FEATURE:
Groovelines
Kylie Minogue – Confide in Me
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THERE is a few Kylie Minogue…
albums that are classic and full of brilliance, yet they have never got the credit and respect they deserved. Two of those albums came next to one another. 1997’s Impossible Princess is a complex, magnificent and eclectic album that was a departure for Minogue. More Electronic and perhaps darker than anything previously, it was a clear move away from the Pop sound of the 1980s and early-’90s. In fact, 1991’s Let’s Get to It was one of her final albums that was more traditional Pop. Many people hailed 2000’s Light Years as this sort of comeback. Feeling that the albums before were a bit light or not really her sound, you can respect the fact that Light Years is a great album with some of Kylie Minogue’s best material. The first real departure and step forward in terms of her sound came on the 1994 Kylie Minogue album. A terrific release, the reviews were mixed. It got to number four in the U.K., but worldwide success was moderate. There are some great tracks on Kylie Minogue. Where Is the Feeling? and Falling are terrific. In fact, there is a consistency that is impressive and should be re-evaluated. By far the strongest cut opens the album. It is the perfect album. It was the first single from Kylie Minogue. Nobody had heard Minogue do anything like Confide in Me.
With strings and elements of Trip-Hop, this was a Pop icon-in-the-making stepping in a new direction. Embracing the moving landscape of music and very much looking ahead to what was to come, Confide in Me is considered one of her greatest songs. In fact, it was one of the best songs of the 1990s. I am going to come to some Wikipedia information, where they collated critical response, and also discussed the legacy of this incredible song. Swooning, dark, orchestral, sexy, daring and innovative, there is no denying the legacy of Confide in Me. Written by Steve Anderson, Dave Seaman and Owain Barton, it was produced by Brothers in Rhythm (Dave Seaman, Steve Anderson and Alan Bremner). There are some wonderful Kylie Minogue videos. In fact, most of them are pretty amazing! Confide in Me, directed by Paul Boyd in Los Angeles during July 1994, is a standout in her cannon. Up there with her best videos, we see colourful and kaleidoscopic representations of Minogue. Different female stereotypes, it is a hypnotic and stunning video that you could have seen the likes of Michel Gondry helming (he would later direct the video for Come Into My World). A stunning video that almost tops the song itself, this was clearly an artist entering a new phase. The fact her 1994 album is eponymous perhaps indicates someone who wanted to be taken more seriously. Something more personal. Embrace a more modern and mature direction. Even though she was twenty-six when Confide in Me came out on 29th August, 1994, this is a massive leap. A video that takes the breath, and a song that takes in Eastern music, Dance, Trip-Hop and Pop, it is a masterpiece of a track! I am going on a slight tangent before bringing in some critical response and legacy details.
Number one in Australia, two in the U.K., and hugely successful around the world, Confide in Me was a huge moment for Kylie Minogue. Her vocals are better and more assured than ever. In terms of the tones, emotions and layers she brings to the song, this was a singer being utilised to her full potential. The lyrics are engaging and thought-provoking, and I really love the composition. I often feel that the strings or beats from the song could be sampled and used in a modern Hip-Hop song. In fact, Minogue’s breathy and elongated chorus vocals of “confide in me” would be a perfect sample. It is a shame there would be copyright and huge fees to pay, as it would open the Kylie Minogue album to people. It would be an incredible and compelling sample to drop in a song. Recorded in London and featured in various Kylie Minogue tours, Confide in Me is not played nearly enough! I love her early Pop oeuvre, but I think that her work on Kylie Minogue and Impossible Princess is fascinating. I want to drop in some Wikipedia information about how Confide in Me was received, and how it has endured and gained huge respect and love:
"Confide in Me" received critical acclaim from music critics. Sean Smith labelled the track a "classic" to Minogue's discography, as similar to how William Baker viewed it. Larry Flick from Billboard complimented "the gorgeously atmospheric, downtempo album cut". Nick Levine from Digital Spy selected it as the standout, and commented "How can we plump for anything other than 'Confide in Me'? Fifteen years on, this sumptuous, string-swathed dance-pop epic still caresses the ears like a flirty hair stylist." Caroline Sullivan from The Guardian noted that it "has a classical violin overture that unfolds into a snake-charming Eastern melody.
Kylie sounds delightfully woebegone." Mike Wass from Idolator wrote that "the Brothers In Rhythm-produced gem was the stepping stone that took her from the glorious pop of "Better The Devil You Know" to collaborating with Nick Cave on "Where The Wild Roses Grow"." He added that it was "a vehicle to showcase a then-hugely-underrated voice." Music writer James Masterton deemed it a "exotic, string-laden single". Alan Jones from Music Week gave it five out of five, noting that "a widescreen string-driven shuffle which allows her to deliver a soft and polished vocal." Tim Jeffery from the magazine's RM Dance Update said, "Very Madonna-ish, in fact, even down to the giggly chuckle thrown in occasionally. Huge." Another editor, James Hamilton deemed it a "Madonna-ishly moaned and muttered Brothers In Rhythm creation". Quentin Harrison from PopMatters highlighted the track from the parent album, and said "Minogue's international perspective lent her canvas precision, not iciness as witnessed with 'Confide in Me'. The cut played like a lost spy film accompaniment, its grandiose strings and rumbling groove enthralled. 'Confide in Me' let Minogue become the vocalist cynics sneered she'd never be ...". British author and critic Adrian Denning enjoyed the track and called it "truly timeless and absolutely wonderful."
He declared the track "Arguably still her finest musical moment to this date," and found the production and lyrical delivery "classy". Billboard's Jason Lipshutz wrote of the track:
Deeply flirtatious and as knowingly dramatic as a James Bond theme song, "Confide in Me" continued Minogue on her path away from simplistic pop atop a swath of strings and Middle Eastern influences. The deadpanned bridge -- "Stick or twist, the choice is yours/Hit or miss, what's mine is yours" -- is delivered in a murmur that yearns for a Serious Artiste label.
“Since its release, "Confide in Me" has been noted by critics and publications as one of the most iconic and innovative singles from the 1990s era, and Minogue's singles history, and has been recognised by authors as an important period of Minogue's career and musical "re-inventions". According to Lee Barron, who wrote the book Social Theory in Popular Culture, he felt the image of the music video was an example and opening of "Indie Kylie"; an image that later progressed through the work of her 1997 album Impossible Princess. Jude Rogers from The Guardian listed the track on her "10 of the Best Kylie Minogue Songs" in June 2016; Rogers complimented the production and said "The effect is utterly mesmerising, and Kylie is in total control from the off, telling you she "can keep a secret / And throw away the key". Later she turns the middle eight into a particularly pervy-sounding card game ("Stick or twist / The choice is yours"), and also plays with the idea of her fame ("Hit or miss / The choice is yours")." She also said the track was her "greatest, strangest hit". Brittany Porter from AXS.com listed the lyric "'I stand in the distance/I view from afar/Should I offer some assistance/Should it matter who you are?'" as some of her best lyrical performances to date”.
One of my favourite songs from the 1990s, a daring and bold move forward from Kylie Minogue was Confide in Me. Leading the eponymous 1994 album from the Pop legend, this was her entering new territory and creating something truly wonderous and timeless. The song still sounds fresh to this date. From its colourful, stunning and terrific video, through to Minogue delivering one of her finest vocal performances, this sublime song should be played and discussed a lot more. Put the track on, close your eyes and…
LET it take you away.