Reviews (page 14 of 15)
I had high hopes coming into this album, as with all my exposures to Bowie from this period. This is late 70s Bowie, however, and it would seem that much of the album was made in the absence of our leading star. At least that’s how it sounds to me on my first few listens. There are so many tracks that are puzzling to me; on the one hand, here are some of the best instruments and production on any Bowie album, with really creative instrument choice, sound design, and arrangements, especially for the period. And almost nothing Brian Eno touches is without merit. That said, it sure sounds like Bowie phoned it in on top of a couple of these instruments after they had been recorded. I keep waiting for Bowie to come through with one of his signature, aching yet effervescent rock star lines. But he’s almost nowhere to be found! And when he does arrive, it’s too little too late. I’ll have to hear the rest of this supposed trilogy, but until then, I am left none to impress. 2/5. This review was translated and dictated by Becca Lipstein. No proofing was done.
I will have to majorly disagree with BUBS, someone I thought I knew and loved. After reading his review, I don’t know who he is anymore. Did we listen to different albums?? I thought this was a great album. Jacob and I listened to it on his car speakers on the freezing Ohio roads. I thought it was a jam! There were songs that felt like a Berstein soundtrack—so beautiful. The instrumentals were pretty. Not a lot of vocals to go on. I’d listen again! 3/5.
I have heard the hype for David Bowie. Supposedly this is one of his best albums! After giving up halfway through I've become even more of a non-fan. (Sorry Dylan!) I usually pride myself in being able to enjoy many different genres and styles of music, and I almost never find nothing to like. But with David Bowie I just... don't get it, like, at all. Where others hear catchy pop songs, I hear unintelligible, uninteresting, cringe-inducing vocals set to disappointing and overwrought instrumentals. I sort of liked the experimental aspect of this album, the Brian Eno synthesizers and weird bloopy fun arrangements. But everything else was just barely listenable. Some of the songs I think were literally inducing a physical reaction of repulsion from my eardrums. I really would love to someday "get" David Bowie, but after listening to this one, I think that day is far, far away. The vocals make me feel like I'm sitting in a dirty diner bathroom about to throw up from eating too much corned beef. The instrumentals too, and the mix just makes me feel icky - I guess it's an acquired taste... Maybe it's just the 70s glam rock vibe that's putting me off. If you loved this album just ignore me, I'd never want to take away from someone's enjoyment of a piece of music. But I had to express my true feelings somewhere. DNF. Right when I got to "A New Career in Town," I had to turn it off.
At the same time Bowie wrote and recorded Low, he starred in The Man Who Fell To Earth, and the two projects are unmistakably intertwined. I might be biased by a recent viewing of the film, but to me there is a strong recurring theme of loneliness and alienation in both projects. This is especially felt during the second, mostly instrumental, side of the album. Released in 1977, it's a rare album that still sounds impressively fresh to this day while showing full transparency in its inspiration from krautrock. It really doesn't sound dated in any way.
This was the first Bowie album I ever owned. Looking back, it might not be the obvious place to start the journey into this vast discography. But it worked perfectly. Low is packed with an emotional baggage so heavy, that at times it feels like an almost unbearable load. Side one is great, delivering sharp and shorter songs at great pace - but it’s when the almost completely instrumental side two sets in that I drop whatever’s in my hand and dives head first into the world of Bowie. I always forget the impact the end of Low leaves on me. It might not be what you expect of a Bowie album - but if you went into this expecting a certain formula, you probably don’t know Bowie that well.
Side A
What the fuck? A David Bowie album I actually liked? Thanks to Brian Eno, no doubt. Having just suffered through Ziggy Stardust last week, I’m shocked I actually liked this. I did prefer the first seven songs much more, though. Everything after A New Career in Town was a bit too Bowie-esque for my likings, but wow. What an interesting start to my day. Huh, what do you know. Me, liking Bowie. A Christmas miracle?
First half is pretty good; it's fun and bouncy. Second half gets pretty spacey and drawn out. An experimental record with hits and misses.
Just felt like white noise all said and done
Out in early 1977, David Bowie’s Low blasts off with all sorts of synthetic sounds and marks yet another slab of new ground for the especially eclectic singer. But ‘Speed Of Life’ is all instruments, and these instruments emit some gnarly noises in an otherwise danceable ditty with a few funky themes. Amid all the synths, even the drums brandish a robotic badge. Every element seem to screech out of some alien apparatus, and that’s the general gist of this record: pop music from space (perhaps at one time the ol’ Spiders really did live on Mars?). ‘Breaking Glass’ begins with a strange break between bass-n-drums, funky in feel and hard to follow as a raw guitar offsets everything with tense bends. All suddenly segue to different-key disco with David on the mic muttering nothing much but funny stuff like: “don’t look at the carpet / I drew something awful on it”. Synths only occasionally touch up the tune with a simple three note ear-panning passage passing from right-to-left. The tricky intro returns with layered Davids fearfully singing. It all fades away instrumentally doing another dash of disco. ‘What In The World’ proceeds at a paranoid pace with too many busy instruments tripping around each other. Something similar to the sound of Pac-Man appears prominently above every other instrument. Bowie hardly bothers to sing the verses and opts instead for casual low-toned mumblings about the “little girl with grey eyes”; nevertheless, the song starts to steam each chorus with its swift dynamic shifts of chord and wonderings of “what in the world can you do?”. A true query when you’re only “talking through the gloom”. ‘Sound And Vision’ is a sprightly song with its immediately bright tones: a bubbly bass, a spunky six-string, and something like eggs sizzling on a pan every other beat. Soon: synths join in with huge sustained joys-to-the-world. “Ooh ahh” from a bunch of Bowies. Nasty saxophone just for a few seconds to cue the singer for his favorite subjects: “don’t you wonder sometimes / about sound and vision?” He’s all over in the octaves, high-n-low (but mostly low). His lyrics are few and the singing itself is subdued and distorted, but somehow, it still sounds stunningly lovely all the while. ‘Always Crashing In The Same Car’ winds down a slow and lonely road, but the sound is anything but sparse. Expansive synths bubble and burst in the background as extra-gritty guitars shakily strum vast downbeats. Something like ‘Lady Marmalade’ repeats on a miserable mellotron and Bowie wheezes his inevitable fate with the intriguing idea of “always crashing in the same car”. The music matches the morose mood; on “car”, everything collapses into a cycle of deceptive cadences. Here we hear the music perfectly portray the rise-n-fall of one’s dreams. ‘Be My Wife’ rollicks with its pub piano and guitar rocking a repeating rhythmic gesture at the end of each phrase, but the lyrics regard the aimless singer’s sad solitude as a star. Disco chorus features a dancing bass and Bowie’s adorable or perhaps desperate declaration: “please be mine / share my life / stay with me / be my wife”. Is it happiness or hopelessness that compels him to inquire after a companion? ‘A New Career In A New Town’ treads its territory tenderly. Gentle strains of synthscape softly paint this picture of a man seeking a fresh start on his life. Nevertheless, it doesn’t take too long until he breaks through and finds his footing; the main theme of this music carries an immensely optimistic momentum. Featured most prominently are the wistful winds of a harmonica. No words are sung, but the music resonates with its own hefty emotional impact. ‘Warszawa’ starts off the second side of songs with its rows of low synths all rumbling out repetitions on one holy note. This slow and sacred procession makes for an imposing entrance. A minute in, the song finally arrives and activates with all the lovely layered true-gloom synths forming full unison melancholy melodies over-n-over. Later, Bowie chants in unintelligible tribal-like tongues as if the spokesperson at some sublimely sad ceremony for the deceased. Perhaps the piece must best be perceived as a musical memorial, something like the sonic snapshot of an ashen bomb-scarred Warsaw in World War II; or for any incident where innocents suffered dispossession and death. ‘Art Decade’ advances the ambient style of the last track; it’s just as melodic but it’s busier. Melodies spiral down around sounds of vibraphone and synths and a cello or two. Various unaccountable noises distantly rip through the air in quick occasional flurries. Swampy synths burble. Even with lots of layers, a single static sound is sustained throughout; and that’s the hallmark of A+ ambient music. ‘Weeping Wall’ happens with hypnotic mallet instruments playing murder music at an anxious pace. Big synths go for ‘Greensleeves’ (or some similar modal melody) as the chords continually chart an unpredictable pattern. Distorted guitars shear through simple solos featuring minimal pitches and long sustained bends. Tribal choir gets rather reverberant at the end and sounds something like a train. Everything has a place in the manic mood. There’s no development at all, but that’s not the point. ‘Subterraneans’ concludes the collection with more real-deal ambient music. Lonely, hopeless, spacious, the track floats on a cloud of misty synths throbbing in reverse. A treacherous bass builds up approaching with only a few notes heard at any time. Wordless voices join the joyless assembly. Out of the big blue, a saxophone comes a-crawling with forlorn lines to share. Bowie’s tone of voice tightens on a nice rhythmic bit of nonsense: “care-line, care-line, care-line / care-line driving me / Shirley, Shirley, Shirley own / share bride failing star”. It fades away wearily and the album’s over. Despite the title, David Bowie’s Low is actually “high” as far as artistic achievements are concerned. Vastly influential, the album and its wacky sound make for essential listening if you’re interesting in charting the natural course that pop music would pave into the eighties. And what about world music? This album covers lots of ground.
