Bécs (album)

Bécs is described as a departure from the drone music influences of Black Sea, instead featuring contemporary pop music structures.^[2] Pitchfork noted the album's "twinkly and bright" melodies, with the album's use of distortion "(walking) a tightrope between oceanic envelopment and repellant destruction."^[3]

The track "Paroles" is notable for a stripped-down sound that does not feature as many audio effects as most of Fennesz's work.

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	8.1/10[4]
Metacritic	86/100[5]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[6]
Exclaim!	9/10[7]
Fact	4/5[8]
Mojo	[9]
Pitchfork	7.8/10[3]
PopMatters	8/10[10]
Sputnikmusic	3.8/5[11]
Tiny Mix Tapes	[12]
Tom Hull	B+ ()[13]
Uncut	9/10[14]

Bécs was well-received by critics upon release; it currently holds a score of 86 from Metacritic, indicating "universal acclaim".^[5]

London-based music magazine Uncut praised the album, calling it "an entirely ravishing aesthetic experience."^[14] Exclaim! published a similarly adulatory review, writing that, "With Bécs, Fennesz achieves the near-impossible, crafting a musical sequel that retains the energy, vision, and flow of its predecessor."^[7]

Pitchfork gave Bécs a generally positive review, remarking that it was "often gorgeous" but arguing that its sonic similarity to Endless Summer "makes you wonder about motivation."^[3]