Good evenin’, fellow bloggers and blogettes! I hope you and yours had a smashing Christmas. I know I did. I don’t remember it, but the gifts in my room remind me that something must have happened. As I had hoped, I received the latest albums from the Minogues! Kylie’s X, and Dannii’s Neon Nights and Girl re-issues. Perfection.
Right now, I’m listening to Kylie – X for the very first time. Sure, I’m exactly one month later than the album’s actual release date, but no one in America knows that Kylie makes music right now, so I think I’m still in the clear.
Starting now is Like A Drug. I love the urban beats. I have to say, this really is the perfect release following Body Language (2003). It combines the sophisticated dance-pop that won critical acclaim in Fever, while holding on dearly to the urban edge that Kylie’s record company clearly wants her to maintain.
Gasp! She just said “radar,” like in Britney’s “Radar.” Take note songwriters, the word “radar” often improves a song’s performance, as just documented. I love the chorus going on in this track. Here’s Kylie – Like A Drug:
Oh my God. Speakerphone? This is the next step in electro-pop. All of the sounds and nouns being flung about, it’s so layered and wonderful! This one could make some mean remixes as well. I love the vocoder! Too many people complain that the vocoder is an excuse for artists not to sing. I think it only enriches the song, makes it more fun. I can’t wait to learn all of the lyrics to this one.
Oh, and about “The One.” It’s rapidly becoming my favorite track from Kylie, ever. It’s got everything I need, plus an impeccable performance from the Kylie Show that aired during Thanksgiving break. It’s absolutely heavenly. I cannot speak more highly of this song, so I shall provide the link to watch the performance:
X, though often dismissed by more hardcore fans with years of fan-ness under their fannies, complain heavily about the “try-too-hard” lyrics and sexified overtones; Because Kylie is older now, she should be moving on to more appropriate material, etc. As far as the music is concerned, I have no issues with Kylie continuing to sing about disco moves and rude suggestions. Sure, substance is appreciated, but that’s not what a comeback album should contain. Even the missteps that her fans claimed on the album, such as “Heart Beat Rock,” are a lot of fun. The only slip-up I can see is “All I See,” which is a rehashed R&B jam that I’ve heard many times before. Otherwise, I don’t see what all the fuss was about. I know many people expected this to be an album about overcoming cancer, and while there are tidbits thrown into assorted songs, I have a feeling Kylie had no desire to intermingle her personal life with her pop life persona. Yet another reason to admire both her strength as a person and showmanship as an entertainer.
No, X is not confessional. This is sheer funk pop, and occasionally gay-glam, fooling around with sound and testing the limits of pop. She needed to prove that she’s still got “it,” and she does. I love this much more than Body Language, and it’s almost on par with what Fever was. Next step, another Impossible Princess perhaps? I could only dream.
Please do yourselves a favor and buy Kylie Minogue’s X at Amazon.
Suggested Rating:A
And you, what do you think?