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"Lux" is a far more quiet and subdued album than 2010's "Small Craft on a Silk Sea". The latter seemed hastily assembled and lacking in cohesion. Manic glitch instrumentals were mixed in with quiet ones, trip-hop mingled with ambiance but there was no common thread to tie them together, it seemed. "Lux" is far more faithful to Eno's past and abilities.
While it's not as depressive as albums like "Low" (on which Eno collaborated with Bowie) it does have the same ring of kraut-rock spaciness and certainly conjures up the moody gravitas of instrumentals like "Warszawa". Pianos, strings,
quiet synth pads, meld together to create a delicate melancholy Johnny Greenwood only wishes he could.
[DISCLAIMER: I really do like Johnny Greenwood a lot.]
There is no aimless screwing around with new technology on "Lux". While it would have sounded a little different because of the technology available, this album could have been made back in Eno's golden years (no Bowie pun intended).
The music sounds timeless rather than timely and the former is definitely a stronger quality.
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Here come the warm Jets- Brian Eno
Anyone who appreciates glam must investigate the work of Brian Eno. After leaving glam outfit Roxy Music Eno embarked on his own solo career eventually equaling or eclipsing, depending on who you talk to, Brian Ferry's band.
However, instead of staying within the relatively safe rockabilly sexpot bounds of 70s glam Eno took the drama and aggression of glam to whole new levels, some of them shockingly absurd. Eno even admits that some of the lyrical content on the album means nothing, like in "The Paw Paw Negro Blowtorch" with boggling lines like "He'll barbeque your kitten".
"Baby's on Fire" is another example of a standout song. The title sounds like the "baby" in question is on a roll or having a great stroke of luck but the lyrics suggest actual immolation, "they said you were hot stuff, and that's what baby's been reduced to". These surreal lyrics are further enhanced by a fantastic Robert Fripp-esque guitar solo and menacing electronic, beeps and boops
Like Devo, much of Eno's work builds on basic pop format and turns it into something subversive and complex. "On some faraway beach" takes a simple but beautiful pop piano arrangement and spins it into a chillingly poignant anti-war ballad.
As one of the world's most iconic concept albums, it is hard to describe ". . .Warm Jets" as anything other than mind-blowing.
Score: absolute perfection, somehow higher than 10/10
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Low - David Bowie
"Low" is what happens when glam goes from whimsical to ultra-serious, if even a little sad. While there's always heights and troughs of emotion in most Bowie songs "Low" exposes listeners to a more visceral and vulnerable Bowie.
"Always crashing in the same car" is extremely wistful, even as far as titles go. Bowie seems to bemoan some unnamed tragic mistake. The phased-out guitar bends add an appropriate weeping quality to the song. "Be my wife" is just as sullen. "A New Career In a New Town" is a dark instrumental that eventually builds into brightness, as if Bowie is trying to cheer himself up.
Instrumentals "Art Decade" and "Warszawa" are nothing but dark. "Subterraneans" is desolate as well but has momentary stabs of hope. "What in the world" seems happy but the lyrics point to more yearning and searching for satisfaction. "Sound and Vision" is peppy and catchy and stands out as one of the only gleeful track. For someone looking to move beyond Bowie's radio hits "Low" is perfect. It represents a different side of Bowie than many of us know.
Score: 10/10
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The Man Who Sold the World - David Bowie
As any fan knows, Bowie has done through a myriad of different artistic phases and this album represents a short "acid rock" period in his early career. "The Man. . ." is driven mostly by distorted guitars and numerous solos, at least far more than any other album in the Bowie catalog.
"She Shook Me Cold" is a straight blues boogie with a fantastic Jimmy Page worthy guitar solo in the middle. "Saviour Machine" combines the same blues energy with doomy metaphysical lyrics about self-salvation and tweeting synth notes.
Perhaps the darkest song on the record is "Running Gun Blues" and there is no other way to describe the lyrics other than "fucked up" but the delivery is so sarcastic and deadpan that it's amausing. The lyrics tell the story of an AWOL soldier who goes on a killing spree, slaying civilians left and right with a sickening glee but Bowie sings the words with such vim and vigor it's hard not to crack a smile. "It seems the peacefuls stopped the war, left generals squashed and stifled but I'll slip out again tonight because they haven't taken back my rifle"
This album was praised universally when it came out, both in the US and UK. The only "hit" song that came of "The Man. . ." was obviously the title track but there's so much more on this record that warrants listening. People who don't necessarily appreciate glam and gravitate toward harder rock instead might find something new to like in Bowie with this LP.
Score: 9/10
