Tag: luminous
David Bowie – 5.15 The Angels Have Gone : Limbo
by Niki N. Phaser on Jul.12, 2009, under Non-Single Masterpieces
Chances are that this very moment somewhere in the world two Bowie fans are fighting over which period was better. The work of a man who’s been 50 years in the music world should be divided in periods. For practical purposes, if not because of the sound and image changes. With such a huge catalogue and such a huge talent, there are plenty of non-single masterpieces to choose from, but right now I’ll go for 5.15 The Angels Have Gone from the 2002 classic Heathen, which probably has the most cool cover of all David Bowie albums. You can see from most of the Heathen tracks that the author was in a relaxed zone – there was no pressure, just the joy of making music or of playing it (the album features a few covers, including The Pixies’ Cactus). 5.15 The Angels Have Gone itself has a very chillout vibe, with plenty of seraphic choirs and bells and chime effects. Still, halfway in, you get a drum solo, performed most likely by Bowie himself and, of course, some slap bass (he just couldn’t help it). The airy sound contributes to imagery suggested through lyrics like “5:15 ,Train overdue, Angels have gone, No ticket”, which makes you believe that here Bowie sees limbo as this train station, where you change trains, which will take you either in Heaven or the other place. This is a very luminous piece of music, without it being upbeat. It’s not the kind of song that will cheer you up when you’re feeling down, but it will provide some sort of distance from whatever is happening in your life at that moment.
