[.ca] Kylie Minogue: Live in Sydney (Widescreen)

From Amazon.com:
Kylie Minogue concludes her 2001 On a Night Like This tour with an unashamed pop extravaganza on home ground in Sydney, performing to a huge audience that consists of more adults than teenagers. Kylie has undoubtedly matured over the years, too, and--apart from a brief stint believing she could become a "serious" artist--appears perfectly happy in her role as the Princess of Pop. The joy of Kylie is that she has become all things to all people, offered up in a perfectly petite package: for women it's all about adulation; the men are offered a fantasy figure; and she simultaneously manages to be a gay icon without becoming overtly camp. It's clear that the years of work as a performer have paid off--her vocals are much stronger and more professional, and to demonstrate she performs two old favorites, "I Should Be So Lucky" and "Better the Devil You Know," as serious pieces. In true showstopping style, we're offered a multitude of costume changes: from hot-pant mania to refined suits and rock-chick leather, Kylie inevitably appears looking great. --Nikki Disney

Soulful, sensuous flirtation with unadulterated magnificence:
I haven't generally followed pop music for the last couple of decades, being more or less caught up in writing my own music, in genres unsuitable for pop release. I became aware of Kylie from a video clip on a Bally's TV ad, and finally got to check her out. Because of the newness factor I didn't experience the kick into high gear until "Physical" - from then on, I was totally captivated by the music, the dancing, (what I could hear of) the message, everything! Kylie does this old Olivia Newton-John tune at a somewhat slower pace, in more a dance than a rock groove. As other reviewers note - sultry it is; but it's beyond that - there's a passion, some might even consider it a spiritual inner flame burning, consuming her as she does her pole dance - while holding a wireless microphone in one hand, I might add. She's in the midst of 4 more scantily clad female Italian dancers on/with their own poles. The track is altogether mesmerizing - intensity is raised to a fever pitch. Plus you hear one of the most sublime funk guitar solos ever recorded. And there's this little hitch/hook they put into the rhythm at the beginning of each chorus . . . From here on the intensity (plus the conveyance of Kylie's signature brand of 'meaningfulness') never let up for me. Another tune that thoroughly bowled me over was the song "Light Years". This with its strenuously joyous tone evoked the earliest space-rock song - way back in the beginning of the 60's, the chart-topping "Telstar" by the British band the Tornadoes (Telstar was an early communications satellite). The groove is impulsive - the melody, singing and dancing infectious - and the rhythms grip you in a subtly powerful way. In certain sections the outstanding keyboardist gets busy sounding like the Moody Blues' mellotron player, dating from their 'In Search of the Lost Chord" album, and he never overdoes it. There's no hint of the eerie (so powerfully expressed in the Rolling Stones' "2000 Light Years from Home"), or the thunderously negative reverberations of Pink Floyd's "Interstellar Overdrive" - still there's nothing lightweight going on in this track. I couldn't make out all the words on this first hearing, but I doubt it's too far removed from the soul searching familiar from the Byrds' space-rock oeuvre - "Eight Miles High", "5D", Mr. "Spaceman", and the lengthy "Space Odyssey". Even if not the lyrics, the feeling's all there - just one more living monument of magnificence. Musically, Kylie and/or her production team have assembled a formidable group of musicians and writers. Her backup singers are astoundingly talented. The different sounds the keyboardist lends to the multiple grooves are tasty, sinuous, profound, searing, environmentally overarching - whatever is needed, and performed with such aplomb as to be unobtrusive, while essential to the overall story/sound. The guitarist and rhythm section are complete masters of the many beats, styles and sub-genres which so effectively interlock to make this music what it is. Visually (and in some sense musically) Kylie somewhat evokes Madonna, but without the iconic self-absorption, and totally minus the hard-edged art crowd vibe. But her content, her depth, mirrored in the genuine devotion and elation of her fans, seems more in the direction of the ever-wonderful Ms. Carey. The dancing and choreography is, as usual with concert footage, difficult to fully grasp/appreciate, being that you can only see what a given camera angle is able to display. These film editors have maybe the most difficult job in the universe. As I think about it, this spectacle of sight and sound would have been almost ominously incredible to experience in person. Woe is me! I'm looking forward to enjoying, and even studying this music for a long time to come. Thank you, Kylie!

