January 11, 2015 — Mark Griffin
Favorite Albums of 2014: Morning Phase, by Beck
Prior to this my favorite Beck album was Sea Change, so I couldn’t be happier that he teamed with the same musicians to make another album in a similar, relaxed, Harvest-era Neil Young, singer/songwriter vein. The songs are gorgeous, his layered harmonies like honey; the organic instrumentation—acoustic guitar, piano, banjo, occasional strings and pedal steel, muted drums with almost no cymbals—is so golden, warm and enveloping as to make the whole album feel like curling up in front of a fireplace. Despite not being the style of music that he rose to fame with, he makes this timeless songcraft seem so effortless. Here are the first two tracks, the instrumental “Cycle”, which segues into “Morning”.
Buy it here.