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> KM94 at 25 ● The Industry Celebrates
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pippa
post Sep 19 2019, 06:37 PM
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Lets Get To It, to me, is the only one that works in the KM94 style.
It is really fabulous.
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Liam.k.
post Sep 19 2019, 10:26 PM
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MyFizzyPop Blog: Kylie Minogue - Kylie Minogue (25th Anniversary Celebration)
Posted 21 hours ago by Myfizzypop



QUOTE
For me, the return of Kylie Minogue was one of the most important pop events of 1994. Following a five year stint with writer-producers Stock, Aitken and Waterman - a collaboration which spawned four chart toppers, six number two smashes, a further six top ten hits and another four top twenty placements - Ms Minogue was entering uncharted waters and releasing an album that was her declaration of independence. Free to work with other writers and producers, it seemed that the pop star relished her freedom to create an album that was able to explore different genres and sounds. At the time it was rumoured that she was working with everyone from the likes of Prince to Primal Scream (and, of course, the press being the press, romantically linked to every single one of them). What this taught an avid Kylie fan like myself was that in the 20 months between music releases, Kylie still had the power to command stories and speculation in the media. Whether it was unfounded rumours that the studio sessions were a disaster or that big names were being used just to replace S/A/W, Kylie got column inches everytime she was spied at the studios - and there was a burgeoning sense of anticipation about what these studio visits would produce. Time and hindsight has taught us that the studio sessions were a time of experimentation for Kylie, her collaborators and the record label - to blossom into the next stage of her career required bold risks and something different, yet still keeping the essence of her appeal which had won over millions of fans. It was a tricky tightrope to walk and an audacious path to follow, yet it was one that she pulled off splendidly. Her transformation into post-PWL Kylie meant her career was sustainable beyond the hit factory - and that is why this album felt so vital.

Many people quite rightly see the four singles from Kylie's third album, Rhythm of Love, as a turning point for the pop princess. Better The Devil You Know, Step Back In Time, What Do I Have To Do and Shocked are known as the golden quartet - pop songs so fine that each should have been number one for a month. What these represented, however, were the halcyon days of the partnership between S/A/W and Kylie; a moment when all involved leaned into the strengths and musical desires of the other, yielding the optimum results. It is the less successful Let's Get To It album that followed which gave me better hints as to what Kylie's next musical steps might be. She exerted more creative control by co-writing some of the songs and steering towards a different sound. Word Is Out is far more seductive and sensuous than people gave it credit for, whilst getting Brothers In Rhythm to mix the single version of Finer Feelings was a stroke of genius - and yielded a partnership that would continue into Kylie Minogue (the album) and beyond. There is no denying that the partnership of Steve Anderson and Dave Seaman shaped Kylie's fifth studio album, making it a beautifully expressive and eclectic body of work. They worked on four tracks (either writing and/or producing) leaving plenty of scope for other artists to sally forth with equally evocative and shimmering interpretations of the nu-Kylie sound. By the time the first single and album release dates were announced, there was a tangible sense of excitement about the album with whispers that this might be her finest and most critically acclaimed moment to date. The wait for the reveal was almost unbearable...

BBC Radio One grabbed the first play of lead single Confide In Me and I sat listening, utterly transfixed. The dramatic opulence of the opening strings combined with the gentle persuasion of that hypnotic percussion pulled me into the beating heart of the song. It was as sumptuous and scintillating as any James Bond theme, infused with trip-hop and Eastern music influences, flirting with the listener in a way that was entirely tantalising. Kylie sounded in total control, purring the intimate lyrics in a way that was both teasing and vulnerable. The searing and soaring titular refrain was delectable, as was the deadpan of the "stick or twist/the choice is yours bridge". It was innovative and inspiring - as was the choice not to edit the song for single release; letting it run for a whopping six minutes. This was Kylie breaking all the rules and I was loving it. I bought the Cd single the day it was released (revelling in additional, non-album track b-sides that remain fan faves all these years later) and was not surprised when the song debuted at number two the following Sunday (held off by Wet Wet Wet's Love Is All Around, so I basically count Confide In Me as a number one UK smash because that track had been there forever and a day). It certainly felt like a chart topper to me - I couldn't stop playing the song, beguiled by the way each subsequent play revealed a new layer of beauty about the composition and production which, I'm pretty sure, was the whole point of this elegant and enduring return single.

With an arty cover shot (very Bridget Bardot in the 90s), the album came a few weeks later and unveiled the new sophisticated Kylie Minogue to the world. Like Confide In Me, it was an instant success here in the UK and demonstrated to the naysayers that a career post PWL was absolutely possible. The choice of Put Yourself In My Place as second single was a wise one - the Jimmy Harry composition really highlighted how Kylie's voice had matured, emphasising her ability to give each lyric power without belting it out to the rafters. To me, it was her most masterful pop ballad to date (up there with Madonna's Take A Bow for winner of the finest slow song of the year) and, in an album of potential singles, stood out from the moment I first played the album. The lovely languorous pace of the music really let the lyrics breathe, let the heartache of Kylie Minogue spread forth like a blossoming flower in one of the most melodic, graceful ways imaginable. It became grandiose by being understated (and has certainly stood the test of time, sounding just as divine all these years later). I wasn't too concerned when it debuted at 17 in the UK, having faith that it would climb the following week - it did, just missing out on the top ten by a few hundred copies (darn you Bon Jovi's Always); she peaked at 11 both here and in Australia, but lingered on the charts all through the competitive Christmas period. And, to note, both Confide and this song demonstrated the artistic growth of her visuals through stunning videos as amazing as anything Madonna, Michael or Janet were producing.

