Brian LeBarton is the keyboardist and musical director for Beck. He joined the band in 2004 for Beck's Guero tour and has toured and played on every release since, including The Information album/tour of 2006 and the Modern Guilt album/tour of 2008–9.
He played guitar, keyboards, and drum programming and sang background vocals on Beck's Grammy-nominated 2007 single "Timebomb" and worked with Beck on the soundtrack and score for the film Nacho Libre, starring Jack Black, and also on the soundtrack for the 2010 film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. He also contributed extra percussion and drum programming for Beck's remix of Dr. Dog's "The Girl".
LeBarton played drums, bass, harmonica, and piano on Beck's cover of Bob Dylan's "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat" for the War Child: Heroes charity album, which also features contributions from The Kooks, Rufus Wainwright, Franz Ferdinand, and TV on the Radio.
LeBarton is also a founding member of the Record Club, a new project launched for Beck's official website.
Side projects and other
LeBarton played Hammond organ in the band Slydell for several years. Other members of Slydell have since gone on to play in the bands Great Northern, Everest, and The Watson Twins.
One of his earliest tours was with Nikka Costa, opening for Prince on his Musicology tour. Following this he went into the studio with Costa and played organ, Rhodes, and synth on her album Can'tneverdidnothin'.
LeBarton toured with Sia in 2007 and 2008. in support of her successful album Some People Have Real Problems.
He contributed programming for Propellerheads' "Abbey Road Keyboards" and "Electric Bass" libraries. The famous instruments of Abbey Road Studios were hyper-sampled using the studio's vintage mic and gear collection for use in the popular Reason software.
Under the alias Stallion, LeBarton is the singer for the rock band Wounded Cougar. They opened two shows on Beck's 2006 American tour and played on Tom Green's online show.
He played clavinet on Jamie Lidell's 2008 album JIM, produced by Justin Stanley. He also played keys on the alternate versions of "Little Bit of Feelgood" and "Figured Me Out".
Justin Meldal-Johnsen brought LeBarton in to play keyboards on the 1980s themed score and soundtrack for the upcoming film The Informers, written by Bret Easton Ellis.
He also scored the music for the video game WET, a Grindhouse-inspired game starring Eliza Dushku and Malcolm McDowell as the main character voices.
Threshold
Brian LeBarton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm hearing voices, animal noises
The creme de la creme, effeminate abyss
And I'm reaching my threshold
Staring at the truth till I'm blind
My body's stupid, stereo putrid
I'm reaching my threshold
Staring at the truth till I'm blind
The lyrics to Brian LeBarton's song "Threshold" are abstract and open to interpretation. The song seems to deal with a struggle to find one's place in the world and fight against society's restrictions. The opening line "I'm hearing voices, animal noises" suggests a chaotic and confusing environment where the singer is struggling to make sense of their surroundings. The reference to "the creme de la creme, effeminate abyss" adds a layer of tension, suggesting that the singer may be feeling out of place or struggling against societal expectations.
As the song continues, the singer reflects on the state of their body and mind, lamenting "my body's stupid, stereo putrid, Spilling out music into raw sewage." This line seems to suggest that the singer feels out of control or misunderstood, unable to express themselves in a way that is true to themself. The repetition of "I'm reaching my threshold, staring at the truth till I'm blind" suggests that the singer is struggling to cope with the pressures of their environment and is on the verge of breaking point.
Overall, "Threshold" is a powerful and evocative song that captures the struggle of trying to live a meaningful life in a chaotic and confusing world. The lyrics are open to interpretation, but many listeners will be able to relate to the themes of alienation, frustration, and the struggle to find one's place in the world.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm hearing voices, animal noises
I'm listening to my inner self, which sometimes is chaotic and unpredictable, just like the sounds of nature
The creme de la creme, effeminate abyss
The highest and most refined part of something, like an effeminate abyss - something dark and mysterious, yet elegant and captivating
And I'm reaching my threshold
I'm approaching my limit, the point beyond which I cannot continue
Staring at the truth till I'm blind
I'm trying to face reality, no matter how painful it may be, to the point where I cannot see anything else
My body's stupid, stereo putrid
My physical body and the music I create seem meaningless and unappealing
Spilling out music into raw sewage
My music, once a source of inspiration and creativity, is now contaminated and worthless
I'm reaching my threshold
Once again, I'm approaching my limit
Staring at the truth till I'm blind
And, yet again, I'm trying to confront reality, even if it hurts me deeply
Contributed by Hudson E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Day Man
One night at a local lazer tag joint near my town they were playing nothing but Scott Pilgrim music. IT WAS SO AWESOME.
bekah
I know it’s been like 10 years since you made this comment lol but that sounds so awesome!
Ligma Patient 0
Great song. I miss these old 8-bit soundtracks. I think that's one of the reasons I love the Scott Pilgrim game. The musical nostalgia.
JIMBOTHY
this is the beginning of the song
HISOkDIS
ola gei
JIMBOTHY
Logan Cagle Bro this might've been one of the first places I visited. Hahaha.
JustAnimate
I'm hearing voices, animal voices
KillerMontage
Scott earned the power of self-respect! *LEVEL UP*
Reshbj
Imagine if music was this amazing in the 8-bit era...
Brandon D.
if you thumbs up'd this song, you have a childhood worth remembering from this style of music