Best Metal Videos of All Time
Honourable Mention 8: Under the God—Tin Machine
Honourable mention 8: Under the God—Tin Machine, Score: 9 points;
Score justification: song = 8 +1/2 point for production value + 1/2 point for story. total score = 9.
Hello: David Bowie—with all due respect—isn’t really heavy metal. Well, this is probably the heaviest song on Tin Machine’s debut. Yet both Tin Machine albums were most definitely the outlet for Bowie’s hard rocking side1. And even after Tin Machine was disbanded, Bowie toured with Nine Inch Nails in 1995, where he shared a duet with Trent Reznor on NIN’s “Reptile” and “Hurt”.
A crossover from the mainstream to metal? This is far from the only one, and there have been quite a few weirder ones, like Tori Amos’s cover2 of Slayer’s “Raining Blood” and the upcoming (in the UK) Black Sabbath—The Ballet by the Birmingham Royal Ballet3. The ‘first true heavy metal ballet experience’, indeed. I like to think that Bowie would have approved4.
So you think Bowie—at the time—‘got’ metal? Well, watch the video which demonstrates the live atmosphere of a punk and/or metal concert in a small venue—like, say, the Dynamo in Eindhoven—with stage-diving, mosh pits and other acts of wild abandon. And throughout the chaos, the band keeps playing. Definitely metal.
Didn’t Bowie’s movements with the so-called ‘zeitgeist’—first defining it, then following it—stand in the way of timelessness? He’s had a long career, so it’s hard to say. But this particular song (just listen to the lyrics) is still very timely, as many—especially in the USA—are still ‘under the god5’.
I thought live videos were excluded from this list? This isn’t live, this whole video is staged. When Tin Machine toured, the fans didn’t stage dive to this song6.
Don’t say: With all those style changes throughout his career, wasn’t Bowie trying too hard to please everyone?
Do say: A shame Bowie never played at Roadburn with a suitable band like, say, The Young7 Gods8. It would’ve been awesome!
🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘
The chameleon David Bowie had many sides;
She makes it sound like reciting a poem;
Age Guidance: 6+ (ya can’t start young enough with ballet heavy metal…;-)
And more metal crossover in the next honourable mention, stay tuned!
A ‘god’ with the ugliest mugshot of all time;
Although Bowie flashing devil horns at 02:30 is still great;
The Young Gods did play at Roadburn in 2009;