album.
I enjoyed listening to these mellow grooves. 3
Boring Beck- introspective but lacked soul.
Songs to go to sleep to.
new fave
Enjoyable, low-key, countryish, melancholy. Something I will return to.
Pleasant/chill album. A few songs that I have revisited since listening.
Sad montage music.
Kaks ja puol tähteä, joka voisi päivästä riippuen keikahtaa kumpaan suuntaan tahansa. Tänään oli ankean harmaa aamu, johon levy sopi tunnelmaltaan - lyödään siis kolmonen.
decent but it's a tad bit wishy washy
Absolutely one of my favorite heartbreaking albums.
Tried so hard to like this, but i think it didnt have enough diversity between the songs, and it was way too sad for me, i normally dont like sad music. music isnt good just because its sad and has hardhitting depressing lyrics, it has to be interesting besides that, is my opinion.
boh niente di che però la seconda track top
Pleasant enough, but nothing really stood out
Great background, lazy voice that didn’t do anything exciting. Basically took a trip to mid city and brought back a keychain. 3 stars, should be 2.5.
Muy buena oportunidad para re escuchar este disco que tenía en cd. Es tranquilo, con hermosas canciones. Y la voz, imperdible.
Meh. Nothing really distinguishes one track from the next.
beck is pretty standard if you're looking for soft... is it rock or is it pop, i'm not too sure to be honest with you. this album is a shy away from what he usually puts out. originally i wasn't too into this album, but the more i listened to it, i actually kinda grew fond over the quiet, mostly acoustic and mildly ambient ditties. the wistful and sometimes indifferent energy that persists is likely due to the singer's breakup at the time.
Another day I think I would have really felt this, but today it’s a 3.
This one has taken me a few tries over the years, but it finally did it for me. I don't think I really knew enough in 2002 for this to hit. Now it hits more. I like that it feels like an album for sure. Really great songs Guess I'm Doing Fine, Lost Cause, It's All In Your Mind, and Already Dead for me. But it's an album I want to hear in its entirety.
Love Beck, great album but not my favorite of his either!
was alright, it was a very calming album, but not something i’d listen to again.
Really great album. I’m not really the biggest Beck fan, but this album is a bit of an outlier to his previous works. 4.5 stars.
Sad times, good melodies
I hadn't heard this particular Beck album before but this is probably my favourite. It's similar to Beck's other stuff but also slightly different,a bit more sad and introspective than his other stuff.
This is a great Beck album. I think he's at his best when he's in this acoustic zone with Sea Change and Morning Phase.
I've listened to Becks earlier stuff (Odelay, One Foot In The Grave, Mellow Gold) and read a bit about him and Calvin Johnson recording One Foot In The Grave. But I've never gotten super into him. This album is a pretty big departure from what Beck's known for, pretty cool and not what I was expecting. I read it's a breakup album for him, so that makes sense. Sunday Sun is my favorite track on first listen.
Liked the acoustic elements to this album, didn't like the more ethereal slow tracks like "Round the Bend". Favorite Songs were: 3. Guess I'm Doing Fine 11. Little One 7/10
That was a much more mellow and atmospheric album than I expected. I mainly knew Beck from Guero and Mellow Gold which are more uptempo and rocky. This was a really nice album with some very pretty moments. It did all blend together, but in a way that felt cohesive more than indistinct. Album cover: (B+)
This album is definitely passing me by a little. It's a little too slow paced and understated to really grab me. "Lost Cause" is the first song I'm actively enjoying. I didn't tab over and check out many individual songs. The album was a bit of a same-y blur. It wasn't an unpleasant blur but it didn't have much to offer for me. 6/10
”Sea Changes” has a good title and a shushing, lullaby swing to it that grew on me over a day without ever sticking. There are some gorgeous chord changes, though none without some nagging sense of familiarity, Beck’s magpie nature never fully sublimated into free invention. It’s very tasteful: Beck curates a fine selection of influences. “Paper Tiger” was moving me more than I could rationalise until I realised it’s an adroit lift of Jean-Claude Vannier‘s sorcery on “Hiistoire de Melody Nelson”. Much of this record’s emotional weight may be carried by the mumbled lyrics. The mumbling is easy on the ear, but no line snagged, just conveying Sad Beck is Sad.
