Customer Reviews

X

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Dear Capitol Records/Astralwerks,

I have been reviewing records for a while now, and have a strong grasp on what the American public enjoys as far as Top 40 radio and pop music.

You have the hit of the summer on your hands with Kylie Minogue's "All I See," a breezy, sun-glossed classic pop record, which your label had the correct instinct to release as the lead stateside single to "X," her appropriately-titled 10th studio album.

Just what are you doing about it? The answer, thus far, is very little.

Musically speaking, there is no explanation for the low US sales of "X." Every track is delicious, unabashed pop with memorable choruses, sexy vocals and easy, relatable lyrics. This is what people look for in pop music, and in the English-language market Minogue is the only seasoned artist who consistently delivers true to form pop albums, "X" of which is her most solid to date. From the propulsive, gyrating "Stars" to the infectious, slinky "Like a Drug" to the effervescent, ultra-hooky "Wow," each of these tracks packs combustible heat and explosive energy. This is pop music at its absolute zenith, with talented tunesmiths and a world-class entertainer delivering them. Each song is easy to listen to and difficult to turn off.

"Heavy Promo, Light Sales For Minogue" was a headline I came across after the album's dismal debut at no. 159 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. Appearances like the ones Minogue did on the "Today Show" and "Dancing with the Stars" are crucial, but only a small handful of such promotional endeavors was embarked upon. The former did not even include a performance.

Furthermore, the album's release overseas nearly half a year prior to its April 1 US release, as well as an inexplicable early release to stateside digital retail outlets, only aggravated the lukewarm greeting the album received upon its debut in record stores. Even a small child could make such a prediction. By the time it officially hit record stores, the album itself was already yesterday's news to Minogue's core fan base. Why set an album heavy with potential hits sung by an international superstar up to fail?

Straight-edged, dance floor ready pop has taken a backseat at US Top 40 radio to increasingly urban sounds. However, lead single "All I See" has that problem covered with its light, crunchy production, complete with the all-important handclap sound to win over radio listeners, not to mention easy young love and girls' night out themes. It's breezy, it's hooky, it's sexy, it's mellow, it's memorable, it's cool-as-a-cucumber - does it need to bite you in the rear before you realize that it is the consummate summer hit?

Better yet, an alternate version featuring an intelligent, well-delivered rap by Mims has been released as a US bonus track. Paired with the original, these tracks should by the time of this writing have become inescapable. What is the problem?

Minogue may no longer be freshly post-adolescent, and while every track on "X" is fantastic not every one would work on stateside radio, mostly because the majority of them lack contemporary (read: urban) flavor. However, Minogue is in the shape of her life both physically and as a performer. She has come back from cancer with the most solid album of her career and is continuing to fill stadiums overseas. All this, along with "All I See," a pop hit in the vein of Cher's "Believe" or Beyonce and Jay-Z's "Crazy In Love," should warrant sufficient promotion to make it the hit it deserves, spurning formidable album and single sales and perhaps even paving the way for a US leg of KYLIEX2008, Minogue's current tour.

It is because of this that a recent walk in Times Square left me completely annoyed. Hanging above Virgin Megastore, next to tremendous billboards advertising recent albums, was one of Minogue. However, it was not advertising "X," the most impressive LP of pop tunes I have heard in years, but instead a clothing designer whose name I have already forgotten.

It's like staring down a mountain of profits and saying "no thanks."

Sincerely yours,
Rudy Palma

As this is Kylie's tenth album but only her third notable release in the US- many new listeners may think that she's still 'new' to the music biz or that this is some sort of 'come back'. This album should put that straight quickly. The album is a great piece of music from start to finish (almost) that quickly shows Kylie's place as a long time vet who knows how to make a GREAT pop album. The typical variety of slow and fast songs aren't really present in this album- the only real 'soft' song is Cosmic... but that happens to be my favorite track on the whole thing! That's not to say the album doesn't offer some different feels- but most of them have you dancing (and rightfully so).

The only down side to the US release is a rather... (frankly)- horrible remix of one of the albums better songs- "All I See". Some record producer thought they needed to make Kylie 'relate' to the US audience by putting some *sigh* rapper in the beginning and middle of her song. It's not like they even do a duet- this irritating rap junk just comes in at unfortunate times and soils the song. It doesn't work on any level- it's just some half hearted DJ attempt to put two artists together that don't mix on ANY level other than tempo. The main issue with it is that it's the last thing you'll hear on the album... it's a parting shot that leaves a very weak impression on an otherwise very strong album. I'd recommend skipping this last song and end the album on Cosmic the way it was intended.

