Bowie's newest is a musical excursion into a realm only Bowie himself can define. His songs are comprised of disparate images, haunting melodies and orchestrally chilling arrangements. Bowie's lyrics are filled with dark forebodings buried in synthesizer electronics, courtesy of Brian Eno. His vocals have taken on various intonations, sounding erratic yet controlled. Side one is more restrained, despite interludes of confusion, while side two is mostly an instrumental journey comprised of synthesizer, percussion, light sax and guitar orchestrations. This represents an extension of Bowie's cosmic rock vision and an extension of Low. Best cuts: "Heroes," "Joe The Lion," "Blackout."

- Billboard, 1977.

Bonus Reviews!

When I first heart the Enofied instrumental textures on side two, as background music, they struck me as more complex than their counterparts on Low, and they are. Low now seems quite pop, slick and to the point even when the point is background noise; in fact, after I completed my comparison, I began to play it a lot. But what was interesting background on "Heroes" proved merely noteworthy as foreground, admirably rather than attractively ragged. Maybe after the next album I'll get the drift of this one. B+

- Robert Christgau, Christgau's Record Guide, 1981.

Dating from Bowie's brief flirtation with life in the city of Berlin, Heroes was the culmination of Bowie's work with "inspirationalist" Brian Eno and guitarist Robert Fripp who both play and contribute. Bowie dares now to move away from an absolutely commercial sound and seems to feel free to experiment on the second side of the album with instrumental compositions, two of which are co-written with Eno.

Heroes was recorded at the evocatively named Hansa By The Wall studios in Berlin. The instrumental tracks certainly get the quality treatment and leave many of the shorter commercial rock singles sounding both confused and humdrum. "Sense of Doubt" has a demonic bass presence from the processed piano chords as is revealed in its subtle use of space and perspective by CD replay.

- David Prakel, Rock 'n' Roll on Compact Disc, 1987.

With echos of Low's half-sung/half-instrumental approach, this one has longer songs (given a maniacal musical accompaniment by King Crimson's Robert Fripp) and chillingly desolate soundscapes. The brilliant title track features one of Bowie's most passionate performances. Those who like discordant rock should be in heaven with "Beauty and the Beast," "Joe the Lion," and "Blackout." * * * * *

- Rick Clark, The All-Music Guide to Rock, 1995.

"Heroes" is the highlight of the Bowie/Eno collaborations, incorporating some of Bowie's fines melodies into the atmospheric soundscapes. * * * *

- Aidin Vaziri, Musichound Rock: The Essential Album Guide, 1996.

Various groups had released albums similar in format to "Heroes" -- a side of songs with an avant garde flip of longer, more experimental tracks -- but Bowie's was a cut above. The former mod had been a folkie and a glam rock superstar in the preceding decade, and had become a kind of film star in The Man Who Fell To Earth but with divorce and punk rock breathing down his neck (and with Berlin's Hanse by the Wall studio as the Cold War location), the Thin White Duke produced something special. The softly pounding title track had stirringly defiant lyrics, brilliantly timed ad-libs and an oceanic wash of syths. Theatrical yelpings of "Joe The Lion" (dedicated to, and written about, a curious performance artist who liked to crucify himself on the roof of a Beetle each Easter), the unsettlingly strident nightmare of "Beauty And The Beast" and a flip side of magical near-instrumentals like the dramatic "Moss Gardens" and the breezy "V2 Schneider" only added to a rich mix. Punk rock continued to rage, the Berlin Wall was still standing and RCA executives were still demanding another Young Americans (Bowie's last million-seller, recorded in Philadelphia), but for possibly the last time, Bowie decided that he'd go his own way, and forget the sales figures.

- Collins Gem Classic Albums, 1999.

The best-known album of the Chameleon's Berlin trilogy, this sonically unique effort harnesses the creative talents of Brian Eno and guitarist Robert Fripp and almost sounds like a postwar German city: cold, angular, mechanical, yet with a delicious passion underneath. Side A offers magical songs wrapped in fantasy like the passionate title track, and side B contains moody instrumentals, the precursor to ambient music as art. * * * *

- Zagat Survey Music Guide - 1,000 Top Albums of All Time, 2003.

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