Review: Beck at Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
Edwin Arnaudin: If you (somehow) don't know, now you know: there's no one quite like Beck, and his Oct. 28 return to Thomas Wolfe Auditorium solidified his decades-long greatness and mastery of numerous genres.
What's your previous experience with Mr. Hansen live and how did that inform your expectations for this show?
Jonny Leather: Oddly enough, the only other time I've been lucky enough to catch Beck was over 20 years ago at the short-lived and extremely under-attended Across The Narrows Festival in Coney Island. I remember walking away completely blown away. The memory has mostly faded away, but there was a pretty magical moment when the band performed around a dinner table. It was unlike anything I'd seen at the time and really stuck with me.
I assumed that Beck's live show has remained more than just a stereotypical concert, but also wondered if the more somber folk character of the new album would result in a less thrilling stage setup.
You caught him more recently, back in 2014. How did Beck's return trip compare to that performance a little over a decade ago?
Edwin: I actually also saw him in 2019 in Raleigh on a thrilling bill with Cage the Elephant and Spoon, during which I became convinced that he's THE entertainer of our time and the heir to Mick Jagger and David Bowie.
The 2014 TWA show was in support of Morning Phase, so there was speculation it would be more folkie/acoustic. However, he opened with "Devil's Haircut," played all the big hits, and only worked in two then-new slow songs. It was excellent, but last night's show essentially fulfilled the prediction for that previous show and the variety was a treat to experience.
Starting a show with quiet, acoustic selections is often a huge risk, but focusing on his new album Ride Lonesome early gave them the spotlight they deserved from a rapt audience, which was rewarded for its attention shortly thereafter with Beck's more famous, uptempo work.
This easing-in was also accompanied by the first of his tech team's impressive production design elements, including another table. How did the show's theatricality play for you?
Jonny: When Hansen initially walked out onto the stage, it was completely empty. Following Ioanna Gika's opening set, the crew cleared everything. There were no instruments, no mic stands, no amps. It was kind of confusing. If the concert had just been Beck and his excellent backing band performing those songs on an empty stage, it still would have been excellent, and I would have been satisfied. They sounded incredible, and toyed with the song structures in ways that made even his most well known cuts feel fresh.
The theatrical stage design just ascended the concert to legendary status. The long table setup for "For Your Love" was visually stunning. I also really enjoyed the simpler but effective setup for the encore, with a solo Beck stationed to the far right of the stage, back turned to the stage, and enormous shadow projected upon the background screen.
From his music videos to album packaging, Beck has always been an artist who's really intentional and creative about his aesthetic choices. It's a major parallel with Bowie. Concerts are too often unengaging for the eyes. The continuously evolving stage design really kept things interesting for the entirety of the set. I just wish the dude in front of me would have put his phone down.
Was there a particular stage design that caught your eye?
Edwin: Around the set's halfway point, the band gathered in front of two panels, simulating — in Beck's words — a backroom jam session. Yet the songs chosen for this tangent felt anything but random, despite the frontman's humble banter.
Starting with a delightful rendition of "Cold Brains," the opening track of his best album, Mutations, the stripped-down ensemble then moved to Morning Phase standout "Country Down," which Hansen claimed he hadn't played in a while and questioned if he could even recall its lyrics. How either detail could be possible baffles me, as does his apparent ignorance of the popularity of subsequent pick "Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime," his Korgi's cover from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
Perhaps he's truly detached from the public's perception of his work — if any rock star is capable of that, it's him; years in Scientology can do that — or maybe he was just messing with us. But the straightforward presentation of three of his best songs formed the highlight of my evening.
I was also charmed by the faux campfire rendition of "Lost Cause," complete with starry sky backdrop, and the manipulated Flock camera projections that accompanied "Dear Life," my favorite track from the criminally underrated Colors. Then the hit parade began.
You mentioned there being fresh renditions of Beck's biggest songs. Did any particularly surprise you and/or were you surprised by any of their staying power?
Jonny: Any time a song gets the radio play of hits like "Loser" and "Devil's Haircut," it runs the risk of becoming unlistenable due to overexposure. When the bizarre alt-rock/folk/hip-hop hybrid "Loser" made Beck a household name in 1993, I don't think anyone could have predicted the trajectory of Hansen's career. At the time, the song seemed to straddle the line of novelty for the general public. Decades later, it's more cemented as the slacker anthem it always deserved to be respected as.
In terms of reconfigured arrangements offering a fresh perspective to songs, I think it was best exhibited during the excellent rendition of "The New Pollution." The upbeat 1997 hit single was defined by the Dust Brothers' kaleidoscopic, neo-psychedelic production, but the band dropped the tempo a bit during the live performance, giving it a bit of a laid back lounge pop feel.
Hansen's decades of stylistic shape-shifting, bouncing from lo-fi to alt-rock to funk rock to folk to synth pop, and beyond hasn't just made for an interesting career, but it really gives him a lot to work with for constructing a set list containing a wide variety. I think we've all been to concerts that begin to drag as the material starts to feel monotonous.
I'd be remiss to not mention "Debra." Although I spoiled the surprise by checking setlists from previous nights, the acoustic rendition of the Midnight Vultures funk slow jam was still quite a treat, and an excellent way to kick off the encore, which also included pre-fame cut "One Foot in the Grave" and his faithful cover of Daniel Johnston's "True Love Will Find You in the End."
Are you surprised that he's been closing out his shows on this tour with the Johnston cover rather than one of his own hits?
Edwin: On a general level, yes, just because it's an unusual move for an artist. But Beck is an unusual artist who's been surprising us for 30-plus years, so a pivot like this is almost expected.
The solo acoustic encore, directed at his giant shadow on the back curtain rather than to the crowd, was a great touch. And the same goes for his yodel-friendly tribute to his childhood music hero Jimmie Rodgers, whose historical marker Hansen must have seen while walking by Woolworth's earlier in the day.
Other than more Mutations and Midnite Vultures cuts, and perhaps "Jackass" and "He's a Mighty Good Leader," Beck played pretty much everything from his catalog that I could reasonably hope to hear, especially on a tour promoting Ride Lonesome. Were there any notable omissions for you?
Jonny: It definitely would have been great to see them play "Mixed Bizness" and "Lazy Flies." You can never get enough of the funky Midnite Vultures material. I wouldn't mind seeing him make a spiritual follow up to that record now that he's fulfilled his once-every-12-years somber folk album obligation.
"Broken Drum" and "New Round" may be my favorite Beck songs, so I'd have loved to have heard those two, but I never really expected a pair of deeper cuts from Guero and The Information to crack the setlist. It's impossible to complain though, because that was a strong contender for the best live performance that I've seen this year.
(Photos by Jonny Leather)
Ionna Gika
