The Kick Inside My Pants

Overall Album Score: 9.4 out of 10

Oh. Man. In November and December 2005, I went through this Kate Bush frenzy like you wouldn't believe. Of course, I was aware of Kate Bush for years and even listened to some of her songs, but when I gave The Dreaming a very close listen that November, I turned into an instant fan. I went all through Wichita looking for her albums to buy up. ... Oh man ...

Kate Bush is the only real female pop music star that you need reckon with. (Hey, that wasn't sexist; you needn't mess with other male pop music stars, either.) So seldomly does popular music ever have such a unique voice and surefire talent as Kate Bush. It's a shame that not everybody listens to her. I mean, she's got as much talent in singing and songwriting as Madonna has in PR.

Kate Bush's lovely debut is perhaps her most daring work (which is really saying something, because most of her work was pretty daring, especially The Dreaming). It works much more on a dramatic/theatrical level than a strictly musical level. That is, all of these tracks are definitely music, but they're not seemingly based on any standards that pop music fans are aware of. There really aren't vocal hooks in here in a pop sense. These melodies seemed to have been written in a different land! Considering Bush's incredibly high-pitched and almost untamed voice, listening to this album frequently makes me think that I've entered into Fairy Land, and the Meadows of the Pixies. Kate Bush is the Queen of the Pixies, and she sings songs that only the creatures of Fairy Land are allowed to hear. Well, not really, but any artist that conceivably makes me think such a thing duly earns my love, my respect and very positive reviews!

Despite all of the weirdness and strictly non-pop mentality, Bush's excellent song "Wuthering Heights" managed to hit the #1 spot on the UK charts. Of course, it didn't do anything in the U.S., but that's not surprising. The U.S. was too busy listening to Disco to stop and find out what sort of unusual new things were coming out of Britain! Well, there was new wave, there was punk, and there was Kate Bush!

So, all I have to say is KATE BUSH RULES! This is the first of her many fantastic albums.

Average Song Score: 9.2 (There's not a weak song in the bunch. These are a group of surprising and daring theatrical pop songs.)

Album Tilt: 9.5 (There's something fun and quirky at every corner. Bush's wild voice keeps things mystical and brilliant.)

Artist Rating: 9.5 (Always daring, there is nothing else quite like this.)

Track Reviews

Moving 9.5/10

This song gets things moving in this album on a high note, although it begins with strange elephant sounds! (Hey, I like elephants.) Or maybe they're whales. Or maybe they're the Prince of Wales. Then, Kate starts singing like a total angel an extremely pretty song. It's based on a piano and the melody goes all over the place just like Bush's untamed voice. There is a lot of character in her voice (which seems to be the whole point of the album) and the lucid melody of the song is alluring. This song is enchanting, engaging, and unlike any other song I've ever heard. Everybody loves Kate Bush.

The Saxophone Song 9/10

More whales!!!! (Bush might have a fetish for large mammals or something). Anyway, the song is another enchanting theatric song. As the song's title suggests, there is saxophone in this, and it plays crazy notes! The tone of this is more lower-key this time, and the melody isn't quite as fantastic, but it's still pretty fantastic. Again, the song is more about theatrics and character than anything, and it has a lot of character! Oh, the atmosphere is magic.

Strange Phenomena 9/10

This sounds like the pixies wrote this and Kate Bush, the queen of the pixies, sang it! This song is so strange, because it doesn't appear to be based on any real melodic model that I'm familiar with. There really aren't any vocal hooks in here either (which is something that I constantly complain about in pop albums), but I really don't care. The song is so odd and enchanting. It proves when your mind is in weird but interesting places, you can still make great songs. Kate Bush rules!

Kite 8.5/10

This is another peculiar song that appears to be based on a new wave groove that was flipped on its ear. Again, the theatrics and odd personality of this song is what makes it great; not necessarily the melody. This song is so weird and appealing that I don't see how anyone cannot be convinced that Kate Bush is a unique pop treasure. It's strange that she was popular.

