Review Summary: Can Kate Bush ever eclipse the genius that is 'Hounds of Love?' Perhaps not, but she gives it her best shot on the amazing release 'The Sensual World.'
Things couldn’t be better for Kate Bush. She had just released perhaps the most flawless album to ever exist ‘Hounds of Love,’ and proved all the doubters that she was not just a one hit wonder. Yet of course, the problem with releasing such a pivotal album is usually that whatever you do next is criticized and compared. Unfortunately for Kate, from a public perspective, her album ‘The Sensual World,’ has slipped beneath the grasp of society and lies underground, waiting for people to unearth it. This severe underrating is near criminal; Kate Bush once again excels and pushes the limits of perfection to a new level. Could anything beat ‘Hounds of Love?’ Perhaps not, but ‘The Sensual World,’ gives it a damn run for its money.
Kate once again returns to her pop roots, which inconsistently appeared throughout each of ‘The Sensual World’s’ predecessors. ‘Love and Anger,’ is a perfect example, containing catchy piano refrains, a simple drum beat and an accompaniment of strings. From a musical aspect, this album lives up to its ancestors, providing listeners with not only fine composition and musical diversity, but also some pleasing guitar work, noted on ‘Love and Anger,’ and ‘Rocket’s Tail.’ Kate Bush plays nearly three-quarters of the instruments displayed on this record which would be impressive in itself, even without the stellar execution.
In the English dictionary, there is not a single world that can accurately describe Kate Bush’s voice. ‘The Lips of an Angel,’ may come close, yet offensive due to the track of the same name by the despicable band ‘Hinder.’ Beautiful, angelic, breath-taking, heart-stopping, piercing and striking are also fairly fitting descriptions of her vocals, yet there is not a single word that can do Kate Bush, or how good she is, justice. There really is no point in pointing anyone to a certain song on this release as a reference to where Kate shines as her utter consistency to produce amazing vocal efforts is frighteningly recurrent. She sings her lyrics with such desperation and invigoration you can literally feel Kate’s love for music crawling over you like a million pleasant spiders.
”That clumsy good-bye kiss could fool me,
But I’m looking back over my shoulder,
At you, happy without me”
Lyrically, Kate is as strong as ever, yet her voice could turn even the cheesiest line into a work of art. Nonetheless her stanzas are effective, and she sings certain refrains with such pain the listener can literally sense and empathize with the ache Kate is experiencing when she puts her wounded mind down onto paper.
Kate Bush’s 6th studio release is perhaps one of the greatest pop releases to ever be recorded. Wildly underrated, ‘The Sensual World’ is an entertaining listen, as you hop on and experience Kate’s train of emotions, in song-form.
