Just to clarify that atleast on Spotify the 2014 remaster has a few bonus tracks (demos, my sweet lord 2000, i live for you) placed in the middle of the tracklist that arent in the original album and definitely should be skipped on a first listen. The 50th anniversary edition has the original tracklist and I’d say incredibly better sound mixing, so I’d easily say go with that.
YT shows all the comments an account leaves and I love your constant requesting for ATMP. I’m going to start doing it with third eye blind’s self titled and then Superunknown by Soundgarden
Secret Life of Arabia led you into the next album which between Bowie, Eno and Talking Heads , invented "World Music". The Album is "Lodger" and is the final album in what became the Berlin Trilogy. It takes in Bowie's travels around the globe and has some fantastic songs and no instrumentals. It's a worthy addition to your reactions.
I’ve been riding along for your Bowie reactions, and this is the first instance (your past 4 Bowie videos) of Bowie album reactions where I feel the listener is able to truly grasp Bowie’s artistic visions and really channel his output in a way that does the starman justice. I’m Gen Z, major major David Bowie fan, it’s great to see more people my age (or around my age) delving into his discography and continuously letting him “Blow our minds”. I recommend the album Diamond Dogs next, before you move onto Blackstar. The suite of Sweet Thing/Candidate/Sweet Thing (Reprise) is some of Bowie’s best work. Blackstar is a behemoth of a final album, and I feel you should at least one or 2 more of his 70s albums beforehand to really feel the heavy pull of a Blackstar, and to better grasp just how much of a genre-bending chameleon Bowie was, in a way unlike anyone before or after him. I’m glad to have found a great reaction channel
You can wait for Blackstar. Doesn't matter how much you wait, it'll always pay off. And the more you know about Bowie, more impactful it will be. Diamond Dogs is a must do album. The three part suite Sweet Thing/Candidate/Sweet Thing Reprise is one of the best pieces of music I've ever heard. Rebel Rebel kinda makes part of the suite because it follows right after a click track at the end of Sweet Thing Reprise in the same rythm as Rebel Rebel. Crazy Sax solos by Bowie in this suite and just great distopian atmosphere. Another album on the must do list is Let's Dance, Bowie's pop magnum opus, featuring great names such as Nile Rodgers, Omar Hakim and Stevie Ray Vaughn.
I’d love to see you react to 1. Outside. It got really mixed reviews but it’s one of my favourite from that time period. It also brought Eno and Bowie back together.
Great, great record. Some notes: The reason for the different/interesting lead guitar - Robert Fripp plays lead on this record. He was the "ambient" guitarist, did two amazing records with Eno. Invented his own style of playing called Frippertronics. Heroes at this point is an all time classic in pop music, hence the massive increase in plays. It has been released by Bowie in English, French and German. Lots of interesting experimenting on this Heroes. The e-bow like effect on the guitar drone was constructed by Fripp and producer Visconti. The way bowie's shouting "heroes" explodes out as he gets louder used a very unique technique devised by Visconti with multiple microphones and different gates. The album was recorded in Cold War era Berlin, in the shadow of the Berlin Wall, which definitely had an impact on the vibe. There are references to this in the song Heroes as well as the dark sound of the ambient tracks. Neukolln is a district in Berlin Eno played a big part on the record, assisting on many tracks and co-writing 4 of them. "How did the rockets turn into a synthesizer?" One word: Eno. The Sax was played by Bowie. **If you love Ambient music, check out either of the first two Fripp/Eno albums, (No Pussyfooting) or Evening Star.**
First time commenting on RU-vid, but I had to suggest you check out Bowie's "1. Outside". It's a concept album that is both an evolution of his sound while simultaneously being wildly, WILDLY different than much of the rest of his discography. Considering what seems to really tickle your ears, I think you'd find it a pretty fascinating listen. Keep up the great work, Smags! Love yer reactions bro!
DROPPING EVERYTHING FOR ANOTHER SMAGS BOWIE REVIEW YEEESSSSSSSIIIIIIRRRRRR Also please check out a few more essential ones (Hunky Dory, Let’s Dance) before Blackstar, those ones will really round out how unique and important his 70’s period was and how he kept his career alive into the 80’s
Bowie's Berlin trilogy consists of 3 albums: Low, Heroes and Lodger. Since you have reacted to the first two albums, you need to take one more step with Lodger and complete the trilogy.
NO WAY BRUH. I just searched up “David Bowie Heroes Smags” wondering if you ever made a vid on it! I love this album. Also don’t just listen to his most popular albums on RYM. Listen to Scary Monsters and Diamond Dogs also.
God I love Heroes. I think my favorite from the trilogy (and the only one to truly be made in Berlin), Heroes is the darker, edgier and more chaotic brother of Low and it uses that to the max, it's awesome. An amazing side A full of energy and madness, and what an anthem of a title track, moving and grand, it's a highlight for sure. And the dark instrumentals of the second half are amazing, I agree that I overall like Low's instrumentals better, but man, Moss Garden is smth else. I adore Secret Life, it's fun, it's catchy, it's funky even, but I also understand that it can be a bit jarring as a closer, it would've fit perfectly in the next album though. I hope you keep doing these, I love seeing you react to Bowie, so much fun! My requests for him rn would be either Diamond Dogs or Scary Monsters, both are awesome!!
Scary Monsters, then 1. Outside before Blackstar. I saw some love for 1. Outside and it is indeed one of the best albums of the 90s (I dont mean one of DBs best in the 90s, I mean that I like it as much as Mezzanine or Dummy or Downward Spiral). In my opinion, some songs on Outside foreshadowed what Radiohead later did with KidA. Heathen would be worth it, too.
