Product description
-------------------
X CD Parlophone, 513 9522, 2007, 13 Track
.co.uk
------
Traditionally, Kylie Minogue has been at her best
attempting pure pop, not chasing credibility, but X--her tenth
studio album, and the first since 2003s Body Language--somehow
pulls off the trick of being both. With production credits split
between old hands like Richard Stannard and Guy Chambers and new
faces like Calvin Harris, the Freemasons and Bloodshy & Avant,
the Swedish team behind Britneys "Toxic", X does a neat job of
matching big hooks with forward-thinking production tricks. The
poptimistic Kylie fan will head straight for "2 Hearts", a sassy
falling-for-you number with a glammy beat and a chorus poised to
fill a thousand Karaoke rooms, and "Wow"--a thumping disco number
with a lot of love to give. Scattered alongside these, however,
are some slightly more adventurous productions that demonstrate
that despite a few years off the stage, Kylie is well up to speed
with 21st Century pop: the excellent "Speakerphone" begins with
the sound of a strummed harp before diffusing into a shimmering,
Scandinvian-tinged electro-pop number reminiscent of Robyn or The
, all snapping, sassy beats and vocodered vocal; meanwhile,
the ghetto-pop bounce of "Nu-di-ty" proves raunch is still by no
means beyond her. A very welcome return. , --Louis Pattison
P.when('A').execute(function(A) {
A.on('a:expander:toggle_description:toggle:collapse',
function(data) {
window.scroll(0,
data.expander.$expander[0].offsetTop-100);
});
});
Review
------
Who’d have thought that little old Charlene would, in
two short, sweet decades, go from the original soapstar superstar
to a well-loved British treasure whose album releases are up
there with the goings on in Parliament in terms of national
interest?
It’s probably something that intrigues Kylie herself, given the
fact she’s still a proud Australian, but over here, we tend to
get a bit more involved with celebrities than our Antipodean
cousins, and so much has happened to Kylie since 2003’s Body
Language that she’s barely ever been out of the spotlight.
There’s been the tragedy and triumph of her battle against
cancer, a worldwide Greatest Hits tour, gallery showings for the
entire wardrobe of show costumes, the release of her first
children’s book and even a role as the Magic Roundabout’s
Florence – it makes you wonder how she’s found time for music.
Somehow though, she has. X, her tenth studio long player, is an
album packed with vitality and, as always with Kylie’s releases,
oodles of fun.
Some time back, the pop princess started using the Madonna model
for remaining relevant - only collaborate with the cutting edge -
and so it is with X.
Alongside her usual suspects of Cathy Dennis, Guy Chambers and
Richard Stannard, there’s also production duties for Scottish
knob-twiddler Calvin Harris and supercool duo Freemasons, though
sadly White Diamond, the Scissor Sisters collaboration that
debuted on the Showgirl tour, hasn’t made it as far as this
album.
What has instead is a fine selection of pop gems. The current
trend for electro is one that was always going to suit Kylie and
it’s one that she’s used right through X - whether it’s on the
slinky "Like A Drug", robotic toe-tapper "Speakerphone",
"Nu-di-ty’s" staccato or the disco fun of "Stars" - to great
effect.
Thankfully, it’s not all beats, treats and squeaks. Kylie has
never been a one-trick pony and the cabaret big band fun of lead
single "2 Hearts" is as wonderfully camp as anything she has ever
done, though even that is topped by "The One", which follows in
her fine tradition of making songs capable of both breaking your
heart and shaking your rump.
The biggest compliment that can be paid to X is simply that it is
an album capable of gobbling up column inches regardless of the
popularity of or media interest in Kylie. National treasure she
may be, but she’s not about to start resting on her laurels.
--Chris Long
Find more music at the BBC ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/syn//albumreviews/-/music/ ) This link
will take you off in a new window
See more ( javascript:void(0) )
