Kylie Minogue

If Light Years (2000) was the comeback album Kylie Minogue was looking for and Fever (2004) the confirmation, then 20007's X is a re-affirmation of her status as a dance-pop diva.

Minogue took more than her share of criticism from music critics who complained that some of her songs, although slick in production, lacked bite. While nothing here quite packs the punch that Spinning Around, On a Night Like This and Can't Get You Out of My Head had, the album features a couple of memorable songs such as Two Hearts, Like A Drug and No More Rain.

Kylie has co-written six of the album's 13 tracks, which shows that she still has plenty of spirit and has moved on since being diagnosed with breast cancer in the summer of 2005. No More Rain in fact is quite a gem and shows her songwriting abilities have come a long way.

X kicks off with the raucous Two Hearts, a track that features electro clash, 70s synth pop and bouncy club beats. It's a formula that the album rides on and compensates for any vocal shortcomings that appear to have come with age and perhaps a potentially life-threatening disease.

Couple this pop dazzler with the rest of the songs on the album and it's clear that Kylie is back with a vengeance.

Even though the producers are clearly relying heavily on production gimmicks and techniques, the record scores on several levels.

Die-hard Kylie fans will appreciate what the veteran pop-star is attempting here as she draws on all her experience, which is a lot considering she has been around since 1987, which in a way makes X a rather interesting record.

Guy Ritchie's Sensitised is undoubtedly one of the strongest tracks on the album which when judged as a whole is a good effort. Kylie is no Madonna, but she's very good at what she does, and does her way.

The Kylie Minogue factfile

Born: May28, 1968 in Melbourne, Australia
Genre: Pop, dance-pop
Website: www.Kylie.com

Previous albums
1988 Kylie
1989 Enjoy Yourself
1990 Rhythm of Love
1991 Let's Get to It
1994 Kylie Minogue
1997 Impossible Princess
1999 Intimate and Live
2000 Light Years
2002 Fever
2004 Body Language

Did You Know!

• Kylie Minogue has been both Australia and Europe's biggest-selling female pop singer since the late eighties during which period she evolved into a pop culture icon. Born on May 28, 1968, in Melbourne.
• Kylie began her acting career in the Australian TV drama series Skyways before achieving national fame in the popular soap opera Neighbours.
• Neighbours also started airing in the UK and with it Kylie moved base.
• She got her biggest break in 1987 when she covered Loco-Motion, which became a number one record. The rest is history and songs like I Should Be So Lucky, Spinning Around, Confide in Me, Can't Get You Out of My Head, On a Night Like This propelled her into the pop stratosphere.
• In 2005 Kylie was diagnosed with breast cancer and on December 29, 2007 she was awarded an OBE for services to music.

The writer is a music buff and a record collector