Jump to content

Blackstar (song): Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Undid revision 699570476 by 50.108.164.176 (talk) rv unsourced genres
No edit summary
Tags: Mobile edit Mobile app edit
Line 32: Line 32:
The music video for "Blackstar" is a surreal ten-minute short film directed by [[Bo Johan Renck|Johan Renck]] (the director of ''The Last Panthers'', the show for which the song was composed). It depicts a woman with a tail discovering a dead astronaut and taking his jewel-encrusted skull to an ancient, otherwordly town. The astronaut's bones float into a black hole, while a circle of women perform a ritual with the skull in the town's centre.<ref name="renck"/>
The music video for "Blackstar" is a surreal ten-minute short film directed by [[Bo Johan Renck|Johan Renck]] (the director of ''The Last Panthers'', the show for which the song was composed). It depicts a woman with a tail discovering a dead astronaut and taking his jewel-encrusted skull to an ancient, otherwordly town. The astronaut's bones float into a black hole, while a circle of women perform a ritual with the skull in the town's centre.<ref name="renck"/>


The filmmaking process was highly collaborative, with Bowie making many suggestions and sending Renck sketches of ideas he wanted incorporated. While both men agreed to leave the video open to interpretation, Renck has offered several details regarding its meaning, mentioning the works of [[Aleister Crowley]] as one source they discussed. It was Bowie who requested that the woman have a tail, his only explanation being "it's kind of sexual". Renck has speculated that Bowie may have been contemplating his own mortality and relevance to history while developing the video, but said that the crucified scarecrows were not intended as a messianic symbol. Renck has also stated that Bowie portrays three distinct characters in the video: the introverted, tormented, blind "Button Eyes"; the "flamboyant trickster" in the song's middle section; and the "priest guy" holding the book embossed with the blackstar.<ref name="renck">{{cite web|url=http://noisey.vice.com/blog/david-bowie-blackstar-video-johan-renck-director-interview|title=BEHIND "BLACKSTAR": AN INTERVIEW WITH JOHAN RENCK, THE DIRECTOR OF DAVID BOWIE'S TEN-MINUTE SHORT FILM|publisher=Noisey|last=Joffe|first=Justin|date=19 November 2015|accessdate=24 November 2015}}</ref> Saxophonist Donny McCaslin said that Bowie had told him the video's "solitary candle" referred to the ancient Pagan goddess [[Isis]]. A spokesperson for Bowie denied that this was a reference to the Islamic State. <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/david-bowie-denies-claims-new-6899451|title=David Bowie denies claims his new song Blackstar was 'inspired by ISIS' |last=McGeorge|first=Alistair |publisher=''[[Mirror]]''|date=25 November 2015|accessdate=12 January 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2015/dec/18/david-bowie-blackstar-album-first-listen-review|title=David Bowie's Blackstar album: 'An unexpected left turn that deepens the mystery' – first-listen review|last=Petridis|first=Alexis|publisher=''[[The Guardian]]''|date=18 December 2015|accessdate=11 January 2016}}</ref>
The filmmaking process was highly collaborative, with Bowie making many suggestions and sending Renck sketches of ideas he wanted incorporated. While both men agreed to leave the video open to interpretation (Renck refused to confirm or deny that the astronaut in the video was [[Space Oddity (song)|Major Tom]]), Renck has offered several details regarding its meaning, mentioning the works of [[Aleister Crowley]] as one source they discussed. It was Bowie who requested that the woman have a tail, his only explanation being "it's kind of sexual". Renck has speculated that Bowie may have been contemplating his own mortality and relevance to history while developing the video, but said that the crucified scarecrows were not intended as a messianic symbol. Renck has also stated that Bowie portrays three distinct characters in the video: the introverted, tormented, blind "Button Eyes"; the "flamboyant trickster" in the song's middle section; and the "priest guy" holding the book embossed with the blackstar.<ref name="renck">{{cite web|url=http://noisey.vice.com/blog/david-bowie-blackstar-video-johan-renck-director-interview|title=BEHIND "BLACKSTAR": AN INTERVIEW WITH JOHAN RENCK, THE DIRECTOR OF DAVID BOWIE'S TEN-MINUTE SHORT FILM|publisher=Noisey|last=Joffe|first=Justin|date=19 November 2015|accessdate=24 November 2015}}</ref> Saxophonist Donny McCaslin said that Bowie had told him the video's "solitary candle" referred to the ancient Pagan goddess [[Isis]]. A spokesperson for Bowie denied that this was a reference to the Islamic State. <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/david-bowie-denies-claims-new-6899451|title=David Bowie denies claims his new song Blackstar was 'inspired by ISIS' |last=McGeorge|first=Alistair |publisher=''[[Mirror]]''|date=25 November 2015|accessdate=12 January 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2015/dec/18/david-bowie-blackstar-album-first-listen-review|title=David Bowie's Blackstar album: 'An unexpected left turn that deepens the mystery' – first-listen review|last=Petridis|first=Alexis|publisher=''[[The Guardian]]''|date=18 December 2015|accessdate=11 January 2016}}</ref>


==Critical reception==
==Critical reception==

Revision as of 05:13, 13 January 2016

"Blackstar"
Song

"Blackstar" (stylised as "★")[1] is a song by English rock musician David Bowie. It was released as the lead single from his twenty-fifth and final studio album of the same name on 20 November 2015 through iTunes.[2] "Blackstar" peaked at number 70 on the French Singles Chart and number 129 on the UK Singles Chart.

