Fever (Deluxe Edition)

Riding the waves of a dance-pop revival, Kylie Minogue continued her career upswing on 2001’s Fever. The veteran songstress plays to her strengths in these sparkling tracks, taking a break from self-revealing material in favor of seductive tunes celebrating beat-driven love. Minogue enlists writing and production help from fellow club diva Cathy Dennis to give the album a smooth luster that blends elements of her ‘80s-era sound with more contemporary influences. As ever, Kylie has the ability as a singer to combine an innate elegance with a natural warmth and self-possession. She embraces sweet obsession in “Can’t Get You Out of My Head,” gently taunts and teases her way through “On the Dancefloor,” and surrenders to erotic mystery in “Fragile.” Fever’s tracks simmer with steady heat rather than erupt with full-blown fire, though the pulsating “Come into My World” and the funk-fueled “Burning Up” kick things into higher gear. Minogue moves among the rippling grooves and swirling synth embellishments with a wide-eyed enthusiasm that recalls her best of her early hits. (The deluxe edition contains a generous helping of remixes and bonus tracks, including the bubbly neo-disco number “Whenever You Feel Like It.”)