Every week, 88Nine music director Erin Wolf shares a sonic gem she found using her nearly 20 years of new-music exploration experience. You can hear all her discoveries live on 88Nine at 10 p.m. every Monday on What’s All This: Adventures in New Music.
Do you recall your initial reaction to Beck’s 2002 album Sea Change? I remember being a little underwhelmed at first but, after repeat listens, became totally obsessed. Now, more than 20 years later, I’m truly glad to say Beck is back to his softer side for a spell.
New single “Ride Lonesome," self-produced and mixed by Nigel Godrich, evokes the beautiful and haunting sonic landscapes and textures of both the aforementioned Sea Change and 2015’s Morning Phase. It further seals this journey by featuring multiple musicians who played on those notable releases.
Acoustic guitar, choral vocal effects and reverb go into the valley of musical introspection where Beck is the musical cowboy, riding into the proverbial sunset. Actually, scratch that. I hope this is more like a destination, with plenty more to come.
Hear “Ride Lonesome” as part of the What’s All This episode available via the player at the top of the page. Then be sure to tune in to 88Nine at 10 p.m. every Monday for more Adventures in New Music.
Best new indie music this week
- Man/Woman/Chainsaw, “Nosedive”
- Tricky, “Out of Place (ft. Marta)”
- mui zyu, “パラレリズム (Parallelisme)”
- Smerz, “Spring summer”
- Sofie Royer, “Cowboy Mouth”
- IAN SWEET, “Criminal Kissing”
- Beck, “Ride Lonesome”
- Swapmeet, “Sand”
- Lucy Dacus, “Planting Tomatoes”
- Graham Coxon, “Billy Says”
- Season 2, “Abundance of Power”
- Fruit Bats, “Think Aboutcha”
