Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Funky Language, February 14, 2004
It's surely tough to follow up on a smash album but on Body Language, Kylie has demonstated that it might not always be so. Fever (and its predecessor Light Years) preyed upon the recognizable cross-hybrid of retro/electronic pop and turned out great, giving her career a well-needed boost. With this album, Kylie has decided to turn another direction, for you'll find more street cred and funky urban beats to gyrate to.
When Slow was released as the first single, many were shocked. Where was the Can't Get You Out Of My Head? But then this was a great move. Slow is a piece of sensual and overtly sexual masterpiece with an orgasm-inducing video (found on the enhanced portion of this CD). Nothing has come so steamy in music since Madonna's days of Erotica/Justify My Love. Certainly there are many more - Red Blooded Woman with its funky and urban rhythm, Obsession with the same intensity of Destiny Child's Jumpin' Jumpin' and the delicious Chocolate which proves to be a worthy continuation of Slow with its ultra sexy hook. The latter will make any of Janet Jackson's past sex-themed songs seem like child's play.
Through all these, production plays a very important and turns Kylie's vocal limitation to an alluring purr most suited for these songs. For dance fans, fret not. there's the Air soundalike Still Standing that will keep you happy.
This effort may not be a sequel to 2001's hit Fever but is definitely a great follow up. May need some getting used to for some, but it's rewarding no less for Language is a pretty good pop album.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
classydirty funkadelique, August 16, 2004
Many die-hard old-school Kylie fans (both the pre & post deconstruction varieties--for the three people in america that will know what the frick that means!) have been rather critical of this album. I can certainly see that if one is particularly attached to a particular incarnation of Kylie's public persona, that a shift, even as small as this one, could be troubling. But then again she is a pop star, and that's what they do...and she does it better than any I might ad.
This album turned me on to Kylie. I had originally been interested in it after seeing her performance of Slow at the Euro-VMA's back around October of '03 and was blown away...both visually and musically. So I purchased the disc on a whim a few months later, when it was released in america. While listening with a good set of headphones I noticed the brilliant production...which, if you look inside to see who did it it reads like a who's who of Italy, the UK, and other of Europe's finest, makes sense. I typically hate assembled pop music, and so it blew me away as to how exceptionally good it was...not to mention that I had to overcome my own pop prejudice (though i won't be buying britney spears tickets anytime soon!). Then I started really enjoying the music, bought a bunch of CD's, DVD's, Remixes, ETC. and have come to respect her professinally as an artist, performer,incredibly hard worker, & well, muse.
Body Language is certainly a shift from Fever. Both have a certain electronic nostalgia...for disco-pop and early 80's electro, respectively. But Fever was a shift from Light Years, which was a sort of blend of Fever and Impossible Princes...a transition...sorta. Anyway her new style has a heavy R&B influence as well with a nice deep funk feel to it. One of the best examples of this is actually a B-Side not on the album called "Almost a Lover." My favourite track, musically, is "Secret/Take You Home," though the lyrics are kinda stupid. They sound great though, which brings me to another new and different thing she does on this album: there's a lot of whisper over dubs on many tracks...especially "Chocolate." This paired with a generally new, very sensously sexy style of tone and inflection make her singing on this album interesting and enjoyable. Her generally singing style is still there (like the way she makes her "oo" sounds) and this evolution has complimented them.
Where were we...oh yes, now I'll take you through some of the highlights of the tracks, for the American release anyway.
The vocal production of "Slow" is different than on all the other tracks, but it fits with the retroelectrovibe goin' on. The extended mix on the early Japanese single is really good too..so is the B-Side "Soul on Fire." Oh yeah, and the song is just sexy. Classy sexy.
I already covered "Secret" above, but I'll add that the beat really gets you movin'...for some reason especially when you're driving...go figure.
