Horribly busy but will catch up on my review reading - promise!
Horribly busy but will catch up on my review reading - promise!
Member since:22.10.2006
Reviews:90
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I'm not a hugely rabid Kate Bush fan. I've pretty much liked all her singles over the years but having tried most of her albums I can't say that I really thought much of most of the tracks presented on them. However, Hounds of Love is something else.
After an initially busy period, Kate Bush has been somewhat sporadic in her output although I'd saying raising a family is a fair reason so all kudos to her for doing the right thing. Hounds of Love did pop out a bit later than most people expected but when it did it showed a radical departure from her previous work and presented an interesting fusion of Fairlight samples, Irish rythyms and all manner of odd sounds and structures.
I bought the original when it first came out on CD, it was one of the very first CDs available and as I gingerly dropped it in to my top loading Phillips CD player (which weighed a ton) and sat back, ready to be treated to the brave new world of digital audio, I knew I was in for a treat.
Fast forward a decade and a half and a remastered version has turned up with bonus tracks culled from remixes and B sides.
With a nod towards the vinyl mindset of the original release, it is split in to two halves subtitles Hounds of Love and The Ninth Wave. On CD of course, it's just one big lump of music.
The tracks are: Hounds of Love Side 1. Running Up That Hill. A huge hit single at the time that sets the tone for this part of the album. Lots of energetic if slightly muted drums and synthetic horns give way to the instantly recognisable Bush vocals that tell
the story of wanting to do a deal with God to swap places with a loved one to take their pain. You can feel the anguish with every word making this a very moving song. A superb live version was performed along with Dave Gilmore of Pink Floyd on guitars at a charity gig a few years ago just to rub it in about how good she is live when she never actually tours.
2. Hounds of Love. Another big hit at the time. Musically very similar to track one with the same muted drums, synthetic strings and emotional vocals. The track is enhanced with some great sampled cello(?) sounds building upon the beats to add a feeling of panic and flight. A rather fine if totally different cover version of this track was done by the FutureHeads recently.
3. The Big Sky. A slightly less impressive track in my view but given the high watermark the album as a whole sets, that just makes it merely good as opposed to superb. Excellent vocal work again with electric guitars wailing in the background as well as the fast drum beats sounding slightly like castanets in places.
4. Mother Stands For Comfort. A much slower and deeply melancholic tune. Here short samples (that breaking glas noise she likes, again) plus piano and a soft wandering Mick Karn stylee bass guitar set the scene. I normally find slower tracks after faster ones can have me reach for the next track button but this one is mesmorising.
5. Cloudbusting. A great Donald Sutherland video presented this song to the world with Kate sporting a short cropped hairdo as the daughter of a weather obsessed mad-professor type father. Back to muted insistant drums and a nice string driven lead line as the slightly cryptic tale of weather, threats and the government unfolds. Again, the lyrics and passion in the vocal lines creates a real impact.
The Ninth Wave Side 6. And Dream of Sheep. Back to the more traditional Bush sound of soft piano and vocals although the middle section adds a feeling of menace. The whole song gives the impression of someone in turmoil and wanting to be left alone to rest. A slow song but still one that makes you want to listen and let the sounds and meanings wash over you.
7. Under Ice. Dark string sounds, reminiscent of the Jaws theme start this short track with little more apart from a few short snatches of sonar noises and voices. Listen to this after Thomas Dolby's 'One of our Submarines' and you'd probably never go near the water again.
8. Waking the Witch. One of my favourites. A slow buildup of random lines spoken by different people create a claustrophobic feel as the piano provides the merest of backing. Suddenly the track explodes in to life with a staccato of samples and noises before the vocal split in to a duet of Bush against a deep almost satanical male voice imploring her to confess accompanied by church bells and other religious audio imagary. Actually, it IS my favourite.
9. Watching You without Me. Oriental tones and slow gently patted rhythyms mark this track out stylistically from the rest. However, this one doesn't manage to grab me particularly and doesn't seem to sit well with the rest of the album.
10. Jig of Life. A rolling romp of an Irish Jig. A song of impending loss that mixes the music which makes you want to get up and dance around the house with a story that makes you want to do quite the opposite. Both exhilerating and sad by turns. Another favourite track of mine. If ever there was a track I'd like to see live, this is it.
11.Hello Earth. Once again things are slowed down. Quite a long track at nearly six minutes but in the conventional style of piano, gorgeous harmonies but with Irish/Gaelic instrumental elements. The last section changes tack completely with almost imperceptible strings and low choral work.
12. The Morning Fog. The album finishes with a medium paced number although it sounds racy after track 11. More emotion charged vocals tell a story of love over guitar and fairly conventional beats. A perfect end to what is probably Kate Bush's best work to date even if it does finish rather suddenly.
This edition adds some bonus material: 1. The Big Sky (MeTeorological mix). This 7 and a half minute version adds an initially antipodean feel to the original version but soon turns in to a fairly generic 12" mix. Quite nice though. 2. Running up that Hill (12" mix). A more radical restructuring of the original in places but still very much a direct descendent of the album version and alas saddled with some of the nastier 80's excesses in remix-mix-mix techniques. 3. Be Kind to My Mistakes. To me this sounds more like the later Experiment IV single sound wise. A fair song with a nice bit of guitar work in places but nothing exceptional. 4. Under the Ivy. Generic slow piano and vocals. This sounds like a typical earlier album track and doesn't really do it for me. 5. Burning the Bridge. At first you think this is Hounds of Love remixed but it's something else. A nice vocal chant in the background makes this a good track for me along with some interesting intrumentation although a somewhat plodding drum track. 6. My Lagan Love. An acapella number somewhat Enya like in places. It's a beaitifully sung track with surprisingly large gaps inbetween some lines making it sounds very otherworldly when you're used to producers filling every gap in a song with noise.
The original CD of this album was a little muddy, suffering both from it's vintage and the sounds used. This new remastered edition does improve things markedly and the improved seperation and clarity of the instruments and different vocal layers makes this a well worth purchase for existing owners. The extras are welcome too especially as most came from the vinyl era and were previously hard to get hold of in a decent quality format.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
This is a classic Kate Bush album - some would say her best. There are some great songs contained here, with incredibly imaginative subjects and an inspiring way of looking at things - here she has managed to paint fantastic pictures with her music - Another good review...!
Running Up That Hill Hounds Of Love The Big Sky Mother Stands For Comfort Cloudbusting And ... more
Dream Of Sheep Under Ice Waking The Witch Watching You Without Me Jig Of Life Hello Earth The Morning Fog The Big Sky Running Up That Hill Be Kind To My Mistakes...
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