Station to Station

10/10. A tight 6-song, 37-minute album, Station to Station is absolutely perfect from front to back. The title track, Bowie's longest song, begins instrumentally. The lyrics don't even begin until over 3 minutes into the song. The next few minutes announce his newest character: the Thin White Duke. The song ends with an upbeat section, though the lyrics here are uncaring and apathetic, an eerie contrast. This song reflects the album's overall tone: distanced, tense, and robotic. Golden Years and Word on a Wing are melodic and hauntingly beautiful. They really allow Bowie's baritone voice to shine, the register, I think, he sounds best in. TVC15 and Stay (which I think are both a little slept on) have amazing rhythm sections. The whole album does, but I think it really shines on these two songs. Closer, Wild is the Wind, which is actually a Nina Simone cover, utilizes acoustic guitars and a lackadaisical vocal performance. To me, it comes across as a desperate cry for human connection. As I mentioned earlier, this song is also the birth of a new character for Bowie: the Think White Duke. It is impossible to talk about this album without mentioning Bowie's mental state at the time. He was suffering from a crippling cocaine addiction during the recording of this album, surviving on a diet of milk, red peppers, and hard drugs, often staying awake for days at a time. Bowie would later call this period of his life his darkest days. In his drug-infused paranoia and depression, he would even make some pro-fascist remarks, which he would later call nasty. His mental state is definitely felt throughout the album, which can be a heavy listen. This is not an album that you put on in the background. It rewards an attentive listener; know that you're in for an emotionally dense album.