Blackstar

Released on his 69th birthday, Blackstar is a bold final chapter to David Bowie’s chameleonic studio career. He digs deep into experimentation, playing frontman to Donny McCaslin’s NYC-based jazz combo for a thrillingly live-sounding 25th album. The band is impeccable, equally adept at playing tightly wound post-rock on "Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)” as they are the skronky free-jazz runs that underpin Bowie’s forcefully breathy tone on "'Tis a Pity She Was a Whore.” Bowie is absolutely haunting on the beautifully odd 10-minute title track as he swings between theatrical and spacey, heavenly and menacing, swaggering and soulful.