I did not like this at the time, ripped from Kazaa and deleted within a day or two. Listening today it didn't seem too bad but got steadily more dull after about 3 tracks. "Mutations" has all the sulky Beck you could need
First song, Golden age: calming, peaceful, nice Second song, paper tiger: beginning is anticlimactic but the rest is good. I can imagine a show into using this as a theme. Think Dr House but the main character is a detective or a survivor of a zombie apocalypse and travelling around. Third song has a similar vibe as the second but it somehow feels... sadder?
For fans of zero 7 . An album for the late Saturday night /Early Sunday morning
One of my favorite albums
Once again, I don't usually listen to music for the lyrics so this is booorrrrriiiingggggg...
mellow sad beck back to back with suftan stevens have mercy this week
I remember beck from eternal sunshine of a spotless mind, and this album definitely sounds like the same style, and that's a good thing
I was expecting a mid album, but this one suprised me. I felt that the songs were all full of emotion (Eddie Vedder style vocals) and all fit onto this project. Although the length was a little long, Beck really changed up the formula and did it well.
Good musicality but gloomy feeling to me
Loved the flow. 4/5
If your knowledge of Beck is “Loser”, Sea Change will probably surprise you. It’s full of sad songs and dour misery reflecting the disintegration of Beck’s relationship. I rather liked most of it. https://open.substack.com/pub/richcain/p/project-1001-sea-change-by-beck?r=4ztyq&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Sounded a bit like one long song that didnt do very much for me. Liked his other albums more.
A more melancholy Beck than I'm used to. Some good here (with really no bad tracks), but definitely a lot of meh filler that could've been refined.
On this album Beck does a thing entirely different than he did on the album before -- Sea Change is part four in this series, and arguably the most successful. Every song on Sea Change is sad, slow-moving, powerful, and it's kind of impossible to think that the same guy that claimed songs as 'Mothefucker', 'Beer Can' and 'Jackass' came back a half decade later and put together this masterpiece. This album is someone getting over a breakup in full view of the public with beautiful melodies, and from his pain comes one of the greatest albums of the turn of the century. Paper Tiger, Lonesome Tears, End of the Day, Little One all pop for me on this album.
Ok
Usually love Beck, but this sounds like he's trying to sound like Eels, but falls short.
Very indie, good acoustic sound, mellow and the lyrics are very soft and gentle
It was very interesting and I liked some of the songs
Love Loser by Beck and was expecting similar vibes, but the album is much more mellow, which I surprisingly enjoyed. Great album, good vibes
Good chill music. Really liked the directional audio. Not super memorable though because of the amount of chill. Kind of a double edged sword. Nice because I can relax to it, but because it is relaxing it isn't super memorable.
When a friend of mine lost his father, I drove by his house, picked him up and parked in a dark street. Not talking much, we drank a six pack and listened to Sea Change. He later told me that it had been a profound experience-- a healing one. I find it the same and it was the reason I shared it. This is probably my favorite Beck album. It is a powerful one with lyrics of grief and loss and recovery. I absolutely love it. Best of the best.
Jeremy Blake https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2008/01/suicides200801
Beck looks like Michael Cera on the cover of “Sea Change.” On the album itself, he sounds like something that Paulie Bleaker or Scott Pilgrim would mope to. While it may display a lot of maturity and artistic growth, it’s just not very interesting most of the time. Late on “Lonesome Tears” we finally get some build and rise, but it never quite fulfills its possibility.
It’s like Beck decided to make an Elliott Smith album. It’s not bad, it’s just not Beck-y. Sad Beck is pretty but maybe not as interesting.
The songs were pretty and they all sounded exactly the same
Emo Beck, I feel you bro.
Wow. Putting this on repeat.
2.5 Not my vibe. I really wanted to like it. I think it's good background music for a Holiday Inn lobby maybe. Just too boring
It was sad man songs but good!
man, i really wanted to like this one more! i think i prefer a jazzier beck. i was excited to see this one but it was just okay to me.
hmm, not sure how to feel about this. it's basically only beck in name alone and sounds nothing like his other work (whether that's good or bad, I'll leave up to you). this is just beck being a sad boy for... 52 straight minutes??? ok damn dude we get it, you had a rough breakup, there's no need to record twelve nearly identical 4-5 minute songs about it. just bottle those emotions up and/or turn to mind-altering substances like the rest of us, sheesh. favorites: i didn't *love* any of these, but paper tiger, guess I'm doing fine, lost cause, sunday sun, and little one all had parts i enjoyed
It is a little disappointment but it just because his previous works are heavier. I have felt sorry for this guy while listening the album. Sad Beck please dont come back.
