Sarcastic answers, awkward pauses, Dada-ist boot tossing

October 6, 2018 10:13 AM

Thurston Moore interviews Beck on MTV's 120 Minutes in 1994 [YT VHS rip | 3m46s]

"Beck used the '120 Minutes' stint to showcase his unabashedly weird side ... it's hard to tell if he was playing his bohemian bozo card or just really bored." [diffuser.fm]

"At times, the young musician doesn’t verbalize a response at all. Simple props often take the place of words. Rather than admit satisfaction over the public’s embrace of “Loser,” Beck allows a cassette player to express his sentiment." [greenandblackmusic.com]

More clips from the iconic episode:

Mike D of the Beastie Boys joins interview, jams with Thurston & Beck

Beck performs "Pay No Mind (Snoozer)"

Or if you just want to skip straight to everyone's favorite moment.

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More on MTV's 120 Minutes [wikipedia]:

The 120 Minutes Archive ["Revisit the best in alternamusic with the 120 Minutes archive"]

How the Face of Independent Music Changed in 120 Minutes: the late-night MTV show that brought the underground to the surface

or

(Previously)

and

(Previously)

posted by nightrecordings (25 comments total)

Thurston Moore: So how old are you?
Beck: 23.
TM: Really?
Beck: Yeah.
TM: Cause you look a lot older.
Beck: Great
TM: You look about 45
Beck: I kind of feel like 60 sometimes
posted by nightrecordings at 10:17 AM on October 6, 2018 [11 favorites]

Now, fast forward 16 years, to revisit when Beck and Moore met again to... cover Yanni's Live at the Acropolis.
posted by I EAT TAPAS at 10:27 AM on October 6, 2018 [4 favorites]

I gotta say after reading Kim Gordon's book I'm a little less Thurstony.
posted by sydnius at 10:30 AM on October 6, 2018 [33 favorites]

I wish I could find footage of an interview I saw Beck give at one of the British festivals in '96 or '97. He goes on and on about the orange he's holding, and it's #1 on my list of Beck Interviews Where He's Super High. In lieu of that, here he is on MuchMusic's The Wedge in 1996.
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:40 AM on October 6, 2018

Oooh ooh I saw the Thurston Moore interview when it first aired and my friends and I were all completely enchanted. I have fond memories of singing along to "I'm A Loser Baby" at work.
posted by maggiemaggie at 11:27 AM on October 6, 2018 [2 favorites]

Ah yes, I remember this. The 90s. When people who didn't know worked very hard at presenting like they didn't care. When actually they were incapable of caring.
posted by Harry Caul at 12:20 PM on October 6, 2018 [3 favorites]

I gotta say after reading Kim Gordon's book I'm a little less Thurstony.

I'm a Thurston Howell III man and I always will be
posted by thelonius at 12:20 PM on October 6, 2018

maybe the real losers were the thurstons we met along the way
posted by mintcake! at 12:36 PM on October 6, 2018 [11 favorites]

I love that interview. Thurston comes off as a total tool, which he is.
posted by grumpybear69 at 1:27 PM on October 6, 2018 [7 favorites]

I gotta say after reading Kim Gordon's book I'm a little less Thurstony.

I generally have nothing but respect for the music he's either had a direct part in creating, or just helped get created and distributed, but I long ago gave up on getting anything but adolescent bullshit from him whenever it comes to just normal talk/discussion. I suppose that's the downside of a sonic youth -- perpetual fourteen year old. Grow up, man.
posted by philip-random at 1:41 PM on October 6, 2018 [6 favorites]

*throws shoe at wall*
posted by Fizz at 1:50 PM on October 6, 2018 [2 favorites]

Ah, I remember how happy I was when a 24/7 music channel finally started programming two hours a week of music I actually liked.

I suppose the fact that I mostly watched MTV for Liquid Television and Sifl and Olly means I’m part of the reason it stopped playing music videos at all.
posted by ejs at 2:53 PM on October 6, 2018 [3 favorites]

A few months after this interview aired I saw Beck open for the Violent Femmes (also on the bill: Possum Dixon, The Church, Eve's Plumb, and Milla Jovovich).

