So what of Kate Bush" Aerial amounts to 2005's biggest genuine comeback (save, perhaps, Kraftwerk's Minimum-Maximum); not just that, but it's one of the year's most anticipated releases. Kate's stock have never been higher - aside from The Futureheads taking "Hounds Of Love" into the Top 10 for a second time and stating Kate as a major influence, plenty of other artists have gone on record speaking of their love for her. People like Alison Goldfrapp and Bjork probably didn't surprise anyone when they said this, but what about Outkast's Big Boi" He's the NORMAL one in that duo. You'd expect Andre 3000 to love kate Bush, just because he's like that. But Big Boi" He's basically a typical rapper. If it weren't for association with Andre, it'd be like imagining 50 Cent singing along to "The Man With The Child In His Eyes" while doing the washing up. A not entirely unattractive image, I'm sure you'll agree.
Aerial was a pretty secretive project until just before it was released, which is odd considering just what a star Bush has been in the past (and, in a lot of ways, still is). But, in November, the details were laid bare. A double album, one side containing a handful of typical off-centre pop songs, one side containing an ambitious song cycle.
As a general rule, I don't like double albums. I simply don't think any more than a handful of artists can sustain the necessary consistency for a good album over more than 80 minutes. Stevie Wonder managed it, sure, but when the Foo Fighters start trying it, you know you're in for a disappointment. Even so, I won't lie - I was looking forward to this more than any other album this year. I'm not the only one I know, either.
The first single, "King Of The Mountain", raised (my/our) expectations further. If anyone was expecting Kate to have lost her touch in the 12 years she's been gone, they were to be sorely disappointed - this tune is vintage Bush. A quivering, half-mumbled vocal (in homage to Elvis, presumably) set over inventive drums, and later, a dry-as-hell guitar part that almost forces the song into reggae territory.
But, from there, A Sea Of Honey, the pop side, goes a little haywire. I've defended Kate time and time again over the years when people have called her out for being too weird, but even I cannot deny that is completely and utterly batshit. Musically, it's quite nice, but you can't get around the fact that this is a song about a man who likes maths. And yes, Kate sings Pi - TO 112 DECIMAL PLACES. Weirdest song of the year" Other Kate fanatics have tried to defend this track by claiming it as proof that she could sing the phonebook and make it sound good, or that it's intended as to poke fun at people who've said that in the past. But, given that it's neither funny nor particularly impressive, I'm going to dismiss this track as a failed experiment.
The rest of the album does, bar one track, recover and maintain consistency. You've got the bluesy, almost Fleetwood Mac-esque "How To Be Invisible", an enjoyable tune with a real groove to it, and more reggae-flecked guitars, and the totally electronic "Joanni", which focuses on the Joan of Arc and boasts one of Kate's best melodies, as well as one of the record's funniest moments - Kate singing in a bizarre imitation of a deep, tribal war cry. Both of those are highlights, but then you've got "Bertie", a song dedicated to her son. It's nice enough as background music, but it errs on the wrong side of boring, and it's certainly not as touching as she'd have imagined. In fact, it reveals a potential chink in Kate's armour - the album's only song that doesn't follow a concept of some sort is probably its worst. The bottom line is that an artist as compelling and unique as Kate should never be responsible for boring, background music. on those grounds, "Bertie" is another failure.
And then there's the apparent centerpiece, "Mrs. Bartolozzi". On the surface, this might have been as mad as (the chorus consists of little more than the words 'washing machine'), but the dark, intimate piano suggests there's more to it than that. On closer inspection, there is - the song reveals itself to be about a trapped and disaffected housewife, pining for excitement in her life. At the start of the second verse, the washing machine itself turns into something else in her head.
Tracklist for Aerial:
Disc I
1. King Of The Mountain
2. π
3. Bertie
4. Mrs. Bartolozzi
5. How To Be Invisible
6. Joanni
7. A Coral Room
Disc II
1. Prelude
2. Prologue
3. An Architect's Dream
4. The Painter's Link
5. Sunset
6. Aerial Tal
7. Somewhere In Between
8. Nocturn
9. Aerial
Aerial was a pretty secretive project until just before it was released, which is odd considering just what a star Bush has been in the past (and, in a lot of ways, still is). But, in November, the details were laid bare. A double album, one side containing a handful of typical off-centre pop songs, one side containing an ambitious song cycle.
As a general rule, I don't like double albums. I simply don't think any more than a handful of artists can sustain the necessary consistency for a good album over more than 80 minutes. Stevie Wonder managed it, sure, but when the Foo Fighters start trying it, you know you're in for a disappointment. Even so, I won't lie - I was looking forward to this more than any other album this year. I'm not the only one I know, either.
The first single, "King Of The Mountain", raised (my/our) expectations further. If anyone was expecting Kate to have lost her touch in the 12 years she's been gone, they were to be sorely disappointed - this tune is vintage Bush. A quivering, half-mumbled vocal (in homage to Elvis, presumably) set over inventive drums, and later, a dry-as-hell guitar part that almost forces the song into reggae territory.
But, from there, A Sea Of Honey, the pop side, goes a little haywire. I've defended Kate time and time again over the years when people have called her out for being too weird, but even I cannot deny that is completely and utterly batshit. Musically, it's quite nice, but you can't get around the fact that this is a song about a man who likes maths. And yes, Kate sings Pi - TO 112 DECIMAL PLACES. Weirdest song of the year" Other Kate fanatics have tried to defend this track by claiming it as proof that she could sing the phonebook and make it sound good, or that it's intended as to poke fun at people who've said that in the past. But, given that it's neither funny nor particularly impressive, I'm going to dismiss this track as a failed experiment.
The rest of the album does, bar one track, recover and maintain consistency. You've got the bluesy, almost Fleetwood Mac-esque "How To Be Invisible", an enjoyable tune with a real groove to it, and more reggae-flecked guitars, and the totally electronic "Joanni", which focuses on the Joan of Arc and boasts one of Kate's best melodies, as well as one of the record's funniest moments - Kate singing in a bizarre imitation of a deep, tribal war cry. Both of those are highlights, but then you've got "Bertie", a song dedicated to her son. It's nice enough as background music, but it errs on the wrong side of boring, and it's certainly not as touching as she'd have imagined. In fact, it reveals a potential chink in Kate's armour - the album's only song that doesn't follow a concept of some sort is probably its worst. The bottom line is that an artist as compelling and unique as Kate should never be responsible for boring, background music. on those grounds, "Bertie" is another failure.
And then there's the apparent centerpiece, "Mrs. Bartolozzi". On the surface, this might have been as mad as (the chorus consists of little more than the words 'washing machine'), but the dark, intimate piano suggests there's more to it than that. On closer inspection, there is - the song reveals itself to be about a trapped and disaffected housewife, pining for excitement in her life. At the start of the second verse, the washing machine itself turns into something else in her head.
Tracklist for Aerial:
Disc I
1. King Of The Mountain
2. π
3. Bertie
4. Mrs. Bartolozzi
5. How To Be Invisible
6. Joanni
7. A Coral Room
Disc II
1. Prelude
2. Prologue
3. An Architect's Dream
4. The Painter's Link
5. Sunset
6. Aerial Tal
7. Somewhere In Between
8. Nocturn
9. Aerial
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