funky does Kylie: "DISCO" (2020)

#comingsoon.... (once I've made a cup of tea)



00 All The Lovers
00 Get Outta My Way
00 Put Your Hands Up (If You Feel Love)
00 Closer
00 Everything Is Beautiful
00 Aphrodite
00 Illusion
00 Better Than Today
00 Too Much
00 Cupid Boy
00 Looking For An Angel
00 Can't Beat The Feeling
 
Fun(ky) fact... when I typed in "K" to Spotify it brought up Kate Bush first :o

SORRY KYLIE
 
08 All The Lovers - I don't remember liking this that much. I don't remember much of it at all really; I remember the song but not how/when it was released or whether it did well or whatever. I don't think I was really following her career at this point. I didn't think I cared for this album at all, but this is a great single and a great opener. I WILL say I think her vocal is a little phoned in and I do prefer Kylie when she's really owning the vocal, but the production here is great and the melody anthemic. Definitely should have been a single.
 
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07 Get Outta My Way - OK so I definitely do recognise this so I'm assuming it was a single, and it has more plays on Spotify than AML? Interesting. I think both of these songs don't really offer anything new, but they are both really pop-dance anthems. Very memorable and instant. So she's going for the HITZ on this album, which is interesting because I don't really feel that translated commercially (or did it and it totally passed me by?). We'll see how the rest of the album pans out.
 
05 Put Your Hands Up (If You Feel Love) - I was hoping this was going to be a cover/sample of PUT YOUR HANDS UP FOR DETROIT :D :disco: but sadly not:( OK so I'm not really feeling this because the songs are melding into one a bit now. I have moaned in the past that Kylie's albums are a little all over the place, whereas now I feel it's all a bit samey. This is like the other two, but not as good. I also don't feel this sound compliments her voice. But I don't hate it.
 
08 Closer - ooh this is good. More interesting. Like a Eurovision pop song, with it's eclectic instrumentation, and slow crescendo into something quite anthemic. I like the combination of the squelchy synths and the harpsichord effect, and soaring melody, and I think it's creative enough to allow her to do more with the vocal on this. I'm assuming this was NOT a single because I don't even recognise the title let alone the music, and maybe it was a bit too leftfield to be considered, but this is surely one of her more accomplished moments in the latter stage of her career, but I'd be curious what moopy thinks of this. It STANDS OUT. I'm not sure whether everyone would think it was for the right reasons though.
 
The sameyness is a common criticism of this album, Stuart Price executive produced the whole thing and there's definitely a sonic cohesiveness that not everyone enjoys. Maybe a bit of an overcorrection after the scattershot approach of X?
 
oh of COURSE it's Stuart Price! I can't totally hear it now. That can sometimes be a good and bad thing, let's see where she NETS OUT.
 
funky said:
05 Put Your Hands Up (If You Feel Love) - I was hoping this was going to be a cover/sample of PUT YOUR HANDS UP FOR DETROIT :D :disco: but sadly not:( OK so I'm not really feeling this because the songs are melding into one a bit now. I have moaned in the past that Kylie's albums are a little all over the place, whereas now I feel it's all a bit samey. This is like the other two, but not as good. I also don't feel this sound compliments her voice. But I don't hate it.
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The annoying thing about this one is that we knew that Nerina Pallot was writing for this album before it came out, and she did a live performance of (what ended up being) her OWN very good song called Put Your Hands Up - there was some brief confusion where people thought that was the song she'd done for Kylie because of the same title, but this was actually written by someone else and isn't particularly great :(
 
07 Everything Is Beautiful - the thing that's striking me from this album is that there is a real continuous sequence of ANTHEMIC songs. Like they're all memorable and strong melodically. Not saying they're all my bag, but you can't deny how strong the songs are - it's just the production which is a little too consistent. What's saving them at the moment is Closer and this one, because they've allowed a little variety. Closer being a bit manic, and this being mid-tempo, but not losing any of its strength melodically. I just want the production to be mixed up a little bit. But this is a nice diversion tempo wise at least. And her voice sounds good.
 
08 Aphrodite - OK I'm actually finding this album difficult to analyse, because as I said before I've criticised Kylie's lack of direction /cohesion on some of her albums, and here she is creating a VERY cohesive album and I'm just finding it too samey :D I probably wouldn't mind but 2010 pop was NOT my favourite era, with its reliance on heavy electro sounds and club beats in every pop song, and this album is positively DROWNING in synths. HOWEVER, here I am enjoying what is, yet again, another strong song. The chorus in particular here is fabulous. This feels like Kylie having a lot of fun. I think I'd go back to this too, it feels like a good discovery. The chorus just pops, I love how she sings it. Kylie does, usually tend to land hard on title tracks I've noticed...
 
