KATE BUSH

The Kick Inside is the sensational debut of an incredible artist. The then 19 year old Kate Bush surely paved the way for the likes of Bjork to rise and shine in the 90s. If Joni Mitchell debunked any sexist myths about a woman's ability to write great pop and rock music in the early part of the 70s, Kate Bush arriving at the tail end of the same decade popularized the notion of an artsy, theatrical, weird female artist.

It is often said that there is always room at the top and Kick Inside's strong opening is perhaps more proof. As a young artist only just making her way, Kate Bush manages to establish her own unique style in a decade full of prog rock heavyweights. You may trace influences but she doesn't imitate anybody in particular and already has a sound that can be distinctly recognized after listening to her songs a few times.

Indeed, if stunning opener Moving does remind you of some music, it might likely be some of Tori Amos's early work. ;) But Kate Bush writes far more unusual chord progressions and the notion of resemblances with Tori is soon dispelled. Her music is also evidently very atmospheric, without necessarily leaning heavily on Pink Floyd. Meanwhile, her vocal style is influenced by her idols Gabriel and Hammill but she also sings bel canto, so, once again, she sounds quite unlike anybody else.

And the beauty of Kate Bush's work lies in how this unusual combination - theatrical vocals, unusual piano chords and atmospheric arrangements - resolves most satisfyingly. Her music is not formally prog but it has many characteristics also found in prog that prog rock listeners would enjoy.

Kate Bush also seems to have a knack for writing a surefire pop lick. Kite for instance is a very catchy pop song while yet full of character. It was not however released as a single, being the B-side, instead, to the no.1 UK hit Wuthering Heights. A most unusual pop 'hit', that, mysterious, creepy and enchanting. The piano chords following the verse are so mesmerising that I can only hopelessly gush about their effect as I listen to it at the time of writing. It resolves into a more run of the mill chorus than Moving and the guitar coda is also more generic which might have aided the commercial success of this single.

Some other hallmarks of her music like the prominence of harps are also already evident. There is still some way to go yet for the development of fretless bass to approach its eventual importance in her sound. Also, on two songs, namely Saxophone Song and Man with the child in his eyes, she shuns her theatrical attack and goes for a mellow tone. She sounds very sincere in a Sandy Denny vein but a tad unremarkable with this approach. Not surprisingly, such a tone is nowhere in evidence by the time of The Dreaming. While Kate Bush's 'natural' voice is beautiful, it lacks presence and power so even if I get off sometimes on her overwrought theatrics, I find that more appealing and memorable.

Her trademark theatrics do help shore up the second half of the album. For it swiftly slides downhill post Wuthering Heights. It's not as if the songs suddenly start to stink. On the contrary, James and the Cold Gun for instance is a very catchy song and Feel It anticipates some aspects of her subsequent work. But Kate is unable to sustain the marvellous impression created by the first half - and it does set the bar really high.

The second half sounds more like an alternative Kick Inside wherein it is just a regular debut of a promising pop artist with some distinct stylistic aspects and the songs tend to resolve to safety rather than thrill. The two halves put together is a fairly schizophrenic experience and I am sure a lot of fans just avoid the second half altogether, even though it is decidedly not nearly that bad.

Because said inconsistency mars the impact of this album quite a bit, I cannot rate this album 5 stars. But it's a very strong 4 stars that I do give and has some of my favourite Kate Bush tracks (as well as that of, I am sure, many other fans).

Whenever I'm listening to some female vocalist with a high range without blatant R&B inflections like Kimbra or whatnot, others in hearing distance have this tendency to say "She sounds kinda like Bjork". Bjork, Bjork, Bjork. Granted, I dig her a lot, especially her Vespertine stuff, but Kate Bush was hitting unbelievable high notes without reverting to falsettos long before Bjork, and Kate wasn't exactly an 'under the radar artist'. She was big. And man did she have a voice!

She's also prog...in fact, proggy as hell during The Dreaming. It has all the credentials you could want, except for perhaps epic length tunes. Whatever, since this also boasts better lyrics than most of what the prog competition was dishing out at this time.

So, is this album a masterpiece? Yes. It's her most adventurous uncompromising vision, alternately challenging and difficult to deal with as it is beautiful and atmospheric, The Dreaming is an emotional roller coaster with her pipes providing a multitude of characters their unique voices. She coos, howls, screams, whispers and sometimes just sings really damn GOOD, often varying her styles within the same song. She never gets boring because there's just no way to tell where she's going next during the initial listen.

