I Just Read About That…

SOUNDTRACK: BECK-Guero (2005).

Guero is one of Sarah’s favorite albums, I would say.  It’s hard for me to believe that it is almost ten years old.  It’s a return to the more wild style of Odelay!, but it’s a bit more modest in scope–there’s a lot of different styles, but it’s not quite as manic as his earlier record.  And the sampling is not quite as excessive.

It opens with “E-Pro” a big loud guitar riff and lots of fun sing along material.  The drums are loud and snappy, and it all hearkens a great return to form.  the manic sampling is not present.  There is a return to rap-lite (and lots of Español) in “Guero.”  I like the horns and the street chatter.  “Girl” is an incredibly poppy, almost synth poppy song although just what is he saying in that chorus?  It’s a really pretty summery anthem.

“Missing” slows things down but keeps some great sounds (including big strings) and cool percussion.  It’s got an unusual melody that I find really memorable.  “Black Tambourine” has a great thumping drumline and pumping rhythm and is so much fun to sing along to–whoah oh oh oh oh oh.  “Earthquake Winter” brings in more sitar and a weird tropical vibe to this slow song.  But the chorus is just great, especially the way it rises out of the murky verses.

“Hell Yes” is a very weird song with a funky staccato bass line and weirdly processed vocals.  It’s the first song that really stands out as being unlike the rest and hearkens back to his older style.  It’s also really cool.  “Broken Drum” slows things down again.  I like the melody but I feel this is a little too slow for this record. (Although I like the guitar melodies that are overlaid on top of the song).  Scarecrow” brings back an uptempo beat and a slinky guitar sound.  “Go It Alone” has big handclaps and a stripped down sound but lots of great backing vocals.

“Farewell Ride” has  very creepy stripped down sound with weird (almost out of tune) acoustic guitar and creepy harmonicas.  It’s like a demented western song, and it works very well.  “Rental Car” returns with another great fuzzy guitar opening.  It has a super fun chorus (of yeahs and harpsichord ) and very funny sample of women singing very fast la la las.  “Emergency Exit” is a slow handclappy song that ends the disc with a bit more variety.

Although this album may not reach the intensity of Odelay! (and the singles may not be quite as catchy) overall, I think this record is probably Beck’s best.

[READ: March 19, 2014] “Coup de Foudre”

I have only read a few short things by Kalfus so this is more or less a first for me.  And wow, what a lengthy and detailed story to start with.

There is a ton of stuff going on here, but I’m not willing to go into that much detail in reviewing it.  Primarily because the detail is the emotion and heart of the story, and his descriptions of what happened are designed to influence your opinion of the narrator.

So, the nutshell version of the plot is that the narrator is David León Landau, a powerful banker who can absolutely influence global monetary policy.  He has Timothy Gueithner’s ear and is soon to be meeting with Angela Merkel to talk about the Greek economic collapse and Germany’s potential role in the bailout.  He is that important.

He is writing a letter to Mariama, a maid in a very expensive hotel in New York City.  He has been arrested for sexually assaulting her, and she has effectively brought his entire career (and presidential plans), not to mention his marriage, to a grinding halt.

Simple enough.  So why is he writing to her?  He is writing to her to explain in great detail everything that happened in the days leading up to what he did.  He seem contrite, and yet he also knows that his lawyers prevented him from getting in as much trouble as he should have.  He also knows that she will never read this, but he needs to write it anyway, just to get it out, like a confession.  Even though he knows that if anyone were to see it in print it would mean the end for him.

And so we learn about the sex parties that he gets up to–expensive parties in penthouse suites with young girls, booze, Viagra and anything else money can buy.  We learn that his libido is out of control and he tries (and usually succeeds) in seducing women wherever he wants.  We meet the woman who he calls on to have wild sex with whenever he’s in New York.  And we learn that the he took too much Viagra, so when the maid came in the next morning, he couldn’t stop himself.

He has even researched a little about Mariama, well, not her exactly, although he does know a lot about her from the trial, but women from her part of the world and the horrible lives they have led.  He also knows what she has been through and he feels even worse about what happened now that he has had time to process things.  He’s not a monster, he is just a powerful man used to getting what he wants.  But he also know exactly how awful what he did was.  And when he lists it in detail, it is unforgivable.

So this proves to be an interesting story–and an interesting look at power and guilt and sex and attempts to make a new life.  Kalfus really presents a case in which the protagonist is simultaneously almost (bit not really) sympathetic and (certainly) unsympathetic.  And at the same time, he was planning to do something good for the global economy, which certainly doesn’t excuse what he did, but does it change what should be done to him?

I really enjoyed this story even while I was horrified by it.