Kate Bush - 2 NEW ALBUMS!

[Meowi]

DKJGBSP*IRGBP SRBRIBSRB{SRBPRNBG
First Stevie, and now the even more elusive Kate!

In MAY (coincidence!) Kate will release an album called the Director's Cut. This album will feature re-worked songs from the Sensual World and The Red Shoes. Plus, Kate's people have CONFIRMED that totally new material is coming as well.
The reworked version of Deeper Understanding will be released as a single next month.
:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/mar/11/kate-bush-new-album

[David]

How odd. Why would she want to rework such exquisite tracks as "Song of Solomon" or "The Fog"?

It'll be interesting to hear what she does, nonetheless. But I'd rather hear her rework her earlier songs (like "In Search of Peter Pan" or "Moving"), which were much more conventionally orchestrated.

[HejiraNYC]

OMG :blob1: :blob2:. I'm a bit puzzled that she would revisit The Sensual World, which I find to be perfect as-is, The Red Shoes less so. But usually new Kate music is preceded by years and years of speculation. I can't believe there is actually a release date! May is going to be the best month in the history of music!

Thanks for finding this news!

[Meowi]

While I'm looking forward to Directors Cut, it will be the confirmed new material that she will be releasing soon. Ok, we know why Stevie went back to the studio - but Kate?

[BombaySapphire3]

DKJGBSP*IRGBP SRBRIBSRB{SRBPRNBG
First Stevie, and now the even more elusive Kate!



http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/mar/11/kate-bush-new-album

The way way waaay more elusive Kate..she has not toured in over 30 years whereas La Nicks will tour at seemingly any and every opportunity.:rolleyes:

[wheart]

I'm super excited about this new offering from Kate and also intrigued...I always thought of Kate as someone who would always be moving forward in terms of her work and not want to look back on projects she had already done. Obviously, I was wrong and actually glad I was. I, too, am puzzled by the album choices. Why just choose two specific albums and not songs from across her entire catalog? Kate is obviously quite the perfectionist so I wonder if she was in someway unhappy with the way these two albums turned out? I sense the reason is far more complex than that since after all she has been producing and writing her albums entirely since The Dreaming. She's been in the driver's seat and certaintly cant' be accused of rushing through an album just for the sake of getting it out to the masses.I hope she does a few interviews regarding this project to give us some insight into its origins. But I'm very much looking forward to hearing these reworked songs and very curious to see which ones she decided to overhaul.

[HejiraNYC]

http://img.perezhilton.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/kate-bush-announces-new-alb__oPt.jpg :thumbsup:

[Meowi]

:D

Luf you Kate!
Guys this is sooo awesome.

[Dodfather]

Wonderful news! I always thought The Red Shoes was an underrated Kate album.

[10milestereo]

Is it just me or does it seem like she just wanted to play with new arrangements and is using this release as an outlet for that because she doesn't get to do live reworkings?

[TrueFaith77]

Well, I'm disappointed by this. I didn't appreciate Morrissey's reworkings of Maladjusted and Southpaw Grammar (or the addition of Silver Springs to Rumours). Don't mess with history. But remaster history? By all means.

[HejiraNYC]

Well, I'm disappointed by this. I didn't appreciate Morrissey's reworkings of Maladjusted and Southpaw Grammar (or the addition of Silver Springs to Rumours). Don't mess with history. But remaster history? By all means.

Well, I can kinda see why she would want to revisit some works from this era, especially The Red Shoes, which is by far my least favorite Kate album. I would love to see a less-schmaltzy version of "Moments of Pleasure," for instance. If nothing else, I'm fascinated by the new vocals; I happen to love Kate's "mature" timbre; her voice, like Christine McVie's, has mellowed into a gorgeous tone with age.

[TrueFaith77]

Well, I can kinda see why she would want to revisit some works from this era, especially The Red Shoes, which is by far my least favorite Kate album. I would love to see a less-schmaltzy version of "Moments of Pleasure," for instance. If nothing else, I'm fascinated by the new vocals; I happen to love Kate's "mature" timbre; her voice, like Christine McVie's, has mellowed into a gorgeous tone with age.

