Tension is the sixteenth studio album by Kylie Minogue. It was released on 22 September 2023 by BMG Rights Management and Kylie's company, Darenote. It was announced in May 2023, marking Kylie's first new body of work since Disco (2020). Inspired to create a record that showcases each song's individualism without a core theme, Kylie enlisted the help of a variety of producers including long-time collaborators Richard "Biff" Stannard, Duck Blackwell, Jackson Foote, PhD, and Cutfather.
Influenced by electropop, Tension includes a wide range of electronic dance genres, ranging from 1980s synthpop, disco, and funk, to contemporary dance-pop and house notes. Despite having no central theme, Tension explores subjects such as love, heartbreak, and empowerment. Tension received critical acclaim from most music critics, who praised the album mixture of sounds, as well as its catchiness and production quality. Some publications considered it to be among Kylie's best work.
Three singles were released to promote the album: "10 Out of 10", "Padam Padam", and the title track. The first was released as a promotional track in collaboration with Dutch DJ and producer Oliver Heldens. "Padam Padam" and the title track followed, with the former achieving a commercial breakthrough for the singer. Kylie has made several live appearances including American Idol, the Capital Summertime Ball, and as the headliner of Radio 2 in the Park. Furthermore, Kylie will begin her first Las Vegas residency show, More Than Just a Residency, in November 2023.
Background[]
On 6 November 2020, Kylie released her fifteenth studio album Disco. It was a musical departure from her country-pop-inspired record Golden (2018), and it marked a return to a disco-oriented sound with which she had previously worked. Her approach to disco, and dance music in general, was well received by music critics, and ended up becoming a commercial success in various markets. Kylie did not promote the album with a concert tour due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but she did film a one-off special live show titled Infinite Disco, and re-issued the record in December 2021.
Nearing the end of promoting Disco, Kylie appeared on BBC Radio 2 to discuss new music, stating "Perhaps it's going a bit more electropop. Don't quote me that [...] but that's what's on the boil at the minute." Kylie confirmed this in a June 2022 interview with Vogue Magazine, citing her 2003 single "Slow" as a reference point for the record's sound.
Production and development[]
First sessions began with long-time collaborators Richard "Biff" Stannard, Duck Blackwell, and Jon Green, alongside Kylie's A&R Jamie Nelson. They initially had ideas of embracing 1980s music and culture for the album, but ultimately scrapped it and decided not to focus on a theme. Kylie recalled the decision saying, "Initially we were thinking 80s, but it didnโt pan out that way [...] we agreed thereโs no theme [and that] itโd be refreshing not to have a theme after having done Golden and Disco."
Recording for the album started in July 2022. Since Stannard does not fly, all five collaborators decided to travel to Surrey in August 2022, and rent a Airbnb to work on the material remotely. A week long session in Surrey resulted in ten finished songs. All five collaborators then began sessions with Anya Jones and Camille Purcell, which resulted in two written songs in one day: "Things We Do for Love" and "Tension". Kylie travelled to other cities, including Copenhagen, Brighton, Croatia, and Paris, to continue recording the album.
While in Miami, Nelson sent Kylie a demo of the song "Padam Padam", written by Ina Wroldsen and its producer Lostboy. Kylie instantly loved the demo, and recorded it in a hotel in London; it was one of the latter additions to the finished record. Nelsen sent Kylie a demo of the song "Hands", which included rapping. Nelson encouraged Kylie to contribute vocals and rap, which she later described as "refreshing." Kylie recalled tracks like "Story" and "10 Out of 10" taking longer to complete. "10 Out of 10" was recorded at different locations as she had not formerly met the tracks collaborator, Dutch DJ Oliver Heldens. Both artists would send over stems via email in order to produce the track.