Nunca tinha parado para ouvir Bowie. Interessante, mas não a ponto de querer ouvir esse album de novo
Classic Bowie. Not an album I revisit often, but always nice when I do.
One of the greatest albums ever recorded, period. (Be My Wife is a lame track, but otherwise... perfection.)
3.5 Some good songs, end of the album too ambient for me
For me this album has always been overrated, I've listen to numerous times and my only conclusion is if it wasn't a David Bowie album then no one would care. It's not a bad album but it's not groundbreaking either. I think Kraftwork or Eno works is more interesting.
Not the Bowie I personally prefer musically, but an interesting enough record. Even the instrumental tracks held my attention.
A solid listen till about track 8 when the more experimental and ambient stuff kicks in.
While I'm still waiting for some Ziggy Stardust Bowie to show up on the list, this might be my favorite of the Bowie we've gotten so far. Even the weird stuff in the second half worked for me. It's not an album I would put on often, but it's good.
Interesting listen for my first listen of a Bowie album. Synths typical of the era, or a bit before their time. Unusual choice to put an instrumental at the front of the album.
Solid album start to finish.
Starts very poppy and then takes a synth-y dark plunge into the depths of a comedown. Not a fan of every track, but I do like how the more upbeat, jolly tracks create a sense of plummeting from a high into the low, cold melancholia of the second half. “Subterraneans” is viscerally depressing and beautiful, and left me sighing through the heaviness this song sends to my chest.
Very moody and surprisingly heavy on the instrumentals. Less spacey and more grounded Bowie
Parece el soundtrack de una película, no está mal melodicamete pero las letras no están y a mí gusta le falta eso para poder disfrutarlo más. Debió ser un gran álbum para su época, no lo dudo.
Liked the folky vibe of a few tracks
This will be the second Bowie album I’ve listened to from front to back after Hunky Dory (which I loved). I don’t think I’ve heard a bad David Bowie song, so I’m excited to hear all of this. Songs I already knew: none Favourites: Sound and Vision, Speed of Life It’s very easy to see how Bowie got his god-like status in music. The sound of this album is significantly different to the piano-focused Hunky Dory, but much more rocky on Low. I would compare they sound of this album to The Smiths, but without Morrissey’s annoying voice and instead with Bowie being fantastic. It is fascinating how a musician can release such vastly different sounding albums to this level of success. I’d recommend this album to pretty much anybody. It is a brilliant album.
Like a post-punk ambient record. Cinematic in a way - like the soundtrack to a Dario Argento softcore. Standouts on first listen are "Breaking Glass", "A New Career in a New Town," "Warszawa", and "Subterraneans".
Talking Heads vibes, very good art rock. Sound and vision an early favorite.
very instrumental
Classic
First side good, short songlets. Second side ambient and bleh.
Hitting an all-time Low...wait wrong album
The A side was a complete throwaway for me, but the B side was decently redemptive. No idea what Bowie was trying to do, some sort of space spiritual mumbo-jumbo I imagine, but it sounded pretty good. Makes sense as this was a sort of a post-drug redemption arc point of Bowie's career. 3 sets of prayer beads out of 5 📿📿📿
Quirky and good. Not for everyone
Did y'all listen to Sleep Party People's newest album?? Similar sounds.
Fínt dót. Ekki viss um að ein hlustun sé nóg.
I hated this album, makes me think I don’t like Bowie but damn. This one sucked, might’ve like Art Decade the best.
Another superclassic DB album.
Probably my favourite Bowie album. Sadly the version on streaming does not include Some Are, which was always my favourite track on the CD version I have.
Interesting combination of short song material with longer instrumental tracks.
Great album
Bowie + Eno = vanguardia absoluta. Pero también es cierto que el disco está dividido en dos partes muy distintas una de la otra. Obviamente voy a inclinar mi gusto por el lado A, el de las canciones por sobre el lado cósmico instrumental.
3.5
This album is very cool, especially when you realize it came out in 1977. Definitely on the cutting edge at that time. I love the exploration of electronic and ambient sounds. Overall the album is a bit downbeat and at times, sad, speaking to David Bowie's personal struggles. I find it slightly disjointed as an album, but that may have been intentional. A great album, albeit not one of my personal all time favorites.
Overall wasn't my favourite Bowie period, had the odd glimmer in it.
Decent
Two Bowie albums in two days, after Blackstar yesterday. I'm really not a fan, but whilst this album was a lot less modern sounding than the aforementioned, it was better than some of the other Bowie albums I've already had.
Interesting and not what I expected. Mostly instrumental. Apparently he was inspired by Kraftwerk. Much better than Kraftwerk.
Subterraneans is a timeless emotional ambient track. Brian Eno & Bowie
It's fine. I do like a lot of David Bowie, but this one isn't hitting for me. I think I appreciate the fact that he did a weird musical half more than I like the weird musical half.
Atmospheric, vibey but not very memorable
It was alright, didnt drag me in so much though.
This list is filled with "first times" for me, and that is no different with David Bowie - it is a first time, when I listen to his full album. And it was such a special introduction into his music and history. "Low" is an album, that is very hard to describe - it hinges on every possible type of mood, from cheerful and optimistic, to melancholic and thrilling. Also, as a big surprise for me, the album is full of instrumental tracks, which set the tone for the next part of the record, but each time they are just wonderful on their own, like beautiful composition "Warszawa", creepy "Subterraneans", or just energetic and simple intro, "Speed of Life". In general, there are just few songs, where David Bowie show us his vocal range, and even in those tracks he is sometimes overshadowed by a great guitar solo, like in "Be My Wife", or "Always Crashing In the Same Car". But that is not a problem - it can't be one, when the instrumental layer is so incredibly atmospheric and amazing. A big influence on the sound of the album had to be applied by Brian Eno - as a main collaborator and producer of the record. His ability to experiment was very obvious on the "Here Come the Warm Jets" album, which I rated previously on this list. This collaboration between Eno resulted in a trilogy, with "Low" being just a first step into it. But after listening to that record, I have no choice other than put the other parts "Heroes" and "Lodger" on my daily list "things to listen to" and see how great it is. Perfect introduction into Bowie's career.
