David Bowie wanted a do-over. And now he’s going to get one. As part of the upcoming archival box set Loving the Alien (1983-1988), Bowie’s 1987 album Never Let Me Down — ironically, a major artistic letdown that he once described as “awful” — has been given a radical makeover by producer Mario McNulty. Keeping little besides Bowie’s vocal tracks, the studio whiz has reportedly rebuilt the album essentially from the ground up, stripping away layers of dated synths and gated drums and replacing them with live instrumentation and strings. Here’s the first taste: A retooling of Beat of Your Drum that eschews the original’s noisy glare for a darker, more romantic approach. Purists might balk at the idea, but it’s hard not to suspect that Bowie — an artist who repeatedly reinvented himself and his music, and publicly stated he would love to be able to remake the album — would approve. At the very least, it should make for an interesting listen. Loving the Alien, the fourth in a series of career-spanning Bowie boxes, arrives Oct. 12. Check out the track here:
