Review of TRS

[Andrea@hivnet.ubc.ca]

This review appeared in the December 17, 1993 edition of Xtra West. 
Reprinted here with permission from the author (Luke Sandford) but not the
publication.
The article has a small b/w inset of the album cover.  No other photos.

The Red Shoes

Kate Bush

(EMI Music Canada)

Her new album has finally arived and while it's definately worth a listen,
it's no masterpiece:  fans will find sufficient echoes of Kate's
illustrious past to maintain their devotion, and more casual listeners
should appreciate Kate's experimental ways and rich '90's sound.  But buyer
beware:  this is Kate's most commercial and mainstream recording to date
and therin lie both its strengths and shortcomings.

Backed by an all-star cast, Kate offers up twelve tracks which dwell
primarily on the themes of break-up and loss.

If one line could epitomize the album's painful focus, it would be the
refrain ("Just being alive/It can really hurt") (sic) which appears in both
You're the One and Moments of Pleasure [my partner points out to me this is
actually incorrect - Andrea], the album's tour de force.  What saves the
album from despair is Kate's evocation of hope through humour, and her
refusal to succumb to self-pity (confusion, perhaps, but never self-pity). 
Eat the Music, with its calypso groove, has an exotic carefree quality and
some great lyrics ("He's a woman at heart/And I love him for that/ Let's
split him open") (sic).  And the single Rubberband Girl, all bouncy and
bright and catchy, would seem to be Kate's paeon to resilience in the wake
of solitude.

Although lacking the other-worldliness of past efforts, The Red Shoes is
sonically gorgeous, featuring extravagant instrumentation, superb vocals,
and top-notch guest musicians (Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck almost make up
for David Gilmour's absence; and Nigel Kennedy is sublime).  But could
someone please tell me what Prince is doing here?  Why Should I Love You?
is half-hearted and flat, and His Royal Badness sounds like a fish out of
water.

The Red Shoes has been steadily endearing itself; it's a qualified success,
but a success nonetheless.

End.


Andrea.
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Strange party, this.  There's hundreds of people here but I can't see
anyone, nobody's talking and I keep getting handed these little notes.

Andrea Custy                                             
Andrea@hivnet.ubc.ca
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