Very solid album, love Bowie. A few songs stood out and the whole thing was amazing, no complaints.
3/11, 27%
One of Bowie's most famous albums and for good reason. Just killler from front to back.
Split between a side of jittery experimental rock and a side of avant-garde/ambient music, Low is probably Bowie’s most drastic reinvention of his art. Brian Eno joins Bowie on Low and deserves much credit for shaping this album’s sound and style. Recorded in Berlin, the influence of Eno’s ambient work and the German experimental rock scene of the time is fully evident on Low. The A side of the record is more typical of Bowie’s sound at the time: the plastic soul of Station to Station became even more synthetic and angular, with percolating analog synths driving the songs. Think of it as a precursor to Eno’s work producing the Talking Heads a few years later. On the B-Side, Bowie and Eno delve deep into the experimental side of the pool, producing four moody avant-garde soundscapes influenced by Cluster, Kraftwerk, Steve Reich’s minimalism, World music and Brian Eno’s own ambient experiments. Few, if any, of Bowie’s megastar contemporaries were even attempting music like this in the late 70’s. Low and the ensuing two records Bowie recorded with Eno in Berlin are ground-breaking achievements, which successfully introduced the avant-garde and experimental into popular music. For both Bowie and Eno, Low is a high water mark.
It's not Ziggy Stardust, is it?
7/10
It took quite a few listens for me to bridge the gap mentally between the A-side and the B-side of this album, dare I say I still don't fully understand the thought process of taking the momentum of the first half, via tracks like Sound and Vision and Be My Wife, and turn the pace down to deliver something that only lets you sit with your thoughts as you embrace it, but I think on this fourth or fifth go-around with this album I start to appreciate this album a lot more. It helps that I've delved into Eno's work a bit more since my last run, and this album tries its best to scratch the itches that Another Green World hit with ease. The whole album, however, especially the A-side, is magnificent, with Bowie crafting a record that destroys the walls set up by other pop records and creates something that will truly speak to all listeners. Bowie is no longer pouring out his heart to the audience, but rather pouring the audience's heart out to themselves, and in those moments of contemplation the album will truly allow the vague lyrics and ambient synths to whisk you off as a rocking guitar keeps you from going out of orbit. It's a grounded release, but one that isn't afraid to blow the listener away, and while it does become perhaps a little too much downtime for my taste in the back half, the album as a whole makes a strong argument for why albums are the way they are, and the fact that we've sort of lost that only makes this album's excellence all the more magical.
First half not great, second half spacey and cool.
I love the ambient work on here
David Bowie, a man ahead of his time
Phenomenal album that I can't wait to revisit.
I love the ride this album takes me on. It's like we're gliding through space on a ship that is adding and shedding components all the time - a synth here, a vocal there. It's surprising and wonderful.
My absolute favorite period for Bowie. Love this and its sister album "Heroes." They go hand in hand. "Heroes" is certainly a standout track, but as an album I probably prefer "Low" on the whole. I feel "Low" has a wider range of moods, and while "Heroes" is more refined, I kind of like how "Low" has more of a playful experimentation to it - still figuring out the formula. Speaking of the formula, I for one, really enjoy the A side = ever so slightly more conventional with lyrics, B side = off the deep end/largely instrumental approach. Best of both worlds if you ask me. All the playing on this is chef's kiss worthy. Bass, drums, guitars, synths, vox, harmonica, you name it. The production balances all these elements perfectly and feels very three dimensional and immersive. Man, if I could be a time travelling fly on the wall for the recording of any album, this just might be it. "Low" is that rare risky move album where he doubled down on experimentation to find a new direction and it paid off in dividends - we're still feeling its influence to this day.
Funny enough one of the first Bowie albums I listened to in full a while ago. It definitely feels like a bit of an experimental album, possibly more than the other two entries of the "Berlin Trilogy". There isn't a single "anthem" song that sticks out, but it's all still interesting. Especially for the time it was released.
One of the greatest albums ever made.
Good listening, will do again
Nice to have another bowie album. Still hasn't changed my opinion on him, which is one of distant positivity. I enjoyed this album but like every other album this week, nothing really sticking out to make it more than a 3.
Was minding my business, listening through this, not getting much out of it, then suddenly caught myself....is this an instrumental album? I was on "Warszawa," which is the first track on the ambient half of the album. The first side breezed by me like a silent fart, and the back half put me in a chokehold. I loved and was gripped by the amazing instrumentals for the entirety of side B, but couldn't name one word sung on the front half to save my life, what does that say about me? Not sure. I'm really not a huge Bowie fan though, this album challenge is teaching me that. But this was a collab with Brian Eno, who I've learned through our journey that I really dig. Bowie must be HIGH thinking I'd rather listen to him than some ambient tracks. [Worth noting here that I listened to the front half again to see if I was tripping, and the only track I liked was Sound and Vision, which is also kind of just an instrumental.] I have to rate this highly for the strength of the back, but know that if he instead made this a 6-7 track ambient album it would easily be my favorite Bowie project so far (not a high bar tbh, it's probably there anyway) and quite possibly pushing a 5 star rating. Favorite tracks: Warszawa, Subterraneans, Art Decade, Weeping Wall. Album art: Definitely a cool one that I've seen around before. Colors are great, it's a simple side profile portrait shot but it works. Given how I feel about the album, I'd say revise the cover for an instrumental project by removing Bowie from the middle and keep everything else the same, just a wall of orange cloud. 4/5
"One’s initial reaction is: “Oh look another overrated Bowie record. Can't have enough of those in this list, now can we?” This is definitely not terrible, but also neither life-changing nor even all that interesting. On a second listen, that reaction is more or less confirmed. Sure, there’s some edgy textures, but the production is alternately muddy and tinny. Man, are those some cheesy synths on “Speed of Life.” There’s much that’s derivative (typical Bowie), always aiming to sound like something (or someone) else, in this case Kraftwerk. The slightly-ahead-of-its-time sonic factor and the substantial coolness of ""Sound and Vision,” “Be My Wife” and “A New Career in a New Town” (the last being the best thing on the record) can’t make up for the wholly contrived feel of this thing (again, typical Bowie). Then there’s the standard (speaking of tinny) Tin Machine penalty that must be retroactively assigned to every Bowie record. The last four wordless, ambient tracks are okay, semi-interesting experimentation and noodling, but a bit too synthetic. One wants to ask why they aren’t credited to Eno. And just because Joy Division were inspired to choose their original name from the lugubrious “Warszawa” doesn’t make it great or memorable (or any less turgid for that matter). They get pretty ponderous pretty quickly, sounding more like Muzak of slightly-above-average artiness, what the mid-70s thought the future would sound like (mid-’70s were mostly wrong, it would seem). This is a 3.4 (rounding down because of overexposure) – in no way imperative to hear or essential (more like tangential) to a life’s listening.
