David Bowie's catalogue is very diverse in terms of styles and personas he's adopted over the years. Most people familiar with his work are likely to name 'Ziggy Stardust,' 'Station To Station' or even 'Let's Dance' as milestone albums. But when someone mentions "Heroes," one immediately thinks of the monolithic title track, which to this day retains a place in David's live shows. In my opinion, 'Heroes,' the album, has always been rather overlooked; the spotlight being stolen by it's sister, 'Low.' And while 'Low' is most definitely a masterpiece, 'Heroes' is an excellent work in it's own right and deserves re-evaluation.

'Heroes' takes the listener away to an alternative world filled with chaos ("Beauty and the Beast"), desperation ("Blackout"), nostalgia ("Sons of the Silent Age") and humor ("Secret Life of Arabia"). David's voice hits startling new heights here, and he's singing as though his life depended on it. The ambient instrumental tracks range from murky ("Sense of Doubt") to soothing ("Moss Garden") to horrific ("Neukoln").

I find it almost a cathartic experience listening to 'Heroes,' for it's as if David is purging all these raw emotions out of his system and trying to make the best of a difficult situation (relevant to his circumstances during the time the album was recorded). Depending on my mood, it's not uncommon that I feel either drained or refreshed after listening to the album in one sitting.

'Heroes' evokes a whole gamut of feelings, and is a most provocative listening experience. It's a wild runaway-train of an album, by an artist who was always far ahead of his time. Highly recommended to all DB fans (new or old) or anyone who likes music that takes you on an adventure.

When U2 released their excellent `Achtung Baby' CD in the early 90s, critics and fans alike praised the "new" sound, admired them for their risk-taking, and generally fawned over the rock/electronica mix. Obviously Bono and the band were instrumental in this, but were it not for Brian Eno's influence and presence, it's unlikely if this album would have emerged as the great collection it did. Also, those who lauded this collaboration as groundbreaking need only to go back 20+ years to Eno's work with David Bowie with the Low/Heroes/Lodger trilogy to see that they were doing it back then.

This (`Heroes') album marks the pinnacle of their trilogy in my mind as I find it to be much more accessible than the dark (but brilliant) `Low' and not as (forgive me) odd as `Lodger'. The most recognizable track on the album, "Heroes" is still a wonderful song. "Joe The Lion", "Sons of the Silent Age", and "Beauty and the Beast" are other highlights of the non-instrumental pieces.

However, side B is the true gem of this album. The combination of "Sense of Doubt", "Moss Garden", and "Neukoln" are some of the most beautiful and haunting instrumental work that Bowie and even Eno have produced. These three songs surrounded with the non-instrumental "V-2 Schneider" and "The Secret Life of Arabia" make for a spectacular 20 minutes of music.

If you're just starting to dabble in Bowie's work, this is definitely a good starting place.

David Bowie made three albums while living in Berlin. The second of them, "Heroes," sees Bowie continuing his bare-bones production, ably assisted by Brian Eno. The title track of this album remains my all-time favorite Bowie composition, both for its poetic quality and for the harmonics, hooks and production values. Bowie utilizes several unusual instruments on this album, including the Japanese samisen (a stringed instrument). Another favorite piece on this album is an instrumental, "Neukolnen," inspired by Bowie's Berlin neighborhood. This is an album not to be missed.

Before I begin I just want to say I can't possibly put into words what this album means to me. With that I mind let us begin.

If you do not know it already, "Heroes" was the second in a trilogy of albums ,including Low and Lodger, that Bowie made in Berlin. To end his cocaine habit, he rented a small apartment above a garage in Berlin and roomed with Iggy Pop.

On "Heroes", he again teamed up with Brian Eno (of Roxy Music fame) to make this classic album. Although, mose people think Eno produced this album it was actually Tony Visconti who did but nonetheless Eno's presence was definitely felt. Along with Eno, Bowie brought in one of the greatest and underated guitarists of all time, Robert Fripp (of King Crimson fame.)

The album opens up with 2 pretty guitar heavy songs, Beauty and the Beast and Joe the Lion. Beauty and the Beast is a pretty upbeat song compared to the rest of this pretty dark album. Joe the Lion has a giant guitar riff by Fripp about performance artist Chris Burden.

Then comes in my opinion the best love song of all time, "Heroes". The song has one of the best guitar riffs of all time. It's cool, dark, and hauntingly beautiful at the same time. Fripp is a genius of feedback and you can definitely tell it on this track. The song is a true story about 2 lovers Bowie seen everyday at the same time by the Berlin Wall. The lyrics are just genius and some say it's Bowie's best song. I got the pleasure of seeing him do this masterpiece live during Bowie's Reality tour.

