Gerald Marzorati: “In the increasingly globalized realm of pop, it has perhaps become too easy to overlook the fact that much of the music, and most of the best of it, remains stubbornly rooted in place. The rock the Strokes make is fundamentally downtown New York rock (Velvet Underground, Television, Richard Hell and the Voidoids); the rock the White Stripes play is, in essence, Detroit rock (Mitch Ryder, MC5, Iggy Pop and the Stooges). The music Beck makes is to a great degree informed by the musical traditions of Los Angeles.”

I love album reviews like these. They're not simply what the album is about or what the components are, but rather a brief history of the influences that went into the album's production (in this case, the importance of place in pop music). Beck has a unique ability to blend country sensibility yet have appeal among hiphop heads. If it's anything like Mutations (that album's "Nobody's Fault But My Own" being easily on my top 5 saddest songs of all time), I might have to take a look at his new joint.