Well... I'd rather hear all that with new material. The cognitive dissonance is too much for me. Like bad American remakes of British tv shows.

[HejiraNYC]

Well... I'd rather hear all that with new material. The cognitive dissonance is too much for me. Like bad American remakes of British tv shows.

Well of course we would all rather hear all-new material. But perhaps she felt that she could not move forward without making some amends with her past. Remember, Kate is a notorious nano-perfectionist. Accordingly she probably still loses sleep over The Red Shoes, which was a very flawed album. Judging from her last studio album, I think Kate is in a much earthier frame of mind- less production, more emotion. I would love to hear her strip a layer or four off of TRS.

[Pyewacket]

Wackier than ever! Here's Kate as "mad genius," slicing up some film. This is the first photo of her for this project, and it mirrors an old photo of Sergei Eisenstein.

A sample of the track "Deeper Understanding" has leaked, but just as quickly, disappeared. The full track will be available for download on April 5th. From what I've heard, it sounds even wackier than this picture looks!


http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j3bG9nn7w1Y/TZEsTbnHEiI/AAAAAAAAC1M/dpjBbYuit0w/s1600/kate-directors.jpg

[Meowi]

No need to worry. I have the link :).
http://www.slicingupeyeballs.com/2011/03/27/kate-bush-auto-tune-deeper-understanding-stream-single-mp3/

Note: This may be a fake, according to some fans.

[Pyewacket]

Wow -- thanks for that! But it's not a fake. Though the vocoder sounds a bit dated in the amazon clip (which was only 64 bps), the other vocals are unmistakeably her, and they are different from the original Deeper Understanding. Since she's meticulous about keeping things under wraps, it had to be amazon's error to let this clip escape early (they apparently did this this week with a number of tracks).

[Meowi]

Wow -- thanks for that! But it's not a fake. Though the vocoder sounds a bit dated in the amazon clip (which was only 64 bps), the other vocals are unmistakeably her, and they are different from the original Deeper Understanding. Since she's meticulous about keeping things under wraps, it had to be amazon's error to let this clip escape early (they apparently did this this week with a number of tracks).

I think that the vocals are the same.
Interesting points though. Also, do you think that the original version is playing in the background?

[Pyewacket]

No, I don't! (he says gleefully)...

Here's a second clip that's been released...definitely a new vocal from Kate...and not a shred of vocoder to be found in this one. It sounds Joni-esque in it's playful background bits. What do you think?

<object width="640" height="390"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IpEQWUOoP5o?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IpEQWUOoP5o?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="390"></embed></object>

[HejiraNYC]

^^Thanks for posting! Yes, that's not a vocoder, but it is some kind of voice-processing tool. My initial impression is why bother. Based on this clip, it doesn't sound like the song has been altered all that much, which pretty much sounded like So-era Peter Gabriel to begin with. And it's also an odd choice for a lead single. Very, very odd. I am suddenly not feeling so good about this project.

[Pyewacket]

I have to admit that this second clip is giving me much more pause than the first one. The first one, with the robotic voice, was way out there and, uh...ballsy. This one not only sounds a lot more like the original production, but it also kind of detracts with her clipped pronunciation (understandin?) and the 'ba-ba ba-ba-ba-ba's.

A tracklist was also found from a Swedish CD store, but this is not at all confirmed:

A Swedish CD store is listing the Director’s Cut tracklisting as follows. PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS NOT OFFICIALLY CONFIRMED YET.