When selecting the final tracks for Tension, Kylie said, "If the song could stand up on its own and if it bumped up nicely with the other songs, thatโs the album." Reflecting on the album's content, she stated, "There are songs [on Tension] that might feel more superficial, but I feel like I can sing them with more certainty than I may have in the early days, when I was 19, 20, 21, 25,". In total, Kylie co-wrote ten of the fourteen songs that appear on the full album, as well as serving as an additional vocal engineer on nine of them.
Music and content[]
Tension contains a wide range of sounds, with a strong emphasis on electronic dance music. Kylie was initially inspired to create an electropop album, later confirming that her 2003 single "Slow" was used as a template for the album. Riff Magazine's Vera Maksymiuk and AllMusic's Neil Z. Yeung compared its dance-oriented sound to Minogue's previous records Fever (2001) and Aphrodite (2010), while DIY's Otis Robinson noted elements of scandipop, eurodance, and synthpop. Harry Tafoya from Pitchfork Media felt the record was "compendium of all the sounds she's best known for: confectionary synth-pop, breezy Euro house, and propulsive EDM". Slant Magazine writer Alexa Camp felt a "unambiguous sonic thread [that] link[ed] all 14 of its songs." Describing it as a "blend of personal reflection, club abandon and melancholic highs," Kylie elaborated that she wanted "to celebrate each song's individuality and to dive into that freedom." Lyrically, the album includes themes of love, lust, and empowerment, which was noted by Jonah Waterhouse of Vogue Australia as a staple throughout Minogue's previous work.
Tension opens with the first single, "Padam Padam", written by Ina Wroldsen and its producer Lostboy. The song, a "hypnotic" electronic number with synth and dance-pop elements, is a reference to the heartbeat and is considered the album's centerfold for its sound. The second song on the album, "Hold On to Now", was co-written by Kylie. Its synth-driven sound and "earnest" songwriting have been compared to the works of Swedish singer Robyn. "Things We Do for Love", the third track, features synths, guitar, and drum riffs reminiscent of 1980s synthpop and power pop. Critics noted the album's fourth track, "Tension," as the only experimental piece. Featuring vocoder on Kylie's vocal deliveries and jangly piano riffs, the title track is inspired by 1990s house music with elements of dance and electronic pop.
The album's fifth track, "One More Time", is an uptempo pop-funk-disco hybrid that sonically resembles Disco (2020). "You Still Get Me High" is the sixth track, and it returns to the exploration of 1980s pop-dance sound from "Things We Do for Love". Its lyrical content, inspired by themes surround love, was noted as a lyrical centrepiece to the album's overall songwriting. "Hands" and "Green Light", the seventh and eighth tracks on the album, were noted as mid-tempo pieces inspired by R&B and funk. "Hands" was musically compared to the song "Say So" by American singer Doja Cat and features a "nostalgic" disco-inspired funky bass line, while "Green Light" was compared to the works of British recording artist Dua Lipa, including early-1980s pop elements, complete with a saxophone solo.
"Vegas High", the album's ninth track, was used as an intro piece to the announcement of the Las Vegas residency. It takes inspiration from 1990s dance music and is a fast-paced club Techno song. "10 out of 10" is the album's first and only featured track, featuring Dutch DJ and producer Oliver Heldens. The track was released as a promotional single months before the release of its parent album. According to Helden, the track "is inspired by 80s synth-pop and disco, 90s house, and 00s Eurodance, with a modern dance music twist". "Story", the album's final track on the standard edition, returns to the 1980s sound that runs throughout the record. Musically, it is described as a fast-paced bubblegum pop-dance track that critics found "anthematic".
Release and formats[]
Tension was released on September 22, 2023. It is her sixteenth musical effort, as well as her third with BMG Rights Management and her third directly through her company, Darenoteโdirectly after her previous releases Golden (2018) and Disco (2020). The standard album features 11 tracks, whilst the deluxe edition has three additional songs: "Love Train", "Just Imagine", and "Somebody to Love". Additionally, a bonus deluxe edition, released as a store-exclusive digital download, featured a further two tracks: "Heavenly Body" and "Drum. Tension was released on numerous physical formats. Early bundle releases included a signed autograph from kylie, as well as variants of different copies. The standard edition includes a card-slip case and a casebound book, while the deluxe edition were released as two variants of the latter. The standard edition with card-slip packaging includes alternate artwork in a variety of colours.
