You like feuds, right? Because this new Beck song is the baby of the feud of the year and it’s pretty messy. The story goes like this:
Radiohead wrote a song back in August about Harry Patch, the UK’s oldest surviving WWI veteran (aww!). Well The Fiery Furnaces’ Matthew Friedberger heard this and mistook it to be a song about apparently trendy 20th century composer Harry Partch. Because this upset him so, Friedberger lambasted Radiohead for being obnoxious and writing about trendy things. When he realized his mistake, he released a statement that read: “Matt would have much preferred to insult Beck but he is too afraid of Scientologists.”
OUCH. Now, Beck got wind of this and, like a gentleman, let the music do the talking. He wrote a 10-minute piece that he said was a tribute to Partch’s “concept of ‘Corporeality’— the integration of the body with all art forms.” It’s all kinds of artsy and snooty and brilliantly executed because that’s just the point, you guys (it’s a feud). Beck wins this round. Hands down.
Beck – “Harry Partch” [MP3]
UPDATE: Friedberger has “responded” to the song in two Myspace posts that contain a lot of very confusing language (??). Beck still wins. My head hurts.
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