A Taste of Honey (Aerial - Kate Bush)

Member Name: noodlesandwich

Product:	Aerial - Kate Bush
Date:	15/01/06 (514 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: unique, eccentric, life affirming

Disadvantages: it takes a bit of time to get into

Kate Bush made her fans wait twelve years for this one, while she was happily ensconced in her homelife bringing up a son. The material reflects this and the artwork on Aerial paves the way for the music, with a row of washing on a clothes line in the inner sleeve gradually metamorphosing into seagulls. There are two discs with seven and nine songs respectively and Aerial has been critically lauded and nominated for Best British album at this years Brit Awards, while Kate has been nominated for best female solo artist.

~A Sea of Honey~ begins with the single King of the Mountain which has a slow, rythmic beat and is about the myths that surround Elvis. It's one of the more immediate songs on the first disc and is probably familiar to a lot of people, especially regular listeners to Radio Two. It's followed by Pi - a song about a mathematician, one of the better songs on this disc in my opinion, in which Kate sings some of the numbers of pi, (not all of them obviously!), it's a slow low key number but listened to in the right frame of mind it can be strangely hypnotic. The next two songs have been much discussed and criticized in the music press. Bertie is a song of love for Kate's son, it may be sentimental, but I don't understand why some people have objected so strongly to it. How many love songs are out there and how big a part of life is the love of a child? To me it's crazy that anyone should think mother love a subject not fit to be sung about. Mrs Bartolozzi continues the theme of domesticity as Kate sings about a day doing the washing. It's a bit of a weird one and I'm not sure I like it. It has an operatic feel to it, although played solely on piano. Some have praised it for finding beauty in the humdrum, but for me listening to Kate gently trill the lyrics 'washing machine' twice over does feel faintly ridiculous. The last three tracks on this disc continue the honey soaked theme; a song called How to be Invisible which is something Kate would seem to know about given the twelve year hiatus since The Red Shoes, a romantic tribute to Joan of Arc which drags somewhat, and The Coral Room which deals with the death of Kate's mother ends disc one, I'm sorry to say it but not too soon. I was disappointed when I first listened to this disc, I found it dreary, but it has grown on me a bit as I've listened more and begun to pick out some of the melodies. I can hear a classical influence over the whole thing, but I'm not particularly fond of classical music and I prefer Kate at her most difficult such as on The Dreaming. Imagine what it would be like to swim in a sea of honey; soft and slow, with a surreal dreamlike quality, but also cloyingly sweet and ultimately a bit of a struggle, that's how I feel about this disc.

~A Sky of Honey~ is a concept suite which begins with birdsong to take us through a lovely day in which Kate dances and laughs and imitates the birds. I found this instantly more embracing than disc one although it is still a slow starter. There is a Prelude in which her son Bertie talks about the birds, then there's the relaxed and dreamy Prologue, followed by The Architects Dream where we meet a pavement artist. There are many layers to Kates music, so fitting then that part of this side is about painting. Rolf Harris sings a few lines in The Painter's Link, showing us yet again that no matter how much she is lambasted for it Kate continues to do her own thing with absolutely no regard for being trendy or up to date. It may not always work, but it's one of the reasons I love her. After a lovely afternoon it's soon Sunset which picks up the pace dramatically with a burst of flamenco style guitar before we find ouselves on top of the highest hill in the atmospheric Somewhere in Between, which is kind of ambient dub with an oriental feel and reminds me of The Sensual World. If you let go you may find yourself floating away on this one. There's no harsh reality in a Sky of Honey, it's all about the beauty of life and light and love. In the hippyish Nocturn with its layers of keyboards and electric guitars, 'We go diving into the moonlight' and within sweeping melodies, vocals and lyrics, 'We stand in the Atlantic We become Panoramic' and finally tumble into Aerial, an exhilarating upbeat track in which Kate wants to be 'up high on the roof in the sun', then goes familiarly mental and laughs like a maniac along with all the tweeting birds. It's taken me several listens but now I'm beginning to sink into this honey and fall in love with Kate all over again.

In comparison with Kate's back catalogue I would say Aerial is closest to The Hounds of Love, particularly on disc two. It also has elements of The Sensual World and touches of The Dreaming. It's not likely to become my favourite Kate Bush album but there's some really good stuff here and it stands well apart from anything else out there today.

Summary: It delivers