Eight vinyl variants were also released: a standard black vinyl, a silver vinyl with gatefold packaging, and four different coloured slipcase vinyls: transparent orange, transparent pink, transparent green, and coke bottle-inspired clear vinyl. Additionally, each coloured vinyl have an alternate cover art that corresponds to its colour. A white test pressing vinyl, limited to fifty copies, was exclusive to her store with her autograph on the cover, while limited edition clear vinyl was made available at a pop-up store in London, featuring a holographic cover. Five cassette tapes were also released: an orange tape, a green tape, a blue tape, a pink tape, and a double cassette featuring content from the deluxe edition.
Artwork and title[]
The artwork for Tension was shot by British photographer Haris Nukem, and designed by Studio Moross. It shows Kylie holding a large diamond, covering one of her eyes Her skin's colour balance is set with a green hue with an orange backdrop. In an interview with the French magazine, Numรฉro, Kylie noted that Nukem had based the photo on a sketch he drew, and he came up with the idea of her holding a diamond, saying to her, "I don't know why, but I see you holding this diamond."
Kylie and her team were initially considering calling the album Vegas High, a reference to the album track of the same name and to earlier reports of Kylie's involvement in a concert residency set in Las Vegas. However, she later decided to name the album, Tension, saying, "I hope this doesn't sound depressing - when you watch the news, the word is used in a negative way - but actually, once we decided That, I was really surprised that this title was well accepted. People were very impatient to listen to an album called Tension".
Promotion[]
Singles[]
Three singles have been released from Tension: "10 Out of 10", "Padam Padam", and its titular track. Prior to the album's announcement, Kylie's collaboration with Dutch DJ and producer Oliver Heldens, "10 out of 10", was released as a promotional single. On 3 April 2023, the song was released by Heldens' label RCA Records and was eventually placed as the tenth track on Tension. Days later, a lyric video debuted on Heldens' YouTube channel. Despite no promotional appearances by Kylie, Heldens has played the song on various shows. It peaked at number 19 on the UK Singles Download Chart.
On 18 May 2023, "Padam Padam" was released as Tension's lead single, Kylie's first solo release since "Real Groove" in 2021. "Padam Padam" received critical acclaim for its catchiness and production standards, often noted by critics as a contender for song of the summer. The song was a commercial breakthrough, reaching the top ten in countries such as Israel, Croatia, Hungary, Ireland, South Africa, Bulgaria, Latvia, and component charts in the United States. It was also certified in Australia and the United Kingdom. "Padam Padam" has become a viral phenomenon on various social media platforms since its release, and its consistent appearance during pride month worldwide has been recognised as a gay anthem. including the NYC Pride March, A music video was directed by Sophie Muller, which was aesthetically inspired by the works of The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976) and elements of Americana culture.
"Tension", the album's title track, was released as the second single. It was released on August 31, 2023, in a variety of formats, including CD variants, digital streaming, and a cassette. The track received positive feedback for its dance-oriented sound, with critics praising the sonic experimentation. Commercially, it has charted in fewer countries, including Australia and the United Kingdom, and it has also reached the top ten in New Zealand. Muller also directed the accompanying music video, which featured Minogue as various characters in a neo-futuristic inspired set.
Other songs[]
On the same day of the album's release, kylie posted visualisers for five of the songs on her YouTube channel: "Things We Do for Love", "You Still Get Me High", "Green Light", "10 Out of 10" and "Story".
Live appearances[]
Kylie has made several live appearances to promote the album. She made her first appearance on American Idol in May 2023, performing "Padam Padam" and "Can't Get You Out of My Head". The following month, she surprised everyone by performing the same songs at Capital's Summertime Ball. She appeared at the iHeartMedia KTUphoria 2023 live show, where she performed a nine-track set that included "Padam Padam".