It's the centerpiece of Bowie's "Berlin Trilogy". Of course, it's an essential listen, even though it's also a very peculiar album, side one and side two being very different things--pop songs and crooner's ballads mixed with some sort of krautrock funk for the first, and dark or meditative ambient pieces--most of them totally instrumental--created with the incredible Brian Eno for the second. Obviously I will give 5 stars for this one. Yet the fact that this album is often considered by certain subsets of fans as being Bowie's best has always sounded a little weird to me. Very close to the overall sound of the "Berlin Trilogy", I've always found *Station To Station* superior to any of those three LPs--and before that, *Ziggy Stardust*, *Hunky Dory*, and *The Man Who Sold The World* (and maybe even *Aladdin Sane*) will always be rated higher for me. At least if you go to detailed decimals. But I'm probably only nitpicking here. Don't pay too much attention to the ramblings of a relatively *recent* Bowie fan. Because there are all sorts of fans of his work out there, in keeping with this artist's amazing ability to shapeshift from one persona to the next. That's what's great about loving such a legendary artist. Number of albums left to review: 775 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 117 (including this one) Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 55 Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more important): 53
Bowie casually making post-rock before post-rock was even a thing, chad.
there's only one song that bowie sings on the rest are him experimenting in the studio
Liked the songs with actual singing on them, disliked the ones that didn't have singing.
David Bowie is good but this is too avant-grade for me. Maybe if I was more of an art student. The first couple songs are good but then… eh.
Was not my favorite. Very weird psychedelic. Not many lyrics. Music is impressive bot not necessarily my preference on what to listen too. Not a huge fan of his voice either.
Aparte combinatie van popmuziek en vage muziek. Melodie'tjes zijn steengoed, uitvoering is goed, maar als geheel heb ik zo mijn twijfels.
It was fine, I love David Bowie but not all his music is for me.
This is not Bowie's best outing, but a good album nonetheless. The songs are OK, and when I am in the mood I quite like the instrumental pieces. 3/5
very instrumental and not what i really expect from Bowie. fun. I think I enjoyed the first half of the album a lot more than the second
Wasn’t the biggest fan of this album, the fact it was just purely music with no singing let it down seeing as Bowie is one of the best lyrical writers there has been. Not my cup of tea.
Enjoyed: yes Listens: 3 Not his best album. Instrumentals are definitely the high points here
Easy listening
3.5 stars. I actually really like the largely-instrumental B side, the album as a whole is a pretty interesting package. Yeah, it's not one of the "biggest" Bowie albums, but I see the artistic significance here. Great work from Eno. Would pair interestingly with "Blackstar"
Not bad, but wasn't really into it.
I’m sure there will be David Bowie albums here that are a 4 or 5… this just wasn’t one of them. Prefer something more lyrics forward from him.
I like Bowie as much as the average person but never really found myself putting on Bowie albums in their entirety—more sprinkling songs in mixes. There are some standout tracks on this album (Sound and Vision, for example). Despite a couple of snoozers, overall I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the album.
Knew Bowie had to be on this list... surprised they went for Low... but yup, still a fan.
Love Bowie but this isn't my favorite album. Very creative and experimental for the time, but it lacks the magic of Bowie's voice.
First half and second half of this album are both phenomenal- but feel like separate albums from each other?
3.4 . it's ok but some songs just have random noise
Needs a re listen
Stuart Maconie put it best when he said that even 45 years on, Low still sounds like music from the future. Tremendous. Even with the saxophone in Subterraneans. I always feel that Bowie's sax playing is the price we have to pay for the rest of his wonderful music. Favourite tracks: Speed of Life, Breaking Glass, Warsazwa and Art Decade Incidentally, as I always say with Bowie, let's not forget the crucial input of his collaborators, including Brian Eno, Tony Visconti, George Murray, Dennis Davis and Carlos Alomar.
Lots of interesting sounds here. Got more experimental and ambient as it went on. Really great; stuck between 4 and 5. Will return
Very cool record. I dig this album more every time I listen. Bowie’s band had one of my favorite rhythm sections and their playing is so different on this record. The drum sounds are so crazy on Breaking glass (sounds almost like they are doubled with electric drums). Also love the guitars on What in the World. Favorite tunes are Sound and vision, Breaking glass, and What in the world, new career in a new location. This album has a really beautiful balance of electric sounds and acoustic instruments. I love all the textures .Two of my favorite instrumental moments are the harmonica solo on new career and sax on Subterraneans (both played by Bowie). Least favorite song is Be my Wife. This album helps me appreciate Bowie as a composer and multi- instrumentalist. They definitely made something that sounds totally unique.
Kind of feels like a soundtrack. Especially side 2 Art decade has some wild futuristic science-y sounds Gated snare on new career sounds crazy Haven’t read reviews yet but I bet this was negatively reviewed when it was released and positively reviewed in hindsight.
Cool sounding record. None of the tracks really stand out though.
I didn’t pay too much attention to it, I probably should have. May listen again today.
Very interesting albulm. The instrumentals were an odd addition. My favorite was sound and vision and subterraneans
Apocalyptic sci-fi meets pop? Interesting.
Hiwa.
Some songs are ok (4 stars), but others, the most, not
*NOT A FIRST LISTEN* Not my favourite Bowie, but still very good. One of Bowie's best album covers. Feels very different to every other album he's ever made. Perhaps it would be more accurate to describe this as a combined work of Eno and Bowie's? Alien sounding. Reminscient of early electronic music. Weeping Wall particularly captures that alienating, haunting, disturbing quality. Some songs are bathed in melancholy - be my wife,sound and vision, Always crashing in the same car Would probably sound ten times better on drugs. I first heard this album when I was about 17 so can't help being biased in my review. Nice to come back to the album again. The only song I really re-listen from the album these days is Speed of life.
Done
An album of two halves. Side 1 comprises some 'proper' songs (including 'Sound and Vision' - possibly my favourite Bowie song), whilst Side 2 comprises experimental soundscapes with sparse vocals and electronic elements. Whilst some of the other Bowie albums have disappointed beyond the famous singles, this avoids a similar fate by placing the emphasis on the experimental elements - it is the handful of 'normal' songs that appear more out of place. The only problem is that what was innovative in 1977 can now sound a bit dated in 2022. Overall, I quite liked this, but it didn't blow me away. It's appearing more and more as if Bowie may be primarily a great singles artist. Rating: 3.5/5 Playlist track: Sound and Vision Date listened: 29/08/22
He don't miss rlly
There is a ton of David Bowie's music with which I am entirely unfamiliar, and this album is in that category. Not really intentional; I've always liked Bowie but for some reason never collected any of his albums or sought him out. So, once again, this project helps to introduce me to so much new music (as in music that is new to me), including music by artists I know and like but haven't explored enough. I do know that Bowie is one of those artists who was always experimenting and evolving, and I hear that here. Some very interesting tracks with a lot of intriguing layers, textures, and contrasts. A few get a bit grating and harsh for my own personal tastes, but the level of musicianship remains excellent throughout. The instrumental tracks are at times exquisite.
I don't know, it's okay. Not really my thing.
A bit like early Pink Floyd, but not as weird. Track eight is outstanding.
I like it.
No comment needed. 5 stars.
Nice background music
Interesting, short, will listen to more Bowie.
Fun hearing this stage of David’s evolving career.
Essential vinyl to take me to the island when everything explodes
Interesting but not catchy. Sound samples are interesting.
Amazing album, always like Bowie but never listened to an entire album. Loved it.
Creatively electric rock. Bowie's voice is quite the complement to experimental rhythmic sounds.
I like Low, but not in my favourite 3 Bowie albums.
4.75
highlights: - art decade
Wow… banger
Great split release
Vackert!
A stunning, innovative, compelling and unique record, full of atmosphere and character. Bowie’s artistry is firing on all cylinders, pursuing his own vision, daring us to catch up to him.
Bof
A decent album, but not Bowie's best. The front half is fairly weak as far as Bowie's songwriting goes. The back half includes some fun ambient tracks that would be nice to chill out and vibe to while high as hell. Maybe will revisit it at some point in the future. Right now I feel it is a 3 star album, mostly because of the quality of his other work.