I am very familiar with Beck’s fast-paced, wacky songs, such as Hotwax and Cellphone’s Dead - some of the most replayable songs I’ve ever encountered. But this is a step in the polar opposite direction. Sea Change is littered with shards of melancholia, a constant outpouring of grief and introspection. It is incredible to me that the man who built what is essentially his own genre with albums like Odelay and Midnite Vultures can pull such an emotional album off.
nice album, nothing special
I wasn't initially vibing with this, but then it got me with "Guess I'm Doing Fine", the last couple of days have been emotionally volatile for me but this album really brought me back. Great lyrics, relatably sad but tinged with hope. What a stellar album! Favourite track: It's All In Your Mind.
I don’t love all of Beck’s music, but this is so lovely. Some all-timers on there for me. I was gonna give it 4 but nothing really matters so here we are.
Alright. Not my favourite but alright enough.
It's definitely not what I expected. Sadder and closer to Radiohead's ballads. But it is very coherent.
No.
i liked it a lot - but after a while, some of it sounded real similar to itself.
Wow, this was good. I’m not very familiar with Beck, and this wasn’t really what I was expecting. I’m a sucker for this downbeat, sad kind of stuff. “Round the Bend” reminded me of Nick Drake’s Five Leaves Left (an album I regret not giving 5 stars). I loved the use of the strings. I’ll come back to this one for sure. Favorite tracks: Paper Tiger, Round the Bend
Great wallowing in sadness album. Great sonic production by Nigel Godrich. Not what I expect from Beck based on his earlier, popular work. I guess I’m more of a “two turntables and a microphone” guy. 3⭐️
Fo
First two songs are really good. Some boring songs in here but overall not too bad.
Boring 2.5
Paper Tiger
Loved it. Very pretty production and singing
Beck's pivot to singer/songwriter folk rock. In many ways his best work, mostly because he mellowed out on the quirky parts of his songwriting and just made genuinely beautiful songs of tenderness and vulnerability. There's a certain airiness that envelopes Beck's folk songs throughout much of the album, acting as a sort of cocoon. I name "Sea Change" evokes images of waves that wash over and then recede back into the large body of water, forever in flux. I think this accurately captures the thematic elements of the album and it's songs, as Beck contemplates a breakup and process of moving on. This resonates more than any other Beck album I've heard. Well done.
This album kinda rules. Beck kinda rules. Who would’ve thought? I don’t care what the internet says, Beck is pretty great.
Got half way thru this sad sack of crap album before I started to FF the melancholy. Not at all what I want from Beck.
Nice
I'm not a Beck fan so I may be wrong about this but isn't this album just Beck music with all the interesting bits removed? 3.07
+: Paper Tiger, Lonesome Tears, Lost Cause, It's All in Your Mind, Round the Bend, Sunday Sun, Little One, Side of the Road +-: The Golden Age, Guess I'm Doing Fine, End of the Day, Already Dead 6,1/10
It isn't one of the best albums, I've heard, but, it's an okay album.
The melancholic Beck is sometimes hard to swallow. Sometimes, when it's raining, it's Sunday, and we're inside and looking at the gloomy world, this album can grab you by the throat, But mostly I turn it off after 3 or 4 songs because it doesn't do anything. Not a lot of album do that
8/10 In a right mood and suitable circumstances it can be 10.
I'm a huge sucker for strings, don't get me wrong, but they don’t add anything to the album at all. He slaps strings on his shitty rock songs to make them seem GRAND (Which is UNNECESSARY and STUPID). Instead of doing anything interesting (like Babybird), the songs don’t really change much. I think the songs are too long, and it doesn’t help that the album progresses very slowly. Beck doesn’t sound great either. He almost sounds dead...