She also appeared on two shows hosted by American personality Andy Cohen: Sirius XM radio show, and Cohen's Watch What Happens Live! Show, where she discussed the track's success. She also performed "Padam Padam" twice at the Horse Meat Disco event due to technical difficulties with the first performance.
Kylie co-headlined Radio 2 in the Park in Victoria Park, Leicester alongside Tears For Fears a week before the album's release. She headlined the second night, closing the festival and included "Padam Padam", "Tension", and album track "Hold On to Now" on her set list. Kylie appeared at Lio London for the 2023 London Fashion Week launch, where she premiered some album tracks, including performances of "Padam Padam" and "Tension". Kylie hosted a Kylie Pop-up Store in London, between the dates of 22 September and 24 September. A television concert special, An Audience with Kylie to be filmed at the Royal Albert Hall, is set to air on ITV later in December 2023, which will features songs from Tension.
Kylie headlined British Summer Time in 2024, performing the headline slot on 13 July. The set was 90 minutes long, with Kylie performing "Tension", "Hold On to Now" and "Padam Padam", as well ass giving debut performances of "Things We Do for Love" and "One More Time".
Concert residency[]
On 26 July 2023, Kylie announced that she would embark on her first concert residency in Las Vegas, titled More Than Just a Residency. The announcement came after speculation about her involvement of a concert residency, briefly mentioning it on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. She shared a sneak peek of the concert title, dates, and a snippet of the album track "Vegas High" on social media. In a press release for the show, Kylie stated that the residency has been in the works for three years, promising new arrangements of her music catalog, and tracks featured on Tension. She was quote;
| โ | I want it to be the kind of essence of what a Kylie show has become, enough glamour and abandon. Iโve got some versions of songs that have not been heard, like reinterpretations of songs, which is exciting. Live bed dances, amazing costumes. Thatโs the base and then weโll see what surprises we can come up with | โ |
The residency will take place at the The Venetian Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada from 3 November 2023 to 4 May 2024. Tickets went on sale commercially in early-mid August 2023, and they were met with an overwhelming demand, selling out within hours.
Impact[]
Tension was listed as a highly anticipated album for 2023. Kylie, and her work on Tension, have been nominated for four awards at the 2023 ARIA Music Awards, including Best Solo Artist, Best Independent Release, Best Pop Release, and Song of the Year, with the latter decided by public vote. This is the most nominations she has received since the 16th Annual Awards in 2002, when she was nominated seven times.
Furthermore, the album's main singles "Padam Padam" and "Tension" have received widespread praise from music critics, who many hailed the former track as contenders for song of the summer of 2023. Both tracks have gone viral on various social media platforms and have been subjected to meme culture.[ Furthermore, both songs have been hailed as gay anthems; the former received recognition due to its release prior to pride month, whereas the latter benefited from the success of "Padam Padam" and its success of going viral.
Since the release of "Padam Padam", music journalists and publications have noted a commercial resurgence for Kylie. The term "Padam-ic" was coined by Laura Snapes of The Guardian to encapsulate the cultural impact of "Padam Padam", describing it as the "cultural moment in which frivolity and lightness seem to be breezing back after the pandemic and after an era in which culture has been taken very seriously". Critics have observed that it is a rare occurrence for a middle-aged artist to have achieved a mediatic impact in the last decades. In an interview for Variety, James Masterton, a chart analyst, and historian says the success of the single is significant because Kylie has "bridged a generation gap with a hit record that is reaching out both to her loyal (and ageing) acolytes but also a new generation of music fans", the latter attracted thanks to the TikTok platform that "contributed to the explosion of Kylie's single; [...] bypassing all traditional media avenues".