All I can really say is that I'm glad I got to go to that show for free because it really wasn't worth paying money for...
posted by elsietheeel at 4:14 PM on October 6, 2018 [1 favorite]

The only thing more insufferable than Thurston Moore as an interviewee, is as an interviewer.
posted by humboldt32 at 4:41 PM on October 6, 2018 [3 favorites]

Saw Beck play outdoors at Marymoor Park last summer. It was glorious.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 6:28 PM on October 6, 2018

Milla Jovovich’s album was amazing and I will forever await the follow up
posted by ejs at 7:16 PM on October 6, 2018 [1 favorite]

One of my buds still has Beck’s demo cassette featuring early tunes from Mellow Gold, given to him by Beck’s then-girlfriend (before Leigh Limon), who appeared in the video in pigtails and frequented the LA Whole Foods where my buddy worked.
posted by infinitewindow at 7:45 PM on October 6, 2018 [4 favorites]

Mod note: One deleted. Maybe let's *not* run this whole thread off the side of a cliff with a huge "is it misogyny or just GENIUS???" derail.
posted by taz (staff) at 6:42 AM on October 7, 2018 [1 favorite]

Don't worry, stewardess. I speak 1990s slacker.
posted by jonp72 at 1:49 PM on October 7, 2018 [5 favorites]

It’s funny reading the YouTube comments and seeing it almost evenly divided between those who are certain that Beck was trolling the oblivious “interviewer” (none of these people seem to know who Thurston Moore is) and those who are certain that Moore was showing his obvious contempt for Beck by acting so blasé and condescending, with only a few weighing in with the correct take—that they were simpatico and both in on the joke, the joke being: MTV is corporate trash, and can you believe they’re actually paying us for this shit??

Man, do I miss the 90s sometimes.
posted by Atom Eyes at 12:24 AM on October 8, 2018 [4 favorites]

A few months after this interview aired I saw Beck open for the Violent Femmes (also on the bill: Possum Dixon, The Church, Eve's Plumb, and Milla Jovovich).

All I can really say is that I'm glad I got to go to that show for free because it really wasn't worth paying money for...

And see, I would cold-cock the Doctor and steak his TARDIS to experience that show.
posted by DrAstroZoom at 7:36 AM on October 8, 2018

And see, I would cold-cock the Doctor and steak his TARDIS to experience that show.
Me too. The Church is great, Violent Femmes are great, Possum Dixon and Eve's Plumb are fine, and I've not heard of Milla Jovovich.

And I hated this aspect of the '90s. Interviews like this don't make them seen ironic or sticking it to the corporate man or whatever, they both seem like uninteresting morons. And in this time if you were into this type of music you get about 100 minutes or so of videos- per week - and that time is being cut into by people who can barely string together sentences. I know it's popular to hate of YouTube (sometimes deservedly so) but the ability to not have the iron fist of the pop gatekeepers and the ability to immediately fast forward past nonsense is so amazing it's hard to understand.
posted by The_Vegetables at 7:54 AM on October 8, 2018 [2 favorites]

I support and respect you if Beck is your jam. Everyone has their own taste! But I could not get into his cold vibe. When I found out he was a Scientologist I felt... unsurprised I guess.
posted by latkes at 10:00 PM on October 8, 2018 [2 favorites]

agreed, latkes -

in fact ...

Finding out Beck was affiliated with Scientology definitely affected my feelings about him ... or did it just amplify some doubts I was already starting to have? (that regardless of how brilliant his craft was, there was ultimately a vacuum at the heart of his stuff, great and elaborate songs about ... ultimately nothing at all). There was also the fact that he couldn't handle Nardwuar yt .
posted by philip-random at 9:14 AM on October 9, 2018 [2 favorites]

He couldn’t handle Nardwuar? Goddamnit. I don’t even have the heart to click on that link.
posted by nightrecordings at 2:38 AM on October 10, 2018 [1 favorite]