BECK seemed to spring from nowhere -- from a handful of hometowns, odd jobs, and late-night donut shops -- to bring a completely fresh sound to pop music. As influenced by Leadbelly and Blind Willie Johnson as he is by rap and punk artists, he has woven the past with the present, making records that combine folk, blues, and hip-hop in a new sonic collage. The result can't really be labeled as one style or another, but whatever it is, Beck is its leader, though in interviews, he's reluctant to lay claim to much of anything.