David Bowie – Black Tie White Noise

01. The Wedding
Cheesy as this is (I mean, it’s called The Wedding) it’s enjoyable with the bubbly bass  and the tinny emotive saxophone. It has that disorienting ‘older than the year it’s made’ feel that can’t help but make you yearn for a certain time, even though you’re not sure exactly what that is.  It’s weird imagining Bowie dictating the band on this and then deciding it had to be track 1, ballsy.

02. You’ve Been Around
With a lot of music that’s ‘so bad it’s good’ it’s hard to say whether I truly like the music or whether I respect the earnest delivery and self-seriousness of music that clearly has flaws. There’s a pleasant vocodered refrain though it feels dangerously like karaoke music or even worse – muzak.

 03. I Feel Free
Funky rhythm section on this track, particularly the bouncy bass line and some of the jangly guitar work. The general feel of the album seems like one an hipster type would ironically like, someone like Ben Stiller in Greenberg. I’m enjoying listening to it though, but mostly because it’s Bowie, a trendsetter, making some of the most unfashionable sounding music of his career.  A subpar Bowie album is like a poor Woody Allen film where even a bad work is ok because of the comforting familiarity.

04. Black Tie White Noise
This is great – classy, elegant music. Some great funky slap bass grooves on this track and the atmospheric synths are pretty. Bowie delivers a virtuoso silky smooth vocal on this thing too.

05. Jump They Say
Now something straight out of the Sonic soundtrack, or so it sounds. You’d have to be pretty cynical to hate this. It’s upbeat, catchy and has some over the top gospel backing vocals. I know gospel voices are a sticking point for some people, but bombast can only be respected when done with the earnestness of Bowie.

06.Nite Flights
It’s common knowledge Bowie is a Scott Walker fan. Still, it’s strange to hear him turn that dark experimental pop classic into easy listening. Yet the oddity of some of these musical decisions, the seeming lack of self-awareness, gives the album a charm. I can only assume it’s exactly what Bowie set out to make without caring about who he pleased or displeased in the process.

 07. Pallas Athena
Dramatic in a soap opera way with ridiculous strings and some monk like samples  chanting along to the beat. It’s funny, but I don’t think it’s trying to be so like They Might Be Giants. It has some headbanging beats too.

08. Miracle Goodnight
This is yet another track dangerously close, backdrop wise, to one of those pre-programmed beats you get on keyboards.

09. Don’t Let me Down and Down
This is lite laid back music. It’s safe conservative music. Even on a weaker backing track like this the charisma and passion of Bowie’s vocal saves it from being dull.

 10. Looking For Lester
Here’s another bouncy track that brings back memories of the Sonic franchise. A pure instrumental really highlights the weakness of this album – the reliance on cheap sounding horns and grating slap bass seem inapropriate without the mask of Bowie’s mic presence.

11. I Know It’s Gonna Happen Someday
It feels like Bowie can just blast out these emotive power ballads without much thought. ‘Don’t Lose Faith.’ I have something strange where cheesier music can make me feel just as emotional as ‘raw’ sounding music.

12. The Wedding Song
Some great vocal samples on this – ends the album full circle with the return of the wedding chimes.

When the first wave of muzak sounding tracks collided together one part me felt tempted to slam this LP. Yet – once I’d adjusted to Bowie’s saccharine world – I found myself enjoying the playfulness of some of Bowie’s odd musical choices and earnest delivery. The overuse of horns is grating, but the creative use of electronics and the warmth Bowie effortlessly sprinkles throughout the album make it a pleasant companion to spend an hour with.