Here’s a double dose from last week’s “New Music Friday.” First is the latest release from Beck, Guero. The openning tracks will certainly remind you of Odelay, then gets a bit more toned down toward Mutations or Sea Change. This is an unusual album in that way for Beck; it’s not a completely different direction for him. However, it’s solid from top to bottom, so if you like any of Beck’s pre-Midnight Vultures stuff, you’ll like Guero.

Who’s Abandoned Pools? Abandoned Pools is the current project for one time Eels member Tommy Walter. Naturally, I found them in the ‘See Also’ section of the Eels page at allmusic.com. Humanistic is an alternative/punk-pop type album that isn’t revolutionary by any stretch, but I’ll say it rivals anything heard on the radio. They have a new album coming out this year which I’ll probably check out. Hopefully Walter will show off a bit more of the ‘instrumentalist’ label that intrigued me in the first place.