Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
What was once close can, over time, become Closer; it is an elevation of the Muse that provides in which we can gain ground and see the details of our emotional heritage in a finer focus, a sharper existence without rumour and without static; and which adds a grandeur we take into the decade of our life which perhaps offers greater reflection, which dictates softly we must take advantage of the Muse’s affection.
One of the bestselling, endearing, and enduring British voices of the last forty years, as well as being in effect music royalty to many as her pedigree and family name has been part and parcel of the charts and the music lover’s collections since the late 50’s, Kim Wilde returns to the nation’s turntables, cd players and streaming services with a passion of the intimate but one driven by the experience of rock that propelled her to the nation’s hearts.
With Jonathan Atkinson, Paul Cooper, Neil Jones, Ricky Wilde, and Scarlett Wilde forming a tight circle of industrious cool around her, Closer sees Ms. Wilde return to the studio for the first time since 2018’s Here Come The Aliens, what comes across is a distance narrowed, a memory of time between albums shortened; the sense that it is not the years that separate an artist but just how remarkable the next recording is.
The album, which contains tracks such as Scorpio, Trail Of Destruction, the excellent Sorrow Replaced, which features the ever outstanding Midge Ure, Rocket To The Moon, and the resonating finale Savasana, is a presentation of elegance combined with a reminder of the pop/rock additions of attitude, drama, haunting lyrical appreciation, and a female beating heart not taking any bunkum or games from anyone.
To hold the thoughts of another human being in your hands is a privilege, to do so as the artist within reaches a part of life where insight is paramount and engrained, the stories passed on from their mind to the listener’s soul, is incredible and beautifully entrancing.
To be close is an opportunity of bonding, to be closer brings intimacy, and in such a way Ms. Wilde once more brings that emotional resonance to the fore and asks only that you put inhibitions aside and allow the hand of the performer to take yours and go on a journey together. In Closer the journey is nearer than you think.
Ian D. Hall