Then there's the tunes. Lots of interesting buggers here. Some, such as the opener, utilize seriously booming tribalistic drums, and time signatures are occasionally almost as adventurous as her voice. Musically there's a slew of various instruments popping up, but the songs never get to the point where anything is muddled. This stuff can be pretty weird, but it's always listenable, never overblown, noisy or simply irritating. There's some cool jazziness in "All The Love" and rock guitars in "Get Out Of My House", but what you won't find within this album is anything pandering to the early 80s style of commercial pop music. Her label managers must have collectively soiled their trousers when she co-produced and brought this wild collection of songs to their attention. And they're fantastic, even offering a bit of David Gilmour on the haunting "Pull Out The Pin". If I have any slightly negative thing to say about this recording, it would have to be that silly chapman stick usage. Yeah, they looked cool at the time, but wow do those things sound dated for this sort of music. It's alright though, since everything else is such a winner, and Kate is out of her mind at times on this thing...not something most singers could remotely get away with...but she does 'feral' and makes it cool.

To those who don't consider Kate Bush prog, check this album out. It may not be easy listening, but it's one interesting ride that never strays too far into weirdness. If you're not convinced after listening to its entirety, then I don't know what to say. Considering what much of the 70s greats were pumping out in the early 80s, with only a handful of those artists doing anything remotely progressive such as King Crimson, she should always be revered for keeping the creativity flag alive during those days. Nowadays she seems more acknowledged by the prog crowd than the alternative crowd, but man during her prime it was like she had hordes of various music geeks at her feet. Even if this didn't hit the popularity heights that the surrounding albums achieved, this puppy has aged well enough to become this bizarre classic that never gets old.

These two discs listed here (by me, actually) are officially a part of the box containing Kate's whole output up to The Sensual World, but I took the liberty of representing only the CD's of non-album material, as has done the library from where I borrowed this. So, we're dealing with RARITIES of Kate Bush! Hence I'm going to be more detailed than usual, because many of these tracks are hard to find elsewhere. The first five tracks are from 1980. 'The Empty Bullring' (B-side of Breathing 7") is a nice little song that sounds like the Lionheart album. 'Ran Tan Waltz' is just silly and annoying. 'Passing Through Air' (B-side of Army Dreamers 7") is quite OK but somehow feels half-baked as it repeats the chorus several times in its 2-minute length. 'December Will Be Magic Again' and 'Warm and Soothing' appeared as a season single in 1980, both fine tracks if not very memorable. The latter reminds of 'In the Warm Room' from Lionheart.

The Donovan-cover 'Lord of the Reedy River' (B-side of Sat in Your Lap 7"): WOW! Is it a pipe organ or what that accompanies her sensual vocals? A magical and very unique track. "I fell in love with a swan..." Then she switches to French: 'Ne T'en Fui Pas' (1982) is a more modern track featuring the soft sound of Fairlight (compare 'Mother Stands for Comfort' in Hounds Of Love); it sounds like David Sylvian's band JAPAN. 'Un Baiser d'Enfant' is naturally a translation of 'The Infant Kiss' from Never For Ever.

The melancholic 'Under the Ivy' (1985 as the next two) is very beautiful and atmospheric in its spacey, piano-centred arrangement, but 'Burning Bridge' goes the exact opposite, being a monotonous drum-machine rubbish not even saved by the merry vocals. 'My Lagan Love' is among the highlights, a folky a cappella number. Kate's vocals sound just fantastic on their own. 'The Hands of Cabin Boy' is a traditional, Kate's arrangement contains only an even layer of synth background. Another highlight! 'Not This Time' (1986) is a heavily overproduced and hollow pop ballad; 'Be Kind to My Mistakes' works better with its beat reminding of early Talk Talk. The Lovely 'Walk Straight...' has appeared in Sensual World CD.

The second CD has less highlights or new acquaintances to offer. 'Ken' was quite bad. 'One Last Look...' is a 1-minute orchestral instrumental that feels like it's a part of some larger work (sadly the information about this disc was completely missing from the copy I borrowed, as were the most of information about the first disc: the B-side info above is from a book I own). The Whole Story compilation - which was among my first LP's in 1986 - included both the new version of 'Wuthering Heights' and 'Experiment IV'; they have stood the time quite well, especially the latter. Then come the four live tracks of On Stage EP (1979). Nice but unnecessary if you have her first two albums. 'James and the Cold Gun' however is notably longer with its superb guitar solo.

