Following a release earlier this year, in which David Bowie debuted the title track from his upcoming album Blackstar, now comes the second installment. The new single "Lazarus" has finally premiered via BBC Radio 6 Music and is emblematic of his upcoming musical endeavor.
For David Bowie, "Lazarus" isn't just the second release to build anticipation for his new album, it's the only track from the LP to be featured in a stage production of the same name. The play Lazarus was co-written with Edna Walsk.
Teasers of the song haven't revealed much other than audio. The former release, "Blackstar," at least was backed by a visual, a sort of short film that featured a dead astronaut, a female cult, monsters and human scarecrows.
Rolling Stone wrote of the title track:
"The album's sense of adventure extends to the lyrics...'The lyrics are wacky, but a lot of British people, especially Londoners, will get every word.' The title track repeatedly refers to a 'solitary candle.' 'He told me it was about ISIS,' says [saxophonist Donny McCaslin]. 'It's just an unbelievable tune.' (McCaslin's ISIS assertion is news to Guiliana and Visconti, who say they have no idea what the song is about.)"
It's not uncommon for Bowie to take his words to another dimension. The sonic cosmonaut is practically an effigy of otherworldliness, sure, but his new venture into jazz is something out-of-left-field.
However, producer Tony Visconti says that his quirkiness is what makes David Bowie a brand and something worth imitating.
"When he put out albums like Heroes and Low, no one was doing anything like that," Visconti said in the same article.
He concluded, "And then he gave birth to the New Romantic scene. He's a genre-breaker, and I can't wait for the ★ imitation albums to start coming out."
He could be talking about new-British wannabe glam rockers The 1975 and how they are already ripping off the Bowie sound (or maybe it's the Talking Heads) with their single "Love Me."
Don't be fooled by imitators, take a listen to the new track below.
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