Soulful & sensuous flirtation with unadulterated magnificenc:
I haven't generally followed pop music for the last couple of decades, being more or less caught up in writing my own music, in genres unsuitable for pop release. I became aware of Kylie from a video clip on a Bally's TV ad, and finally got to check her out. Because of the newness factor I didn't experience the kick into high gear until "Physical" - from then on, I was totally captivated by the music, the dancing, (what I could hear of) the message, everything! Kylie does this old Olivia Newton-John tune at a somewhat slower pace, in more a dance than a rock groove. As other reviewers note - sultry it is; but it's beyond that - there's a passion, some might even consider it a spiritual inner flame burning, consuming her as she does her pole dance - while holding a wireless microphone in one hand, I might add. She's in the midst of 4 more scantily clad female Italian dancers on/with their own poles. The track is altogether mesmerizing - intensity is raised to a fever pitch. Plus you hear one of the most sublime funk guitar solos ever recorded. And there's this little hitch/hook they put into the rhythm at the beginning of each chorus . . . From here on the intensity (plus the conveyance of Kylie's signature brand of 'meaningfulness') never let up for me. Another tune that thoroughly bowled me over was the song "Light Years". This with its strenuously joyous tone evoked the earliest space-rock song - way back in the beginning of the 60's, the chart-topping "Telstar" by the British band the Tornadoes (Telstar was an early communications satellite). The groove is impulsive - the melody, singing and dancing infectious - and the rhythms grip you in a subtly powerful way. In certain sections the outstanding keyboardist gets busy sounding like the Moody Blues' mellotron player, dating from their 'In Search of the Lost Chord" album, and he never overdoes it. There's no hint of the eerie (so powerfully expressed in the Rolling Stones' "2000 Light Years from Home"), or the thunderously negative reverberations of Pink Floyd's "Interstellar Overdrive" - still there's nothing lightweight going on in this track. I couldn't make out all the words on this first hearing, but I doubt it's too far removed from the soul searching familiar from the Byrds' space-rock oeuvre - "Eight Miles High", "5D", Mr. "Spaceman", and the lengthy "Space Odyssey". Even if not the lyrics, the feeling's all there - just one more living monument of magnificence. Musically, Kylie and/or her production team have assembled a formidable group of musicians and writers. Her backup singers are astoundingly talented. The different sounds the keyboardist lends to the multiple grooves are tasty, sinuous, profound, searing, environmentally overarching - whatever is needed, and performed with such aplomb as to be unobtrusive, while essential to the overall story/sound. The guitarist and rhythm section are complete masters of the many beats, styles and sub-genres which so effectively interlock to make this music what it is. Visually (and in some sense musically) Kylie somewhat evokes Madonna, but without the iconic self-absorption, and totally minus the hard-edged art crowd vibe. But her content, her depth, mirrored in the genuine devotion and elation of her fans, seems more in the direction of the ever-wonderful Ms. Carey. The dancing and choreography is, as usual with concert footage, difficult to fully grasp/appreciate, being that you can only see what a given camera angle is able to display. These film editors have maybe the most difficult job in the universe. As I think about it, this spectacle of sight and sound would have been almost ominously incredible to experience in person. Woe is me! I'm looking forward to enjoying, and even studying this music for a long time to come. Thank you, Kylie!

On of Kylie's classic shows:
one of the most amazing show i've ever seen in my entire life! from the opening coming down in a huge anchor singing "Love Boat" Kylie Minogue shows that she is the real Princess Of Pop!. the costumes and the coreography are great and the stage too! all the show is very cool. the most amazing is the Medley "Step Back In Time/Never Too Late/Wouldn't Change A Thing/Turn It Into Love/Celebration" i love the part in the 'Celebration' when the crownd goes wild with this song! - also "Light Years", "What do i have to do?" and the Olivia Newton John's cover "Physical", when she sang "Shocked" was very cool. also she sang "Can't Get You Out Of My Head" in a very slow version. love when she performed "Put Yourself in My Place" 'cause her voice is amazing! and i love when on "Hand on your Heart" the crowd sings with her!, she performs 19 Tracks completely Live! including her #1 Hit "Spinning Around" when she comes up the floor with the Hotpants and the Brodway version of "Better The Devil You Know"... this show is outstanding, really amazing concert! includes Backstage scenes and the "Spinning Around" Music Video. this edition (Region 1 Edition) includes the unedited version of the Video, so you can see Kylie's ASS!!! LoL

Great concert but one flaw...:
The promo video for Spinning Around is toned down a little. Still sexy, but they edited out some of her hot pants shots. The famous close-up shot in the beginning of the video where she spins around has even been removed. Other than that, this is one of the sexiest concerts ever recorded. DTS sounds great, and the camera work is pretty good except more and longer shots of Kylie would have been nice, especially during Physical. Still, this is her best DVD with great replay value making it the one to own.

A sound investment.:
"Live in Sydney" is one of the best concert DVDs ever. The concert itself is beautifully staged, well chreographed and Kylie does a bang up job on the vocals. Kylie sings her old standbys but with a new twist (such as "Better the Devil You Know"). The backstage footage is boring at best. Do Kylie's fans really care about her dancers? Besides that blunder, the rest of this disc is awesome.