Agusa, for me. I still get the feeling that people were so desperate to anoint ★ as "the last great Bowie album" that they clung onto the admittedly interesting and atmospheric production choices whilst conveniently forgetting that he didn't really write many actual songs. I actually really like the album, but it wouldn't make my top ten Bowie LPs, nearly five years removed from the hype. 'Lazarus' has some cool flourishes and a really memorable vocal performance, but the song itself feels forced, as though everyone involved had a groove that they liked but spent ages struggling around for a melody to go alongside it. Since its groove is its strong point, I feel they need to point out that Agusa's groove is juicier, more vivid, more lived-in, and their mix of prog-folk and space rock just feels so much more effortless and sure of itself than Bowie's rather laboured, ultimately futile efforts to put all the (perfectly fine) pieces of 'Lazarus' together in a way that makes it more than the sum of its parts. Agusa, on the other hand, take a handful of elements that they know will work and just patiently let their flutey freakout unfurl over ten minutes, in ways that feel completely organic. _________________ 2021 in full effect. Come drop me some recs. Y'all know what I like.
The groove isn't what draws me to Lazarus but rather the sheer emotional weight of the vocal delivery in line with the dreary existential mood the beat creates behind that.
I generally agree there is a concentrated effort in the music community to make Blackstar the last great Bowie album. There's a lot of tracks on it that feel like Next Day B-sides, an already all over the place work. And some of the tracks feel very unfinished. If there are two songs on it that do strike me as placed with tender love and care it's probably this one and the closer. As Gowi said, I'm attracted to the vocals on it. I like how it's clashing over the groove, regardless if it was forced in there it just kind of works for me. So do the reverbed out horns.
Agusa does seem more organic but that's not everything. Last night I did some mixing for a very organic improvisational live band that, while all the compositions felt solid and expertly sussed out, I came away feeling cold and like I had just worked with zoomer Primus.
I generally agree there is a concentrated effort in the music community to make Blackstar the last great Bowie album. There's a lot of tracks on it that feel like Next Day B-sides, an already all over the place work. And some of the tracks feel very unfinished. If there are two songs on it that do strike me as placed with tender love and care it's probably this one and the closer. As Gowi said, I'm attracted to the vocals on it. I like how it's clashing over the groove, regardless if it was forced in there it just kind of works for me. So do the reverbed out horns.
Agusa does seem more organic but that's not everything. Last night I did some mixing for a very organic improvisational live band that, while all the compositions felt solid and expertly sussed out, I came away feeling cold and like I had just worked with zoomer Primus.
I feel like when Blackstar is good its near perfection, but when its... less good... its kind of middling and unremarkable at best.
The self-title track, Lazarus, and I Can’t Give Everything Away are what make up for the weaker points of the album because they are really something else.
I see a lot of people assigning post-death hype to the album, but when it came out I got it immediately and listened to it four times in a row. I've never done that before, and haven't since. The second day I listened to it two more times before hearing the news of Bowie's death.
After having listened to it six times I comfortably ranked it as my favorite Bowie album (and I rarely assign high scores to new stuff, since things normally grow on me). But with Blackstar it was clear something amazing had been crafted.
However, for this round the Agusa song is blocked in my region. So abstain. _________________ I wanna take Sean Penn
And take Sean Bean
Put 'em in a blender
And make Sean Pean
I trust that people actually do like Blackstar as much as they say. And Lazarus is by far the best track on the album - gets my vote. _________________ Join us in the canon game / Add me on RYM
I trust that people actually do like Blackstar as much as they say.
Yeah, sorry, I wasn't trying to cast aspersions on people's sincerity. What I meant was that it felt like publications were desperate for it to be his last great album, and that a lot of people got caught up in the hype at the time, myself included. But yeah, if someone says they love the album then fair enough; I don't doubt it.
Also, thinking about it, it might just sneak into my top ten, on a good day:
1. Low
2. Station to Station
3. Ziggy
4. Hunky Dory
5. Young Americans
6. Lodger
7. Diamond Dogs
8. "Heroes"
9+10. Any two from: Aladdin Sane; Scary Monsters; Let's Dance; ★. (Depending on mood.) _________________ 2021 in full effect. Come drop me some recs. Y'all know what I like.
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