"Sweet Music" is great muscially and lyrically...she even mentions a fairlight...which increases its resonance at that point in the song. Whole song is pretty good, but the 'new sensation part' is a bit cheesy. In all honesty, the best Kylie lyrics are almost always the ones she writes herself...She is given writing credit on about 1/2 the work on this album, including the song in question.
"Red Blooded Women" is quite bitchin' musically. The 'boy...boy' stuff can sometimes be annoying, but easily overlooked if you just think of the words as jibberist and her voice as an instrument...then it sounds great. Its Australian single has a different version of "Cruise Control" than on the american release (it wasn't on the Australian or UK releases).
"Chocolate" is amazing in every respect and worth getting this album for...as well as the single as there is an exceptional trance mix on it, as well as my favourite video she's done :)
"Obsession" is great musically. The lyrics are intelligent and tell an interesting story and the mantra like 'obsession is a dangerous state of mind' will hopefully subconsciously fend of future stalkers for the impossible princess.
"I feel for you" is very sweet lyrically.
"Loving Days" is another one worth buying this album for. Lyrically and Musically it beautifully conveys that overwhelmingly great high when your with someone that you're just falling in love with...and not in a cheesy britney pop way either...it is a truly moving and beautiful song. I always feel sad and lonely after a listen, but its worth if for the art appreciation.
"After Dark" contains the best sex euphemism i've ever heard, 'I wanna make some honey.' It also starts out with this great, slow, funky groove that the early lyrics lay nicely over.
"You make me feel" is supa-nice...VERY deep rolling base...definately recommend a good sub for this.
There's many, many more highlights on this CD (especially the video of the Money Can't Buy performance), but there's enough here to decide if you want the thing. My favourite Kyle CD is Impossible Princess so I have to plug it. Sorry for the length, and thanks for reading.
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Kylie Hits the Spot!, May 23, 2004
While it's on the heels of her platinum-certified 2002 stateside comeback "Fever," this is certainly no rehash, trading that album's consistent dance-pop formula for a more urban/techno feel. It's a risky departure, but it still works.
"Body Language" debuted at a dismal No. 42 on Billboard's Top 200 Albums chart and is quickly losing its footing, while Britney Spears keeps selling truckloads of her latest album each week. Ironically, listening to both albums proves with flying colors that Spears is still an underclassman in Kylie's school.
The lead-single "Slow," which she co-wrote, is a perfect example of how less can be more. Although the song is unhurried and keeps the same tempo from beginning to end, which may be the reason it's receiving scant airplay, it becomes infectious after a few listens. Its accompanying video, which is a feast for the eyes, is also on the disc. The song's remix by the Chemical Brothers is available on the soundtrack to the hit television show "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy," a nod to Kylie's popularity in the gay community.
While none of the tracks on the album are as instantly catchy as "Love At First Sight" or "Can't Get You Out of My Head" from "Fever," many soon catch on. A perfect example is the disco-techy "Promises," which finds the Aussie diva picking up the pieces and leaving when her man hasn't stayed true to his words:
"Remember that I'm over you/And know that I will make it through/Hope you never forget it/The promises you made to me/Were really lies and fantasy."
While naysayers may dismiss the album as intellectually insulting, it's obvious that Kylie and her bevy of collaborators were not aiming to be overly serious here. This music is fun and meant to be nothing but. By the time the vocoder-stuffed '80s throw-back "Still Standing" clocks out, this fact should be obvious.
Anyone who has this disc handy while in standstill traffic will probably be enjoying themselves and tapping their fingers to the sounds of "Chocolate," "Obsession" or the appropriately-titled second single "Red-Blooded Woman." If that doesn't work, there's always the likes of "After Dark" or "Someday" to relax them.
For fans who own the import release of "Body Language," there's still reason enough to buy the U.S. release, as it features two exclusive tracks, the smooth "You Make Me Feel" and the naughty "Cruise Control," which fit in perfectly with the album's overall funky vibe.
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~ Kylie Minogue
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