Beck "Odelay" [1996]

The easiest way to know that a recording "artist" has nothing to say is when he or she buries his or her songs in a whirlwind of studio samples, loops and other assorted crap. Nothing displays this technique quite like Beck's "Odelay," which features exactly none of the excitement purported by the dumb-ass critics who lauded this Gen-X turd when it came out. It's far too easy for Beck's lemmings to refer to his uber-cheesy use of synths, slide guitars and 808 drum machines as "ironic," but that doesn't make it an enjoyable listening experience. Quite the contrary -- everybody actually hates this shit, and the only people who ever defend it are dorks too afraid to admit it doesn't make any sense. It's about nothing, by a nobody for no one.