1. Kate BushThe Kick Inside
I got this album on tape when I was about five or six. Like many people, I had seen Kate Bush on Top Of The Pops singing ‘Wuthering Heights’. Getting this album was one of my most profound moments. This is still one of my very favourite records. It’s not only about the amazing production, and her voice and the lyrics, but it was what it encapsulated and meant to me. It’s a part of my childhood, so contain a lot of nostalgia but it also informs a lot about why I am a musician. When I think about why I do what I do, I always think back to this time and the yearning to make music was very strong and important to me.
The album is quite weird in some ways, but with a base of really strong melodies. She was also very visually captivating and incorporated mime and dance in everything she did. I found her very bewitching. At the time, I used to love ‘The Man With The Child In His Eyes’ and ‘Wuthering Heights’, but when I DJ now I always go for ‘James And The Cold Gun’ as it’s more up-tempo. I love the cover and would spend hours looking at it. Only recently did I realise there was an eye on the left hand side. I had always just thought it was part of the Chinese-themed design.
At the time in my childhood, I was listening to so much music. I liked the Bay City Rollers and glam rock when I was really little. Then, I’d go over to my friend’s house and her brothers were rock fans and we’d listen to ELO and Pink Floyd. But, I was also really into Hot Chocolate and disco music – I was obsessed with John Travolta. So, it was a very rich time for me and a lot of music would imprint in my brain. However, I always go back to Kate Bush. The Kick Inside was mine, I understood it, I knew what she was on about and I knew then that music was what I wanted to do. I knew that in my life, I wanted to be like Kate Bush. I wanted to be a singer and dancer and I would spend a lot of time in our living room in a leotard. Back then. Not now. This is my big record.
