The Dreaming

Definitely an album you have to spend more time with to really appreciate. Multiple listening sessions and reading about the background of the songs bring the album to life. I'm now listening to it for the 3rd time and loving it as never before, in all its weirdness.

I don't know what to say. All that comes to mind is a cat starching at my balls. Scratchy and painful this is album hurts. .00000001 out of 5 and only because it could be used to torture terrorists. Kate owes the world an apology. Bonus note: There's actual donkey noises on Get Out of My House. WTF and why?

I know nothing about Kate Bush, but apparently this is noted as her least accessible, most experimental album. Maybe not the best place to start, but I really like it. Plus she produced the entire album, which is always impressive. The beats are very unconventional and feature some intriguing samples. I don't pay much attention to lyrics on first listens, but her voice is good. I really dig this because I didn't know what to expect on any given track. New genres, new sounds and instruments, new vocal delivery patterns. Kept me on my toes in a good way. Favorite tracks: Leave It Open, All the Love, Pull Out the Pin, Suspended in Gaffa. Album art: I really like this one. It feels like a dream--I'm assuming that's Kate Bush on the cover, with a ring in her mouth, about to kiss a man in chains. This album really does look and sound like the crazy dream of some more ordinary pop artist. The text and framing is nice too. 4/5

Stop

Absolutely lush and gorgeous. Bush's voice and compositions are incredible, mind-bending, this album is perfect. Suspended in Gaffa is the new national anthem now, okay?

When I’ve introduced people to Kate Bush, I always start with Hounds of Love, The Sensual World, or The Whole Story. I’m don’t recall ever sharing The Dreaming with anyone. This is despite its status - right there with Radiohead’s OK Computer - as favorite album ever. Yet I have a lot of trepidation about The Dreaming appearing here. The Dreaming is an exceptional work that towers large in Kate Bush's formidable catalog. If her albums were torn from my collection this would be the one you’ll find me clinging to desperately to the end. The Dreaming is packed with incredible drama: The caper that goes wrong in “There Goes A Tenner.” The futility of trying to recapture a moment in "Suspended in Gaffa." The exploration of the Vietnam conflict from two very human perspectives in the devastating “Pull Out The Pin”. Colonial conflict between Aboriginal Australians and the British in the title track. A desperate plea to dissuade a lover from a fateful smuggling trip in “Night of the Swallow.” Houdini’s widow’s intense effort to reconnect with her dead lover. An epic domestic battle in “Get Out of My House.” This list still just scratches the surface… every song is a literal or figurative journey that after hundreds and hundreds of listens continue to move me. Every song has incredible lyrical power and takes big chances musically. Every song is one of my favorite songs. I started to read a few of the critical reactions to this on the wikipedia page and reviews on this site but didn’t get far. Usually I find others’ reactions very interesting and enjoy other perspectives, agree or disagree. I must admit I have little desire to view The Dreaming from any perspective other than my adoring own.

Any album that ends with a choir personifying donkeys is fine by me. I had never heard this before, but I have defo heard its influence, it is still influencing albums to this day.

I am not too familiar with KATE BUSH; however, I have heard a few songs and seen a few videos very recently from the recommendation from my nephew. The overall feeling is that I like it, but it’ll take further investigation and listening to solidify my opinion. After listening to THE DREAMING, I initially found it difficult getting used to the vocals being high-pitched, speeding up and down, creating sounds and yelping within the soundscapes. It takes a bit of work to get accustomed to, but after a number of tries I did find that having the lyrics while listening to the songs are a major step in presenting the story that Kate is presenting. She is a pretty vivid storyteller, and your imagination goes to work fairly quickly with the lyrics. You still may have a tough time grasping everything but that the love of the journey that Kate wants to take us on. In 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, THE DREAMING is the first of two other releases immediately following that are included: HOUNDS OF LOVE (1985) THE SENSUAL WORLD (1989). I’m looking forward to immerging myself in these two albums. Rate Artist: KATE BUSH (5.0) Rate Album (Year): THE DREAMING (1982 Original) (5.0) Ranking of KATE BUSH - THE DREAMING songs 01. "Sat in Your Lap" 3:29 10.0/10 02. "There Goes a Tenner" 3:24 10.0/10 03. "Pull Out the Pin" 5:26 09.5/10 04. "Suspended in Gaffa" 3:54 10.0/10 05. "Leave It Open" 3:20 09.5/10 06. "The Dreaming" 4:41 10.0/10 07. "Night of the Swallow" 5:22 08.0/10 08. "All the Love" 4:29 10.0/10 09. "Houdini" 3:48 09.0/10 10. "Get Out of My House" 5:25 10.0/10 Original 1982 Release 96.0/100 = 9.6 / 2 = 4.8