Sons Of The Silent Age has some pretty out there lyrics by Bowie but has a killer chorus.

Blackout is a very cool song using some great synthesizer work by Eno and perfect guitar work and genius lyrics.

V-2 Schneider is a mostly instrumental song using saxophones and a lot of keyboards. It's a pretty catchy, upbeat song.

The next 3 songs are all ambient songs collobrating with the creators of ambient music Eno and Fripp.

Sense Of Doubt has a dark piano riff but is oterwise pretty boring.

Moss Garden is a heartbreaking song that evokes so much emotion without using any words. It's like you've been transported to a dreamlike world when listening to it. It uses Asian guitars to create a pretty original sound. Definitely an underated classic.

Neukoln is a dark track that uses a saxophone as a main instrument but not in the usual way. Bowie hits some some ear piercing notes using it and is a really unique song. Bowie is a really good saxophonist but never gets any credit for some reason.

The Secret Of Arabia is one of catchiest, coolest, danceable songs I've ever heard. It has a bass line that is guaranteed to be stuck in your head for days. The piano is just downright funky and this song uses a bunch of handclaps that you will drfinitely be imitating while listening. Coming out of athe instrumentals it's an odd choice to close the album but works really well oddly enough.

If you buy this album make sure you have a lot of time on your hands. This album will take a few listens all the way through to fully appreciate it, but it is definitely worth it. Buy it right now!

Bowie's second instalment in the Berlin trilogy is a criminally underrated masterpiece, brimming with invention and vigour.

'Low' was most certainly an amazing achievement and an absolute treat to listen to, but unlike most, I feel that "Heroes" tops it in every regard.

The first side (like 'Low', containing the more conventional songs) has more urgency than the tracks on 'Low'. There is more energy and more depth to the song writing. Where 'Low' was fragments/ideas with magnificent textural framing, Heroes' first side shows really intricate song writing being beautifully combined with dense and innovative arrangements that take the clunky synth and electronic sounds of 'Low' and fuse them into a more sophisticated whole.

The lyrics are also much more intriguing. 'Low' was lyrically and vocally quite sparse, but on "Heroes", Bowie delivers some of his most compelling lyrics. Just couple of the fantastic snippets that pop up include:

'Your lips cut a smile on your face'

'There's slaughter in the air

Protest on the wind

Someone else inside me

Someone could get skinned'

'Sons of the silent age... Don't walk, they just glide in and out of life

They never die, they just go to sleep one day'

And of course we all know the gorgeous lyrics that the title track possesses. Not to mention Bowie's ultimate vocal performance on this track. In fact, the vocals on the "Heroes" album soar like on no other release of his. The songs climax and Bowie belts out some amazingly expressive and emotive performances. Overall, the first half of the record takes the best parts of `Low's' first half and 'Station to Station' and turns it into the most successful and engaging group of tracks that he has ever released.

The second half of the album sees Bowie reprising the ambient themes explored on 'Low' but once again this album outdoes its predecessor. The instrumental tracks on "Heroes" are even more evocative than those on 'Low'. Bowie and Eno once again strip away the clunky synth and electronic sounds and create more focused and more atmospheric pieces second time around.

Bowie feels like more of a presence on this album overall. Less detached, and not hiding away from himself as much. This is further displayed by the re-introduction of his sax playing on a number of tracks. He adds personality and flair to 'Sons of the Silent Age', provides one of many gorgeous melodic layers on 'V-2 Schneider' (which trumps both 'The Speed of Life' and 'A New Career In A New Town'), and his free-jazz styled, heavily treated playing on 'Neukoln' is oddly appealing. Bowie also plays the Japanese Koto on 'Moss Garden' giving a beautifully subtle and sensitive performance on what is a perfect ambient piece.

If you own 'Low', love it, and are wondering which album to get next... well I can't recommend "Heroes" highly enough. If you own 'Station to Station' and love it... ditto. If you have some of Bowie's other albums from some of his other periods and are curious about which of the more experimental albums to start with, this is the one. It's one of those albums that is experimental without compromising quality song writing. It takes the ideas first generated on 'Low' and expands and improves upon them, while introducing a highly unique and infinitely appealing aesthetic all of its own. It is also more timeless than 'Low'. It's sounds are still fresh and haven't dated a bit in the 30 years since its release.

It is not only the best of the Bowie and Eno collaborations (The Berlin Trilogy), it is also, in my opinion, the greatest achievement by this most amazing artist.