📰 I'm Bored– Single Review – Apr. 1979
- Iggy Pop
- Apr 28, 1979
- 3 min read
A sharp, acidic slice of late‑’70s music journalism, dripping with sarcasm and frustration. The review’s tone is brisk, biting, and unmistakably of the era — a critic wrestling with Iggy’s latest reinvention and not entirely convinced by it.
📰 Publication Details
Publication: Scrapbook (Source: contemporary UK music press)
Date: April 28, 1979
Country: United Kingdom
Section / Page: Single Review
Format: Review
Provenance Notes: Text taken directly from the uploaded clipping.
📰 What the Clipping Shows
The clipping features a bold headline — “ONE STEP FORWARD TWO STEPS BACK” — setting the tone for a highly critical review. Beneath it, the text evaluates Iggy Pop’s single “I’m Bored” (Arista ARIST 255), referencing its parent album New Values and comparing it unfavourably to his earlier work.
The typography is classic late‑’70s print: serif type, tight column layout, and a slightly yellowed paper tone.
This clipping matters because it captures the immediate critical reaction to Iggy’s post‑Bowie, post‑Berlin creative direction.
📰 The Story Behind It
By 1979, Iggy Pop was entering a new phase with New Values, his first album after the intense Bowie‑produced run of The Idiot and Lust for Life. Critics were eager — and perhaps anxious — to see where he would go next. This review reflects that tension.
The writer frames “I’m Bored” as a regression, calling it a pastiche of early Stooges energy without the danger or vitality. The review suggests that Iggy is trying to summon old venom but struggling to make it feel authentic. The internal lyric gag — “I’m the Chairman of the Bored” — is dismissed outright.
The B‑side, “African Man,” receives even harsher treatment, described as “silly neo‑salsa burnt cork music,” signalling the critic’s frustration with what they see as wasted potential.
In Iggy’s timeline, this review sits at a moment of reinvention: a new label, a new sound, and a new attempt to define himself outside Bowie’s shadow. The press response, as shown here, was mixed — sometimes admiring, sometimes sceptical, often conflicted.
📰 Quotes from the Article
• “Production, and tune, and delivery, appear to be pastiches of early Stooges venom.”
• “As to the weedy internal gag (‘I’m the Chairman of the Bored’) that pivots the lyric — give me a break, OK?”
📰 Related Material
• Chronicle entry: Iggy Pop – New Values Era Press
• Single review: David Bowie – Boys Keep Swinging (April 1979)
• Chronicle entry: Iggy Pop – The Idiot / Lust for Life Press Coverage
Additional material connected to this entry is listed in the tag index at the foot of the page.
📰 Visual Archive
Single review of Iggy Pop’s “I’m Bored” — April 28, 1979.
Additional visual notes:
Bold headline in uppercase
Serif‑type review column
Yellowed vintage paper tone
Tight, text‑heavy layout typical of late‑’70s music press
📰 Closing Notes
This review captures a moment of friction in Iggy Pop’s career — a critic pushing back against his latest evolution and longing for the rawness of earlier eras. As an archival piece, it preserves the sharp, unsentimental tone of 1979 music journalism and the challenges Iggy faced in redefining himself.
📝 Copyright Notice
All magazine scans, photographs, and original text excerpts referenced in this entry remain the property of their respective copyright holders. This Chronicle entry is a transformative, non‑commercial archival summary created for historical documentation and educational reference. No ownership of the original material is claimed or implied.
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