Album- Kiss Me Once
Artist- Kylie Minogue
After celebrating 25 years in the music industry, Kylie
Minogue was definitely an artist finding herself at a major turning point in
her career. And rather than take the well-trodden route of music days past,
Kylie boldly changed things up, parting ways with her management and signing up
to Jay-Z led management company Roc Nation. As such, Kiss Me Once is an album
that aims to push Kylie Minogue into new and exciting territory, whilst maintaining
the classic sensibilities of her previous work. But is Kiss Me Once the album
that consumers will want today, or has Minogue created an album that will see her
musical days truly numbered?
Track 1- Into the
Blue
Lead single and album opener Into the Blue is a stomping
slice of electro pop that sees Kylie at her typical dance best, but with a
little more power in her music. The song finds the sultry songstress boldly
declaring how she is going to run free and really claim her independence, with
this message being packed around a delicious double whammy of a pop chorus. The
vocal performance is powerful with a clear tone and airy quality that sees
Kylie’s independent spirit soar. And whilst the shimmering synth production and
dance floor sensibility is signature Kylie, the stomping beat and lush string
arrangement propels the track into new and exciting territory. This is
definitely the best song to start this album campaign with, as it is a classic
in the making that also lyrically marks the singer’s new start in her career.
4/5
Track 2- Million
Miles
After the shimmering synths of the last track things are
changed up a little bit for Million Miles. With this song Kylie exclaims of
feelings of love as if she was whisked away to paradise, with the singer going
weak at the knees for her man. We are treated to another catchy pop tune, but this
time the tempo is at a more adrenaline inducing pace, and the songs sound is
backed by a flurry of sprightly guitar riffs that get you in a joyous mood.
Vocally Kylie is on fine form as she uses the airiness of her voice to great
effect, particularly within the middle section, and by the end you are in a
euphoric frame of mind just like the singer herself.
3.5/5
Track 3- I Was Gonna
Cancel
Produced by the producer of the moment (a.k.a. Pharrell Williams),
I Was Gonna Cancel is a funky, disco fuelled number that finds the singer in a
state of clarity, as she explains to this person that she was going to cancel,
but you just have to go for things in life even if you are unsure. What is nice
about this song is that the disco tinged beats are a signature Pharrell style
that is potentially a little bland, but the production has enough of a dance sheen
about it to still feel like we are listening to a true Kylie song. The vocal
performance is something that won’t appeal to everyone, with the singer
flitting between this soft style and shouty moments that is catchy but also annoying.
The lyrical quality is also a bit hit and miss, being catchy for some but clichéd
and bland for others, and so I Was Gonna Cancel is in my eyes a song that you will
just either love or hate.
3/5
Track 4- Sexy Love
Keeping with the disco feel of the previous track, Sexy Love
finds Kylie in a firmly flirtatious frame of mind, as she tells this person of
how cool they are when they walk into the room, and they should just give her
that sexy love that she craves. It is a cheeky lyrical message that is given a
smart pop sheen in terms of the instantly catchy chorus. The vocal performance
definitely elevates the songs catchy quality, with the layered style of the
performance giving the song this extra flavour of airiness that makes Kylie
come across as really exuberant, and just being a truly fun loving character.
The 80’s flavoured production with the stomping bass and shiny pop rhythms
gives the song a slight vintage style that harks back a little to the Kylie of
the past whilst still sounding quite current, and if she wants another party
single, then this might be a good choice.
4/5
Track 5- Sexercize
Co-written by Sia Furler, who also acts as the album’s
executive producer, Sexercize is a song that is all focused on Kylie in a
really sensual state, as she tells her man to work his body and make her feel
good. The concept is intriguing at first with the blend of sex and exercise,
but the lyrics quickly morph into an uncomfortable state of blindness. The
vocals also don’t have much impact within the song, with Kylie bringing less
character to the track and only sounding like she is having fun in the bridge.
The dubstep tones of the production also create a sound that just feels anti
climatic, and also feels like it is trying to follow a trend that doesn’t really
have as much appeal nowadays.
2.5/5
Track 6- Feels So
Good
A remake of the track ‘Inidana’ by Tom Aspaul, Feels So Good
finds us along the same vein of Kylie being in a really sensual frame of mind.
The song focuses on Kylie telling her man that it feels so good when he is so
close to her, and she just wants him to stay with her so she can feel his love.
The song is a smart and simple track with a tight lyrical structure that is
made all the more appealing by the breathy style of Miss Minogue’s vocals. What
Kylie does is make us believe in the song with her vocals, in a way that other
artists just wouldn’t have been able to pull off. Rising star MNEK does a great
job with the production, creating a smart blend of clattering electro rhythms
and snappy beats for a sound that builds in intensity and has you hooked from
the start, particularly in the way that the song has this sensual but also kind
of melancholic edge. It is a song that is classic and risk taking in different
ways, and a track that just pays off in every way.