1 Flower of the Mountain
2 Song of Solomon
3 Lily
4 Deeper Understanding
5 The Red Shoes
6 This Woman’s Work
7 Moments of Pleasure
8 Never be Mine
9 Top of the City
10 And so is Love
11 Rubberband Girl

The thing that makes me feel like this could be the real tracklist is the title of track one. I suspect that Stephen Joyce (copyright-holder to the James Joyce estate) has allowed Kate to re-do "The Sensual World" with the original Joycean lyrics that he denied to her in 1989. If so, "Flower of the Mountain" are words that appear both in the Joyce original text (Molly Bloom's soliloquy) and in Kate's revamped lyrics for "The Sensual World."

[mdakd]

I have to admit that this second clip is giving me much more pause than the first one. The first one, with the robotic voice, was way out there and, uh...ballsy. This one not only sounds a lot more like the original production, but it also kind of detracts with her clipped pronunciation (understandin?) and the 'ba-ba ba-ba-ba-ba's.

A tracklist was also found from a Swedish CD store, but this is not at all confirmed:

A Swedish CD store is listing the Director’s Cut tracklisting as follows. PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS NOT OFFICIALLY CONFIRMED YET.

1 Flower of the Mountain
2 Song of Solomon
3 Lily
4 Deeper Understanding
5 The Red Shoes
6 This Woman’s Work
7 Moments of Pleasure
8 Never be Mine
9 Top of the City
10 And so is Love
11 Rubberband Girl

The thing that makes me feel like this could be the real tracklist is the title of track one. I suspect that Stephen Joyce (copyright-holder to the James Joyce estate) has allowed Kate to re-do "The Sensual World" with the original Joycean lyrics that he denied to her in 1989. If so, "Flower of the Mountain" are words that appear both in the Joyce original text (Molly Bloom's soliloquy) and in Kate's revamped lyrics for "The Sensual World."

I really hope the James Joyce part is true so we can finally hear the song the way Kate envisioned it. If it's true, I'm so excited to hear if she changes up the music itself too, maybe using the original track as inspiration.

This is such an exciting time to be both a Stevie and a Kate fan! :woohoo:

P.S. I really hope that "Lily" is not on there. I've never cared for that song...

[HejiraNYC]

1 Flower of the Mountain
2 Song of Solomon
3 Lily
4 Deeper Understanding
5 The Red Shoes
6 This Woman’s Work
7 Moments of Pleasure
8 Never be Mine
9 Top of the City
10 And so is Love
11 Rubberband Girl[/I]

The thing that makes me feel like this could be the real tracklist is the title of track one. I suspect that Stephen Joyce (copyright-holder to the James Joyce estate) has allowed Kate to re-do "The Sensual World" with the original Joycean lyrics that he denied to her in 1989. If so, "Flower of the Mountain" are words that appear both in the Joyce original text (Molly Bloom's soliloquy) and in Kate's revamped lyrics for "The Sensual World."

Holy crickets, this is getting more bizarre by the minute. I thought "The Sensual World/Flower of the Mountain" was perfection. The way she carried the lines with such an innocence and the erotic mmmm... yes that she would use at the end of lines, just like Joyce. And when the Uillean pipes came in, it was just such a thing of beauty... what could she possibly do with it to make it better?

I am looking forward to a remake of "Moments of Pleasure" though. I think it needs to be just Kate and the piano, just like "Washing Machine." And "Top of the City" was my favorite song from TRS, so I'd love to hear a new version of it. But ending the album with "Rubberband Girl" sounds odd since it was the opening track on TRS.

Oh, Kate. Always keeping us guessing.

[TrueFaith77]

rt @koolfresh:
In order to halt workplace productivity & bring down capitalism, the commies at NPR stream the new Kate Bush album. http://is.gd/wwxZ1G

[TrueFaith77]

^^^Very disappointed by the "new" album. I don't think any of the songs are improved, most are not radically different enough to be meaningful. The cognitive dissonance (and total lack of urgency) make the once-moving Moments of Pleasure into a drag. There is so much wrong with this conception (and its execution) that it makes me worried that Kate Bush has lost "it"--interesting in the year Stevie produces her greatest ever solo album (heck, her first great solo album--one might even say In Your Dreams is worthy of The Red Shoes of 1993).