It’s fine sad beck is sad
Sad Beck
Guero was an interesting record for sure. It appeared early on enough for me that I hadn’t really figured out my style yet, and those old reviews aren’t very pretty. I actually remember more of where I was when I first heard the record than the record itself. It entertained me for 50 minutes of a very long and boring car ride to a very boring place. But I didn’t come out of it thinking I needed to hear more Beck any time soon. It’s been nearly a year, so I guess I got what I wanted. Beck has had a slightly quirky sense of songwriting from the beginning of his career. But there have been times, such as with this particular album, where he chose to abandon that aspect of himself for something more serious. I respect him as a musician. Because he is capable of switching things around so often and still sounding competent at the very least. This album sees him under the lens of alt-country and folk. It’s like he’s trying to be Wilco. Or Neutral Milk Hotel. Or Radiohead. Or more like all of them at once. Except the latter most of those could really go both ways. If someone told me Thom Yorke and company used this record as inspiration for A Moon Shaped Pool, I’d probably believe them. Why I say it’s all of those at once is because almost all of these folk songs are accompanied by some form of synth or string arrangement. Which are intended to add some level of emotion and intensity to the music. And when they successfully do so, they are quite evocative. But when they don’t, it’s like “Ehh, okay, cool I guess”. Where I began to take issue is the structuring of the songs themselves. Every track follows what feels like a very uniform, cut and dry pattern. They all sound the same, and most don’t get interesting until around the end. And some of them are too long to justify listening to the whole thing to get to the good parts. I don’t hate any one song, but I also don’t know I need 50 minutes of this album. It’s supposedly about a break up. So I don’t know, maybe if I’m going through a particularly rough split later on in life, I’ll give this a second shot and gain a new found appreciation for it. Rating: 5/10
he lost his turntables :(
Weird
There is some true beauty here. Beautiful melodies, chord progressions, words and, indeed, production. I love how it sits somewhere amongst psychedelia, blues, prog rock, chill-out 90s and Chris Cornell, but remains its own thing. At this point, I should admit that this is the first Beck I've heard, and I'm well overdue a catch-up with his older stuff. I shall atone. I really liked this.
Mellow. Just what was needed on a fraught Monday. Round the Bend was my favourite, probably because of the Nick Drake/River Man echoes.
Although the lyrics and overall sound can be rather sad, I found the album to be rather calm and peaceful to listen to.
Hell yeah, start it off with some jangly-ass acoustic guitar why don't ya. Boo, no jangly guitar in the second song. I will stop doing a play-by-play; I apologise, I have been drinking. I really liked it.
Fine album, probably needs a relisten. I found it a bit forgettable at times but it had nice moments.
Could not get into this one, all the songs sound very similar.
Why is it always the later era album that gets picked for this list? I’d have given any of the earlier albums better reviews. This one sounds like one long boring song. Guh.
Not my favorite Beck Album -- pretty boring compared to Odelay or Mellow Gold. Just OK
Is it possible that Beck is both underrated and overrated at the same time?
Tranquilo. Bonito.
a perfect album.
Of all the albums by Beck to make this list, this is the one? It's fine and represents his lyrics well enough, but this is no Odelay. 3/5
Relaxing sound
I couldn't tell you the name of a single song on this album, but I would describe the sound as lo-fi country? Honestly good work music, I enjoyed it and even threw it back on for the ride home. Acoustic albums are always a nice change of pace to all the synthesized stuff that's more popular. Best song: Idk it's all the same in my head Worst song: Lonesome Tears kept ringing in the left side every 4th beat and was annoying as hell 3/5 decent, would consider throwing it on when I need some background noise
listened to the whole thing again yesterday - classic album - almost all the songs are great - i saw him on this tour in salt lake w/ the flaming lips opening and as his backing band and the dude who did the art for punch drunk love as the video art background and the whole thing was a sublime experience
Really liked this album, very different from Odelay. It is much more laid back and almost folksy, much more instrument and less sample driven. At the same time it is very much a Beck album
Good, chill, but too slow for me
I remember this album being lauded when it came out, and I always meant to listen to it. I can't believe it took me 22 years to finally do so. I prefer Beck's more fun and upbeat stuff (e.g. Midnite Vultures) but I can see why this resonated with critics and listeners alike. I think I'd have to listen to it a few more times to fully appreciate it. This was a bit hard for me to fully get into considering I haven't experienced a breakup in 15+ years, but I did like "Little One" a lot.
Rock de cantautor. Me ha parecido un tostonazo. Un 2.
Tranquilo. Bonito.
I was surprised how funky it was, rather enjoyable.
Beck has a lot of sides. It's always lots of fun to listen to him being irreverent, and mashing genres into each other. But the non-ironic Beck albums are the ones that really stick. And Sea Change is one of those albums. These are story songs. And the story is that Beck is sad. The instrumentation is live. The album is free of samples, drum machines, or other forms of programming. The songs are mostly downbeat; and Beck's voice is earnest, and forward in the mix. Beck has made a lot of great albums. But for better or worse, some of them sound like products of their time. Sea Change remains timeless, and stands as the Beck album that holds up best to repeated listening.
