Beck — Guero

You have to give Beck a lot of credit. With his fans and detractors convinced he was through following the meandering Sea Change, the electronic folkster proves everyone wrong with a complete about-face. Beck, like so many of today's bigger music acts, goes back to his roots on Guero — Dust Brothers production, noisy guitars and hip-hop. But instead of sounding stale, Beck is reinvigorated. "Summer Girl" could be one of the best singles of the year and on "Que Onda Guero" and "Hell Yes" he puts together his best-ever raps. Despite some drag near the end of the disc, this is one of Beck's most solid songwriting efforts to date. It turns out he has nothing to prove.

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