Production and composition

The song was originally over eleven minutes long, but Bowie and Visconti edited it down to 9:57, making it Bowie's second-longest track ever made, behind "Station to Station", which lasts just over ten minutes. This was done after they learned that iTunes would not post singles over ten minutes in length. Bowie did not wish to confuse listeners by releasing different single and album versions.[3] "Blackstar" is an art rock[4] and jazztronica[1] song. Also described as a "avant jazz sci-fi torch song", it features a "drum and bass rhythm, a two-note tonal melody inspired by Gregorian chant and shifting time signatures."[5] In the middle section, the song turns from a acid house-ish style to a sax solo to a bluesy slow middle section.[6]

Release

"Blackstar" was released on 20 November 2015 as a digital download. In addition to its release on the album of the same name, the track is used as the opening music for the television series The Last Panthers.[7]

Music video

Bowie, as a "priest", as depicted in the music video

The music video for "Blackstar" is a surreal ten-minute short film directed by Johan Renck (the director of The Last Panthers, the show for which the song was composed). It depicts a woman with a tail discovering a dead astronaut and taking his jewel-encrusted skull to an ancient, otherwordly town. The astronaut's bones float into a black hole, while a circle of women perform a ritual with the skull in the town's centre.[8]

The filmmaking process was highly collaborative, with Bowie making many suggestions and sending Renck sketches of ideas he wanted incorporated. While both men agreed to leave the video open to interpretation (Renck refused to confirm or deny that the astronaut in the video was Major Tom), Renck has offered several details regarding its meaning, mentioning the works of Aleister Crowley as one source they discussed. It was Bowie who requested that the woman have a tail, his only explanation being "it's kind of sexual". Renck has speculated that Bowie may have been contemplating his own mortality and relevance to history while developing the video, but said that the crucified scarecrows were not intended as a messianic symbol. Renck has also stated that Bowie portrays three distinct characters in the video: the introverted, tormented, blind "Button Eyes"; the "flamboyant trickster" in the song's middle section; and the "priest guy" holding the book embossed with the blackstar.[8] Saxophonist Donny McCaslin said that Bowie had told him the video's "solitary candle" referred to the ancient Pagan goddess Isis. A spokesperson for Bowie denied that this was a reference to the Islamic State. [9][10]

Critical reception

Ryan Dombal of Pitchfork praised the song, labeling it as "Best New Track". Dombal also described the track as "wonderfully odd and expansive" and noted that it is "closer to the cocaine-fueled fantasias of 1976's Station to Station than almost anything he's [Bowie] done since".[4]

Track listing

Digital download
No.TitleLength
1."Blackstar"9:57

Personnel

Personnel adapted from Blackstar liner notes.[11]

Musicians


Technical personnel

Charts

Chart (2015) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[12] 84
Belgium (Ultratip Wallonia)[13] 37
France (SNEP)[14] 70
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[15] 129
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[16] 36

Release history

Region Date Format Label
Worldwide 20 November 2015 Digital download
Italy[17] Contemporary hit radio Columbia

References

  1. ^ a b Young, Alex (19 November 2015). "David Bowie premieres new single "★" along with an epic short film — watch". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  2. ^ "David Bowie Confirms New Album 'Blackstar'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  3. ^ Greene, Andy (23 November 2015). "The Inside Story of David Bowie's Stunning New Album, Blackstar". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 24 November 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  4. ^ a b Dombal, Ryan (20 November 2015). "David Bowie - "Blackstar"". Pitchfork. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  5. ^ McCormick, Neil (20 November 2015). "David Bowie's new song, Blackstar, review: 'Major Tom is dead. Bowie lives'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
  6. ^ Petridis, Alexis (20 November 2015). "David Bowie's Blackstar video: a gift of sound and vision or all-time low?". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
  7. ^ "David Bowie: 7 Things We Already Know About His 2016 Album 'Blackstar'". NME. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  8. ^ a b Joffe, Justin (19 November 2015). "BEHIND "BLACKSTAR": AN INTERVIEW WITH JOHAN RENCK, THE DIRECTOR OF DAVID BOWIE'S TEN-MINUTE SHORT FILM". Noisey. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
  9. ^ McGeorge, Alistair (25 November 2015). "David Bowie denies claims his new song Blackstar was 'inspired by ISIS'". Mirror. Retrieved 12 January 2016. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  10. ^ Petridis, Alexis (18 December 2015). "David Bowie's Blackstar album: 'An unexpected left turn that deepens the mystery' – first-listen review". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 January 2016. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  11. ^ "Blackstar" single liner notes.
  12. ^ "Ultratop.be – David Bowie – ★ [Blackstar]" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  13. ^ "Ultratop.be – David Bowie – ★ [Blackstar]" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  14. ^ "Lescharts.com – David Bowie – ★ [Blackstar]" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  15. ^ "Chart Log UK - New Chart Entries - 28.11.2015". zobbel.de. 28 November 2015. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  16. ^ "David Bowie Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  17. ^ "David Bowie - Blackstar Radiodate". radioairplay.fm. 11 December 2015. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Blackstar_(song)&oldid=699581746"