Fred's Shoes

Overall Album Score: 8.8 out of 10

Do you know how much of a Kate Bush fanboy I am? I even like *this* album. That wasn't always the case. I bought it a few years ago, and I didn't think much of it. The orchestral arrangements are woefully minimal an uncreative compared to her previous works. This is the closest that Bush ever did to a normal album. I just turned it off and re-listened to The Dreaming for the eight billionth time. ..... BUT that doesn't mean that The Red Shoes is a normal album. It's still miles above what most everyone else was making in 1993.

However, the unfortunate fact about Kate Bush's The Red Shoes is that it shares the spotlight with Lionheart as her non-masterpiece albums. Granted, she had eight albums in her career so far, and six masterpieces and two excellent albums aren't bad. That also means that you're prone to be disappointed. It's only natural. Fortunately, Bush is so good at songwriting that calling this her worst album is like singling out the worst Fawlty Towers episode. (Every Fawlty Towers episode is great, if you haven't heard. That distinction probably goes to "The Builders," which is better than any Cheers episode I've seen.)

The reason it's not a masterpiece isn't because she had run out of melodic ideas (they're about as rich as they ever were) but this effort really doesn't come together as a coherent album. Individually, EVERY song is good, but I don't get quite the adventurous feeling I gather in her other works. This is because she throws in almost mainstream pop songs in with her usual performance-ballads. "Rubberband Girl" and "Constellation of the Heart" both sound like she was trying for something that would be at home in Peter Gabriel's So. Well, they're great songs, but ... nobody really wanted Kate Bush to be a singles artist!!!!! This is her only non-album oriented work.

I wouldn't say the instrumentals are as bare as everyone says they are, but comparing this to The Sensual World, there's nothing quite like those lush arrangements on that title track or something as thundering and heavenly as "Reaching Out." The relative lack of production on The Red Shoes alienates so many listeners, but that shouldn't get in the way of enjoying this. (And the production is still better than any Madonna album I've heard.)

When you look into the matter further, Bush had a positively legitimate "excuse." She was planning to take this album on a worldwide tour, which unfortunately never happened. Bush, having a rather notorious reputation for being a perfectionist (whether that's warranted or not), wanted to make the material on this album optimal for live performances. It probably was.

Many have called this album dated --- and even behind-the-times --- with the dominating drum machine sounds and the synthesizers. For some reason, this aspect never bothered me. Despite the lack of instrumental ideas, Bush still seems like she knows what she's doing. The '80s production standards certainly had its horrible examples, but it still has good examples. This is one of the good examples. For that reason, it shouldn't matter that it was 1993. What did you want? Kate to go grunge?

This is the poppiest album Bush ever did (and most accessible since it's her highest charting release in America), but there's still that alien edge about it that always keeps it interesting. Her synths are simple, but they're well chosen ones. (That whispy synth on "Rubberband Girl" immediately comes to mind.) The dance grooves seem like hardly anything Madonna had the will-power to muster up. She's still even doing those "And Dream of Sheep" esque ballads, which are always a joy to hear.

Kate Bush is a real class-act. The Red Shoes doesn't rob her of that reputation, but enhances it. She never released a bad album ever. I used to think this was disappointing --- it probably still is --- but all it took was a serious listen for me to change my mind.

Overall Album Score: 8.8 out of 10 (A Kate Bush album below a 9.0? Say it ain't so?? Well, this album's still freakedly awesome.)

Average Song Score: 8.9 (The concentration of gems is at her career lowest, but it's still more gem-filled than most albums I hear.)

Album Tilt: 8.5 (This is easily her worst album. It doesn't come across too well as an album-oriented effort unfortunately.)

Artist Rating: 9.0 (She's not pushing the boundaries, but her form of "arena-rock" is awfully tasteful.)

Track Reviews

Rubberband Girl 9.5/10

This is Kate Bush's most dance-poppy track. "Running Up That Hill" was a big hit on the club scene, but this one seems even more danceable. However, this is far from a cheap track. The groove is fairly off-kilter but still danceable --- in that way it's comparable to a Roxy Music song. She has enough taste to have a nice rhythmic saxophone, xylophones, awesome guitar solos, her brand of freaky singing (including a bit of 'play acting' ... dialog and even some goofy "rubber band" vocals) ... All of this PLUS a melody that's catchier than anything... There's really quite a lot in this song, and you'll have fun hearing it multiple times I'm sure.

And So Is Love 9/10

This is a little bit more of what we're used to from Kate, and she still makes this stuff seem fresh. It begins rather quietly with Kate singing over a backdrop of pan flutes and a programmed beat. A guitarist delivers a few nice licks ...... Very subtly, the song picks up steam and it gets more interesting and ear catching. It's very nearly glorious by the end! Bush was always one who knew how to develop her songs...

