Beck

Since the early ’90s, Beck has traveled a decidedly idiosyncratic path—and it has taken him from slacker-pop iconoclast to genre-melding elder statesman.

Born in 1970, Beck Hansen got his musical start in New York’s anti-folk scene; his relocation to Los Angeles led to him incorporating hip-hop-inspired sounds, a combo that helped “Loser,” his chugging yet surrealistic breakthrough, go from college-radio oddity to one of 1994’s defining singles.

Over the ensuing years, Beck became known for defying any expectations “Loser” had placed on him; he went back to his indie roots on 1994’s One Foot in the Grave before getting maximalist on 1996’s ambitious Odelay, exploring bossa nova and blues on Mutations two years later, and reveling in grooves on the following year’s Midnite Vultures.