# Beck returns with somber folk-rock masterpiece

> After seven years away, Beck channels Nick Drake and Laurel Canyon on his most emotionally committed album yet.
- Title: Beck returns with somber folk-rock masterpiece · Rolling Stone
- Summary: After seven years away, Beck channels Nick Drake and Laurel Canyon on his most emotionally committed album yet. Beck's new album Ride Lonesome marks a return…
- Keywords: beck, ride lonesome, album review, folk-rock, sea change, morning phase, nick drake, laurel canyon, acoustic melodies, new album, returns, somber
- Source: Rolling Stone — https://rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/beck-ride-lonesome-review-1235628464
- Author: Jon Dolan
- Published: 2026-09-18T13:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: beck, ride lonesome, album review, folk-rock, sea change, morning phase, nick drake, laurel canyon, acoustic melodies, new album
## Beck returns after seven years
Beck's first album in seven years, Ride Lonesome, marks a sublime return to the somber folk-rock sound of his career highpoints.
## Echoes of Sea Change and Morning Phase
The album recalls Beck's 2002 masterpiece Sea Change and 2014's Morning Phase, two of his most introspective and emotionally resonant works.
## Nick Drake meets Laurel Canyon
Ride Lonesome combines fragile acoustic melodies with desolate lyrics and spare studio accompaniment, evoking Nick Drake's folk masterpiece Bryter Layter.
## Gorgeous melodies against existential blues
Beck deploys beautiful melodies as a balm against his hangdog existential blues, sounding more committed to emotional vulnerability than in years.

> You've got to cry a river
## A lovelorn Laurel Canyon poet
The album captures the spirit of a lovelorn Laurel Canyon soft-rock poet, moving Beck away from the jokey postmodern irony of his earlier work.
## Key takeaway

Beck's new album Ride Lonesome marks a return to the introspective folk-rock sound of his best work, with gorgeous melodies and deeply personal lyrics.