Eat the Music 8.5/10

This is interesting though hard to digest at first. She seemed to be sticking with some of the ideas she discovered when covering Elton John's "Rocket Man," which is also hard to digest. It grows on you certainly, but I can't say she was on top of her game as far as ideas go. This is a festive track, and there's certainly some value in that. But it's a little too much like a marengue (or some such) track that you would hear at a bourgeois cruise ship party where the women wear flowery skirts and the men wear white pants... That's certainly quite different than those unearthly pixie queen things her fans fondly remember of her. At the same time, it's still pretty odd ....... if I actually heard this at a party, I'd be amused and even delighted 'cos it's pretty good for that kind of music. There's still something crazy about it even if it's subtle.

Moments of Pleasure 10/10

Ah, there's a 'return to form' already. Maybe an apology to the fans? Well, here is a pretty song that rings of the lovely ballads of her past. She's singing to a piano and violins go from quiet to dramatic as Kate's voice does. She absolutely nails this dramatic mood and the instrumentation. We never doubted that she would. ... As it would have it, this was a deeply personal song for her as she laments the loss of some of her dear friends over the recent years.

The Song of Solomon 9/10

Also back to familiar territory "The Song of Solomon" begins with a quiet, sweet and unusual groove. We hear Bush singing in the background as lead-vocals Bush sings just a little bit out-of-this-world. I take slight issue with this chorus that, for some really bad reason, reminds me too much of a generic adult contemporary chorus. Nothing about this song is *bad* but ....... oh god, it reminds me of the mainstream. Oh, but the melody is lovely! She's thickly layers on her vocals at the end (similarly to what she did frequently in her previous albums), and it always sounds great.

Lily 10/10

This track starts with some dialog that's definitely not Kate Bush. It sounds like it might be Miranda Richardson (she's associated with this album somehow), but that's difficult to determine. But after that bit, a thoroughly craaaaaaaazy Kate Bush song starts to play. An off-kilter groove gives it a nice dancey feel, and Bush gives a highly dramatic vocal performance with a melody that's very catchy. The real kicker is that extremely odd rubbery synth that we hear in the chorus. This is enormously enjoyable.

The Red Shoes 10/10

Quite an intensely interesting track and another one of her performance songs. This sounds like a cross between "The Jig of Life" from Hounds of Love and "Eat the Music." It's strange and very fun to listen to for analysis. The combination of those ukulele sounds and the Irish flutes is something I doubt has ever been done. Bush gives an intoxicating musical performance that's borderline spooky... Very nice work.

Top of the City 8.5/10

What a nice song from Bush although the melody doesn't do wonders for me. Her mood changes seem a little more sudden and less soulful that what I'm used to. I love the orchestral quality of this (those light strings in the background were very nicely arranged). The chorus is off-kilter (yes, this is Kate Bush) it just doesn't give me quite the same sort of emotions.

Constellation of the Heart 8/10

This is a fun adult-contemporary dance track that suffers from an interesting condition that never plagued a Kate Bush track. She's totally faceless! I like her vocal performances, but she's sounding like she's being too dominated by the production. She does a few interesting things here and there, which keeps far from becoming banal. All in all this is probably comparable to Peter Gabriel's song "Big Time." This song is fun as hell, but it's not too special.

Big Stripey Lie 9.5/10

This is another track that could be considered quite '80s with that huge drum sound, but Bush keeps it interesting making the mood sound so dang menacing! The instrumentation must be one of the lusher examples with those very odd orchestral build-ups she's fond of in here. Bush perform-sings this song very well, and she puts her guitarist to good use. The groove is nice, which she brings in a xylophone for part of that duty. I love it!

Why Should I Love You? 7/10

For my money this is the album's weakest link. The song not only has a bad habit of sounding too much like a normal adult contemporary song, but it's just not that interesting. Why does this remind me so much of that freaking Paula Abdul album that I listened to because I like to torture myself? I mean, this is better than most Paula Abdul songs, but ... Yeesh....... This is Kate Bush's worst song of her career. But ..... this is still alright, so take that statement as a compliment. After all *something* has to be your worst song.

You're the One 8/10

This one is much nicer ... it's one of Bush's more lower key tracks. I think it's pretty nice, and Bush gives a very good performance. The melody is good, and she uses a few good synthesizers. There's some good licks of the electric guitar here... This track might remind one of Pink Floyd except a little bit sloppier. I like what she was going for here (it does sound like an epic track that would make for an optimal album closer) but it's just not so intrinsically interesting to me. You can see why she went on a 12-year hiatus ..... wait until those ideas are fresh again! (I also have the feeling that Bush is a bit of a procrastinator..... That could explain another half of it.)

Rain down your comments all over me here.