What an absolutely amazing album this is. Kylie hasn't missed a beat. Everything she does is always new and fresh and this CD brings her to a whole new level. Every song has its own charm and is a potential single in its own right. From the 80s vibe of 2 Hearts to the pulsating beat of Like a Drug, from the twanging vampiness of In My Arms to the singalong bopping of Speakerphone, from the sexiness of Sensitized to the sassiness of Heart Beat Rock, from the longing, alternative sound of The One to the soft, dancy feel of No More Rain, from the sweet hook of All I See to the deep groove of Stars, from the pure joy of Wow to the wild fun of Nu-di-ty, ending with the wonderfully reflective Cosmic, this album is nonstop happiness. You can't help but be in a good mood once you're done listening to it. It is so great to have Kylie back. She is such a fabulous person, and a truly inspiring artist. It's hard to believe it's been 20 years since I first started listening to her. The time has finally come for her to gain the superstar status in the US that she has in the rest of the world, and this CD is the one to make it happen. Welcome back Kylie, and thank you for continuing to make the kind of music that always lifts up my day.

After the hits (Fever) and misses (Impossible Princess, Body Language), after leaving the hit factory of PWL (Stock, Aitken, Waterman) and having different labels, using multiple producers since, this is the new Kylie release. As with all artists who don't want to get pigeon holed you change styles. Change just for the sake of change isn't always a good thing. This new endeavor (Pop-Electro) is a mixed bag of good songs and not so good filler music. Why "2 Hearts" was the 1st release or even a release at all I don't get. The song at best is a bad Goldfraap imitation. Kylie is a great live performer that has above average vocals albeit no Mariah or Whitney but good none the less. While Madonna writes most, if not all her own songs with help, the lyrics of Madonna's new Hard Candy are juvenile as with the lyrics on Kylie's X. There is some good fluffy pop stuff on here like "WoW" but Kylie's little girl, breathy vocal style of late is wearing thin. This is no "Fever" which is modern club sounding disco much in the vein of Madonna's Confessions and thankfully not the last release "Body Language" being an attempted wannabee RNB Destiny's Child release. It (X) is something else. The song "All I See" feels like a GOOD left over from the Body Language CD. It (X) seems to be closer to "Impossible Princess" in it's attempted edgy sound. I've always liked Kylie for her plain, fun, simple, poppy dance music. If you want the fun type of stuff she used to do look no further than her sister (Dannii Minogue). She sounds the same, you can hardly tell the difference between the two. She is doing what her sister (Kylie) does best but only bounces back to after flops. I thought after the sucess of the Fever CD and the lukewarm Body Language she would return to her pop dance style. That isn't the case here, if you're wanting that you're probably going to be disappointed. If you want something edgier this might be the right choice for your musical tastes. BTW "The One" is the best track on this CD as well WOW and In Your Arms are great. There are other good tracks as well but over all the CD is a little to all over the place.

Kylie Minogue has made the right work with this"x" album.Every song is diferent among them.I simply love the whole album

Best songs to me:
"like a drug"
"one
"Stars"
"Heart Beat Rock"
"wow"

Worst song:
the Northamerica bonus track "All I see" featuring with someone.Besides, sound like the millions songs out there right now, singing by all african american R&B singers(Beyonce, ashanti or wathever). Horrible, this is the single.......they ruin the song with this added rapper .

In short
One of the best pop-dance albums.just skip the last song.

Kylie Minogue's 10th long player, aptly titled X is a celebrated affair, her first record after recovery from breast cancer and reportedly her last album before retirement. There's a lot going on. Kylie delivers her best record since Fever. X is a pompous mixture of glam electronica and dance. The very Goldfrapp-meets-Blondie first single Two Hearts takes a slow but steady trip into your head with its "two hearts beating together...I'm in love...ooh" chorus. The One unabashedly pays tribute to 80's dance, Giorgio Moroder style. Sensitized and Stars sound like well-constructed continuation of Fever. All I See is probably the most telling tribute to Janet in the early 90's with its "get together-have fun-while-the-DJ-is-spinning-that-song" lyrics. That's also Speakerphone which I foresee would be used by one of the major phone manufacturers as their next funky ad tune.

Bonus tracks like Rippin' up the Dancefloor and White Diamond (Film Version) could have fitted on the main disc. Two excellent Mylo-produced tracks In The Mood for Love and Spell of Desire are mysteriously left out.

Well there's too much of X to write about, but the record moves fluidly from one track to another, creating a segue of great dance pop. The lyrics might just be inanely fun at times but then again, besides her shifting styles, that's one of Kylie's biggest assets.

US version contains an obligatory rap intro by US label mate Mims on the bonus All I See, which is really more superfluous than anything.

