Photos and Review by Stephen Bloch

Picture a cassette found at an estate sale. The only label is a strip of masking tape that says Beck, Milwaukee. You press play and can’t place the decade. Beck’s Ride Lonesome stop on Tuesday night worked like that tape, a mixtape from someone who time travelled between 1996, 2002 or 2026.

Side A: the hush. Beck opened with “In the Night,” then “The Golden Age,” “Paper Tiger” and “Unforgiven”, so a new song led into the Sea Change and Morning Phase catalog. Beck made it clear at the outset that we would get a full dose of that trinity, but we would get something from pretty much all of his catalog at some point. The trajectory of this show was perfection. A lush and introspective vibe to start, followed by a steady ramp up.

The pivot. The new single “Ride Lonesome” didn’t come up until song 22. By then Beck had spent an hour covering ground that should have clashed. There was the cosmic wobble of “Gamma Ray,” the deep cut “One Foot in the Grave” from the mid-’90s lo-fi days, and a cover of The Korgis’ “Everybody’s Got to Learn Sometime.” He also teased us with the first part of “Tropicalia” off of Mutations. Very Beck: he offers a song, takes it back, and then hits us with something completely different. Chameleonesce for sure.

Side B: the party. Then the tape flipped. “Devils Haircut,” “Qué Onda Guero,” “Mixed Bizness,” “E-Pro,” “Loser” and “Where It’s At” came in a run that turned the room from a listening space into a dance floor. The pop-culture-collage Beck and the heartbroken Beck turned out to be the same guy.

This was Beck’s third visit to Milwaukee during his 30+ year career.  He said he loved this city. We all hope that he loves it so much that he makes it back for the Midnight Vultures tour that he promised!