In the words of one of his most famous singles, Beck Hansen has always based his career around being 'where it's at'. From slack-jawed hippy to soul cowboy, his Bowie-like creative journey has slowly but surely made the laconic Californian one of the most respected songwriters of his generation. His latest venture, meanwhile, represents one of his most fascinating changes of direction to date - Sea Change is a heavyweight, irony-free collection of country-rock songs, inspired by the break-up of a long-term relationship. Comparisons have been made with Dylan's Blood On The Tracks, and they're not as preposterous as they sound - Beck sings like a man on the verge of a nervous breakdown, crushed by emotional turmoil and drained of all passion and self-belief. Yet while the mood remains one-paced throughout, the gothic, string-laden orchestration gives these songs a subtle beauty that renders them utterly absorbing and, at times, deeply moving. If Beck is trying to show us all that the Generation X nihilist has finally grown up, he's certainly made his point. Sea Change is by some distance the most sincere album he's ever made, and it may well be his best too.

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