3.5/5
Track 7- If Only
With If Only Kylie delves into more vulnerable, emotional
territory, as she is in this state of wishing for love and wistfully looking at
life, but believing that life and love won’t happen in these dreamlike, lovely ways.
The wistful, slightly melancholic feel of the lyrics is brought out brilliantly
by Kylie’s really light vocal tone, as she makes you believe that she is truly
a girl in a state of emotional turmoil. The only issue with the song is that
the heavy drum beats and grand sound of the production is a bit too brash, and
although towards the end the sound works with the power of the vocal and
flourishes of strings, over all things would have probably worked better on a
more simplistic level.
3/5
Track 8- Les Sex
After the wistfulness of the previous track we are
transferred back to more flirtatious and sensual territory with Les Sex. The
track finds Kylie telling this person of an array of things that they could do
and call what they are doing, with the song being centred around the labelling
of this relationship as ‘les love, les sex’. The lyrics are strong in the way
that they are slightly nonsensical but immediately catchy, with the pop hook
being irresistible. Kylie definitely works her magic in terms of vocals,
bringing out the songs cheeky tone very nicely with her switching between a
languid, airy vocal delivery and a brash, shout out style. The production gives
the song a groovy dance feel with the disco flavour and stomping beats, and
this song just feels like it is immediately going to be a fan favourite.
3.5/5
Track 9- Kiss Me Once
Title track Kiss Me Once focuses on Kylie in another state
of euphoria in which she declares how her and her baby have made it through the
good and bad times, and now she is ready to give him her all. The song smartly
builds up in power between the soft, airy verses and bold, dramatic chorus,
although in terms of immediate catchiness it doesn’t pack the same punch as
some other Kylie tracks. The vocal performance is one of the albums finer
moments in that we get to really hear Kylie’s full voice to nice effect, whilst
the production smartly blends thumping dance beats with glittery pop tones, for
a style that is grand yet simple and works within Kylie’s wheelhouse nicely,
creating a title track that works well.
3/5
Track 10- Beautiful
(with Enrique Iglesias)
The album’s only vocal collaboration, Beautiful also finds
the listener presented with Kiss Me Once’s only ballad. Teaming up with Latin
singer and heartthrob Enrique Iglesias, the track is a simple love song that
finds the two artists playing lovers who just tell each other that they think
they are so beautiful, and after all this time they still believe in their love
and see the other person as their soul mate. In ways the lyrics are clichéd,
but the purity of the message and the fact that the lyrics mean that the track doesn’t
shy away from being anything but a pure love song means that things actually
feel powerfully sweet and sincere. The chorus is instantly catchy, and although
the style of the production with the soft piano instrumentation and pulsating beats
doe’s edge towards being too dramatic, things are overall treated with a nice
level of finesse. The overall problem with this duet is the vocal performance,
as both Minogue and Iglesias are Auto Tuned to the point where they sound like
robots, and because of this you can never really invest in the songs emotional
essence. If the vocals weren’t so processed this actually might have been a
gorgeous duet, but as it is, this is just a mess of a song that shouldn’t have
made the album.
2.5/5
Track 11- Fine
Final track Fine is another shimmering pop tune that nicely
bookends the album in terms of having a similar freedom based sensibility as
the opening number. The song is the only track co-written by Kylie herself, and
simply finds the singer telling this person (and in a way herself) that
everything is going to be fine and they should just face their problems and
come out stronger. The simplicity of the chorus makes the song instantly catchy
and uplifting, and once again the singers airy vocal tone means that the songs
uplifting state is all the more palpable. The frenzied electro beats and
clinking rhythms creates an equally as uplifting pop sound that gets you in a euphoric
dance mood, and aside from the holding back of some use of Auto Tune being
needed, this is overall a great finish to the record.
3.5/5
Final Review
Kiss Me Once is a polished set of quite contemporary pop
tunes that finds Kylie Minogue in a state of pleasure and fun, whilst also
delving into her need for freedom and independence. Lyrically each of the
tracks are catchy in ways that are made even stronger by Minogue’s vocals, and
the dance production of the album is sophisticated and classic Kylie, but also
experiments with some modern sounds and ideas. Some of the songs do need work
here and there, and one or two tracks could have been cut, but all in all, Kiss
Me Once is both fresh and classic in a way that is just exciting and a pure
pleasure to listen to. What’s more, at the end of the day this also doesn’t just
feel like any collection of pop songs, but feels like an album that only Kylie
Minogue could pull off, and she pulls it off to really grand results.
8/10
Best Track- Into the
Blue
Worst Track-
Beautiful (with Enrique Iglesias)
No comments:
Post a Comment