The dance diva from Down Under is back with a new set of songs, after a four year absence and a battle with breast cancer. And I, for one, am glad to see her return.

"X" delivers more solid, fun dance tracks from the lovely Aussie. While none of the songs on this cd have the immediate hook that got everyone dancing to her huge hit "Can't Get You Outta My Head", there are still some really good dance songs here. My favorites off the new cd include "Like a Drug", "Wow", "Heart Beat Rock", "Sensitized" and "Nu-di-ty". Some of the songs are an obvious nod to the 80s, "In My Arms" in particular. The record company obviously felt that to appeal to the American audience, the obligatory rapper had to be unnecessarily introduced into one of the songs (the bonus track and remix of "All I See"). I agree with the other reviewers that this was a completely unneeded addition. Kylie does NOT need the help of Mims to give her fans a good dance cd. Why they didn't put "Rippin' Up the Disco" (which you can receive as an exclusive download from Kylie's official site after buying this cd) is a mystery to me. I would have preferred that they added a different song or songs, perhaps something that would have been on the import version.

Overall, another sound set of songs from Minogue. Kylie's songs may not have thought provoking lyrics but that is not the intention here----its great beats and the desire to hit the dance floor that gives her music its appeal. A nice addition to your cd library, especially for Kylie fans!

Every other female artist should be very jealous of the producers that work with Kylie on this record. There is not another record out that sounds like this and if only Madonna could take a note from the people that Kylie works with, she would be able to sell albums like she used to! From start to finish "X" is awesome. The music is amazing and if you listen closely to the lyrics you will listen to Kylie's struggle while she was fighting her battle with breast cancer. Although "All I See" is a great track, the first single, without a doubt, should have been "In My Arms". I believe that if this single were to be released to radio, the states would hear Kylie loud and clear. She is performing on "Dancing with the Stars" tonight, 4/1 on ABC at 9PM EST and she will preform "All I See" and her timeless hit, "Can't Get You Out Of My Head". Other stand out tracks, "Like A Drug", Speakerphone", "Wow" and "The One" should all fair well if released to US radio. This could be her big break here in America and hopefully people will pick up this record and give it a go. You will not be disappointed.

In my eyes I thought this Kylie cd was a great come back for her. The cd is fantastic, full of the pop music that she is famous for.

I live in the US and was not aware of Kylie at all until this album. I grew up knowing who Madonna was and I never really liked her. So I always thought pop was a horrible style of music. But Kylie changed my perspective on the style and now i own more Kylie cds and I am totally addicted

In My Arms and Wow are the best songs on the album in my eyes. They are both fun and are great pop songs

Speakerphone and Sensitized are fantastic as well. I didn't like either of them at first but they really grew on me.

All I See is probably the worst song on the album because of how basic it is. But I still like it a lot.

No More Rain is about Kylie's fight with cancer and I really adore it. It sometimes makes me cry when i really think about what the words mean.

Stars and Cosmic seem to be the least popular. I wasn't a fan of either and thought Cosmic was really bad. But after hearing it more and more I thought both of these songs were pretty good and Cosmic is a great song for Kylie's voice.

I don't really like 2 Hearts and sounds quite strange with the oohing but it still is a fun song.

The One is becoming one of her best songs on the album. I never thought much of it until it came out as a single and now I know how fabulous it really is. A real Kylie hit.

Other songs on the album are Like A Drug, Heart Beat Rock, and Nu-di-ty. All these songs I rate as normal. They are all fun and great but nothing special.

If anyone is wondering if they should waste money on a pop album, it should be this one because you won't be sorry. Kylie comes back with a bang and these pop songs never get old.

All the music material I knew about Minogue was Fever, which was a truly good album. I loved "Can't Get You Out of My Head" that I still keep playing it. :) I also liked "In Your Eyes," "Love at First Sight" and "Come Into My World." I loved it! Then, I heard her song "Slow" from Body Language, and I loved that song too.

She is now back from battling cancer and I think this album is also good. It is definitely a little bit "darker" than Fever but I love it. It's pure Europop! :) It's a shame the album did not do so good in the US. I believe the reason is the lack of promotion. Everywhere I read about it they say same thing and I must agree. The few interviews she did were not enough. It seemed so rushed and really did no promotion for the album. I have seen and heard her concerts are really good productions and we are missing that. Thank you (sarcastically!)! Please whoever is responsible for her promotion, get your little act together and do something. She's well known in other countries but not USA. What's wrong with you?

If you really want to listen to something different and you're tired of all that urban music or rap, I recommend you to buy this album. You will not regret it. :)