50 WORDS FOR SNOW

Seven songs "set against a background of falling snow".

The soft Chamber Pop stylings of a matured Kate Bush. With age, comes a warmth to her vocals, though her range is still impeccable. An album for cold months. An album for solitude and reflection.

For those most familiar with and, understandably, most drawn to Bush's early works, this is a far different focus. Beauty as we know her to bring, as well as those ominous and mysterious moments that are inexplicably her yet also alien--see "Lake Tahoe" for ethereal, classical vocals over quiet piano.

Even in a quieted, reflective mood, we get daring and haunting compositions. It's strange and exciting in ways that most (borderline) ambient works lack (to my tastes). Where this general atmosphere is paused briefly is the album single "Wild Man", which is an upbeat, even rockin', yet minimal song with some of the more interesting vocals on the album (the refrain features close-knit backing vox performed by Amen Corner's Andy Fairweather Low).

Speaking of album features, Elton John appears on "Snowed in at Wheeler Street", steady and melancholic. I find him to be an appropriate match for her, especially on a track like this. "9/11 in New York / I took your photograph"(?!). Stephen Fry appears "as Prof. Joseph Yupik", a soft poetic performance on the title track, listing the titular "50 Words for Snow" (not the most inspired song, but it's good). And throughout the album, the featured drummer is Steve Gadd, who really helps hold the album together--surprising this is the first studio album of hers on which he's appeared haha, aside from his appearance on her other 2011 release, the remix album Director's Cut.

The final personal highlight is "Misty" (it's always been my favorite track here), and, to reiterate, "Wild Man" is very worth the listen.

True Rate: 3.5/5.0

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