On a slightly more serious note (well, less jocular anyhow);

|2-aLaDDiN SAnE






|1-presents




his review of David Bowie's new-ish album;

|2-Outside







The Nathan Adler Diaries: a hyper cycle



DISCLAIMER:

I  am  an  avid  Bowie  fan, one of the last remaining Alien Sex Gods on
Earth.   I  therefore  enter  into this review with a GREAT DEAL of bias
toward  Bowie's work.  Do not expect this to be at all impartial, I love
this man as a GOD!


The  title  of  this  album,  reiterates  Bowie's  position in the music
business  as "outside" not just the mainstream, but the music scene as a
whole.  As a famous slogan promoting Bowie in the '70s went,

"There's old-wave, there's new-wave, and there's Bowie"

Furthermore,   unlike   some   of  the  other  "well-established"  music
personalities, Bowie has evolved throughout his lengthy career.  Others,
for  example  the  Rolling  Stones, are doing pretty much the same thing
they  were doing 25 - 30 years ago.  Bowie, however, remains new, fresh,
and  more  than  merely  "contemporary",  his new album especially has a
distinctly  futuristic  feel,  not only due to the story which the album
follows  being  set  in  1999, but also in the style of music, thanks in
part to Bowie's renewed collaboration with Brian Eno.

The  story  is that of the ritual-art murder of a young 14-year old girl
named  Baby  Grace Blue and Art-Detective Nathan Adler's handling of the
case.   All  parts  are  played  by  David  Bowie,  from that of Algeria
Touchshriek, an old man living alone, to that of Baby Grace herself.

The story is to be continued in a series of consecutive albums which are
to be released between now and the end of the century...

|1-But what about the music?




The  album  contains  fourteen  tracks,  along  with  a  number of short
monologues  by  various characters detailing the story, all performed by
Bowie.   The title track is possibly my favourite at the moment, closely
followed by the thumping "Hallo Spaceboy".  At first, these seemed to be
the  only songs that really inspired my interest, but after listening to
the  album  a  couple of times, I began to find myself becoming more and
more  enamoured  with  the  other  songs.   First to find favour with my
discerning  ear was "The Heart's Filthy Lesson", then "I'm Deranged" and
the  recent  single-release  "Strangers  When We Meet".  Now that I have
been  listening  to  the  album  for  a couple of months, I find all the
tracks  to be of excellent quality, from "No Control" to "We Prick You",
and  the excellently titled "The Voyeur of DEstruction (as Beauty)".  To
some,  Bowie  appears to change musical styles at the drop of a hat, but
there   can   be  seen  to  be  a  clear  progression  from  "Black-Tie,
White-Noise",  through  "The  Buddha of Suburbia", to "Outside", Bowie's
musical   style  is  merely  evolving  and  changing  to  adapt  to  the
ever-changing music market of an ever-changing world.

|1-Conclusion...




Those  who  are not already Bowie fans, or who are not familiar with the
musical  style  of  Brian  Eno,  will  probably not be impressed by this
album.  However, it is definately and album that benefits from more than
a casual listening.  If you are a fan of the last of the great crooners,
then  you  will  probably  enjoy this album if you keep an open mind and
give it a fair hearing.

I myself have found it slowly growing on me as I listened to it more and
more.   I have caught myself many times, singing the lyrics to "Outside"
and "Hallo Spaceboy", while driving in my car (Do you still have to tuck
your  knees  under  your chin?  - F/nfa).  I look forward to the rest of
the Nathan Adler saga with baited breath, but that's garlic for you!

Until The Nathan Adler Diaries part 2...

aLaDDiN SAnE
(1974 - 199?)

End