[HejiraNYC]

^^^Very disappointed by the "new" album. I don't think any of the songs are improved, most are not radically different enough to be meaningful. The cognitive dissonance (and total lack of urgency) make the once-moving Moments of Pleasure into a drag. There is so much wrong with this conception (and its execution) that it makes me worried that Kate Bush has lost "it"--interesting in the year Stevie produces her greatest ever solo album (heck, her first great solo album--one might even say In Your Dreams is worthy of The Red Shoes of 1993).

That sounds like a slam to me, not a compliment. :mad:

[TrueFaith77]

That sounds like a slam to me, not a compliment. :mad:

Well it's a compliment to the Stevie of 2011 and the Kate Bush of 1993, but def a slam @ the Kate Bush of 2011 :lol:

Ranking Kate & Stevie:

1. Hounds of Love
2. The Dreaming
3. The Kick Inside
4. Never For Ever
5. Sensual World
6. Lionheart
7. In Your Dreams
8. The Red Shoes
9. All other Stevie Nicks solo albums
(tie)
9. Ariel
10. Director's Cut

[kick.inside]

Kate is my favorite solo artist but I must admit I'm not thrilled with Director's Cut.
I think it's because it's just songs we've all heard before (not the new versions of course, but still). If it was 100% new material, I'm sure I'd be more excited.

[JazmenFlowers]

I went over to NPR and listened and I really couldn't get through even the songs I love, but I did run right to my iPhone to listen to my favorites on Hounds of Love and The Red Shoes. I guess I won't be buying this album.

[wheart]

I still have not purchased Director's Cut since there was a "shipping" problem and they never showed into my local FYE on Tuesday, or Wednesday for that matter. I didn't bother going in there today, figuring they wouldn't be there. But after reading some posts, maybe that's not such a bad thing. The reviews have been glowing but frankly, when I saw so many of my favorite songs on the tracklist, it kinda bothered me. I love those songs in the original form so I think hearing a reworked version may be somewhat disturbing, if not disappointing. I haven't heard any of the songs yet except Deeper Understanding so I can't really comment yet. Although interesting, the new version of DU doesn't compare to the original in my mind and seems, well unecessary and a waste of time.

[Pyewacket]

The reviews have been insanely good. 4 and 5 stars from most critics, with only a few dipping down to three (and one giving it two).

It is nothing if not atmospheric. And some of the tracks, IMHO, are better than the originals. It's a more varied sounding album than any of Stevie's, for sure (Kate never sticks with straightforward rock -- you will find Madagascan, Celtic and African influences here as well as a nod to cinematic soundtracks and electronica). Overall, I like it, though it was never going to be the best-Kate scenario.

I get that it was important for her to do (she's said she did it for herself and that it has been something she's wanted to do for some time). But for me, I'd certainly have preferred a new album...and, not getting that, then an album of remakes of different songs. Some of these never thrilled me to begin with. As for production, well...it's interesting to me that most of these songs were written when Tori Amos and Sarah McLachlan were at their heights of success...and now that Kate's redone them, a few sound like Tori and Sarah productions. Ah well -- I'm still recommending it because the weird pull of Kate is still strong with this one...and any album of Kate's is head and shoulders above those of most other artists.

1> Aerial
2> Hounds Of Love
3> The Dreaming
4> Bella Donna
5> Never for Ever
6> The Sensual World
7> The Kick Inside
8> Trouble In Shangri-La
9> Director's Cut
10> In Your Dreams
11> The Red Shoes
12> The Wild Heart
13> Lionheart
14> Rock A Little


25> Street Angel
102> Other Side Of The Mirror

[Maxd9]

I adore Kate, but so far I've been really disappointed with Director's Cut. I think the new version of 'Moments of Pleasure' is AMAZING and far better than the original (IMHO), but apart from that, I think most of the songs on DC have lost some of their power. Maybe it will grow on me, and there are only 2 songs which I REALLY dislike (Flower of the Mountain and Rubberband Girl), so perhaps I just haven't listened to it enough. Or maybe I'm just ready for a new album and my love for Aerial has made everything feel a little mediocre. :shrug:

[Maxd9]

P.S - I just tried ranking Kate and Stevie's albums together, and I found it impossible. I think most of Kate's albums are stronger, more interesting and more artful than Stevie's, but I listen to Stevie far more often, and have a greater emotional reaction to her work. When it came to ranks, I just couldn't do it.

