Midnite Vultures is the fourth official studio album and seventh overall by American alternative rock artist Beck, released in November 1999 by Geffen Records. While similar to most of Beck's previous albums in its exploration of widely varying musical styles, Midnite Vultures didn't achieve the same blockbuster success as his breakthrough, Odelay, though it was still critically and commercially well received.
Recording
Working titles for the album included Zatyricon (the name of a song released in 2000 as a B-side on the "Nicotine & Gravy" single and later included on the Beck EP) and I Can Smell the V.D. in the Club Tonight (a line from "Milk & Honey").
Influences
Several songs were directly inspired by other songs: "Get Real Paid" features a spiraling sequencer motif reminiscent of Kraftwerk's "It's More Fun to Compute"; a synth breakdown in "Milk & Honey" echoes a similar riff in Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five's "The Message"; "Beautiful Way" came about after listening to The Velvet Underground's "Countess from Hong Kong"; and "Debra" was inspired by both Prince's hit "Raspberry Beret" and the David Bowie song "Win."
The band's music follows in tradition with the roots reggae bands of 1970s Jamaica. The lyrical portions of Midnite's compositions are characterized as the "chant and call" style which gives their music a spiritually intense and an overtly Rastafari movement feel. The lyrics are centrally focused on the plights of the oppressed, the inherent faults of the current political, economic and social settings on a global scale, and the redemption available to mankind through a life dedicated to Jah.
In 2015, the band reformed around co-founder Vaughn Benjamin as Akae Beka without bassist Ron Benjamin. The reasons for the reformation have been stated as due to "Life changes, convictions and revelations". Akae Beka's first performance took place in Denver, Colorado on July 17, 2015 in honor of Nelson Mandela Day.
History
The band was started by Benjamin brothers Vaughn (vocals) and Ron (keyboard, but later switched to bass) circa 1989 according to an interview with former Midnite drummer Ambrose "Amby" Connor by Midnight Raver. The brothers were raised in St. Croix, Virgin Islands, the sons of Antiguan musician Ronnie Benjamin, Sr. Vaughn Benjamin cites Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, The Abyssinians, and bassist Flabba Holt as his earliest influences.
Beck Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970), known by the stage name Beck, is an American singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his lo-fi, sonically experimental style, and he became well known for creating musical collages of a wide range of styles. His later recordings encompass folk, funk, soul, hip hop, alternative rock, country and psychedelia. He has released 12 studio albums, as well as several non-album singles and a book of sheet music.
Born in Los Angeles in 1970, Beck discovered hip hop and folk music in his teens and began to perform locally at coffeehouses and clubs. He moved to New York City in 1989 and became involved in the city's small but intense anti-folk movement. After returning to his hometown in the early 1990s, he cut his breakthrough single "Loser", which became a worldwide hit in 1994. His 1996 album Odelay produced hit singles, topped critic polls and won several awards. He released the stripped-down Mutations in 1998, and the funk-infused Midnite Vultures in 1999. The downcast, acoustic Sea Change (2002) showcased a more serious Beck, and 2005's Guero returned to sample-based production. The Information (2006) was inspired by electro-funk and hip hop, and Modern Guilt (2008), likewise, by 1960s music. In February 2014, Beck released the album Morning Phase. It won Album of the Year at the 57th Grammy Awards on February 8, 2015.
BECK(Japanese:ベック,Hepburn:Bekku) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Harold Sakuishi. It was originally serialized in Monthly Shōnen Magazine from 1999 to 2008, with the 103 chapters later published into 34 tankōbon volumes by Kodansha. It tells the story of a group of Japanese teenagers who form a rock band and their struggle to fame, focusing on 14-year-old Yukio "Koyuki" Tanaka, who until meeting guitar prodigy Ryusuke Minami was an average teen with a boring life.
It was adapted into a 26-episode anime television series, titled BECK: Mongolian Chop Squad, by Madhouse and aired on TV Tokyo from October 2004 to March 2005. A live-action film adaptation was released in 2010 and stars Takeru Satoh as Koyuki and Hiro Mizushima as Ryusuke. The series has also spawned three guidebooks, four soundtracks, a video game and a line of guitars.
The original manga was licensed for an English-language release in North America by Tokyopop. Volume 1 was published in July 2005, but the series was discontinued after the release of the 12th volume in June 2008. The anime was licensed for an English-language release by Funimation. The first DVD was released in 2007, and the last in January 2008.
Botox injections Chemical solvents Making midnite movies Contaminated actors Living on a farm Harnessed to a life of protein and equipment Gristling in grain Soft nights Everyday a reaction to the affection Manholes and light towers walking down imitation streets Little girls with plastic cameras And shops full of cold cuts and candy Feeding the trains and bisecting the night Hand grenades in the trash Medics running from the sun She borrowed cartilage wire Tracing my face
...Beck and The Pixies, and quipped that fans can "sue" him if it doesn't sound remotely like the three acts ... I was trying to land it somewhere between Outkast, Beck’s ‘MidniteVultures’ and The Pixies.
The items on my must-buy list at the moment are… a Celine cardigan in brushed mohair blue, DoubleGood popcorn, a vintage Beck “MidniteVultures” vinyl, a custom GACHOT sofa for our home in Shelter...
This combination is, of course, TikTok catnip ... Doja Cat ... There’s even a passing of the weirdo-cherub baton on Take it Back, featuring Beck and sounding like something the midnite vulture himself might have written in 1999 ... Reuse this content. .
... cartoon disco-funk odyssey MidniteVultures ... Midnite Vultures Turns 20 ... But for me, Beck peaked around the turn of the millennium with that incongruous pairing of Midnite Vultures and Sea Change.