Track listing[]
| Tension โ Standard edition | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
| 1. | "Padam Padam" | Ina Wroldsen ยท Peter Rycroft | LostBoy | 2:46 |
| 2. | "Hold On to Now" | Kylie Minogue ยท Jon Green ยท Biff Stannard ยท Duck Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell ยท Green | 3:57 |
| 3. | "Things We Do for Love" | Minogue ยท Anya Jones ยท Camille Purcell ยท Green ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell ยท Green | 3:09 |
| 4. | "Tension" | Minogue ยท Jones ยท Purcell ยท Green ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 3:36 |
| 5. | "One More Time" | Minogue ยท Green ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 3:02 |
| 6. | "You Still Get Me High" | Minogue ยท Green ยท Stannard | Stannard ยท Blackwell ยท Green | 3:38 |
| 7. | "Hands" | Ryan Ashley ยท Daniel Heloy Davidsen ยท Kasper Larsen ยท Mich Hansen | Cutfather ยท Davidsen ยท KayAndMusic ยท Ashley[a] | 2:45 |
| 8. | "Green Light" | Ruby Spiro ยท Davidsen ยท Peter Wallevik | PhD | 3:19 |
| 9. | "Vegas High" | Minogue ยท Gerrard O'Connell ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 3:33 |
| 10. | "10 Out of 10" (with Oliver Heldens) | Minogue ยท Oliver Heldens ยท Jackson Foote ยท JHart ยท Sarah Hudson ยท Lianna Banks | Heldens ยท Foote ยท Blackwell[a] | 2:51 |
| 11. | "Story" | Minogue ยท O'Connell ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 3:16 |
Total length: |
35:52 | |||
| Tension โ Deluxe edition | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
| 12. | "Love Train" | Minogue ยท Maegan Cottone ยท Sky Adams | Adams | 2:55 |
| 13. | "Just Imagine" | Karen Poole ยท Carl Ryden | Ryden | 2:36 |
| 14. | "Somebody to Love" | Minogue ยท Green ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 3:52 |
Total length: |
45:15 | |||
| Tension โ Bonus deluxe edition | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
| 15. | "Heavenly Body" | Minogue ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell ยท Green | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 4:22 |
| 16. | "Drum" | Minogue ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell ยท Green | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 3:31 |
Total length: |
53:07 | |||
| Extension: The Extended Mixes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
| 1. | "Padam Padam" (Extended mix) | Wroldsen ยท Rycroft | LostBoy | 4:04 |
| 2. | "Hold On to Now" (Extended mix) | Minogue ยท Green ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell ยท Green | 5:28 |
| 3. | "Things We Do for Love" (Extended mix) | Minogue ยท Jones ยท Purcell ยท Green ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell ยท Green | 4:54 |
| 4. | "Tension" (Extended mix) | Minogue ยท Jones ยท Purcell ยท Green ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 4:38 |
| 5. | "One More Time" (Extended mix) | Minogue ยท Green ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 4:22 |
| 6. | "You Still Get Me High" (Extended mix) | Minogue ยท Green ยท Stannard | Stannard ยท Blackwell ยท Green | 4:32 |
| 7. | "Hands" (Extended mix) | Ashley ยท Davidsen ยท Larsen ยท Hansen | Cutfather ยท Davidsen ยท KayAndMusic ยท Ashley[a] | 4:09 |
| 8. | "Green Light" (Extended mix) | Spiro ยท Davidsen ยท Wallevik | PhD | 4:52 |
| 9. | "Vegas High" (Extended mix) | Minogue ยท O'Connell ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 5:12 |
| 10. | "10 Out of 10" (Extended mix) (with Oliver Heldens) | Minogue ยท Heldens ยท Foote ยท JHart ยท Hudson ยท Banks | Heldens ยท Foote ยท Blackwell[a] | 4:01 |
| 11. | "Story" (Extended mix) | Minogue ยท O'Connell ยท Stannard ยท Blackwell | Stannard ยท Blackwell | 4:22 |
Total length: |
50:34 | |||
- Notes
[a]signifies a vocal producer
