There are only a handful of albums that had such a powerful effect on me on the first listening of such a record. I can still remember when I played "Roxy Music" for the first time. It was in the evening at our home in Topanga, and on the first cut "Re-make, Re-model," I thought to myself that this is the sound of 1972. By the time of the second song "Ladytron," it was like if someone brought a brand new language into my life. I never heard anything like Roxy Music.
"Roxy Music" is a combination of camp, serious noise in the avant-garde world, futuristic sounds, and a glance to the past. Years later I can pick up on the influences of the album - vintage Hollywood cinema, Joe Meek recordings, 1950s kitsch aesthetics, a touch of prog-rock, and an appreciation of artists like Marcel Duchamp. It's a heady brew of images and sound, that to this day still gives me the kick that never tires. The first thing one notices is Bryan Ferry's voice - a croon that seemed manufactured but with incredible lyrics that painted a picture in one's head. Borderline outrageous, but with a firm footing on a foundation that is art, cinema and music history. One can hear the traces of David Bowie's presence, but it's like Roxy Music was hearing Bowie, not at the present time (1972) but in a sometime way in the future.
There is not a bad cut on this album. One of the great strengths that are Roxy Music is that it is truly a band. Bryan Ferry wrote all the songs/lyrics, but it takes someone like Andy Mackay, Phil Manzanera, Paul Thompson, Graham Simpson (one of many bass players in this band), and of course, Eno. The electronics are all over "Roxy Music." Through the sound of vintage synths, to the layered electronic sounds of treated guitars, vocals, and god knows what else on this album. I can't say that this album changed my life, but for sure made me appreciate the layers of textures that make a sound, and that is what I heard on "Roxy Music."