Those who were young vinyl buyers in the 80's may remember the maxi-singles -- which I think are among the most stupid things in pop music. All those extended mixes, ouch! Sadly I have to say that in the case of Hounds Of Love -era Kate Bush they are utterly crap compared to the real album versions. For example 'Cloudbusting (Organon Mix)' totally messes up the song's drama. All in all I was extremely pleased to finally hear many KB songs for the very first time, even if the true highlights were limited (and some of them I had already heard elsewhere, e.g. in Hounds Of Love CD edition).

Uncanny how she, Reminds him of his little lady, Capacity to give him all he needs, Just like his wife before she freezed on him...

"Never For Ever" is Kate Bush's third studio release that eventually made an impact on the charts after a slow start, hitting the UK number one, the first for a female artist at the time. It begins with the mighty 'Babooshka' that is wonderful to hear and even more wonderful eye candy on the film clip. The Kate seen on the 'Babooshka' clip was the goddess, Kate at her sexiest in Amazon Warrior attire, strangling cellos, and wielding a mighty sword in a glowing light; images that are indelible to the Australian conscious on rock shows such as "Countdown". The song itself is a real oddity for the charts, concerning a woman who wanted to test her husband, sending him letters signed Babooshka; "Uncanny how she, Reminds him of his little lady, Capacity to give him all he needs, Just like his wife before she freezed on him..."

Other songs on the album pale in comparison to the singles on the album, as always, but at least on "Never For Ever" there is a consistent quality and innovative experimental approach; 'Delius (Song Of Summer)' is a weird piece with progressive structure, based on the English classical composer, 'Blow Away (For Bill)' is a piano power ballad with delicate vocals that build heavier (a song dedicated to the late Bill Duffield, killed on a tour, and his death is linked to the demise of music icons Minnie Riperton, Keith Moon, Sandy Denny, Sid Vicious and Buddy Holly), and 'All We Ever Look For' has a jaunty rhythm and odd vocal theatrical style. It ends with a footsteps effect and weird sounds like someone opening a series of doors concealing secrets.

'Egypt' has an unusual chiming musical accompaniment and lyrics about pharaohs, Egyptian artifacts, and how she is in love with Egypt. It has an effective dramatic finale, building with bizarre sounds and menace, until a final keyboard solo. 'Wedding List', inspired by "The Bride Wore Black" movie, overstays its welcome but has some of Kate's oddest vocals and truly ominous musical style. Violins permeate the album but definitely are a component of 'Violin', with some more theatrical vox, with Kate squeaking, snarling and crooning as the mood hits her. She sounds a bit like Lene Lovich here moreso than most of her compositions. 'Infant Kiss' is a song inspired by the movie "The Innocents", the story of a governess frightened by her feelings for a young man possessed by the spirit of an adult. 'Night Scented stock' is a very short thing less than a minute, that almost feels like part of the previous track. It is basically a cappella vocal intonations multi layered and harmonious.

'Army Dreamers' is another killer single, hitting number 6 in UK, with a weird waltz style unlike anything on the charts at the time. Kate uses her famous chromatic vocals, sliding effortlessly up the music scale, following her own melody as the music bounces along. The lyrics are based on how war effects those embroiled in it, taken from the perspective of the mother who grieves for her son, killed but not in action, rather in the senseless practice of military manoeuvres. She is overcome by guilt over whether she had the power to prevent it. The film clip is memorable with Kate in army gear and camouflage makeup, culminating in soldiers being blown away by grenades.

'Breathing' is a great way to close the album as it was another single, hitting UK number 6, and one of my favourite vocal performances from Kate. The fretless bass and piano holds a disjointed time sig. The lyrics are potent from the perspective of a foetus recoiling from her mother's smoking that is slowly killing it. Also it focusses on the awareness of the foetus, who becomes alarmed by the nuclear fallout of a nuclear holocaust. We hear the voices of some personnel that enhances this theme, and the mood is bleak and questions is there something to breathe when the air is polluted. The film clip is one of Kate's best showing her rolling encased in a bubble, a symbolic foetus ready to emerge.

