He may have lost his way a little with the underwhelming 'Midnite Vultures' but for many Beck Hansen has remained the absolute epitome of what is hip and cool. The slacker lyrics, well-chosen samples and hip-hop beats established him as the man who set the Zeitgeist in the mid-90s. Yet one ingredient has remained largely absent: emotion. With 'Sea Change', whether it's the dawn of realisation which occurs when an artist reaches 30 or whether it's just another canny new direction, Beck has addressed this 'failing' in the best possible way. Now Beck is the 21st-Century alt-folk God. Granted, tracks like 'Paper Tiger' showcase his usual louche cool but further investigation reveals far more dimensions. 'Guess I'm Doing Fine' has Beck croaking like a weary country singer of twice hi's age and 'End Of The Day' coaxes an inspired piece of slide guitar playing by the one known as 'Smokey'. The true acme of his class are the two orchestral folk pieces, 'Lonesome Tears' and 'Round The Bend', both successfully bring Nick Drake bang up to date, the latter is a tremendous re-working of Drake's 'River Man' touched with the grace and sadness that was written all over the late folk star's body of work. One could say it's hard to believe that the man who made the slacker anthem 'Loser' should be producing such as tender a vocal as 'It's All In Your Mind'. Never one to rest on his laurels though, this latest re-incarnation is his most convincing yet.