The Man With the Child In His Eyes 9.5/10

This is a rather straightforward, dramatic song that sounds like something we might find (normally) on a Broadway theater. There are a few vocal hooks in here, which is certainly nice. Bush's sweet voice and the enchanting instrumentation keeps this moving along very well.

Wuthering Heights 10/10

This is the song that became a surprise hit in England. There's nothing about this song that suggests that it had any real hit-potential other than it's simply a great song. Bush's squeaky vocal performance is as unusual and pixie-like as ever, and the instrumentation again is fantastic. The hooks in the melody are probably the album's strongest. The overall feel of the song is rather majestic and, again, the theatrics of the song take precedence over anything else. Anyway, this just proves that the British invariably have better taste than Americans.

James and the Cold Gun 9/10

ANOTHER GREAT SONG!!!! This is based on a bouncy piano loop and some electric guitars even come in and start playing! (Oh yeah, this stuff was made during the rock era, wasn't it.) This is a fairly uncharacteristically rocking song from the album. It's still wholly unusual and delightful! The melody is based on some weird type of system that none of us are familiar with. It's another breath of fresh air, and I can't get enough.

Feel It 8.5/10

This one contains a slow and fairly disjointed piano loop, Bush singing very pretty notes! Compared to the other songs, this is more minimalistic. While there's nothing fundamentally wrong with minimal music, this doesn't captivate me nearly like the other songs, and that's undoubtedly because of the lack of instrumentation! (No! I don't dislike simple music! Perish that thought.)

Oh to Be in Love 9/10

Oh man! This song produces yet another fantastically engaging atmosphere. The melody is very nice and the theatrics rule! Bush's vocal performance is wild and manical. This is yet another magic song from the Queen pixie.

L'Amour Looks Something Like You 9.5/10

This song is so unusual that it's even more awesome. Bush overdubs herself in this album, and it continually makes me believe that I've entered a really weird fairy land. Hey, this whole album makes me feel like that, but this one in particular!

Them Heavy People 10/10

This brilliant song features an enchanting piano loop at its beginning and then it transforms into something that sounds like a reggae-pop of Fairy Land. Anyone else who would try something like this would fail at it miserably, but Kate Bush's unique and steadfast approach to music makes this not only listenable, but treasurable!

Room For the Life 8.5/10

This track is one of the lengthiest songs of the album and unfortunately one of the least engaging! I won't claim that it isn't a good song, however. The song is still heavily theatric and it's still way too unique for me to ever dislike. Bush's squealy vocal performance continues to be strong! I especially like the strange chorus, which sounds like the tribal, traditional chant of Fairy Land.

The Kick Inside 9/10

Well, Kate Bush opts for the more modest of album closers with the quiet and non-sweeping "The Kick Inside." Oh, but it is so sweet and enchanting. Really, I wish every singer and/or songwriter just had a touch of Kate Bush in them. The world of music would be so universally awesome then!!!!

Whatcha tink about dat? Send cho tots here.

rupertbare18@yahoo.co.uk (Rupe) received Feb. 28, 2006

The sea and/or water and birdsong or other "found sounds" pretty much feature on every one of Kate's albums. Her first hit single "Wuthering Heights" did indeed come in the middle of the two years, here in the UK at least, where Punk (Clash etc.) and New Wave (XTC etc.)ripped up the "rule book" and somehow she fitted into that movement rather than anything that had gone before. The cover in the UK featured a very "sexy" shot of kate attached to a kite - the non-UK cover is rubbish!!! lol!! May I add that I really enjoy your site and reviews. I bought my first 7" vinyl single in 1967 - and it's nice to see the "younger generation" still enjoying the music of those "heady days" of so long agao (1966-1980) when music really tried to be something "different" rather than a way of making lots of money.
Rupe, London, UK.