David Bowie
Scary Monsters

It's 1980 and the white clown removes his makeup.
Bowie says goodbye forever to his characters; for the catharsis to work, it's necessary to bring them all back to life together, in a setting that's somewhat self-referential, nostalgic, and futuristic at the same time.
But "Scary Monsters" is also an opportunity to reaffirm his stature as a progenitor of the latest avant-rock waves, if it's true that it was Bowie with the Berlin trilogy who anticipated much of the new wave.
The sound is very bright and modern, with some similarities to Bill Laswell's no wave, but also rich with references from Bowie's past: the reverberated drums from "Low," certain vocal dissonances from "Diamond Dogs/Hunky Dory," Fripp referencing the sound of "Heroes," and a pervasive glam atmosphere.

Nothing to criticize about the conceptual/sonic depth of the work, too bad that the songwriting, although varied, doesn't always meet the expectations:
while the first side shines with masterpieces like "Ashes To Ashes" (above all), "Fashion," "Up The Hill Backwards," "Scary Monsters," the second shows some dips in inspiration ("Teenage Wildlife" is yet another copy of "Heroes," while "Kingdom Come" and "Because You're Young" are certainly not memorable).
I've always had a conflicted relationship with this album, thinking about what it could have been with all tracks at the level of "Ashes To Ashes" and with Eno still on the oblique strategies.