I'm sorry, what? What the hell did I just listen to? What's that? "Experimental" you say? Listen, mate. You can't just say something is "experimental" as though that excuses everything. It's shite. Unlistenable shite. Call it what it is.

There is good and bad from the 80s. This is the Good.

Can't wait for the Stranger Things crowd to claw their ears off when they listen to this LP. The Dreaming is denser than all fuck and is my go-to reasoning for why Kate Bush belongs in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame despite being "just a Pop artist". The ending of Get Out of My House puts nearly any Rock band to shame, just masterclass stuff all around.

"The Dreaming" is the fourth in a series of five albums by Kate Bush (her first five ones!) to reach a almost perfect sound of progressive pop and rock, with avant-garde instrumentation and production. This is, in this stint of five, her most experimental record and the most maximalistic one, blending genres in a way that was only possible because she had access to cutting edge recording machinery and creative control on the result - a rare feat for a woman in 1984. The talks about existencialism, the pursue of knowledge, sex, godly desires and even colonialism, but there are also songs with narrative, like "There Goes a Tenner" and "Night of the Swallow". The very well crafted lyricism of Bush's songs clashes beautifuly with the instruments of each song, with a lot of percussion punctuating the rhythms as she tells her stories with a voice that never sounded more mature. The single "Suspended in Gaffa" almost sums up what the record is about, with a baroque piano, the mandolin and the synclavier playing around, conducting a strong feeling of pursuing things that one really wants but can't seem to be able to experience or reach again - a common theme of Bush lyrics throughout her career.

I know people who LOVE this kind of music, but not for me. The kind of music I’d hear when being forced to go to the theater for a school assignment in college

Brilliant, baffling, borderline bamboozling, bizarre Bush.

Still sounds like nothing I ever heard, combing pop sensibilities with theatrical, prog-esque song structures.

Classic. Classic. Classic. I was initially devastated to see this album’s very low global rating on this site, but then had to remind myself that my five stars have come from ten years worshipping at the altar of Bush, following repeated attempts over many weeks to become a “Dreaming” convert. If I’d been trying to give a rating on my first day of hearing it, God knows what I’d have thought. So all you cynics, stick it out if you can… “The Dreaming” is Bush’s fourth album, in which she not only throws the rule-book of pop music out of her house, she changes into a mule and kicks it into smithereens. If classics like “Wuthering Heights”, “The Man With the Child In His Eyes” and “Babooshka” are unconventional and kooky, “The Dreaming” is just… for want of a technical term, pure batshit. Producing her work for the first time, Bush spent two years working on the album (the first of many lengthy gaps between releases for which she has become infamous). She doused the songs in innovations of the day (the Fairlight sampler, elephantine gated drums, vocal loops and distortions) alongside a barrage of traditional instruments from her folksy heritage (penny whistle, fiddle, Irish uilleann pipes, didgeridoo). It’s a fearless, imperious, kitchen sink album in every sense of the word: in her own proud words, her “she’s gone mad album”. The theatrical, cabaret stylings from her earlier work do remain, and may be off putting for some, but the production helps to ensure the album remains much fresher than those earlier releases, and perhaps much bolder than her subsequent ones. But enough about the songs: what of the singer? Just who is the twenty-four year old Kate Bush in “The Dreaming”, and why should we reward her with our time and praise? Kate Bush is a shrieking banshee in a Dunce cap, chasing knowledge in all its forms. Kate Bush is a failed bank robber watching ten-shilling notes blow by, having flashbacks within her own heist song. Kate Bush is a soldier in Vietnam, having an existential crisis with David Gilmour concerning the kill-or-be-killed mentality. Kate Bush is a disembodied, backmasked voice letting the weirdness in. Kate Bush is an- ermm- indigenous Australian, collaborating with- hmm- Rolf Harris on didgeridoo. Yep, you read that one right. Kate Bush is both a smuggler and his lover, wrestling each other over whether he should risk his life over the Channel. Kate Bush is an unreachable friend to all who try and contact her, available only through her answering machine. Kate Bush is Houdini’s widow, desperately reaching out to him in a seance, dreaming of his spit on her lips. Kate Bush is your favourite scream queen in The Shining, turning into a mule and crying “HEEEEHAAWWWWWW”. Now, forty-two years later, the characters have crystallised into legend, and the songs into music history. Above all else, Kate Bush is, of course, Kate Bush.