Low is okay, it has Sound and Vision and not a lot else. No need to overthink another 2/5.
Not for me, this one. I think I don't really like Bowie as much as most people do, we've had a couple of his albums now and I haven't really gotten along with any of them. I've read that this album is really influential etc., but I didn't find it a particularly enjoyable listen. It doesn't feel like it's finished, loads of the songs either drift out or end a bit abruptly. Sound and Vision is the best of a pretty average bunch (but even that feels like it's missing something despite a really good hook). 2/5.
Some of this just sounds like noise
Some great tracks but also a lot of what sounds like playing around with the synth
Understated brilliance.
Bowie Lowie, Eno ELow.
getting high to getting low
This album woke up at 5:45 pm to a house party happening downstairs, and quickly got sick of it, deciding to bar hop and scuttle around town. Never finding what it was looking for, it finally decided to walk the city streets alone through the night, stuck in its own head, until passing out in an alley behind a dingy jazz club. 10/10.
Now that I've had some time, I reflect on "Heroes" and think about how much I love side two, and how I wish it sounded like that throughout. And then I listened to this, and it was like my prayer was answered, which is silly considering this was the predecessor to that album. I love the instrumental artsy direction, and enjoy the lack of classic pop rock Bowie vocals.
Stop, Bowie! I can only handle so many amazing albums from one artist! Still waiting for that Bowie album that I don't like, but I don't think it'll ever come. 'Low' is one of Bowie's best works, which is saying a lot. Wasn't familiar with this album before I got it on vinyl a few months ago, and it shocked me when I listened to it. Bowie experimenting with different sounds and styles might be the best Bowie you'll find, and he certainly does a lot of experimenting with this album. I thought the orchestral section would be a turn-off, but the otherworldly sounds, classic Bowie, kept me enraptured. Came for the catchy hits, stayed for the overarching magnificence.
interesting how short songs are - kinda 2020's in that regard. 2nd half kinda interesting. Thought it was okay but hasn't converted me to bowie
Did enjoy the first half of the album. The instrumental songs didn’t say much to me, though. What is true is that it is an easy record to listen.
this is cool, like cooler than cool. 11/10
I thought I was listening to some x-files soundtrack at times. But it was pleasant enough, maybe not something to put on repeat for me.
Heard before: yes First half of the album was awesome, second half was good. I don’t think I *love* Bowie when he’s being ‘experimental’ - I much prefer him when he’s being pop. Case in point, Suffragette City started playing just after the album finished, and I much preferred it to anything on here. Favourite songs: Breaking Glass, Sound and Vision Least favourite songs: Weeping Wall
Someone mentions avant guarde and I usually cringe because it has been done so badly. Bowie makes the unusual, alien, and sudden acccessible. Like he knows all those weird parts of each of us and can use that to interface with all the wider weird.
This a cacophony of electronic beauty the instrumentals are what absolutely puts this album on a different level it feels like a resurgence for Bowie and is one of my favourite albums from him. I love the Berlin trilogy!
Extraña combinación de canciones relativamente más tradicionales con otras más instrumentales y experimentales. La primera parte me parece buena, casi llegando a muy buena, la segunda parte que busca crear un sentimiento de desolación sólo llega a ser molesta. Sound and Vision y Be My Wife son las mejores a mi parecer.
Ponerle menos de 4 estrellas a un disco de Bowie es una impopular opinion, pero esa es mi conclusión para este disco. No es malo para nada, pero que lo más sobresaliente sea ‘Sound and Vision’ deja ver que el resto es poco poderoso en comparación a otros discos. Me da risa que la descripción en Wiki empieza contando que Bowie tenía un problema de drogas y para resolverlo se fue a vivir con Iggy Pop. Quizá el problema era el precio o la creatividad para usarlas. Volviendo al disco, de la trilogía de Berlín, me quedo en definitiva con “Heroes”.
Allemaal leuk en aardig tot Bowie's psychose ineens het feestje kwam vergallen. Iedereen naar huis, David blijft achter om de kaarsjes uit te blazen.
Tja, ik ben wel een liefhebber van Bowie, maar het liedjesdeel is toch teveel schetsmatig. Het ambient deel heb ik voor kennisgeving aangenomen. Toch 3 sterren omdat het Bowie is ;)
Zijn er eigenlijk ook nog albums van David Bowie die je NIET gehoord moet hebben voordat je dood gaat? Die zou ik eigenlijk wel eens willen horen. Misschien zijn die spannender dan deze.
Het tweede deel van dit album deed me denken aan Twin Peaks, Chinees restaurant en panfluiters uit Peru. Toch vergat ik steeds te luisteren.
Not my favorite Bowie album. Not one of my 5 favorite Bowie albums. Side 1 is great, but Side 2 is overrated. Too much art, not enough Bowie. Still a very good album, just not that good.
Pretty damn good
Half experimental art rock album. Half dark Brian Eno-esque ambient album (which makes sense since Eno is a producer). Not sure if the two halves create a satisfying whole, but I can easily appreciate the beauty of each side on its own; the former a bit more so than the latter. Second Listen?: Definitely Favorite Tracks: Sound and Vision, Speed of Life, Breaking Glass, Always Crashing in the Same Car
Would be happy to never hear this again. Not bad enough to turn it off, but not enjoyable for me at all
Been a few years since I've heard it. Certainly belongs on the list.
Not my style. In general I like David Bowie, but this album is just random pitches of noise.
70s Bowie with lots of interesting instrumentals.
king of art-rock
Pretty interesting. I think I will like it more and more
Muy bueno
Arguably my favorite Bowie album
Vrainent un bon album avec beauxoup d'experimentatione t des sons de malaxes. J'adore 4.70
Dobar je
This one is pretty easy. Top 3 Bowie albuma, pogotovo što se u ovaj album upleo Ivanov najdraži artista (Brian Eno) i viola - odličan album. Dakle Honky Dory, Ziggy Stardust i Low (ovaj album) su mi topčine od albuma.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKoY1fw7yCo sori idiot sam mozak mi je spržen od ispita.
Probably my favourite era and album of Bowie.
Meh. I could have lived without this one. It just wasn't really my thing. Pretty sparse on vocals and that's my favorite part of Bowie songs, so...eh. it was fine. Bowie's meh is still a lot of people's best, so naturally this still gets 3 stars for effort. Fave track: speed of life. What a bop. Wish I'd liked the rest of the album as much. Fave track:
Incredible
Excellent album. For me it's the best one from the Berlin trilogy for sure and I might even go as far to say it might be Bowie's best overall. For me Low and Ziggy are Bowie's peak and depending in the mood I might say that one is better than the other.
Chill Bowie vibes. Perfect for a lazy Sunday afternoon. Best track: Sound and Vision
This album isn't what I usually think of from Bowie. Almost all of these songs could easily have been in FFVIII
There's a frantic energy to this album. It's a little messier and unpolished than some Bowie albums are. That being said, it's undeniably catchy. The opening instrumental is surprisingly engaging. The album is also very bass-forward. Sound and Vision is the only song on here that I knew already, which is not really that indicative of the rest of the album. It continues Bowie's inter-galactic, alien, space kind of vibe, but it's hardly stale. Interesting listen.
Some good tracks in here. Best Bowie I've heard yet.
not my favorite Bowie it's solid as always.
It’s ok. I think there is better Bowie available.
Crazy how all of David Bowles album sound ahead of their time, futuristic, and emblematic of the time it was made all at once
A bloody perfect album. Love it so much. Atmospheric but with some absolute bangers too
Loved SOond and Vision
A great start.
