GABRIEL FINISHES FIRST, LOU COMES UNGLUED

Since more and more videos seem to shy away from concepts and settle for lip-syncing, this month’s top two videos are all the more welcome. In them, Peter Gabriel’s and Lou Reed’s directors put them through some heavy changes with eye-catching results.

Ratings system: 80-100, don’t miss; 60-79, recommended; 40-59, watchable; 20-39, weak; 0-19, wretched.

OTHER RECENT VIDEOS:

David Bowie’s “Absolute Beginners.” Maybe, as with the Lou Reed robot, what we’ve been seeing of David Bowie recently isn’t really Bowie. Those cyborg designers can be awfully crafty. If that’s the explanation, they did a good job on the Bowie model’s voice and look, but couldn’t capture the real singer’s old vision or talent. Bowie used to make some of the best music and videos. But this, like his last few efforts, is depressingly uncreative. David pursues a stripe-painted woman down dark streets--she symbolizes the Zebra brand cigarettes he can’t get from a vending machine. Scenes from the title movie are interspersed without connection. Knowing that it’s based on an old British commercial doesn’t help. Director: Julien Temple. 10