I wasn't expecting you to be into the title track :o I find it very joyous, and it made a fantastic opener for the tour.
 
05 Illusion - this is giving me Red Blooded Woman vibes, with the production, I don't know why. I'm not sure if that's the reason but it's leaving me a little flat. I can't deny again that there's a strong song in there, but it might have been better with some more acoustic instruments. That bridge/breakdown with the violins was nice. It's all bit overly BLEEPY.
 
06 Better Than Today - OK I do recognise this, I assume it was a single. I can't decide if I like this or not. It's a bit nondescript in places, but the chorus is quite quirky, and at least she's mixed the tempo up a bit. I think there's better single choices on here though. I feel like this would start to annoy me after a couple of listens. But again, it feels like a strong melody and vocal.
 
I find Better Than Today a bit INSIPID and aimed at the hen party crowd, but it's the only real moment like that on the whole album so I'll allow it.
 
03 Too Much - the song title just writes its own review :eyes: it's all over the place! This is a kitcken sink song - Stuart Price threw everything at this and it's a mess. It's got a lot of gay anthem tropes in there, so I might be against the grain here, but there were so many songs around this time doing this sound and I just hated it. It's just NOISE to me! Sorry gang.
 
Too Much also had Calvin Harris and Jake Shears in the mix, along with Price. Too many cooks?
 
03 Cupid Boy - same review as above but x10 :D God I hate those heavy distorted synths in the chorus! This feels like a reject from MDNA or Rebel Heart. I was going to ZERO this but I think her voice sounds really strong here so I'm going to acknowledge that at least. The last two songs have been very similar and to be fair, they're still atypical to the album in their instant sound and anthemic quality, but everything just far from my choice of pop. I don't miss this pop era at all.
 
COB said:
Too Much also had Calvin Harris and Jake Shears in the mix, along with Price. Too many cooks?
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for me, yes. There's about 7 different ideas in that, and the following song. Interesting that for two BIG songs sonically, she/they shoved them together at the end of the album?
 
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The tour version also had a hot nudey projection show from whatever her Spanish boyfriend at the time was called :horny:
 
07 Looking For An Angel - this also sounds like a song written for Madonna. I appreciate the slight psychedelic influence in this. It looks like we're NOT going to get a musical diversion on this album, and I think that's a mistake, I think this album's songs are stronger than the sum of its parts, but maybe for different reasons. For once the cohesion is the problem, not the lack of it. ANYWAY, this is more in keeping with the first half of the album, and for that reason I like it.
 
I really like Looking For An Angel, there's a real sweetness to it. Not to keep banging on about the tour, but she did this as a double-bill with Eurythmics' There Must Be An Angel, while being flown across the crowd by a hunky dancer dressed as an angel. It was a MOMENT :disco:
 
06 Can't Beat The Feeling - the production is very busy again here, but it pulls together better than the two I didn't like. WHY is the chorus giving me Bucks Fizz vibes though :D there must be a melody sequence that is similar to one of theirs, is it Land Of Make Believe? I can't grasp it. I thought we might end with a BALLID but no, Kylie was giving no fucks on this album being wall to wall BANGERZ. Do I agree with that choice? Do I care? I think it's an interesting choice, and I suppose Kylie can get away with it, but I would have appreciated a bit of variety I think. Just a LITTLE BIT. We don't need to go all Impossible Princess and create three albums in one, but I could have done with a little less Stuart Price that's for sure.

Anyway overall this album was MUCH better than I expected. No unbelievable highs, but very little I really disliked.
 
COB said:
I really like Looking For An Angel, there's a real sweetness to it. Not to keep banging on about the tour, but she did this as a double-bill with Eurythmics' There Must Be An Angel, while being flown across the crowd by a hunky dancer dressed as an angel. It was a MOMENT :disco:
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OK I think THAT needs checking out...
 
And thanks to COB for being my special guest on this edition of Funky Does because all the other dozen or so fuckers who've been lurking for the past hour have jumped in NOT ONCE!
 
She also worked with Xenomania on this track which was relegated to bonus status but for me is the second best track after All The Lovers.

 
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