Welcome to Chillers, the ongoing series where we take a look at songs that give me goosebumps. Bi-weekly posting will be done on WordPress with a cross post to Bluesky.

The big track off Hunky Dory, Bowie’s Life on Mars? weaves a story layered with surrealism, emotion, and theatrical brilliance.

It follows a young girl left behind by the world—alone in a movie theater, escaping into the silver screen. She lives between reality and fantasy, comforted by the chaos of cinematic dreams.

Grounded piano lines meet sweeping orchestral vocals, reflecting the tension between the mundane and the magnificent. The “film” of her life keeps looping, each time more bittersweet.

It’s existential, absurd, and deeply human—a reflection on how we use art to survive the boredom and heartbreak of existence.