Forest For The Trees

Carl Stephenson, who co-wrote and produced Beck's single "Loser" along with much of the artist's DGC debut album Mellow Gold, originated Forest for the Trees as his own endeavor. Most of the material that would surface three years later on the self-titled Forest for the Trees album had already been completed by the time "Loser" surged up the pop singles chart in 1993. Stephenson spent that year repeatedly revising the tracks, only to experience a nervous breakdown that removed him from activity until 1997. Upon regaining stability he finished and issued the album. Lead single "Dream" secured moderate exposure through heavy rotation in MTV's Buzz Bin and drew mixed notices from critics. Eclectic and experimental best capture the overall sound, joined by playful, hip, ironic, post-modern, smug, and kaleidoscopic qualities. The album entertains at its strongest, but at its weakest it mirrors Beck's excesses stripped of the songcraft and lyrical twists supplied by the boy with the devil's haircut.