[Pyewacket]

P.S - I just tried ranking Kate and Stevie's albums together, and I found it impossible. I think most of Kate's albums are stronger, more interesting and more artful than Stevie's, but I listen to Stevie far more often, and have a greater emotional reaction to her work. When it came to ranks, I just couldn't do it.


^ I know what you mean...it's hard to rank them knowing that Kate is more of a producer of her own work (and in that respect, more like a Lindsey Buckingham). For instance, in ranking their debut albums, it's hard to ignore the fact that Jimmy Iovine shaped Stevie's sound in a big way for Bella Donna (which I love) while Andrew Powell actually hampered Kate's vision for The Kick Inside (which is why she began producing her own stuff shortly thereafter). Both albums catch the essence of the performer....but in the end I ranked Bella Donna higher because it sounded more polished (i.e. better produced).

Kate doesn't have a Fleetwood Mac to co-inhabit her time, so there are fewer instances where there's filler on her albums. The instances where filler does appear (in both Stevie's and Kate's works) are the albums that I ended up ranking the lowest. Otherwise, I just ranked them according to which ones I listen to more often, rather than respect more. I think I respect The Dreaming above all, but I don't listen to it nearly as much as Aerial or Hounds Of Love.

[TrueFaith77]

Ranking Kate & Stevie - Director's Cut:

1. Tusk
2. Rumours
3. Fleetwood Mac
4. Hounds of Love
5. The Dreaming
6. The Kick Inside
7. Say You Will
8. Never For Ever
9. The Sensual World
10. Lionheart
11. In Your Dreams
12. Buckingham Nicks
13. Tango In The Night
14. Mirage
15. The Red Shoes
16. Bella Donna
17. The Wild Heart
18. Ariel
19. Behind the Mask
20. Rock A Little
21. Street Angel
22. Other Side of the Mirror
23. Director's Cut



To put it all in perspective. The Soundstage Sessions > Director's Cut

[Pyewacket]

Here's a quick (75 seconds) look at the gor-gi-mous packaging for Director's Cut. It's me totally geeking out (I just got it yesterday):

<object width="640" height="390"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/RnV-gYl2S6Y?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/RnV-gYl2S6Y?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="640" height="390" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>



Some other quick tidbits:

The album appears to be on track to debut at #2 (behind Adele) on the UK charts! It was #1 for several days following its initial release, but Adele's now-17-week stay at #1 appears to be unstoppable.

A cool exchange between Kate and the German weekly Spiegel:
Spiegel: Do you know that you are revered by hip-hop titans like 2Pac, Wu-Tang Clan or Dr. Dre and many others?
Bush: I am aware of that, and I cannot do much more than to say I find it surprising and incredibly cool.

Director's Cut has been reviewed on the official site of the Catholic Church, which calls it "An album, away from the structures typical of pop-rock, yet endowed with great strength in communication: an excellent appetizer, waiting for a new album that is already ."

