page_title: Golden (Kylie Minogue album)
section_title: Composition
hierarchical_section_title: Golden (Kylie Minogue album) / Composition
context_page_description: Golden is the fourteenth studio album by Australian singer Kylie Minogue, released on 6 April 2018 by BMG Rights Management. The album was co-produced by Minogue alongside a variety of producers including Ash Howes, Richard "Biff" Stannard, Sky Adams, Alex Smith, and Mark Taylor, among others. Each track was co-written by Minogue, making it her first album since Impossible Princess in which this was the case. A large portion of the record was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, where she found new inspiration with its music, and also recorded some material in London and Los Angeles.
  Musically, Golden is a pop record that is heavily influenced by country and dance music. Described by Minogue as one of her most personal efforts, the lyrics encompass a wide range of themes including failed relationships, death, escape, family and freedom. Upon its release, Golden received generally positive reviews from music critics, a majority of whom commended Minogue's honesty and personality through her songwriting skills, as well as its catchiness. However, critics were divided by the composition and her experimentation with country music.
context_section_description: Minogue commented that the content of Golden was originally "synth-pop dance songs" that her fans would "expect from her". However, her A&R manager had suggested incorporating country music into the record, which she acknowledged positively. She travelled to Nashville in July 2017 for two weeks to record four songs, and explained that it "all started to make sense. We managed to find this country inspiration but bring it back into my world." She described the result as being "Dolly Parton standing on a dance floor". During the songwriting process, Minogue "kept writing songs" without intention, and found the results to be very "cathartic"; additionally, the singer believed the song's lyrics came off more "authentic" and "story-telling" than her previous music.
  The album opens with the lead single "Dancing", a dance-pop and country hybrid that does not include a bridge section. Lyrically, it deals with Minogue's view on death, with the lyrics "When I go out, I wanna go out dancing," describing how the singer wants to feel in that situation before death. "Stop Me from Falling" includes a similar sound, but "bristles with good-time handclaps and a goshdarn toe-tappin' basslines," alongside with instrumentation of a banjo. The title track, a self-empowerment anthem, was described as a take on soundtracks from Spaghetti Western films, namely referencing Ennio Morricone's theme song to The Good, the Bad and the Ugly with the yodeling. The fourth track, "A Lifetime to Repair", is one of the album's first tracks that talks about failed relationships. Sonically, Helen Clarke from MusicOMH said the song was "structurally weird; half of it is made up of lolling country guitars and drawling vocals, the other half the glittery pop she's best known for." "Sincerely Yours", a light pop ballad, opens as a "love letter" to her fans and was musically compared to the work of Tegan & Sara for its "flimsy" strings and vocal hooks. The sixth track "One Last Kiss" was noted for its "basic" country rhythm, featuring live guitar riffs, drums and a banjo.
  The seventh track "Live a Little" was compared to "Dancing" because of its blend of dance-pop and country music. The lyrics "slept by candlelight, scared of running out of time" explains her expectations of age, and wanting to feel free and have fun. "Shelby 68'" was compared to the work of Taylor Swift with its "ill-fitting Tennessee twang" and midtempo rhythm. The song has a title reference to her father's mustang and the year of Minogue's birth, and also features audio from the vehicle, recorded by Minogue's brother Brendan. "Radio On" was deemed one of the album's highlights due to its stripped production to acoustic guitars and violins. Critics noted the concentration of her "thin" vocals and how she talks about her willingness to forget a previous break-up by "listen to the radio". "Love", talks about the effects of love and even mentions previous breakups with the lyric, "lying in your lover's T-shirt". "Raining Glitter" was selected as one of the album's best tracks for utilizing her previous experimentation of dance and disco music with country music, and also described as a "joyful" and "fun" anthem. The track "combines lilting acoustic guitar, disco beats, [and] a whooping vocal effect" that was compared to the Spiritual Life / Ibadan remix of Beth Orton's "Central Reservation." The closer of the standard track list is "Music's Too Sad Without You", a collaboration with English/Italian musician Jack Savoretti. Musically, it was compared to the work of American artists Beck and Lana Del Rey.
caption: English musician Jack Savoretti serves as a featuring artist and songwriter on the closing track, "Music's Too Sad Without You".
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