Modern Guilt
Modern Guilt is the eleventh studio album by American musician Beck. The album was produced by Beck and Danger Mouse and features two contributions by Cat Power. It was released on July 8, 2008 (the same day as Beck's 38th birthday), fulfilling Beck's recording contract with Interscope Records, along with Geffen as well. Critics' reviews were favorable. A vinyl record of the album, including download codes for the 320-kbit/s digital version of the album direct from the master vinyl, was released on July 22, 2008. The album lasts 33 minutes, making it Beck's  shortest album to date. Reception. Critical. The album received generally positive reviews upon release, earning a rating of 77 out of 100 on Metacritic. "Filter" said of the album, "Beck is somehow more aware while puffing out his waves of broken poetry as opposed to the casual seed-spitting he has been known to turn to", while AllMusic said that it was "an effective dosage of 21st century paranoia." Some negative reviews, such as one from "PopMatters", said that the album "lacks the unique resonating timbres one is accustomed to with Beck", while "The Guardian" called it "a vanity project . In December 2008, Modern Guilt" was nominated for Best Alternative Album at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, but it lost to "In Rainbows" by Radiohead. Commercial. The album entered both the "Billboard" 200 and the Canadian Albums Chart at number four, and gave Beck his first ever Top 10 placing on the UK Albums Chart, peaking at number nine. The album was also Beck's second-best charting album in Australia, reaching number 13, behind his twelfth studio album "Morning Phase", which debuted and peaked at number 5 in 2014. In the US, the album sold 84,000 copies in its  first week. Although successful, it did not match the first week sales of Beck's previous album, "The Information" (2006), which were 99,000. In Canada, the album sold over 6,000 copies in its first week. "Modern Guilt" was awarded a silver certification from the Independent Music Companies Association, which indicated sales of at least 30,000 copies throughout Europe. Track listing. All songs written by Beck, except "Walls", written by Beck, Danger Mouse, Paul Guiot and Paul Piot.