Other reviews (I don't know which of these has a four- or five- star system):

[I]Kultura Pravda (Slovak): 5 stars “one of the best albums of this year”
Drowned in Sound (UK?): 7 out of 10 "a dazzling affirmation of Bush’s genius as songwriter"
Wirtulana Polska (Polish): 3 out of 5
The Sun (UK): 4 out of 5 "artistically satisfying...a dreamy bewitching treat with unexpected deviations from the original versions"
Sydvenskan (Swedish): 3 out of 5 “dramatic, multi-layered pop songs”
Record Collector (UK, I think): 2 out of 5 “the tracks feature ho-hum touches that largely result in reducing the songs’ power."
Scotsman: 4 stars "The resulting revamps are satisfying, rounded – and occasionally bizarre"
The Observer (UK): 3 out of 5 "a beguiling album"
The Metro (UK and Ireland): 4 stars "a brilliantly fresh approach...laced with heart-racing action"
Music Week (UK): "a strong album"
The Times (Will Hodgkinson, UK) 3 stars “interesting, but not easy to lose yourself in“
The Times (Dan Cairns, UK): 4 stars "To listen...is to be reminded that this extraordinary artist is without equal.”
News Of The World (UK): 4 stars "there’s a playful adventurousness here that’s more imaginative than most brand-new music."
London Evening Standard (UK): 3 stars "This Woman's Work stands tallest...she's taken from as well as given to Florence & The Machine"
Irish Times: 4 stars
Yahoo Music (US?): 5 out of 10: “a mis-guided attempt at modification"
The Vine (Australia): "these new versions are slinky and elegantly dreamy."
Daily Telegraph (UK): 4 stars "should really be enjoyed as a rare, live performance"
Word Magazine (UK): “Radical reinvention and unfettered weirdness.”
Financial Times (UK): 3 out of 5
Daily Mail (UK): 4 stars "a natural richness and sensuality."
Daily Express (UK) 5 stars "More Kate Bush is always a good thing"
The Independent (UK): 5 stars "Return of the Sensual Woman"
Guardian (UK): 4 out of 5 "faffing about of the most exquisite kind."
Q Magazine (UK): 4 stars
NME (UK): "very much the Son Of ‘Aerial’; full of silence, space and maturity. "

(these were quoted from http://www.katebushnews.com/ or the original sites)

[TrueFaith77]

NME (UK): "very much the Son Of ‘Aerial’; full of silence, space and maturity. "


Sadly, I don't disagree.

[Pyewacket]

Sadly, I don't disagree.

Me neither. Good thing Aerial is at the top of my ranking. ;)


Kidding. I think DC sounds nothing like Aerial, which is a brilliant album light on electronics. It sounds pastoral and light, as if fueled by Kate's happiness out in her country home. DC, on the other hand, re-invents a lot of songs about grief and heartbreak...but they're still those same songs about grief and heartbreak. It's darker. And musically, much edgier than Aerial.

[HejiraNYC]

I've finally allowed DC to seep through my pores via repeated listenings whilst running around over the weekend. I have to admit that I was a little put off initially, but I have grown to appreciate this set of songs as a unique work unto itself; never did I get the sense that these are songs pulled from two different albums. I was also initially a bit disturbed by Kate's vocal on "Flower of the Mountain;" it sounded like she was winded and out of breath, whereas she chirped like a jubilant swallow on the original version. But then after a couple of spins, I realized this was not the innocent little wallflower of yore; this mature version of Kate now is in the throes of passion; barely able to control her own breathing or pitch. Twenty-two years later she finally delivered a vocal that perfectly complemented the prose. I also love how she lowered the key to a few of the songs. I don't think it was a matter of not being able to hit the notes (she clearly still has the full range of her voice). Rather, it seems that she is trying to take a quieter, less shrill approach to these songs. So instead of yelping out a pierced high note, she either avoids the note or just kinda tosses out a lower note that fits in better with the mood of the song. Overlooked songs like "Never Be Mine" are positively radiant in this sparser, deconstructed setting. And "Moments of Pleasure," which was so overwrought and precious on The Red Shoes is now humble and reflective without all of the syrupy bombast. And it was genius to eliminate the chorus altogether and to replace it with a humming choir- it adds to the funereal-yet-hopeful theme of the song. Overall, I like this new Kate- less obsessed with perfection and more into setting a mood.

In any case, this is nowhere close to being a substitute for new music. But, as another reviewer has mentioned, this is as close to a "live album" as we are going to get from Kate. I'll take whatever I can get!