David Bowie - Where Are We Now?

So, yes, after ten years, Bowie releases a new single. Becomming centre stage in the music media once again by just releasing a sudden new song without any fanfare or social media wankery. Also there is the news of a new album(!!!!) due out in March, which I am so looking forward to. With so many rumours buzzing around Bowie's health and other issues, it's kinda hard not to follow through on the media bandwagon a bit, and suddenly proclaiming to be an oracle of David bowie knowledge (though I will point y'all to a post last year about his classic album, Low) Anyways this new song unfortunately, is not on 7", so you're treated to a review of it on youtube...

The song has been said stylistically to be going back to his Berlin Trilogy, however while there is a distinct element of that sound (in particular, Lodger), the thing is that, that's just the Bowie sound, and every album he's done post Tin Machine, has been accused of returning to the Berlin feel, though in this case, it may be to connect the soft and fragile music with it's likewise fragile lyrical content. Some have compared this track to Robert Wyatt, and yeah, it's noticable, but in the way that Bowie has always had a similar sound to the likes of Wyatt and Ayers. That kinda artistic pop that still sounds timeless.

It takes us in with a slow rhythm, kinda airy and dreamlike before Bowie start singing in a melancholic fashion, about being amongst everyday people walking through Berlin. The chorus doesn't really pick up pace but just ups the emotion a bit. It really works with the surreality of the music. The drums later pick up tempo, keeping this nice groove going on with an almost frippatronic guitar sound via excessive delays (Fripp of course also retired, but Tony Visconti surely picked up a trick or two), and the song fades to silence. The references to places around Berlin strike a chord with me, having visited there during a rough point in life (and stayed in a hostel not too far from where Bowie lived whilst there) so it also brings back a kinda sentimentality to me as well.

Despite being educated in the visual arts, I won't discuss the video much here as it seems that people are focusing more on that than they are the song itself. Which is a total shame, as it's a great song and shows that he's still got it.

NOTE: Would have done a post about this on Tuesday but been at work past two days, grr.