Great to see you reviewing more Bowie. And I know I keep requesting this, but please do the last Bowie/Eno album - Outside from 1995. It's both brilliant and bonkers
If you loved the sound of Robert’s guitar be sure to check out Scary Monsters and Super Creeps his guitar is all over that record mostly. You might aswell do lodger as it is kinda underrated and not many reactors give it a chance.
Joe the lion was inspired by performance artist Chris Burden. He literally nailed himself to the front of a VW beetle. He also shot himself in the arm, locked himself into a school locker for two weeks, went to an airport and fired a Magnum at an airliner...and more!! Definitely an interesting character to do bit of an Internet deep dive on. BTW he was a respected figure in the art world and created a lot work that wasn't so nuts but just as thought provoking.
I'm glad you done Eno's Another Green World. It's an all-time unique record and on my list of one of the best records of the 70s. You can see the influence here.
One of my favorite David Bowie albums. Blackout is one his best songs imo. Robert Fripp is the guitar player on the album, he was in the band King Crimson and played a lot on Brian Eno's albums. I recommend The Idiot by Iggy Pop. It was co-written and produced by David Bowie during the same year he made Low and Heroes while him and Iggy were living in Berlin trying to get clean from their drug addictions. The Idiot combines the punkier music Iggy had made previously with The Stooges with the electronic-infused art rock that David was making at the time and it was a huge influence on post-punk.
V2 Schneider was named after Florian Schneider from Kraftwerk. You really need to check out some Kraftwerk. Maybe Trans Europe Express, Computer World or Man Machine.
the perfect chronology you should follow is ALADDIN SANE (1973) - DIAMONG DOGS (1974) - SCARY MONSTERS AND SUPER CREESP(1980) - 1.OUTSIDE (1995) EARTHLING (1997) - BLACKSTAR (2016).
What about Let's Dance? I think is important to get the picture of how diverse Bowie can be by listening to his pop magnum opus. Great songs like Modern Love, China Girl, Ricochet and Criminal World. Young Americans would surely also fit in the big picture as the first Duke album.
The first half of the album for me is very chaotic. It feels very melancholic to me, like someone spiralling or on the verge of a nervous breakdown. And then the second half is a kind of dreamlike bliss of overcoming that.
Same, it used to only give me chills but now it makes me cry as well. Life experiences knowing what it's like to have a wall placed between two lovers.
Great reaction! I suggest 2013’s The Next Day rather than Blackstar next. It was his comeback album after a decade of silence and looks back on the ‘70’s and his Berlin period. Especially Where are We Now, which is the centerpiece of the album. It’s a rare look back. Then do Blackstar in which Bowie once again looks to the future. That future being the ultimate one everyone must face. Of the Berlin albums his collaboration with Iggy Pop on The Idiot is a must. Recorded before Low, Bowie cowrote it with Iggy and was the producer.
Having done a few albums where Brian Eno was involved I think you might want to consider two that he produced by Talking Heads: Fear of Music or Remain in Light. But I would also higthy recommend one of his own albums post Roxy Music (in order of preference): Another Green World, Taking Tiger Mountain by Force, or Here Come the Warm Jets.
Sense of Doubt always conjures up bleak sci-fi scenes: dead seas lapping at diamond beaches, radiation arcs across the sky. Like a 60s sci fi book cover.
You gotta do Scary Monsters and Hunky Dory before blackstar, that's mandatory stuff! I'd do a 90s album (probably Outside) and The Next Day (the 2013 album he did before Blackstar after a ten year gap) as well
Neukoln is a district in Berlin heavily populated by Turks, hence the eastern sounding sax. Bowie was living in Berlin during this period and the album was recorded there. I'd recommend you go back to Diamond Dogs from 1974 for your next listen.
Enjoying your reaction,and bringing back memories of my first time☺️.blackout will grow on you.still think you should lesson to black star after all the major Bowie albums....few more to go the the (this is the day)
BRO im telling u now like u gotta reacct to king krule six feet beneath the moon like its been too long man i dont know how much longer i can do this for im begging u man
As you said, both Low and “Heroes” are part of the Berlin trilogy and were recorded in Berlin at the time of the separation of the city between East and West, with Bowie living and recording not far away from the wall. This is also the reason for the abrupt split between brighter and darker songs on the albums. I think it was his way of describing the feelings the city gave to him, artistically stimulating from one side, but scary and threatening on the other. If I had to give you my suggestion, btw, I think I would leave Blackstar as the last one. It’s more enjoyable (and moving) if you know what came before, imo.
LOVE YOUR VIDEOS MY GUY a few recommendations: Process - Sampha (experimental r&b, great production) Nurture - Porter Robinson (light summer electric with fun production) Koi No Yokan - Deftones (very heavy, sexier and heavier radiohead imo) Hypochondriac - Brakence (very experimental emo rap, glitch pop) Reading Writing And Arithmetic - The Sundays (the smiths ish, with beautiful female vocals)
Duuuude U-Ziq - Lunatic Harness Gonna keep bugging you until you do it lol. IDM classic. Was gonna superthanks but seems you don’t have the option turned on.
You want to listen to the _"Heroes"_ bonus track: *"Abdulmajid"* - often included with the album in past releases. Artist/LP recommendation: Suede _Autofiction_ (2022) Suede _Sci-Fi Lullabies_ (1997) Best UK band of the past 30 years. For fans of Bowie.
Suede, and to an extent, Placebo, especially on their first 2 albums, almost seems like "mistaken identity". Why have that when you've got Manic Street Preachers' run from '92 to '00?
Few album requests: The King of Limbs - Radiohead The Argument - Fugazi Entertainment! - Gang of Four The Stooges - The Stooges Black Star - David Bowie
Haven’t watched the video yet but bro is about to FEEL the title track Edit: yeah he definitely felt that shit, also the person playing guitar is Robert Fripp the lead guitarist and main guy behind king crimson
