David Bowie has traversed many different fashionable arenas and ways of expressing himself musically, but no time period was ever as sophisticated, beautiful, and cohesive as “heroes” (1977). Bowie created “Heroes” along with two other albums, Low and Station to Station with the help of Brian Eno while Bowie went on a hiatus from England to live in Berlin and recover from a lengthy and taxing addiction to cocaine. While in Berlin, Bowie became interested in the emerging Krautrock scene (Kraftwerk, Neu!, and Can are some notable artists) and embarked upon his experimental phase. Where other points in his musical career may have been a bit superficial, Bowie is at his best in this era, as “Heroes” mixes Soul with the Experimental Avante Gard to create an emotionally coherent current and a tightly orchestrated cloud of cacophonous synth, distortion, and organic music.
Immediately in the beginning of “Beauty and the Beast” during the song’s initial buildup, Eno’s distinct synth can be heard to introduce this semi-collaborative album’s eclectic amalgam of sounds. The first five songs situate themselves in an implosion of many different areas of musical expression. David Bowies previous stint with soul is still present as his back up singers make the meat of all the choruses, the saxophone has its fair share of flamboyant solos, and the music is driven primarily by an unwavering beat. The back up singers provide Bowie’s frantic vocal moments both clarity and intensity. Soul’s influence is accompanied by Eno’s signature noises, multiple untamed electric guitars playing at once, and Bowie’s emotionally driven voice. Indeed, Bowie’s voice signals the cerebral mania of each song in the first half of the album, as he switches from being calm and collected into a wailing ball of anger and wretchedness amongst all the weaving noise. The movement of the music just won’t quit. The lyrics denote a certain despondency as well; “Beauty and the Beast” claims “You can’t say no to the beauty and the beast”, that resistance to distractions that are abound is futile. “Heroes” concludes that “nothing will drive them away”, them being the forces that keep two lovers from living peacefully and happily together. where Bowie’s voice is best heard in “Joe the Lion”’, he tells us, “It’s Monday, slither down the greasy pipe, so far so good no one saw you, hover over any freeway” and eclipses into the proclamation that “you’ll be just like you dreams tonight”. Not a pretty picture being depicted here.
The second half of the album is instrumental and begins with “V2 Schneider” with an upbeat group of saxophones that introduce the next three instrumental songs. This trio of very dramatic pieces are a rise and fall of emotional turmoil. “Sense of doubt” sounds like being in a dark cave of uncertainty with little glimmers of light that eventually wash away into a new tide of dread. This pattern recurs throughout the song overlapping and then settling into“Moss Garden”, which is a bit of a reprieve, a breath of fresh air with chirping birds and peaceful instrumentation. There sounds to be a hope that equilibrium is possible until we reach “Nukoln”. “Nukoln” displays a similar set of contrasts that “Sense of Doubt” has, though the main voice is a saxophone that sounds as if it is in mourning. Doom descends in three notes with celestial pricks and pangs in the background, and the saxophone’s death is the last thing we hear.
| |||
No comments:
Post a Comment