At the end of the tour, Pop and Bowie returned to Berlin to start writing. To further achieve his own identity, Pop moved out of the apartment he was sharing with Bowie and his assistant Coco Schwab and got his own place in the same building. The two continued writing for a few weeks before they were joined by Gardiner in May, who recalled that "quite a few ideas were already present." The trio spent a few more weeks writing, devising tracks such as "The Passenger" and "Lust for Life". At the end of May, they moved to the Hansa Studio by the Wall to begin recording. The rhythm section of brothers Hunt and Tony Sales on drums and bass, respectively, returned from the tour, along with guitarist Carlos Alomar, who Bowie brought in as a musical director. Bowie reduced his role significantly from "The Idiot", solely contributing keyboards like the tour. Gardiner recalled that because they were already a "tour-hardened band", there was a more "live" feel to the tracks than "The Idiot".