SCARY MONSTERS (AND SUPER CREEPS)

I'm not a piece of teenage wildliiiiiiifee!! Bowie's last real classic is an chaotic, paranoid (even compared to his other works) and cold album. It certanly deserves some more attension here, cause it definitive has progressiva elements, not only but greatly in thanks to Robert Fripps long and creepy guitar solos.

First out is It's No Game (Part 1), which must be one of the harshest and wierdest in Bowie's archive. Pounding drums, false vocals, screamy guitar and female vocals sung in japaneese... It's really an extreme song. 7/10

Up the Hill Backwards sounds like nothing else Bowie has released, even if its actually is Panic In Detroit backwards! Its sounds like somekind of clinical-alien-gospell, until it freaks out in a crazy guitarsolo at the end. 8/10

Then arrives the title track, Scary Monsters. This album really is one of a kind... This track is no exception. An accoustic guitar builds a a floor for Bowie's ghostly gasps, Fripp's all time running guitar and even a demonic choir at the end. Terrifying! 9/10

Ashes To Ashes is about the same astronaut as in space oddity. The song itself is completely different, more experimental, paranoid... Why do I even compare them? Less of the crazy guitar here, instead there are some deep, futuristic synth layers. Catchy song with fun lyrics. 8/10

Next up is Fashion, the most commercial song on the album and maybe the least outstanding. Its still not a very commercial song, especially not with fripps guitar creaking in the background. It's a rather funky song. 7/10 Teenage Wildlife is the song closest to pure prog here. A lot of guitars and solos and it flows with constantly changes and without the verse-chorus-verse-chorus order. It's hard to not fall in love with this dramatic song. A feeling of freedom that reminds me of heroes, but this is even better. 10/10

Scream Like A Baby is a depressed, and again a very paranoid track that seems to act about a man and his gun. For me this track sounds like some twisted amusement park-music, with great result. 8/10

Kingdom Come is the only song not composed by Bowie and it's also the weakest on the album. Not as interesting as the rest of the album and not a very variated track. 6/10

With Because You're Young we´re back to the twisted amusement park-rock again! More straightforward this time however, Bowie acts like somekind of fallen angel, talking to a younger person about the dark sides of love. Not very good to listen to after a break up or something like that. 8/10

It's No Game (Part 2) is the same as the first track on the album, but this time slower and not as crazy as before. The japanese is gone, the guitar is tamed and the singer a little bit calmer. That doesn't make the song less good than the first version, and it works surprisingly well with the same song all over again. 7/10

This album is very close to the five star rating, but I can't say it's necessary for any prog collection, so on this site it deserves a solid 4-star rating. If there wasn't a review just for prog-listeners, I would probably have given it 5 stars.