Beck’s Masterfully Experimental Show at Blue Hills Bank Pavilion

Written By Sarah Fristoe

Last night Beck lit up the Blue Hills Bank Pavilion in support of his new album Colors. Right away, he brought new energy to his signature nonchalant indie rock--he experimented with a harder rock version of "Devils Haircut" to open his set. What is a Beck show if not masterfully experimental, and just plain weird?

Throughout the show, he weaved his way through his musically diverse catalog.

He even admitted with laughter that his style is "all over the place." Beck knows his niche in modern alternative, and he knows who brought him there. He and his talented backing band of seven played snippets of The Rolling Stones' "Miss You," The Doobie Brothers' "Takin' It to the Streets," and Talking Heads' "Once in a Lifetime," among others.

What struck me the most was the audience's camaraderie. Long-time Beck fans and new Beck fans sang together in a perfectly imperfect harmony. I didn't know the name of the woman next to me, but it didn't matter. We recited the lyrics to "Loser" in unison like our lives depended on it.

He made the large, open-air Pavilion feel like an authentic basement show.

Beck fed off that familial energy immensely. Donning one Red Sox glove, he told us he was channeling Michael Jackson. Rather, he was channeling the kind of music "Michael Jackson never got to make." Those are big shoes to fill, but if anyone can do it, it's Beck.

Boston's own Vundabar opened the night, introducing concertgoers to a local embodiment of Beck's Avant-garde influence. Beck at the Blue Hills Bank Pavilion was where it's at last night.