What?: David Bowie's gazillionth (19th) album, reunion with Brian Eno.
Why?: One of many CDs in a pile that was saved on the way to the charity bin.
Tell me more: I thought I already had this album, but I mixed it up with 1999's "Hours" (they have broadly similar covers) so finding it in the pile of random was a nice surprise.
I first got into David Bowie properly with "Earthling" so I've always liked his more electronic leanings, however I had nothing but dislike in my head for the Pet Shop Boy's "Spaceboy" remix so I wasn't sure what to make of the album.
After numerous (ten?) listens over the last couple of weeks I've decided, on the whole, I like this album, but the "concept" wears thin after 19 tracks.
I'm always happy to be taken along for the ride, right up until Track 10, "Segue - Algeria Touchshriek", when Mr. Bowie puts on another of his silly voices, first heard on Track 5, "Segue - Baby Grace (A Horrid Cassette)", a track that reminds me of nothing more but the "hey, stop tickling me" voice at the end of Mr. Bungle's "After School Special" from "Disco Volante". David's funny voices are neither funny, nor interesting... random words over jazz doodling. Later the "American detective" voice gets me imagining "Assy McGee"...
Tracks worth pointing out as being surprisingly excellent are "The Hearts Filthy Lesson", "Hallo Spaceboy" (the original is an industrial pop masterpiece, killing the naff remix cold), "The Voyeur Of Utter Destruction (As Beauty)",
Strangely a lot of this album had me thinking of Midnight Oil's "10,9,8...", especially the background chorus vocals, some of the drum effects and melodies. "I Have Not Been To Oxford Town" in particular, once you get past the terribly dated intro and get to the "all's well" parts.
It's such as pity the album ends with "Strangers When We Meet", a terribly boring song that seems to the tacked-on "single song".
6/10: But only if you remove all the "Segue" tracks and "Strangers".
