Kylie Minogue 'Into The Blue': The First Reviews

Kylie Minogue 'Into The Blue': 8 Reasons Why Kylie's New Release Is The Best Pop Single You'll Hear All Year

Not only is 'Into The Blue' a bona-fide, smack you between the eyes, instant pop classic but it manages the rare feat of getting better with every listen, not something anyone said about anything on Lady Gaga's over-hyped 'Artpop' - as much as we might have wanted to.

Yep, Kylie is back to rescue pop once again and here's 8 reasons why she deserves to be No.1 for the rest of the year...

1. It's impossible not to smile when the hands-in-the-air, joyous chorus kicks in, which is no mean feat considering we're at the arse end of January and living on Cup a Soups and Pot Noodles.

2. Sorry, did we say chorus? We meant choruses. After all, why have one chorus when you can have two? Not a first for Kylie (see also 'Get Outta My Way') but still rare in the land of pop. Just when you think nothing can top the first chorus of 'When I got my back up against the wall...' she tops it with 'Into the baa-luuuuuuuueeeeeee, with nothing to looooooooooose'. Amazing.

3. It's euphoric and anthemic but also ever so slightly melancholy AT THE SAME TIME. You'll laugh, you'll cry etc, etc.

4. Vocally, Kylie has never sounded stronger. Her voice is rich and layered and, unlike a lot of other singers, you can actually hear the words she's singing - and no, I don't care if that makes me sound like your nana.

5. You get the feeling newly-single Kylie could've penned the lyrics herself (she didn't). If 'All The Lovers' was the sound of Kylie in lurrrrve, then 'Into The Blue' is the sound of a defiant Ms. Minogue loving her independence.

6. It sounds current and classy without jumping on any obvious musical bandwagon but still distinctly 'Kylie' and follows the classic pop formula of verse / chorus / verse / chorus / bridge / chorus. In other words, it's not unreleased taster track, 'Skirt'. This is a very good thing.

7. The strings. Pop + orchestral strings never fails (see also 'Confide In Me')

8. After one listen it will take up residence inside your head but you won't want to serve it an eviction notice like you would for say, 'Gangnam Style'. Job done.

I've always wanted a little bit more from Kylie Minogue. It feels like, particularly in recent years, her material has been stuck on a seven-out-of-ten rung, constantly dreaming of another 'Can't Get You Out Of My Head' to turn it all around. It always feels like either the material or the promotion was slightly lacking. As she moved to Roc Nation recently, it conjured a flurry of hope inside me. No longer complacent, it felt like Kylie was looking for something new and exciting for both her and her devoted audience. The outcome, 'Into The Blue', is a stellar example of how the pop princess is stepping up her game and reaching for something even more spectacular than most would have imagined.

She may be with the likes of Rihanna and Rita Ora, but 'Into The Blue' isn't some peculiar ghetto Kylie. It's the sound we know so well, but done much better. The song slips past effortlessly but it captivates you for the whole ride - it's elegance coexists nicely with the pulsating beats of the main hook. Graceful, swooping strings act as bookends and can also be heard underlining the bulk of 'Into The Blue'. It's a subtle but classy touch that gives the song bundles of life and soul.

At it's core, the song is pure pop and with it comes the compulsory enormous, infectious chorus. After the simplistic verses, it's very obvious when the main hook explodes in - featuring bubbling beats powering behind her and a pristine production that, mixed with the aforementioned strings, gives an ethereal vibe to the track. It swells into a middle eight that boasts some euphoric piano and the glorious 'ee-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh' vocals that opened the track. Reuniting each element, 'Into The Blue' combines it's strengths and celebrates the final chorus - by this time, you should probably know the words because it's basically written for one last glorious sing along before the strings mark it's triumphant finale.


By now, Kylie Minogue’s music career has endured ups and downs for well over two decades. But with eleven studio albums under her belt and a twelfth coming later this year, Kylie is a creative force who certainly knows what she is doing.
While other pop stars her age have fallen by the wayside and become nothing more than distant memories from the past, Kylie is still very much at the core of pop music. She is a pop supernova who still has her finger on the pulse of pop music. This couldn’t be more evident than on her new single, “Into The Blue.”
Though “Into The Blue” wouldn’t sound out-of-place on her previous studio album, Aphrodite, the track still sounds fresh, and Kylie has never sounded better. “Into The Blue,” which features production work from Mike Del Rio, is an aural jaunt that’s driven by pulsing beats, confident lyrics and a brisk tempo that underscores a beautiful sense of urgency. While the pulsing melody rips through the song, Kylie’s energetic vocal performance breathes life into the rousing lyrics.
“Into The Blue” is a song about picking yourself up, starting fresh, putting yesterday’s mistakes behind you, and, most importantly, taking control of your own destiny. When Kylie proclaims, at the opening of the song’s chorus, “When I got my back up against the wall, don’t need no one to rescue me. I ain’t waiting up for no miracle,” it’s nothing short of extraordinary. It’s a sentiment we can all understand and identify with. “Into The Blue” is a confident, ambitious-sounding track that delivers a strong message without coming across as condescending to its listeners. What more could you ask for from a pop song?

“INTO THE BLUE,” THE CLASSIC KYLIE MINOGUE SINGLE YOU’VE BEEN WAITING FOR
Four years after climbing her way atop a human pyramid for “All The Lovers,” the legendary Mizz Kylie Minogue has returned to us in 2014 with “Into The Blue,” her very, very highly anticipated “euphoric return to the dance floor” — and it is exactly that.

VARIOUS REASONS:

EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL. The beat is dreamy and luscious, especially when complimented by those gorgeous strings. You know — it’s just like “Confide In Me”! Also, the way it washes out of the speakers during the pre-chorus LIKE THE TIDES OF THE SEA? Excellent. And that slamming pulse in the chorus! Yassss.

WORD IS OUT. The lyrics are great — all of the lyrics. Interestingly, “Into The Blue” is essentially a self-empowerment anthem — something we haven’t really gotten from Kylie before. “When I got my back up against the wall, don’t need no one to rescue me/’Cause I ain’t waiting up for no miracle, tonight I’m running free!” That’s an amazing message, and it’s not cheesy or embarrassing. She’s nailed it! Kudos to the song’s co-writer Kelly Sheehan (who also wrote Beyoncé‘s “Grown Woman”)! It’s a good move too, because if there’s anyone who I’d be willing to take a few words of advice from, it’s the Mighty Aphrodite herself.

EE-YO-OH-OH-OH. That’s just amazing and should be recognized as such.

THE ONE. The chorus. THAT FUCKING CHORUS. The way she sings “Into the buh-LOOOOOOOO with nothin’ to LOOOOSE” alone deserves at least several Grammys, conservatively speaking. BUH-LOOOOOOOO!

LOOKING FOR AN ANGEL. The word “heavenly” is thrown around way too much by journalists to describe vocals (by me, mostly), but Kylie’s voice on the bridge genuinely sounds like we’ve just crossed over to the other side and Miss Minogue is meeting us at the pearly gates in her hot pants.

IN CONCLUSION…

The thing about “Into The Blue” is that it sounds like a Kylie classic almost immediately upon first listen, sitting itself nicely in between “Love At First Sight,” “All The Lovers” and “I Believe In You.” And yet, it still sounds like a Fresh ‘N Modern Pop Song for 2014, remaining a dance record without pandering to any particular cheap “EDM-pop” trends. Kylie Minogue has always known how to rule the dance floor, and “Into The Blue” is certainly no exception.