X

It’s hard to escape from the notion that 2007’s X marks a heroic moment in Kylie Minogue’s career. The Australian pop diva’s fortunes had been on the ascent when she received a cancer diagnosis in 2005. Her recovery and return to music makes a compelling backstory to X’s tracks. However, the album largely avoids survivor’s anthems in favor of a diverse assortment of crisp dance cuts, quirky electronica numbers, and classy slices of neo-soul. Minogue sounds fully in control as she shuffles through sounds and styles. She comes on like a sultry glam-rock queen (“2 Hearts”), luxuriates in Teutonic techno (“Speakerphone”), glides on immaculate urban grooves (“All I See”), and pulsates to a classic disco beat (“The One”). “Sensitized” is a particular high point, a dense, churning track that’s both sexy and spacy. Amid these odes to love, exalted and otherwise, is “No More Rain,” a life-affirming expression of gratitude set to an expansive melody. Ultimately, X is a celebration of resiliency and renewal, embracing desire while speaking to something more transcendent.