Integral to this period of Bowie’s career was his rhythm section. Dennis Davis, Carlos Alomar and George Murray - known as The D.A.M Trio - were the backbone of Bowie's sound from ‘Station to Station’ through to ‘Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)’. For the first time in five decades, Alomar and Murray have hit the road to bring a celebration of their infinitely iconic music to audiences around Europe. On the 28th of November, the band brought the sound of the Berlin years to the brutalist beauty of the Barbican Centre Hall - a perfect fit for the angular and experimental musical landscape Bowie conjured as he experienced life in a divided Berlin.
As the audience took to their seats and the lights went down, two screens lit up. The dust floated through the beams of light in the air as they flew to paint Bowie’s face on the blank screen. ‘Warsawza’, ‘Low’s haunting instrumental centrepiece, begins to play as we see Bowie and his band together. There is an air of studied concentration among them that makes it impossible to look away. The video performance was a touching introduction to the evening, ‘Warsawza’ a soundbath, ritualistically transfixing the audience.
After the 1978 iteration of the band brought their performance to a close, the voice of Alomar echoed throughout the hall, introducing the 2025 band to the stage. Alomar on guitar and Murray on bass were joined by a cast of incredible musicians like Bowie collaborator, guitarist Kevin Armstrong. On drums, as Alomar put it, the only man who could fill Davis’s seat – Tal Bergman. A family affair in all rights, Alomar’s daughter and Grammy-nominated artist Lea Lorien took vocal and percussion duties, her husband and fellow Grammy nominee Axel Tosca on keys and synths. The role of Bowie is of course a challenge to fill, but doing so expertly in a stunning pair of patent platform Pleaser heels was Michael Cunio. The tour was intended as a celebration of collaboration, and the artists onstage, along with the clear love they all shared for the music, were a constant reminder of this.
The show was an ever-burning pyre of legacy. But this was not only a celebration of the body of music, but it was a spotlight shining on the incredible musicianship of the people who made Bowie’s music what it was. Alomar’s layered and delectable guitar shone, a thick tone that spoke for itself. Bergman performed a drum solo during ‘The Secret Life of Arabia’ that left his audience breathless, pushing himself to the absolute limit for his craft. Tosca’s piano solo is an emotional journey within the space of the silence of the hall, incorporating ‘Space Oddity’, making its transition into ‘Ashes to Ashes’ even more of a delicious gut-punch.
The all-star band weaved together an entirely transportive tapestry of what made Bowie’s Berlin years so prolific. Playing songs from the slice of Bowie history that don’t often get their time in the limelight. Highlights included the steady funk of ‘Yassassin (Turkish For: Long Live)’ and the subtle horror of ‘Repetition’ - played to perfection by Cunio with clenched fists and a frightening demeanour. There was a whole host of hits on display, too. ‘Sound and Vision’ bounced off the rigid walls of the concert hall, Cunio describing watching the faces of people reliving their youth through music as “better than botox”. The opening seconds of ‘Heroes’ had the entire crowd rising as if compelled to, like worshippers rising out of the pews. Dancing in the aisles, the crowd exalted under the spell of the 1977 classic. An overwhelmingly emotional moment for all involved, the purpose of the evening was defined in this moment.
After a brief break, the encore saw Alomar honour another musician whose contribution to much of Bowie’s work from the period is what makes the music so special – Robert Fripp. Alomar described the first time he heard Fripp on ‘In the Court of the Crimson King’, saying he was astounded by what he heard. To conclude the evening, the band breached containment from the Berlin trilogy, playing songs from both ‘Station to Station’ and ‘Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)’, much to the crowd’s joy. Ending the night on ‘Scream Like a Baby’, a chic mascara tear fell down Cunio’s cheek, his emotional response to the song resonating throughout the room. The band took their bows as the crowd, sweaty from dancing, begged for more.
The night felt infinite, both a trip back in time as well as a vision of music’s future, a perfect representation of this integral portion of Bowie’s career. To see the musicians who drove the music that defined generation after generation showcase their work was nothing short of a privilege. The tour’s mission statement that “collaboration is eternal” was the undeniable truth of the night.
Though The D.A.M Trilogy tour is over, the merchandise whose proceeds contribute to the college fund of the late Dennis Davis’s children can be found online here.
Eylem Boz
If you enjoyed reading this article, please consider buying us a coffee. The money from this pot goes towards the ever-increasing yearly costs of running and hosting the site and our "Writer Of The Month" cash prize.