"Cold Brains" | ||||
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Single by Beck | ||||
from the album Mutations | ||||
Released | 1 March 1999 | |||
Genre | Folk rock, psychedelic folk | |||
Length | 3:41 | |||
Label | MCA Import | |||
Songwriter(s) | Beck Hansen | |||
Beck singles chronology | ||||
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"Cold Brains" is a song by Beck. It appears on his 1998 album Mutations . The song was also released as a single. It was also released in Australia as an exclusive tour EP. Three of the B-sides, "One of These Days", "Diamond in the Sleaze" and "Electric Music and the Summer People", had previously been Japanese exclusives, and as such this EP became a very popular import, especially as those tracks had still not been released officially in the UK, Europe or US as of 2014.
The single was intended to be released in the US with a different track listing, but only a promotional version was produced.
Beck intended the song to be released on his independent 1994 album One Foot in the Grave , but for unknown reasons, it was instead released on Mutations.
When asked about "Cold Brains"' bleakness, Beck said:
I think of it as mostly playful, but then I think Leonard Cohen is a humorous song writer. In 'Cold Brains' when I say, 'The fields of green are obscene and I lay upon the gravel', there's just this demented auto-erotica that I think is hilarious. It's not meant to necessarily bring anybody down or bum anybody out. [1]
As of 2019, Beck has performed the song live in concert 139 times. He has, however, not performed it live since May 2013. [2]
Beck David Hansen, known mononymously as Beck, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his experimental and lo-fi style, and became known for creating musical collages of wide-ranging genres. He has musically encompassed folk, funk, soul, hip hop, electronic, alternative rock, country, and psychedelia. He has released 14 studio albums, as well as several non-album singles and a book of sheet music.
Odelay is the fifth studio album by American musician Beck, released on June 18, 1996, by DGC Records. The album featured several successful singles, including "Where It's At", "Devils Haircut", and "The New Pollution", and peaked at number sixteen on the Billboard 200. As of July 2008, the album had sold 2.3 million copies in the United States, making Odelay Beck's most successful album to date. Since its release, the album has appeared in numerous publications' lists of the greatest of the 1990s and of all time.
Midnite Vultures is the seventh studio album by American musician Beck, released on November 23, 1999, by DGC Records. While similar to most of Beck's previous albums in its exploration of widely varying styles, it did not achieve the same blockbuster success as his breakthrough album Odelay, but was still critically acclaimed and commercially successful.
Mutations is the sixth studio album by the American songwriter Beck, released on November 3, 1998, by DGC Records. Though less commercially successful than the preceding Odelay, it won a Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.
Sea Change is the eighth studio album by American musician Beck, released on September 24, 2002, by Geffen Records. Recorded over a two-month period in Los Angeles with producer Nigel Godrich, the album features themes of heartbreak and desolation, solitude, and loneliness. For the album, much of Beck's trademark cryptic and ironic lyrics were replaced by simpler, more sincere lyrical content. He also eschewed the heavy sampling of his previous albums for live instrumentation. Beck cited the breakup with his longtime girlfriend as the major influence on the album.
Jack's Mannequin was an American rock band formed in 2004, hailing from Orange County, California. The band originally began as a solo project for Andrew McMahon, the frontman of Something Corporate.
Oar is the only studio album by American singer-songwriter Alexander "Skip" Spence, released on May 19, 1969, by Columbia Records. It was recorded over seven days in December 1968 in Nashville, and features Spence on all of the instruments.
Stray Blues: A Collection of B-Sides is a compilation album by Beck, released in 2000. It is a collection of B-sides that were only released in Japan. It features "Burro," a Spanish version of "Jack-Ass," and a cover of Skip Spence's "Halo of Gold."
"Love" is a song written and performed by John Lennon, originally released on his debut solo album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band (1970). The song's theme is more upbeat than most of the songs on Plastic Ono Band.
"Tropicalia" is a song from Beck's 1998 album Mutations. It was released as a single in the UK in December 1998. The B-side "Halo of Gold" is a drastically reworked cover version of "Furry Heroine " by Skip Spence.
"Sexx Laws" is a song by American singer Beck, from his album Midnite Vultures (1999). It was released as the lead single from the album in October 1999.
The Information is the tenth studio album by American musician Beck, released on October 3, 2006 by Interscope Records. It was produced and mixed by Nigel Godrich, with whom Beck recorded Mutations (1998) and Sea Change (2002). Recording took place from 2003 to 2006, with Beck concurrently working on 2005's Guero with the Dust Brothers. The album received positive reviews from critics and made several publications' year-end lists.
"Beercan" is a single by Beck, taken from his first major record label release, Mellow Gold. It peaked at number 27 on the U.S. Modern Rock Tracks charts.
"Pay No Mind (Snoozer)" is a song by Beck, taken from his first major label album Mellow Gold and released as its second single.
"Nobody's Fault but My Own" is a song by American musician Beck. The song was released in 1998 on his album Mutations, and was released as a single in Japan only on April 21, 1999. The CD single came backed with the exclusive tracks "One of These Days" and "Diamond in the Sleaze" as B-sides. The insert features the lyrics in both English and Japanese.
Beautiful Eyes is the second extended play (EP) by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. The EP was released on July 15, 2008 by Big Machine Records exclusively to Walmart stores in the United States and their MP3 service. In later years, after the MP3 service got closed down, Walmart transferred the rights to Amazon for their Amazon MP3 service, where it remains exclusively available. The limited release EP has a primarily country pop sound and features alternate versions of tracks from her self-titled debut album (2006), and two original tracks, which Swift had composed as early as 2006. "I Heart ?" was previously released for digital download with the purchase of the Best Buy-exclusive version CD of Swift's self-titled debut album in 2006. A DVD, featuring music videos of singles from her self-titled debut album, is also included on the physical release of the EP.
"Gamma Ray" is a song by American rock musician Beck. It was released as the second single from his eighth studio album, Modern Guilt, on August 11, 2008. It is seemingly inspired by the surf rock songs of the 1960s, but with ghostly moans and lyrics on the state of the world. The title refers to gamma rays, biologically hazardous energy emitted by radioactive decay. Despite its up-tempo beat, the song lyrics invoke nihilistic or apocalyptic themes, including melting ice caps, boredom, burning houses, crowns of thorns, and natural disasters. The song peaked at number 19 on the U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. It was also placed at number 6 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2008.
Gold Motel is an American, Chicago-based project, featuring singer Greta Morgan of The Hush Sound. The band consists of Morgan, Eric Hehr, Dan Duszynski, and features Matt Minx (bass) and Adam Coldhouse (drums) on their studio releases.
Jonathon Ng, known professionally as Eden, is an Irish musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and occasional model. He formerly operated as The Spab Project and later The Eden Project, an alias that was discontinued in 2015. Ng's work as The Eden Project typically featured more conventional styles of electronic dance music such as dubstep and drum and bass, while EDEN saw himself venturing into an indie pop style.
"Truckdrivin Neighbors Downstairs (Yellow Sweat)" is a song by the American musician Beck. It was released on his 1994 album Mellow Gold. The song was composed in the key of A-flat major.