Now here’s something that’s aurally delightful and wholly unexpected: Martina Topley-Bird & Mark Lanegan covering a song by The XX. WHAT. “That’s insane!”, you say? Nope! What’s actually insane is how goddamn amazing it sounds: Martina’s delicate pop vocals blend beautifully with Mark’s gruff tenor to create what feels like a mescaline-tinged wander through a desert at night. It is utterly captivating, stripping away most of the original’s instrumental complexity for something far purer. Absolutely wonderful!

Sigh. Cretin that I am, I failed to mention the passing of Stevie Wright, lead singer of The Easybeats, on December 28 2015. In honour of Wright’s memory, here is their most famous song. Contentious as this comment may be, I believe this is one of the best songs that the Australian music scene gifted to the world: a Beatles-esque sound that flirted with the early sounds of punk to create a far more aggressive tone than anything in the Beatles back catalogue.

Too many wonderful musicians have passed away recently. So, given Bowie’s legacy, his eclecticism and his unyielding mystique, I choose to believe that Bowie has simply returned to the stardust and universe that birthed and allowed him to visit us all here on planet Earth for 69 years. There’s not really much I can say that won’t be said more eloquently and with more reverence than I and my silly blog could possibly conjure. Farewell, David. And thank you for all that you left for us to enjoy, marvel and cherish.