People used to give David Bowie crap about being thin all the time, but he just broke through their false barriers. Then he was hounded by the 'false music paparazzi.' The media monkeys and the junky junkies all invited Bowie to play at the plastic pantomime. But, he just threw their invites away and reinvented himself. Two words: eye patch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yc4efBM_9JM
Bowie certainly seems to have captured some sort of zeitgeist here. I'm not sure if it's the zeitgeist of 1977, or some Blade Runner-esque 2177 dystopia, but it's got a vibe. Not my vibe, granted, but a vibe. Some of the songs could make for some interesting sci-fi or fantasy movie soundtrack material, but I wasn't feeling it as an album to listen to in 2022.
From the get go the sound of this album let’s you know that it’s pushing the boundaries. I’ve never heard anything like Speed Of Life with the harmonizer creating an industrial electronic high pitched sound. One of my favorite aspects of the album is the prominent bass guitar. It is in the driver’s seat for several songs, like Breaking Glass & Sound and Vision. The video game like feel to What In The World is fun. I have two main issues with this album. First, too many of the songs feel short and unfinished. It feels like the full concept for each song was not fleshed out. Second, the back half of the album is mostly instrumental, which I enjoy here by the way, but it feels like a different album. It’s the Brian Eno effect. The two halves do not go together for me. This album is exciting. I listened to it several times. The sound is incredibly interesting. And yet because of that excitement, the album also incredibly disappointing due to its incompleteness and change in style.
nice album, but for me just as a background, I won't come back honestly
While I am not the biggest Bowie fan, I was impressed by how modern this album sounds.
I love Bowie, but this is not my favourite album
Better than expected, A lot of the songs fell into the background but none really stuck out as being awful.
This album definitely loses me in the second half. Some excellent tracks though. 3.5/5 stars
More of a dramatic cinematic soundtrack than album but not in a bad way. Again not my favourite Bowie but still incredible enough to justify his placement on the wall with the other gods of good tunes
Its got some good tracks and some duds. Middle of the road Bowie album
Pleasant enough, but not the most inspiring music I've ever heard from Bowie's pen.
Interesting that he has the Polish spelling for Warsaw, as well as, presumably, Polish lyrics? It's a good album that I'd listen to again at some point, I think.
An interesting and experimental Bowie sound that stays pretty strong for the first 2/3rds. Around Warszawa we get a bit more atmospheric and electronic, but it becomes a bit less interesting and doesn't quite keep up the momentum of the earlier album. Still enjoyable.
I first heard this over 15 years after it was released. Didn’t much enjoy the lauded second side. Still love Be My Wife. Every time I revisit it grows on me more. This time it’s clear that my problem is that all the new music since 1977 has probably been informed by this LP, so it doesn’t sound new or innovative to me. However, we do now know that it was thoroughly new music at the time of recording. The synths, the drum effect, mixing more conventionally crafted songs on one side and instrumental textures on the other. Yes, it’s really influential and boundary-pushing and side one keeps up with the better mid 70s Bowie material. Not quite good enough for 4*
4 bowie
never bothered too much with the ambient music genre but this is just bowie class
I liked Sound and Vision, but overall the sound was soul deafening.
A side of David Bowie I hadn't heard before. Not bad.
Waswazta
Less innovative and more commercial sounding Bowie. Lukewarm
This is my least favorite album from Bowie. Can't wait for the other albums of his on this list.
Bleh
Low ist eins der besten Bowie Alben mit Abstand, ich mags auch mehr als Heroes. Ultra gut einfach
"All hail the Berlin trilogy!" I think they should be called Low, parts 1, 2 and 3. This is music that only sold because of his name. I wonder how many praise these albums because they don't want to admit that they wasted their money. I've learned a frightening word since I started listening to 1001 albums: AMBIENT. It is code for plain boring, weird boring, or monotonous pretentious twaddle. This album is just boring because I've heard it before. Back in the day it was weird boring. I assume Lodger is also in the list. I hope not. Yesterday I had Paranoid, more of that ilk, thank you.
Wasn’t keen on the instrumental songs on this.
One of the best from one of the best
First half is really good particularly enjoyed breaking glass and sound and vision which I already knew. Second half is utter shit. Completely different ruins the album really. 3 stars for the good first half but must try harder David Bowie
Love it, its not what I listen to normally, but I will definetely get on vinyl when my record player arrives. Its an incredible album and I will definetly be listening to the whole thing again.
7/10 interesting album, the atmospheric instrumental parts were nice
7/10. Pleasant album, but a bit boring, at least for driving. So far, definitely a low for David Bowie albums on this list.
A strange spot in Bowie's discography. It's solid but not really special. 7/10
Synth driven instrumentals stand out. Grows on you.
Nice BGM, very dreamy music.
A really interesting listen. I've always loved how unique his albums sound, unfortunately has never really clicked for me.
3/11/22
1,001 albums... Back in the seventies, the gormless DJ-cum-presenter (who was far more interested in his - it was always a he back then - own fame than the art he pretended to like - that *we* liked) would bid his faux-cheery farewells towards the end of Top of the Pops then the credits would roll as one final song was played but then faded out way before its proper end. One week, when I was still to be a teenager, it was the turn of one of the most extraordinary things I'd ever heard. \"What is this shit?\" I might have wondered, had I not just been told by Bates or Travis or whoever it was that week, just like Charles Shaar Murray famously did - though he in disgust and disappointment rather than the breathless awe I felt. Don't you wonder sometimes? I had a bit of a problem with David Bowie at the time - he looked completely different every time I set eyes on him. It used to really confuse me. Just before Low was released (around the time RCA were refusing to release it, so dismayed by it were they), he'd had his first UK number one with a song he'd recorded and released seven years earlier. In the video he didn't seem to be the same impossibly exotic and otherworldly being as on the covers of his albums. He was quite gawky and ordinary, in fact. Like everyone else but in my own little way, I didn't know who David Bowie was. And neither did he in 1976. Famously, he couldn't even really remember recording the stately Station to Station a few months earlier and so decamped to Europe in a bid to get off the Bolivian marching powder with his mate, Jim. Between them they somehow managed to channel their shared withdrawal psychosis to produce four seminal albums in less than twelve months, each with a slightly different flavour. Of the four, Low, with its artful split personality, its shattered fragments of paranoia-infused recovery and redemption and its icy dislocation, is the greatest. So ahead of its time that even the NME didn't get it - a brutally honest document of Britain's greatest star struggling to straighten himself out before he turned thirty. (Decades later, my Polish wife would hear me playing Low and instantly recognise a fragment of a Silesian folk song that Magpie Dave had nicked from a record he'd bought in Wilsonplatz as he journeyed by train through Warsaw. It amuses me that calling his track \"Warszawa\" was a bit like sampling a colliery brass band and calling it \"London.\")
I've always listened to Bowie's earlier eras of music - though, of course, I've heard this album or at least many of the songs on it. This is an interesting transition from the earlier, glam stuff. I love the moody, atmospheric stuff on here. Seems fitting for the soundtrack of Bladerunner. It's a great album that continues to show Bowie's musical depth
What a jam! Fairly straightforward rock on this album (with a couple strange signature Bowie tracks). Loved Breaking Glass! Not his best album ever, but I liked it.
I already know that I absolutely LOVE this album. It is one of my favorites.
Cool. I never would have guessed any of the instrumental stuff was Bowie. 3.3.
Interesting experimental rock
This album (along with Heroes, Lodger, and Lou Reeds’ Berlin) was responsible for me hitchhiking across Europe to Berlin in the summer of 1984.
good, not enough singing but liked the mood
A great artist with less to show for it than he ought to have, he's never not experimenting. yet on the four Bowie albums that have come up so far, none of the experiments have worked spectacularly. Still, I'm pleased he gave them a shot.
