With just four more sleeps until Christmas time’s running out to get in the festive spirit – but do not be tempted to reach for Kylie Minogue’s new album now, or ever.
Creatively named Kylie Christmas this album is far from the sort of thing you want when wrapping the presents with a Baileys in hand.
It goes without saying that Kylie can carry a tune, and this album shows different sides of what she can do from the late 80s pop that saw her shoot to stardom to a softer, stripped-back side that she explored in her Abbey Road Sessions album.
But in terms of modern Christmas albums this couldn’t be further from the ‘hitting the nail on the head’ of Michael Buble.
The oddity begins with a duet with Frank Sinatra – yes really.
In a rare highlight, some clever dubbing has enabled Kylie to discover her inner jazz queen alongside Ol’ Blue Eyes, which makes for a number that would make even Scrooge want to join a chorus line.
There are more eyebrow raising duets nestled amongst jazzy jingles and it’s the inconsistency in the album’s style that lets it down.
The first with Iggy Pop is very much in original Kylie stylie with plenty of cheese – they clearly needed to bulk out the album.
Just when you’re starting to lose hope with a few questionable choices, you’re struck with the smooth lilt of an impressively understated gentleman’s voice.
That surprise is compounded when you discover they’re the sounds of the inimitable James Corden.
The pair’s cover of Yazoo’s Only You is a lovely addition to the album and will tip you over the edge if you’ve had too many sherries and you’re feeling nostalgic. This wintery match-up isn’t quite Torvill and Dean but definitely well worth a listen.
Unfortunately Kylie attempts The Pretender’s 2000 miles.
In this poppy version Kylie manages to warp the Chrissie Hynde classic into sounded like something a GCSE music student knocked it together in twenty minutes.
Kylie performs some damage limitation with pleasant covers of Let It Snow, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and Santa Baby, however the bizarre combination of styles means the only place this CD is ending up is in the bin.
Image courtesy of Kylie Minogue, via YouTube, with thanks
