Re: Review of TRS

["Renee Rosen" <lilitu@cjnetworks.com>]

On 25 Jul 97 at 20:23, Billy Kutulas wrote:
(review not by him, cut for space's sake)
> > "The Red Shoes," Kate Bush 
> >  Columbia   ****
>   A good album by most standards, Kate Bush's "The Red Shoes" is
>   perhaps the 
> year's biggest disappointment.  

Wow, a review I agree with, though I actually disagreed with him on 
the choices of songs that he thought were bad in some cases

>   After 15 years of cult status but only lukewarm mainstream success
>   (in 
> America, at least), perhaps Ms. Bush decided to make a run at the
> masses.
> 
>   That would explain the improbable guest contributions of Eric
>   Clapton, Prince 
> and Jeff Beck, the straightforward lyrics and the more generic
> rhythms and song structures.  Also, Ms. Bush often reins in her
> four-octave vocal here.  

Again, agreed, though I thought the guest artists were all fairly 
suited, at least in terms of their status (after all, she's 
mainstream in England and Europe). I'd rather she work with 
others--I'd love a duet between her and David Sylvian, for instance, 
or work with someone more "experimental" like Steven Stapleton of 
Nurse with Wound or with one of the more creative electronica types, 
but it's Kate, and she tends to pick talented musicians to work with, 
regardless of their styles.
 
>   "The Red Shoes" is no common pop album, however.  (Ms. Bush is so
>   endowed with
> imagination she could never be mundane.)  So if fans can get over
> the heartbreak of her somewhat compromised integrity, they can feast
> on fine typically atypical tracks.
> 
>   "Eat the Music" is an uplifting song, ripe with seductive
>   metaphors of fruit, 
> love and life.  "Rubberband Girl" is likewise upbeat, a
> full-throttle, humorous celebration of coping.

Hmm I like "Eat the Music" a lot, but "Rubberband Girl" is only OK--I 
think it's a good song, but it's like a pale imitation of songs like 
"Hounds of Love"--she's covered this style before and done it much, 
much better.
 
>   Those tracks notwithstanding, the album is dark and reflective,
>   and Ms. Bush 
> is excellent at conveying such moods.
> 
>   On "Big Stripey Lie," for instance, she infuses an air of outrage
>   into a 
> rumbling mix.

"Big Stripey Lie" was one of my favorites when I first got it as the 
b-side to "Rubberband Girl" before the album came out--it made me 
really look forward to the style of the new album. Even when I had 
the album at first, I totally loved it--it was so different. Now the 
novelty has worn off for me, and I'm not so fond of it, though I do 
respect her for trying something different.

  "Top of the City" and "Moments of Pleasure" are
> grandstands of disquieting emotion.  Meanwhile, mournful, mysterious
> declarations on the smoky "And So Is Love" are framed nicely by the
> restless shuffle of rhythm and Clapton's flavorful guitar licks.

These are some of my favorites, except perhaps "And So Is Love"--I'd 
have mentioned "You're the Only One" instead. It's kind of ironic, 
but my favorites on the CD are the more mainstream (such as these 
songs) and the least mainstream ("Big Stripey Lie," though I'm not so 
fond of it as I used to be). 

>   As for the Prince collaboration:  The two are geniuses, but their
>   styles are 
> incompatible, so "Why Should I Love You?" seems unfinished and lost
> between their respective styles.

Hmm, I liked "Why Should I Love You?" but I realize I am in the 
minority here. 

>   Worse are the half-baked "The Song of Solomon" (unenhanced by Ms.
>   Bush's 
> repeated use of mild profanity) and the eminently uninteresting
> "Lily."

I've got to agree with him on "Song of Solomon"--the profanity really 
seems forced and unnatural to me (though I'm sure that Kate can tell 
people to fuck off with the best of them *grin*). Profanity doesn't 
offend me in music, but when it seems fake,  it's grating. At any 
rate, I was really disappointed in this track, since Song of Solomon 
is my favorite book of the Bible, and Kate is such an expert in 
erotic tracks (like the title track of "The Sensual World") that I 
was really disappointed in how unerotic this track is.

As for "Lily," I can't see why you could call it emminently 
uninteresting. Of course, part of its appeal to me could be the 
magickal references in the song, which is something of interest to 
me. (Please, no long debates now whether or not she is a Witch or 
Pagan--all we know on this is that 1) she's referred to such imagery 
in her music before (along with other religious and spiritual 
imagery) and 2) some of her fans are Pagans and want to see her as a 
Pagan too.) Perhaps if you don't share these interests, you might 
find this song dull.

>   "Constellation of the Heart" is the worst of all--a pointedly
>   mainstream song 
> with a ridiculous group vocal and a hideously bland groove.

I would have to agree with this assessment--it's the worst on the 
album! The lyrics are so trite--something I usually wouldn't say 
about Kate's lyrics.

>   "The Red Shoes" is Ms. Bush's worst album, but it's still pretty
>   good.  

Agreed. If it had been a debut album by a new artist, I bet it would 
have been treated much differently, especially on this group. It's 
one of those albums that you have to listen to like it's by a group 
you know nothing about, instead of being the latest release by one of 
your favorites. It's hard to do--I still don't do it with this 
album--and it's still the Kate album I listen to the least, even 
after Lionheart (which would have been a much better album had she 
had more time to make it in and perhaps used some of the demo songs 
on it instead of the ones she chose).

Renee
lilitu@cjnetworks.com
http://www.cjnetworks.com/~lilitu