FEATURE:
We Think You Are Really Cool…?
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush shot at Worx Studios, London for the stunning ‘Birdfish’ photo in 1989/PHOTO CREDIT: Guido Harari
Does Kate Bush Have the Necessary Pull to Appeal to Young Music Fans?
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IN this Kate Bush feature…
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush performs Suspended in Gaffa on the French T.V. show, Champs Elysees, in October 1982/PHOTO CREDIT: Araldo Di Crollalanza/Rex Features
there are a few things that I want to cover off and explore. The first thing to look at is this recent tweet from Kaleidoscope Eyed Girl: “kate bush doesn't have the ‘cool factor’ that björk, david bowie, madonna, fiona apple, and pj harvey have with young music nerds and musictwt in particular. she's too outdated for many of them”. This did cause some reaction and interesting discussion. I recently published a feature, discussing Kate Bush as this fashion icon. Maybe more under the radar or less extravagant than a Bowie or Björk, I argue that she is more versatile and inventive than most artists who have lived. From comfy and high street looks through to sexy, stylish and unusual, her repertoire, wardrobe and portfolio is as colorful, inventive, influential and standout than any. I do wonder about that cool factor. Today, I feel a lot of the major Pop artists, consciously or not, are cool. That sense that they break through and connect with young listeners if they have a certain element to them. Whether that is their clothing or how they present themselves on social media, there is still an emphasis on style and looks. The industry also still a bit exploitative when it comes to women and sex appeal. Marketing female artists in a different way to men. Though many women are reclaiming their autonomy and are body-positive in their approach. I was talking with someone recently about Kate Bush, who said that she become cool again when Stranger Things launched Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) back into the consciousness. A 1985 song that had new lease in the 2020s, there was this insinuation that Kate Bush was not cool before.
Arguably, like some of her peers, Bush had her decade. A time when she was cool. You could say that was the 1980s. In the 1990s, like Bowie in fact, she was not talked about or seen as relevant or at her best. However, like all the best artists, she regained footing and relevance. That tweet struck me. Artists like Fiona Apple, Madonna and Björk are cool with young music listeners in part because of how they dress and that they are visible. Fiona Apple less so, arguably, but still undeniably cool in terms of attitude and how her music has translated and resonated with a new generation. Can we say that Bush, through lack of prolific output and public visibility, is seen in a particular way? Hounds of Love is a cool album, though do we narrowly define her and is there this feeling that she was relevant in the 1980s and outdated now? Listen to 2005’s Aerial and 2011’s 50 Words for Snow and they may be considered more middle-aged, for a BBC Radio 2 audience or lacking edge or modern significance. The former album was released in 2005; the latter in 2011. You can say that Madonna is on trend and very much innovating. Bowie produced one of his best alums, Blackstar, before his death in 2016. Fiona Apple released Fetch the Bolt Cutters in 2020. A masterpiece. Björk has new material coming out and is still a fashion icon. A style of her own. Regardless of age, these artists are fresh and still relevant. It would be worrying to think that Kate Bush is dustier and less important. However, you can appreciate why some younger listeners might not instantly attach themselves to her work. I feel that young listeners are discovering Kate Bush and loving her because of her originality and legacy. The fact that everything is in the music. I know she might not have that visual aesthetic and resonance that some icons do, though that is purely aesthetic and fashion. In an Instagram age, can music alone connect? What I mean is that artists like Madonna are on platforms and they have this updated, visual engagement. They can be considered more fashionable and cooler. Kate Bush does not seemingly have that advantage.
