Padam Padam gave Kylie Minogue a global smash hit 35 years into her career, becoming inescapable at Pride and breaking the singer in the US, where her long-time cult following is now emphatically mainstream. In November, the evergreen Australian will play an extended Las Vegas residency into 2024 – territory prepped by her last feel-sparkly album, 2020’s Disco; it lit up the pandemic alongside Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia.
There’s more shimmer from where Padam came from. Tension, the title track of her 16th record, is another dancefloor come-hither – but here, the coy sound of heartbeats is replaced by fruitier lines such as “touch me right there”; burbling digital house ramps up the temperature. The rest of Tension tours dancefloors old and new; its charms ebb and flow apace. Not so great is Vegas High, a canned paean to Sin City that feels premeditated. You Still Get Me High and Story are full-on 80s pop, expertly executed with hooks, vocal performances and a widescreen feel. Even better are breezy retro cuts such as Hands, a frisky disco/R&B outing with rapped sections. One More Time, meanwhile, packs in handclaps, housey disco and more party-for-two promises.
