Beck Hansen(born Bek David Campbell, July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Beck's music--with its pop-junk culture collage of musical styles, obtuse, ironic lyrics, and post-modern arrangements incorporating samples, drum machines, live instrumentation and heady sound effects--was among the most idiosyncratic of '90s alternative rock. Though his most popular albums were released in the 1990s, Beck continues to inspire fans well into the modern age of alternative rock, with his creative songwriting combined with his innovative production style and neverending willingness to experiment and surprise. Beck was born in Los Angeles, California, to David Campbell(a musician and son of a presbyterian minister) and Bibbe Hansen(a former dancer for The Velvet Underground, member of Black Fag, and visual artist). When his parents separated, Beck stayed with his mother and brother in Los Angeles, where he was influenced by that city's diverse musical offerings—everything from hip-hopto latinmusic—and his mother's art scene – all of which would later reappear in his recorded and published work.
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Bogusflow (version 2) / kcrw radio appearance 1994
Monkey see, monkey die
Laminate your face
And paste it up into the sky
'cuz it's squalid and it's solid and it's
Completely rancid and beautiful
Like a dishrag laying in the street
Uptight beyond belief
Cut a hole in the floor to see
How close to hell we're standing
Got the travelling vitamin c blues
Police lady staring at my shoes
Holy ghost, moldy toast
Riding lampost
Excitement level: zero
Rock the casbah, bring the noise
Pretentious dimensions exploring the boring to the core
Adults with cordless personalities
Running around in new wave bionic jogging suits
(spoken: ... gimme some of that noise)
California white boy sound
Rocket-powered and nailed into the ground
New age, old age-- completely totally lame
Straight to the middle of the road
Just rewind the tape and play the whole thing backwards
With the sound completely turned all the way off