IN THIS PHOTO: PinkPantheress/PHOTO CREDIT: Simon Albert Khan for Interview Magazine
I would say that she is definitely hugely relevant and influential. That may not be equivalent to cool and an ingredient that cuts through to young audiences, though think about artists today who are inspired by her. Major Pop artists such as Charli xcx and Chappell Roan are fans. Young listeners learn about Kate Bush because artists are talking about her, and you can detect Bush’s influence in their work. It is curious whether an artist has a cool aspect and that special something is what is needed to truly captivate the young. Kate Bush has not released an album since 2011, and she has not been photographed in public for over a decade. Her music is played on radio, but there is a narrow selection of songs. That tweet that I started out with seems to associate the outward and visible with an artist’s endurance and cool. It might suggest a shallowness in terms of young listeners and what appeals to them. Or that we live in an age where photos, the visual and cool are currencies stronger than anything else. However, one cannot deny Kate Bush is cool through her association with modern artists shouting her out. In an interview with fellow artist Clairo, artist and producer PinkPantheress talked about Kate Bush. Maybe this contradicts my point somewhat, but this is what PinkPantheress said: “I value mystery above all else. It's really beautiful to be someone who hides away and then emerges when a musical moment arises. Like Kate Bush. She's also one of my inspirations”. You can see the interview here. Maybe you would not think so, though I would say that Bush remaining popular and relevant without being out in public and showing her face is incredibly cool. The brilliance of her music and her sheer genius does not require her to dress a certain way or be a fashion icon – even though she is. Bush can go away and then release an album after many years and then explodes. Today, artists have to grind, constantly promote and post photos of themselves. That is what is required. The suggestion too that this is cool. Lots of photos get lots of likes. Less to do with the music and more to do with what the artist looks like. Bush is from a different time and is more traditional. I can appreciated how Madonna might speak to young listeners because she is out there releasing music seen as more accessible and nearer the mainstream – or what is popular and common. Kate Bush more niche or outside of that.
Do young generations require certain things from legacy artists for them to be picked up and appreciated en masse? Perhaps there is an argument in that. I don’t think it is a fault of Kate Bush. She is not going to change herself and kowtow to modern demands and be all on Instagram and change her music direction. I think that the issue lies with what people value in an artist and how there is this dependence on visuals and the aesthetic of an artist. Unless you are cool and all over social media then you are not worth that much. Kate Bush might not seem the coolest out there, but the more you delve and read about her, you realise that is not the case. The weird and wonderful details. Look at her photoshoots and some things she has done through the years. Shot with a fake/toy crocodile (maybe an alligator, I am not sure) in the 1970s when in Amsterdam. Smoking weed and getting a slight telling off from Donald Sutherland when he filmed with her. How she released these videos that were so unusual and ahead of their time. Not allowed to play In the Warm Room on Ask Aspel in 1978, as it was deemed too sexual and inappropriate for a young audience. She instead performed Kashka from Baghdad – a song about two gay men! Also, how she was often bold and risqué. Her music brought in styles and sounds from around the world. She was confident and forceful when needed. Dealing with constant sexism and misogyny with professionalism. How incredibly kooky and wonderful odd she was at times. She was doing this long before many artists who followed who are seen as cooler or more popular with young audiences. I have been talking about how Bush’s music videos need to be upgraded to HD and that visual side needs to be clearer and shared again. I think this would help. It can be hard to keep a momentum or simply start a new trend and appeal to young listeners if there is not something visual out there. Or a gravitational pull. People not necessarily playing her videos. I wrote how The Beach Boys and The Beatles had special videos. New ones for older songs. The Beach Boys’ ones are especially great. Other artists have this too. I would love to see some of Kate Bush’s singles or album tracks given a brilliant new video. I previously wrote how Mrs. Bartolozzi from Aerial should have a video for it. She might not be a Kate Bush fan, but I am a fan of Carla Woodcock.
She is a tremendous actor and one of Britain’s greatest talents. I listen to Houdini – my favourite Kate Bush song, it is the final track from 1982’s The Dreaming – and how she would be perfect in that video. Playing Harry Houdini's wife, Bess. You can read more about the track here. Although I think dark-haired, I feel that Carla Woodcock would make a great fit. I am spit-balling, but bringing in modern and brilliant actors to appear in Kate Bush videos would help a connection. Make her seem ‘cooler’. This is a topic I might not be doing full justice to. That feeling that Kate Bush might be outdated. When she does release a new album, it will be similar to her more recent work and there will be no T.V. appearances, live work or much in the way of visuals. Think about how David Bowie has exhibitions, reissued material and documentaries. Madonna very much still going strong. Fiona Apple one of the coolest artists around, still breaking ground decades after she started making music. For Kate Bush, and taking Stranger Things out of the equation, what is going to be the thing that keeps her firm in the conversation and ensures she is relevant to modern listeners? It is not incumbent on her to do that. We need to talk about her more and stop defining her by one song or image. She is one of the most innovative and brilliant artists ever. A genius producer. The sheer number of modern queens she has influenced. Dig deeper and you not only realise Kate Bush is one of the coolest artists ever. She has set records, broken ground and paved the way for so many others. Fans and newcomers alike need to do more. Perhaps be less fashion/image-focused and listen to the full spectrum of her music. Then, I do feel that Kate Bush will not seem outdated or someone only cool or worthy in the 1980s. This is the very least that is owed to…
THIS music queen.