It ends this album with a dynamic track, and overall this is one of Kate's most consistent albums after two decent studio releases. I believe this was the beginning of greatness for Kate who was showing that she was not just a singles artist. The other songs on this album are also creative and worth a listen. 4 stars is a fair rating, and after this Kate was on the cusp of releasing her very best proggiest albums with "The Dreaming" and "Hounds of Love".

Hammer Horror, Wow... and a bunch of other tracks.

Kate Bush's follow up to her quality debut always seems to be swept under the carpet in favour of her singles chart success and her famous classics such as "Hounds of Love" and "The Dreaming". However, Lionheart" still has some worthy songs to seek out. As with all of Kate's earlier releases, her voice is ultra high soprano and very theatrical, and this is something that will either draw in a listener of turn them off. There is no disputing the uniqueness of the vocals and this feels like art rock more than prog.

It begins with a poppy sound and pounding rhythms in 'Symphony in blue', and builds to a more creative track 'In search of Peter Pan' that has a peculiar time sig and dramatic vox. 'Wow' is one of the singles that I was not all that impressed with watching it on her DVD, but it sounds great on this album among the other tracks. It is quite a quirky song for the charts but somehow reached number 14 in the UK top 20. The album reached number 6 in the UK charts because of songs such as this. It really struck a chord with the late 70s music industry. Kate was so original and compelling that people could not resist her wild compositions.

Some of the songs here do nothing for me at all such as 'Don't push your foot on the heartbrake', and occasionally 'Oh England my Lionheart' has some dull moments, though I don't mind the Medieval Elizabethan music style. The inconsistency of the album is the problem here. Midway through the rock disappears and we have a quiet reflective Kate. 'Fullhouse' is a piano-driven song with weird time sig, Kate's vox are all over the place, and it builds to a strange rock melody. 'In the warm room' is another piano and vocal ballad, with some beautiful melodies and a rather ethereal quality. 'Kashka from Bagdad' has more piano, and builds with bass and percussion, but this is the third quiet mood piece in a row. Thankfully it does have a stronger section in the chorus, but this is a very dreamy album bookended by heavy rock. 'Coffee Homeground' is the final straw for me, a detestable piece of rollicking cabaret fluff, where Kate tries too hard to be quirky, but it sounds like an awful drunken theatrical show tune.

'Hammer Horror' is the towering huge hit from the album that rocketed up the charts to number 17 in Australia, but dwindled at 44 in the UK, perhaps they just didn't appreciate the quirkiness of it. It was an affectionate tribute to Hammer Horror Films, of which I am a fan, and the story concerns the Hunchback of Notre Dame actor who becomes haunted by the original actor. The single was blessed with a rather powerful film clip that was often played on Australian TV show "Countdown" and that would have helped boost its success. I remember this Aus rock show had a fondness for Kate's clips, 'Wuthering Heights' was played to death showing her extreme agile balletic romp in the forest, 'Hammer Horror' had the odd ballet in the dark, and 'Babooshka' was the goddess, Kate at her sexiest in Amazon Warrior attire, strangling cellos, and wielding a mighty sword in a glowing light. These images are indelible to the Australian conscious when it comes to Kate Bush.

The album did not make an impact but the singles and film clips were unforgettable. This album has some striking moments but a lot of mediocre songs tarnish the final product. I still love 'Hammer Horror' but I would prefer to hear this song on a compilation with other treasures that have to wade through this album to hear it. 3 stars for the innovative moments and for Kate's amazing vocal style, but the best was yet to come.

The Ninth Wave is the side to listen to for the proggiest Kate Bush!

Kate Bush's self-written and self-produced "Hounds of Love" is renowned for the two powerhouse singles that I loved to hear often in the 80s and also admired the innovative MTV clips to go with them. 'Running Up That Hill' ("and make a deal with God"), is a wonderful way to open the album, with a strong rhythmic foundation and majestic melody. Kate sounds terrific with her vocal range stretched to the fore. She injects so much passion on this album, and really hits her peak with these two songs. The other single is of course 'Cloudbusting' ("everytime it rains you're here in my head, like the sun coming out?") that is driven by a violin and cello section with marching percussion. It is a very different approach for the songstress and stands out as a highlight of her career.

The other songs are heavier in some ways, especially on side one of the vinyl that seems to have a clear atmosphere distinctly different than side 2. The poppier side of Kate is here with 'Hounds of Love' and 'The Big Sky' and I am not a real fan of this style; all melody and no prog, though there is some delightful fretless bass. However, the album really takes off on side 2 known as 'The Ninth Wave', with the power ballad 'And Dream of Sheep', with beautiful echoed vocals, seagulls and improvised piano lines.