The launch of the album and two fine singles had put a momentum behind the project that most artists crave for. So it was rather unusual that either the record label or Kylie herself put a halt to further single releases in early 1995 - there was a whopping eight months between single two and three (a lifetime in the pop world). I vaguely recall that it was to do with Kylie filming the BioDome movie and thus her attentions temporarily lay elsewhere. When eventual third single, Where Is The Feeling, was released in July 1995 it might have felt like an afterthought to many people, leading to a (still-respectable) chart placing of number 16. Still, the song only spent 3 weeks in the top 75, not 14 and 9 like Confide and Put Yourself (respectively) previously. I don't recall there being a huge amount of advertising for the song and its perceived under-performance is a real shame as it was actually the ideal third single. It was another facet of Kylie - we'd had eastern, trip-hop mysticism and searing balladry; this (with a Brothers In Rhythm remix which completely transformed the song for the single version) put Ms Minogue front and centre on the club dance floor, full of throbbing beats and enthralling instrumental flourishes. The CD release came with a plethora of remixes, notably a much longer Brothers In Rhythm Soundtrack Mix which featured new lyrics and a stunning mix by David Morales (a version of which had, bizarrely, featured on the second CD single release of Put Yourself In My Place).

Choosing a fourth single (for, at this stage, Kylie had not released more than four singles per album in the UK) was like shooting fish in a barrel. The vast swathes of strings and persuasive rhythms of the Brothers in Rhythm penned Dangerous Game was the spiritual successor musically to both Confide In Me and Put Yourself In My Place. There was something cinematic about the scope of the song - a gentle beginning builds in both passion and intensity to ensure a gripping finale as addictive as any drama you might have been watching on television at the time. I liked that it didn't sound anything like the music of the charts and, therefore, stood out with its fearless musical composition - something that Kylie had longed to do as part of the aim of this album and a task in which she gloriously succeeded. Alternatively, a more commercial proposition might have been the M People produced Time Will Pass You By, something that given an aura of familiarity to the charts. The band gave the pop princess a horn infused dance beat that elicited a more soulful vocal and radiated an aura of devil-may-care, seize-the-moment gleeful joy that got your fingers snapping and toes a-tapping. But alas, neither was meant to be - but that's not to say the label Deconstruction had failed Kylie and her fans; they'd provided a collectable selection of CD singles (2 options for each release except Where Is The Feeling) in cardboard sleeves with an array of remixes. Years later, a 2 disc edition would collect together these remixes, alternate takes and session songs as a testament to what a wonderfully exploratory and creatively satisfying entry in the Kylie Minogue discography. Well worth diving into again and again.
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Padamic Tension
post Sep 19 2019, 11:30 PM
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That was a really great read and a great take on the album.
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___∆___
post Sep 20 2019, 06:52 AM
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I love the design as the LGTI album cover - would have totally worked for that album! Although I love the cover art for that album regardless - it’s just the music that lets it down tongue.gif laugh.gif
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___∆___
post Sep 20 2019, 07:00 AM
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QUOTE
#LOVERS - KM94 is celebrating its, wait for it, 25th anniversary! 😳Here’s some imaginary covers inspired by that album. 👀🤯 #ConfideInMe #PutYourselfInMyPlace


The shade at missing ‘Where Is The Feeling’ off of the hashtags cry.gif
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Padamic Tension
post Sep 20 2019, 09:41 AM
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With only 3 singles off that album they should have included it on the hashtags.
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Liam.k.
post Sep 20 2019, 12:52 PM
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QUOTE(Feel_The_Fever @ Sep 20 2019, 12:30 AM) *
That was a really great read and a great take on the album.

Agreed! I find it so interesting to read someone's personal experience of an album from the time, learning what the buzz was like and sharing their joy of hearing a song for the first time etc.

Going by their review, it seems Kylie had built great momentum and a new reputation which was crushed by the neglecting of the era come 1995. Given it was due to Bio-Dome, it really wasn't worth it.
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pippa
post Sep 20 2019, 01:01 PM
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It was a joyful in-depth read, i also really enjoy reading someones personal experiences of an album, especially when they are good writers like this person.
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cf80
post Sep 27 2019, 08:55 AM
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QUOTE(___∆___ @ Sep 16 2019, 08:33 PM) *
As BMG own the rights and this is one of their releases they should have given it a little social media promo to push a few sales of the vinyl and celebrate the fact its 25!


Sony own the rights to the decon material, not BMG.

The rights will likely revert to Kylie in the next couple of years though.
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