The new David Bowie song “Blackstar” is a 10 minute jazz-tronica adventure. The lead single from Bowie’s 25th record comes out on January 8th, 2016. His 69th birthday.
Legend says that back in 2014 David Bowie was invited to a little jazz lounge in New York City’s West Village. A place called the 55 Bar. Bowie went there in 2014 to check out Donny McCaslin’s quartet of exploratory jazz. He sat near the stage, enjoyed the performance and ghosted without a word to anyone. 10 days later he asked for Donny and the drummer to join him in the studio and away they went on what would be “Blackstar.”
The almost 69-year-old artist was inspired by a diverse range of folks for this record. Kendrick Lamar, Death Grips, Board of Canada…and ★ even features percussion from LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy.
Yesterday on Drex Live, I was talking to Drex about the new music and we both agreed that the work is challenging. But then a listener form LA named Isaac called up to say that song is a “masterpiece” threaded with imagery that talks about theology, good, evil, and the anti-Christ.
First off….the whole concept of the five-pointed star is important.
He then specifically mentions how interesting the three crucified scarecrows are to the music video.
He says the whole concept of the video talks about god and the anti-Christ.
Whoa….what is the village of Orman?
In the villa of Ormen, in the villa of Ormen
― David Bowie – Blackstar ★
I have to watch this video again.
Go with yourself.
The Morning After 
Not feeling it
Kind of feels like Arcade Fire in a bad way to me. But I’m probably an uncultured pleb.
ha…I wasn’t feeling it either, but then I had a guy call into the the talk show I was on and school me.
LOL No, you’re not an “uncultured pleb”. It’s definitely an acquired taste. I didn’t feel it at first either. Then after listening to it again over the past week, couldn’t get it out of my head. Maybe it’s just that David has left us now and I miss him so much, but it really grew on me.
Some people just read too much into things…
I can’t claim to really fully “get” Blackstar, but I seriously, serioulsy doubt it had anything to do with “the anti-Christ”. David was a lot of things, but religious was not one of them (which also rules out the even more bizarre theories regarding the so called “Illuminati”). He was just an artist, following his muse, pushing the creative envelope, and pissing off a few people along the way.
The biggest part of Blackstar is very simple to understand. It is about an avant-guard artist who defied conventional description facing death and his inevitable replacement by a new “blackstar”. The video brings the story full circle, back to where it all began 47 years ago with the ill fated Major Tom.
As for the rest of the imagery, regarding the “Villa of Ormen”, chalk it up to artistic expression. There may be some kind of obscure literary or pop culture reference in there somewhere, or perhaps a play on words, that we have yet to discover. Or it may have just been pulled out the aether. But it’s nothing to lose sleep over.
Of course the wreckage of the spaceman is major Tom. Who would not see that immediately? Without hesitation. And more references to his other music as well. And impending death. Orman could be interpreted as Oar Man in norse legend that gets the dead to Valhalla. That’s what i first thought. The rest. Like Lara said is full circle. And a good bye to those of us whose life would be lacking something if he never touched us. The singing grass reminds me of a didn’t book by Walter Tevis , who wrote “the man who fell to Earth” , I just read the book but i can’t recall the name. I stepped myself in Walter Tevis rcently, devouring his books one after another. I renege in the 7th grade i wants to readtheman who fell to earth because Bowie was in it and i held no hope of seeing the movie. Sooo. I got one of my sr high friends to check it out for me. They thought it was above my age kevel as literature. Anyway. RIP DAVID BOWIE. Have a wonderful space oddity.