The dark string orchestration of 'Under Ice' is haunting, along with Kate's elongated vocals and multilayered chorus vocals. The lyrics are rather chilling and akin to the sort of theme explored on her latest 2012 release "50 Words For Snow". It ends with a voice saying "wake up" and this is followed by another voice pleading for the child to awaken at the intro of 'Waking The Witch'. This one really is creepy, the narrations and the eerie effects are haunting, and then when the demonic voice begins and the bizarre music clanks out, it is terrifying. This is as dark as Kate would get and it is a place she rarely ventures into, but when she does it is disturbing.

Next is 'Watching You Without Me', that has an Oriental Eastern feel and features some weird backmasked vox, and a Japanese chiming melody. An experimental approach is here using broken sound waves and unique instrumentation. 'Jig of life' is also unique with a distinct Irish jig sound with violins slicing out a joyous melody. The vox are decidedly dark and I like the violin soloing section; sounding very Celtic in nature.

'Hello Earth' is a longer song at 6:13, that features a nice moderate tempo, sweeping orchestra and Kate's melancholy vocals. The beat breaks a few times to allow an angelic choir to chime in, without a time sig for a while and then the piano and cello comes in with Kate crying out "Hello Earth". It closes with more choral vocal harmonies, keyboard ambience and Kate whispering seductively.

The album ends with an upbeat song 'The Morning Fog', with fretless bass, Japanese piano sounds and odd percussion. Kate's voice is mixed to the front "I tell my mother, I tell my father, I tell my lover, I tell my brother", and she is also heard on multi tracked backing vox. The acoustic guitar is delightful, and this is nice and short before it wears out its welcome.

Overall this is an album of 2 halves. The second half is definitely Kate at her proggiest and it is a shame the whole album was not as innovative. The 2 singles on side one are the only things of note on 'Hounds of Love' side, but 'The Ninth Wave' side 2 is brilliant from beginning to end. I would rate this as one of Kate Bush's triumphs and it certainly made an impact back in 1985, and continues to be hailed as a masterpiece.

An early Kate Bush album (her second, I believe) and a good one at that. Top songs are "Babooshka", "Delius", "Infant Kiss", "Army Dreamers", and "Breathing" all of which are on my Kate Bush playlist on my Ipod. Her voice was in it's ascendency in 1980, when NEVER FOR EVER was released, and had no where to go but up with followup albums such as THE DREAMING, HOUNDS OF LOVE, and THE SENSUAL WORLD. This is not my favorite Kate Bush album but it is one of her best. An easy 4 stars for the woman with the angelic voice of prog music

After a long hiatus, Kate Bush returned in 2005 with a double cd called AERIAL. I was very excited to listen to it after I purchased it. ANd then I was dissapointed. AERIAL just never caught on with me. Too mellow I think. "A Coral Room" is the best thing here, but nothing else brings anything to the 2 discs. Maybe if it had been culled to a one disc cd it would have come out better. I see there are many 5 star ratings for AERIAL on this site, but not for me. It is good but not great. I prefer THE DREAMING and HOUNDS OF LOVE much more as well as THE SENSUAL WORLD.

From 1989, THE SENSUAL WORLD is one of my favorite Kate Bush releases. I really enjoy many of the songs here: "The Sensual World", "The Fog", "Heads Were Dancing", and "This Womans Work" are some of the best things Kate Bush has ever put out. Using the Trio Bulgarka adds a wonderful twist to the music. As fresh as it was years ago upon it's release, THE SENSUAL WORLD is up there with THE DREAMING and HOUNDS OF LOVE in Kate's discography. 45 minutes of great tunes from a fine lady and voice of prog rock. Easily 4 stars, not quite 5.

HOUNDS OF LOVE is truly an 80's release but what a wonderful one it is. One of the best she released alnong with THE DREAMING and THE SENSUAL WORLD. There is not a bad song on the entire cd. While the production and synths scream 1980's it doesn't really matter. Kate Bush and her pure voice would sound great singing with a garbage can over her head standing in a cave. This is her best and all Proggers should own a copy. From the 1st lady of song. I can't quite give this 5 stars but 4 and a half are pretty darn close to that.