Bowie reinvents himself again

Master chameleon blends 1978 rock with today's jungle.

David Bowie has always had something of an otherworldly elegance about him. Since the late 1970's he has been able to maintain a dedicated following with his mystical, chameleon-like personas, beginning with Ziggy Stardust. The progression of years found him transforming his musical style as quickly as his personas. Now just after turning 50, we find yet another twist in his sound and vision: Earthling.

Bowie's 1995 release, Outside, renewed a tri-album collaboration effort with Brian Eno (a replay of the Low trilogy). Earthling is not one of the Bowie/Eno trilogy releases; in fact, it was produced by Bowie himself - his first self-produced album since 1974's Diamond Dogs.

Whereas Outside was an exploration in slick, multi-layered industrial rhythm that brought a return to the slightly disturbed side of Bowie, Earthling picks up on some of those themes but leaves the listener wishing for more. Earthling is Bowie's attempt to fuse 1978 rock n' roll with a rising British fave: Jungle. Think about that for a minute.

Bowie has picked up three new band members and the album demonstrates his attempt to find a place in the modern rock scene. With Earthling, it might appear that he has sacrificed too much of his artistic sensibilities for a chance to fit in.

One can see where Bowie is coming from when he called Earthling a "very Dada thing" in his interview with the New York Times (Feb. 20). This Dada-esque element is especially evident with "Looking for Satellites." The droning collage of lyrics that open the song, which comprise such random words as shampoo, TV and boys own, work well. Even the rhythm is catchy: He stays away from the hyperactive dance beats and sticks to what he's good at. But beginning at around the 3 minute point, listeners may be suddenly filled with dread as they find themselves lost in a Van Halen-esque guitar solo. It's enough to make one pull the plug (what Bowie should've done with the guitar).

Earthling doesn't miss its mark completely, however. Bowie must be given credit for being on the edge of exploration in pop musical combinations, especially on the track "I'm Afraid of Americans." While a bit silly, the song does bring out the best of the fuzzy, hard-edged guitar that is absent on most other tracks.

After listening to the album a couple of times, songs such as "Battle for Britain," begin to grown on the listener. The song opens with Bowie-appropriated Jungle, but flows into the hands of a real drummer. The piano, which he used so well in Outside creeps back in for a cameo and Bowie still manages to maintain an eerie quality in his vocals. The guitar is also kept under control and used to add depth and distortion, in addition to the keyboard giving the song a layered quality.

The album ends on a positive note with "Law," which bears the most resemblance to the aim of Outside. It's an amorphous, thickly layered sequence that utilizes lots of effects processing and noise to create a worthwhile collage of industrial, dance and hard-edged rock.

According to the latest Billboard Top 200 listings (March 8th, 1997) Bowie's Earthling edged in at number 62, down from number 39 last week, barely scraping by Clint Black's The Greatest Hit and falling short of Van Halen's Best of Volume 1. Of course, there's still hope: its only been on the charts for two weeks, whereas Metallica's Load, ranking at number 45 has held its spot for over 38 weeks. But who ever said Billboard counted for anything anyway, right Mr. Bowie?