More interesting than the usual Bowie. Loving the space oddessy vibes, but not the album overall.
yeah okay i don’t really know
Favourite from Berlin trilogy
As usual with Bowie, appreciate the talent but I’m not into it personally. Not this one at least - waiting to find the Bowie album I can fall in love with!
The third 1977 album I’ve been served this week! And turns out to have been a hell of a fitting followup to Kraftwerk, given some of the production history stuff, influences, etc. Bowie’s another of my major blind spots, and I suspect this might not have been the best jumping-in point if I’m going to be lazy and only learn about him at the pace of the 1001 albums generator. I'm sure I'll get another shot soon.
Hi- Speed of Life, What in the World, Sound and Vision, Be My Wife, Weeping Wall, Subterraneans The first act opens up with rapid-fire ditties that we've all come to know and love from Bowie, with some fresh experiments in electronic sounds. What in the World starts off with what should be an annoying bleeping that somehow just works and wouldn't be the same without it. Be My Wife is filled with hard-hitting honky-tonk piano hits and driving beats. The second act (right after you'd normally flip over the record or cassette) features more atmospheric, electronic tapestries; Weeping Wall features marimbas that provide the backing for a moody exploration. Subterraneans is a thickly-layered scored like you'd experience on the big screen, complimented by that classic Bowie baritone sax to remind you what you're dealing with here. Fantastic album, just amazing, you're stupid if you don't love it.
not my Jam
A lot of fun, I wonder if Trent reznor and Atticus Ross were Bowie fans.
Great title for this LP, Low. An apt description of my general disposition following its conclusion, not to mention the percentage of possibility that I’ll listen to this recording again. Admittedly, I’ve only been a casual fan of Bowie throughout his varied incarnations. I understand he’s a rock god. I’m just usually worshiping at another altar, that’s all, and so don’t have much to contribute to the litany. For what it’s worth, only two brief observations: 1) Listening to a Bowie LP with over half the tracks as instrumentals is like listening to a Hendrix LP minus the guitar solos. What’s the point? The primary reason I listen to Bowie is to hear him sing, damn it! I feel gypped. 2) This would make a wonderful soundtrack to a movie, a genre Bowie happened to be already familiar with at this point in his career. The only obvious problem, though, is there’s no accompanying film! Again, gypped. Straight up, I loathed side one: a sloppy, clunky, shrilly mess of a recording. Bowie’s lyrics aren’t much better, either, including a lame marriage proposal on track six?! Not that my displeasure took that long to coalesce. I wasn’t a minute into the second track before I started looking for some glass of my own to break. Side two was a little more tolerable. I am a fan of Brian Eno, and could definitely hear the influence he was already having on Bowie. Perhaps the musical ideas on the LP just needed to stew in the crockpot a little longer to get as tender and tasty as they would on later recordings. Or could it possibly have been the effects of Bowie’s new sober lifestyle, following years of prodigious cocaine abuse in the city of the fallen angels? That would cover a multitude of musical sins. Nothing much good has ever come from the union of LA and (B)'Low.' I’m just thankful Bowie survived it all; and, that this wasn’t his only recording. That said, (B)'Low' blew, for me. Would it have been too much to have allowed Bowie just a little bit of cocaine, purely for recording purposes? (He deserves one star just for his Bowieocity.)
Iba muy buen pero luego si se ondio
Great mixed album from DB.
Not the most accessible album by Bowie but an interesting sonic exploration - this one needs more than a day to savour but clearly a lot of pedigree
Not what I expected. A lot of ambient electronic sounds.
Really enjoyed this. I like Bowie but I enjoyed the instrumentals and wouldn’t necessarily known it was him. Some were contemporary symphonies. 4*
Quite good as background music and a departure from what I would usually expect. Nothing particularly standout though.
I love this period of Bowie....the Berlin period. And Low is generally regarded as the masterpiece from the Berlin period. But I actually prefer both Station to Station and Heroes. I acknowledge that Low is the more unconventional and atmospheric of the three, but I find myself wondering what the point of songs like; Art Decade and Weeping Wall. Having said that Low is one of the greatest post-punk / New wave albums of all time. Considering that it was released in 1976 three years before post-punk was invented that's something. 4 5 🌟
My brain may be addled, because I find it impossible not to hear Dune in Warszawa and Blade Runner in Art Decade. And in that light, Low is a slightly disjoint effort by Bowie. The goofy hair weirdness is gone from this music, vocal shrieks replaced by guitars. It's a wonderful choice, as the abstraction and applied effects are only really effective on instruments. I am sure that there is a sample or quote of New Career on Blackstar. The weirdness here is more outsider, more Trout Mask Replica. I love it, and the instrumentals somewhat less. Low's a better album than many 4s on this list.
Enjoyable but mostly filler at the end. No particular track stood out.
This album's A-side is perfect, from "Speed of Life" from "A New Career in a New Town", being "Sound and Vision" one of the greatest songs of all time. The B-side is also great, of course, but it's very different from anything else Bowie did or would do, since you can feel Brian Eno's presence everywhere. It's near perfection.
listened to again nice and chill, cool sonic exploration
mais ou menos, boazinha mas não é algo que eu vou pensar “nossa tava afim de ouvir um low by david bowie”
needs more listens, sound is stunning
AWFUL
Bowie introduces some electronic sounds! I'm a Bowie fan but have never listened to this one, so this was a treat. I enjoyed the exploration of new sounds, and you can definitely see the influence this had on subsequent artists. The second side was particularly interesting and unexpected. My top pick is 'Sound and Vision', but I also really liked 'Be My Wife' and 'A New Career in a New Town'.
I have a hard time enjoying anything from the late 70s or the whole 80s. This experience was once again a proof of that 😂 really don't like this kind of music, but it was interesting to listen to this entire record, since ive never listened to anything by bowie besides his biggest hits. Still, not for me though
Second track, I'm looking in the mirror lol Be my wife is sweet I like the synth, very alien along with the cover of the album. Evokes curiosity and exploration a lot of instrumentals which makes for ambient bowie noise Subterraneans interesting, kind of ominous and like a death march on Mars. would make a great soundtrack
I had high expectations going in and was a little apprehensive that the album might not deliver. But my concern was redundant, the album is fantastic. It’s such a full sounding album, with so many surprises and melodic ear worms. Its pretty experimental in parts but it really showcases Bowie as an artist first and foremost. The second half of the album isn’t as punchy as the first; the pace slows down a bit during the instrumental sound scapes. But they’re gorgeous to listen to, it doesn’t matter that the album isn’t packed with pop hits, it doesn’t need to be, the beautiful art rock is such a pleasant listen. 5/5 - Loved it.
Listened to this for the first time when I was 15, after Bowie had passed away. Most recent time was this past Saturday. The album dips a bit towards the end with all the instrumentals, but I've never been big on instrumental music anyway. It took a second listen to really appreciate and feel the emotion of all of them. Tracks like Be My Wife, Sound and Vision, Speed of Life and What in the World are brilliant, and for me it made sitting through Warszawa worth it. Bowie's Berlin period (and the album Station To Station, which preceeded it) was fantastic and it broke ground for the genres of post punk, new wave and 80s indie music. It also appeared to be necessary for Bowie's life in general as it was this period in his life that helped him overcome his crippling addiction to cocaine.
Atmospheric. Definitely an album that'll get better the more listens you give it.
It's very interesting to know a little bit more of this so famous "Berlin phase" of Bowie. Actually, I didn't enjoy it too much, however, it's impossible not to note how it influenced modern songs after it.
