Six years he’s been gone. Or not gone, exactly, but living the life of a famous tinkerer, a celebrity in repose. He’s produced, he’s guested, he’s fucked around with a series of pet projects. And now that he’s ready to get back to the business of making albums, he’s returned with a piece of simple, sparkling beauty, less complicated than anything he’s ever made before, and maybe prettier. In self-consciously putting together a sequel to Sea Change, one of his finest works, Beck has gone back to the beautifully bummed ’70s singer-songwriter style that he does better than anyone of his generation has a right to do. The urgency might not be there — no devastating heartbreak in his immediate past this time — but the languid, expansive vibe remains. –Tom [LISTEN]