4/5
Thoughts before listening: One of Beck's best. Its a slower, less playful sound from him with acoustic instruments and a focus on lyrics that really stands out as an outlier in his discography. I've always enjoyed this album although I definitely need to be in the right mood for it. Review: This starts out with such a great song in "The Golden Age" which employs a very organic sound with acoustic guitars and pedal steel adding texture throughout, but also some electronic/synth-based elements in the background to remind us that this is Beck and not some alt-country singer songwriter. "Paper Tiger" follows this up and is another fully textured song this time adding orchestral strings to the acoustic guitars to really flesh out the sound. Most of this album stays within a very similar sound and it makes for a very pleasant listen. Additional strong tracks include "Lost Cause" and "Sunday Sun". All in all I consider this one of the better albums by one of the best musicians of the 2000s and while there are a few boring tracks toward the end of the album, its getting 5-stars.
Found this all just a bit of a drone and depressing, not for me.
To be totally honest, i haven't actually heard any of this album apart from The Golden Age, as a Flaming Lips cover. The album is good, maybe Very Good, but many of the tracks are just a bit same-y, in a navel-gazing, post-break-up way. I'll listen again, but I'm just not "grabbed" by this.
Missed opportunity to title it Mellow Gloom. I like "Lost Cause" every time I hear it on the radio but an entire album like this is a bit much for me most days. I liked the subtly unconventional songwriting and his voice has more technique and range than I expected, but I'm still not fully recovered from overplaying "Loser" at the record store where I worked when it came out almost 30 years ago (yeesh!).
An interesting choice of albums to represent Beck, but certainly not the one I'd have probably chosen for him ("Odelay" would be the most obvious, although I also really enjoyed his much later "Morning phase"). I always enjoy listening to Beck, and this album has the distinction of being surprisingly cohesive, style- and soundwise, and also being pretty somber. There are a few really nice tracks--"Golden age", "Lost cause" (with a hypnotic video), and "It's all in your mind" (in part because it predates his melancholy turn)--but I'll admit it's hard to distinguish most of them from each other, and I doubt I'd listen to this album again. Even the review/summary of the album in the 2005 "1001 Albums" book seems to be at best lukewarm to Beck's "left turn" to emo-ballads...
I'm not very familiar with Beck, but I enjoyed this album, a sort of mellow cozy album to play on dreary afternoons when you're feeling dreary as well. He's a good songwriter and his voice works with his music. I'm not sure how much of this album will stick with me, but i wouldn't mind hearing it again.
Beck makes sad songs about sad things, This is a very emotionally charged painful album, perhaps had I been at a different stage in my life id have resonated more. But as stands I found this a really difficult listen that I couldn’t finish, too many melancholy songs blended into one long continuous sad note. Paper tiger is also genuinely an awful song. Bland, long and sad.
I've never heard this album before but I immediately thought of Keane, tho this was before Keane was popular. It was a nice calm but focus vibe.
I hadn't listened to this in 20 years. It sounds like sad, pretentious past me. Nothing here really stood out, I don't know that I'm picking this one back up.
Can’t believe that Beck invented sadness.
Very calm music. Sounded a lot like a a Nick Drake album at times. Very different from the other Beck album I got way back when.
Ain't no Jeff Beck that is for sure
The world wasn't ready for Sad Beck.r
beck is sad :(
I love beck and this a a great album 8/10
Not a happy dude on this album. Some great tracks, but somewhat slow.
Beck asks the brave question: "What if Radiohead was actually just my head stretched out really wide". This should have sucked major ultra-cock, but it's actually really good. I know this guy from singing about chimpanzees, what do you mean that this is a completely sincere heartbreak album.
I remember how big the hype was around this album was when it came out. Beck makes a hard pivot from the sound of his previous albums focused on sample driven, alt rock, pseudo psychedelia, funk rock, hip hop and disco to a lush, acoustic driven, heartfelt album of folk rock perfection. Check out Paper Tiger, Guess I'm Doing Fine, Lost Cause, Round The Bend and Sunday Sun
Почему на обложке Скотт Пилигрим? Я не знаю. Они писали для него песню про рамону это я знаю. Он что, в группе? Ну в целом авльбом хороший. Понедельник чиллово рассосный под него очень кайфово проходит ) 4
Nothing special
Sad sad Beck. A bit boring with it being so slow and each song sounding very similar. 4/10
I’ll be honest, it’s hard to listen to Beck because I believe that he puts subliminal Scientology messages in his songs. At the same time, I have always wanted to like Beck. Let’s see… Well, it’s mostly one tone throughout the album. Basically a slow burn. It’s Beck. Worlds jumbled together to make a sort of poetic verse collection. Honestly, Lost Cause is a generational song and would result in me buying the album if I had to do that anymore. Not great but not a terrible album. Choice Cut: Lost Cause
It is cool how much beck can do. I prefer the James Brown imitations, and the musical collages though. While competent the market on acoustic guitars and heartbreak is long saturated.
