Coming off of a very successful trip to the Grammy awards, where the affable Mr. Hansen took home three awards, including Album Of The Year for 2014's Morning Phase, Beck returns with a new single, "Dreams" from an album for which few details are known.
Having spent some time with the track, our first thought was "Hmm, sounds like Foster The People with a little MGMT thrown in for good measure". Additionally, the lyrics to this song are a far cry from some of his best-known work, like those of his first hit, "Loser".
In a little over twenty years, Beck's lyrical prowess has gone from
"In the time of chimpanzees, I was a monkey
Butane in my veins and I'm out to cut the junkie
With the plastic eyeballs, spray paint the vegetables
Dog food stalls with the beefcake pantyhose"
to
"Here we are
Running circles around around around around
When nothing’s right just close your eyes close your eyes and you’re gone".
In other words, Beck's music, which used to sand out from the rest of the pack thanks to Hansen's genius rapid-fire word play, has devolved into faceless product; a vacuous sonic barrage with lyrics that rely upon well-worn cliches to sing a universal message of boredom. Sadly, the Wilson sisters' power ballad of the same name from the late '80s has more "Heart", if you will.
Our verdict: Nice groove that you can move to, but where's the real Beck?