Love it already, and I don't think any of the big singles are on this one
It wasn't the best David Bowie album but it was in fact a David Bowie album which means it was still pretty darn good. I did love the instrumental tracks.
The finest of Bowie’s Berlin trilogy
I do think it was really interesting but it was also kinda boring. There wasn’t singing which is fine but made me lost interest and not pay complete attention. i did really like the overall sound though.
Could this be the Bowie album for listeners who are not Bowie fans? I've tried (admittedly not *that* hard) over the years to like Bowie, or even "get" him - but aside from a few cuts (mostly Ziggy Stardust) here and there I never enjoyed him and if I could pick only one reason it'd probably be his voice. No getting around his voice, really... unless... he recorded an album that sounded a lot like a focused Brian Eno record (hmm...) and he didn't sing a lot on it and when he did it was mixed down low with every other instrument.... Low! Eno worked on this record with him a lot which after listening to 3 early Eno records over the past few months it's not hard to pick out the similarities. But as referenced above, this is more focused (at least on the first half!). The first "half" (7 songs) are tight songs that are nonetheless not predictable; a lot of which has to do with lack of vocals or even just not having them come in when one might traditionally expect. That second half is weird and I love it - put on some headphones and turn out the lights and you can lose yourself in the sounds; I'd hesitate to call most of these "songs" but there is melody and depth to them. Shocking to me that this is the same guy that sang "Fame" or "Young Americans" - at any rate, the 2nd side is like a different album entirely, yet still fits under the same experimental melodic umbrella. A lot can be read about the production techniques on the album; especially the drum sounds on a few songs; they have a crunchy gated effect that suits the music really well. I enjoy the mix as well (again: headphones). This one surprised me - I saw David Bowie and thought "meh" but what a great surprise and a keeper. 8/10 4 stars.
Never heard this one before. Great Stuff.
Hi- Speed of Life, What in the World, Sound and Vision, Be My Wife, Weeping Wall, Subterraneans The first act opens up with rapid-fire ditties that we've all come to know and love from Bowie, with some fresh experiments in electronic sounds. What in the World starts off with what should be an annoying bleeping that somehow just works and wouldn't be the same without it. Be My Wife is filled with hard-hitting honky-tonk piano hits and driving beats. The second act (right after you'd normally flip over the record or cassette) features more atmospheric, electronic tapestries; Weeping Wall features marimbas that provide the backing for a moody exploration. Subterraneans is a thickly-layered scored like you'd experience on the big screen, complimented by that classic Bowie baritone sax to remind you what you're dealing with here. Fantastic album, just amazing, you're stupid if you don't love it.
Didn't finish the listen.
Some great tracks on this album, Bowie shifting styles again. Synths and whispered vocal throughout, guitars a little less to the fore. Top tracks: Sound and Vision, Warszawa, always crashing in the same car
It’s got Sound and Vision, but he’s done better
It was interesting. Killer bass tones. More new age than I expected.
Love his voice, which makes me wish there was more of it on this album as there were a lot of instrumental songs. No song particularly stood out as one that I'll go back to again but I enjoyed listening the whole time!
Breaking Glass has a great groove. Warszawa was very trippy. All in all just not for me
David Bowie has some iconic songs and I guess this particular album would be considered an iconic sound with a lot of synth. However, I found this album to be rather boring with a lot of repetitive noises playing. It’s not something I would listen to again.
David Bowie is a weird dude. But as I got into this album, I realized how hard I was vibing with it. Loved how instrumental it was, more listens on the way.
amazing of course
I love David Bowie but don’t like post-punk, so maybe that explains why I never truly liked this album. Maybe I liked his music better when he was on heroin, I don’t know.
David Bowie has never been my favorite.
his music has always kinda either grabbed me or missed me entirely; no in-between. but even the stuff i don't care for is amazing, even if it's not to my taste. this album is great, though, from start to finish.
that was a really, really cool album I’ve listened to a few Bowie albums but I guess this one slipped past me it had such cool instrumentals and production overall 10/10, I look forward to hearing more Bowie
Cet album doit en grande partie sa réussite à l'absence de Bowie près du microphone.
Soucieux de bien comprendre la musique de chacun des artistes du générateur, ainsi que leur histoire, robpenitencier n'hésite pas à se rendre sur les lieux ayant marqué la confection des albums du jour. Nous le retrouvions par exemple il y a quelque jours au Panama pour l'ecoute de Willie Colón et Rubén Blades. Aujourd'hui, c'est à Berlin qu'il se trouve. Malgré une empreinte carbone désastreuse, on ne peut que saluer la perseverance et la passion de rob, qui je l'espère, saura trouver grâce auprès de Robert, qui ne lui a toujours pas pardonné l'épisode Kiwanuka.
Interesting album. Not much singing or really any lyrics.
Definitely experimental but I wasn't a huge fan
Bowie is a referent. I didn't know he mades instrumental songs.
-chill and funky but good to do homework to -not too many words which was unexpected -first time listening to David Bowie 6/10 -2 skips
I don't care what y'all say, this is Bowie's best, and one of the greatest albums ever created.
I mean....it's Bowie
David good
Love Bowie just not this album
Here's a question - does the medium of how you listen to an album change your experience of it? ( and by extension, your level of enjoyment). I don't necessarily mean the sound quality of the medium : I just mean your experience in the sense of commitment. For example, when you play a record (or a CD for that matter), you are playing "my" copy, whereas streaming your playing "a" copy; sort of "borrowing it" - so there's perhaps less of an obligation to enjoy it (or even play it all the way through). Anyway that preamble has some context. I recently inherited a bunch of LPs from my late uncle, and Low was one of them. After I cleaned it up, I played it, loved the sound and the gothic texture of the synths and thought it was fabulous record. It transported.e somewhere else. A great experience was had listening on headphones and looking at the artwork. It felt personal. Fast forward a few months and I played the same album via streaming for this review and I didn't feel the same connection. Maybe there's something impersonal about streaming, playing a track that's had X million plays, which is very much a communal thing. Maybe I'm a hopeless romantic with..y love of vinyl. Anyway, it's certainly food for thought for those who care about such things.
Meh.
The songs are great, but the synthy stuff at the end is all Radiophonic Workshop outtakes - tuneless noodling.
I haven't listened to the rest of the Berlin trilogy yet, but I really like it's first album, Low. The influence from the Krautrock artists was a perfect fit for Bowie's evolving style as he transitioned away from the fascist cocaine monster called the Thin White Duke. The mythology around Bowie and his personas could only really be meaningful if he backed it up with his music, which he does in spades here. Working with Brian Eno and hanging out with Iggy Pop brought a feel to this album that's hard to describe. Just like Kid A, it seems to come out of no where and go back there after we are allowed to enjoy it. The first half of this album is super cool, the second half is why its one of my favorite Bowie albums 5/5
More chill than I was expecting. I love the eccentricity.
3/5 Slow tempo
Loved the first half of the album,not sure about the latter tho
Some classics on this album. The other tracks were pretty good too.
Good album, I only knew Sound and Vision (which I like). Warszawa has some serious Twin Peaks vibes. As many have said: not my favourite Bowie, but still enjoyable.
Haunting
Nice abstract album
I thought this album was alright in the beginning but then started getting really instrumental. Not spectacular and why I feel David Bowie is very hit or miss. 4/10.
good theme throughout a little experimental but no outstanding moments in my mind
I love it
hodne instrumentalek
My stance on this one is the same as for Heroes: I really like the typical David Bowie, but the synth-ambient Bowie just doesn't do it for me. First half 4 stars, second half 2.5 stars.