Interscope

American musician Beck has been arguably the most unpredictable artist of the 1990s and 2000s. His seven previous studio albums span many genre, sometimes within a single track. When Beck's eighth release, Modern Guilt, hits stores Tuesday (Beck's 38th birthday), expect yet another evolution from this ever-indefinable artist.

With high acclaim for his past two albums, Guero and The Information, expectations are high for Modern Guilt, which could mark Beck's final release with Interscope, as it fulfills his contract. Collaborating for the first time with producer Danger Mouse, who has worked with the likes of Gnarls Barkley and Gorillaz, Beck delivers a 10-track set that greatly departs from the more hip-hop infused Guero and The Information.

Modern Guilt is melodic and often as melancholy as Beck's 2002 Sea Change. However, unlike Sea Change, which seemed a clear tip to the singer-songwriters of the 1970s, Beck's newest album is without clear direction.

Cat Power is featured on two of Modern Guilt's tracks, "Orphans" and "Walls," each of which seem to gravitate towards the psychedelic. In contrast, "Gamma Ray" and "Youthless" recall 90s trip-hop Beck cuts, while the album's closer, "Volcano" is low-key and harmonic as if taken from Sea Change.

It would seem that in Modern Guilt Beck has provided his fans a tour of his entire catalog in a little over 30 minutes.

If there is one constant to this collection, it is Beck's eccentric lyrics. On the album's second track, "Gamma Ray," the chorus runs: "Come on little gamma ray/ you're standing in a hurricane/ your brains are bored like a refuge from a house that's burning/ and the heat wave's calling your name."

Beck will bring his chameleon musicianship to Seattle for Bumbershoot this summer and if Modern Guilt is any indication, it would seem impossible to predict which Beck (or Becks) will show up there Aug. 30.