Me gusta el sonido del disco aunque no logro identificar a ninguna canción individual como imprescindible. Pero el mood del disco, muy bueno.
Love it
A very nice album to listen to!
Geez more Beck. This is probably my favourite of his so far. Do I think he needs this many here, fuck no. But hey this is a pleasantly sad listen, some emotional tracks. Too long and follows a similar format all throughout tho. Fav songs: - The Golden Age - Lonesome Tears - Lost Cause
My second Beck album in two days! Let's go The golden age - really liked this. Nice and calm and a good song to walk to at night Paper tiger - don't like the vocal quality here, but that's okay. Like the strings. Really like the ending Guess I'm doing fine - nice intro. Giving me early counting crows. Enjoying this. Moody and good Lonesome tears - Beck's a sad boy isn't he. Lost cause - instinctively went to skip this. Idk why. Not bad now I'm listening to it. A bit badly drawn boy, but not as upbeat. Very sad walking in the rain end of relationship song End of the day - listening to this album in two parts so this will be my last half before I stop. Also sad. I'm sensing a theme. All in your mind - I like this. Melancholy. I like the strings a lot. That was good Round the bend - promising intro. Not mad keen on the vocals. Strings are lovely. Feels a tiny bit Bond Already dead - this is fine. Feel like I've heard it in 100 student films Sunday sun - is that a sitar? Little one - not feeling this Side of the road - I just don't think I like his singing voice. The original off key indie sad boy. I don't hate this song actually. I imagine it would be good for a late night drive. That song felt like just the right length, and some others I was willing to be over. Not a bad album at all! Enjoyed a lot of parts of it. Quite likely to listen to some of these songs again
So chill that I zoned out and forgot what I was doing a couple of times
I like Beck but I hadn't really given this album much attention. Funnily enough it also came up on a list I saw recently about the saddest albums. It's definitely sad, but also hopeful with some wonderful sweeping instrumentation. I'll absolutely come back to this one again in the future.
As someone who does not shop at Abercrombie and Fitch, or take downers, I'm not into this.
I'm familiar with some earlier work from Beck... What the fuck happened here? Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know the backstory, but seriously? How does a romantic break-up change an artist's music so drastically for the worse? This is a total bore. I can't stand "sad man with a guitar" music, and adding orchestral elements on top doesn't help me. Hopefully this guy got over it eventually.
2.5/5
Sad Beck makes a sad album. Overall, not bad, just hard to listen to if you aren't in a sad mood. Very different from what you generally expect from a Beck album. Good on him for branching out, just not something I will likely seek out.
The king of versatility. A perfect mellow album from the man who can do it all!
My favourite album from Beck and probably one of the saddest and most emotional recors about relationship breakout ever written. Never tired of fighting... I mean... Of listening.
Kind of a folksy, Beck-ish, Sgt Peppers. Great listen
Decent. I listened to this album a fair amount back when it was released. I liked it more back then than I do now.
I kind of prefer goofy funky Beck to sad sack Beck, but I can’t deny this has a Lee Hazelwood hazy beauty to it.
I like Beck and I liked this.
Beck died for your sins so you didn't have to go through such heartbreak. A memorizing and hauntingly beautiful album.
Even though the mood of this album is somewhat melancholy and subdued, I really liked it. Great album for when you just want to put on some music, sit back and let it sweep you away. Even though the lyrics are a bit opaque and uneven, the melodies, harmonies and musicality are entrancing. The song "Little One" is a good example.
I always enjoy listening to Beck. I like his voice and his music. I didn't know Sea Change before. It's a nice album, even if it is a bit more melancholy. I'll definitely listen to it again. 5/5
HEIKKO NÄKYY ALBUM COVERISTA MYÖS..
Not a fan.
To be in the right frame of mind to listen to lost cause. Beautiful album.