This album has officially converted me - Kate Bush is far more talented & creative than I originally gave her credit for. What a challenging & thrilling listen. This album moved me so much that I played the album twice. It's creative, odd, eccentric, theatrical, brooding, and bold. I'm surprised that I enjoyed this more than her commercially successful albums. I honestly never thought I'd get around to truly enjoying her work, but I'm REALLY into this. 4.5

well that was freakin weird. Couple decent songs though.

Very eccentric, impressive vocals, not always catchy songs but always arresting and interesting. Clear influence on Lorde, Sia, Marina and the Diamonds, and Florence + the machine. Pull out the pin, suspended in gaffa, and get out of my house were my top tracks

I think at this point I can say I fully stan Kate Bush. This record is good, lot of really whacky stuff

3/30 Certainly very dreamy, lot of creatively structured songs here, love the range of voices she showcased. Standout Tracks: There Goes A Tenner, Pull Out The Pin, All The Love, Get Out Of My House

Though it's not instantly a favorite, I can understand Kate Bush's lasting influence on experimental pop. Brave and assured, if sometimes cheekier and campier than I prefer personally. I do love the muted bass and some of the synthesized sounds, which often seem well ahead of their time. This is an album and artist that will probably reward repeated listens.

Is Kate Bush the best thing to come out of the 80's? I think so. And this is her best album

A very fun album. How cool is it that she wrote a song inspired by The Shining?!

smashing

"Some say that knowledge is oh-ho-ho" I know this album well and Sat In Your Lap has been on my regular playlist for the last few months, one of my favourite KB songs. The Dreaming is just the maddest song ever. I don't really enjoy the mock cockney moments, but the rest of it is so purely original that it would be a sin to give it less than five stars.

Spooky! Not a huge serotonin generator but I love that she's doing what she wants.

Love the unique sound. Also, the album has a good progression, so it doesn't get repetitive.

Another easy five.

Totalmente desquiciado, esta joyita suena actual y tiene 40 años. Totalmente producido por ella misma, a veces suena a Bjork, a veces a M.I.A., siempre a Bush. Precursor de todo. Experimental al máximo. Fantástico.

hey i have this in my musicbee library!!!!

Experimental and inaccessible. If your only reference point for Kate Bush is Hounds of Love (which was the case for me), this is certainly a jarring record. Haters are understood. However, I really enjoyed the soundscape. It was like a dream with nightmares waiting around the corner. Maybe more accurately it felt like one of those really weird dreams where you're not necessarily scared, but you are disturbed and largely confused. Certainly not better than Hounds of Love. I mean, generally, speaking there are few albums that are. However, I appreciate when an artist lets their wildest ambitions run wild in spite of accessibility, particularly when it's this theatrical. Flawed? Sure. Difficult? Perhaps. Authentic? Absolutely. 7.7/10 Favorite Song: Suspended in Gaffa/The Dreaming

I am the concierge chez-moi, honey Won't let ya in for love, nor money Let me in My home, my joy I'm barred and bolted and I Won't let you in Get out of my house Its like a demented pop opera, way ahead of its time. 4/5

Genuinely original

I actually enjoyed that album

KATE!

epic, mysterious, ambitious, dramatic and singular

Kate Bush nous avait déjà bien surpris avec son album The Sensual World. Celle qui apparaît dans la section "inspiration" de n'importe quelle page Wikipédia existante dont celle de Toni Kroos ne déçoit pas sur The Dreaming. Après une entrée en matière qui se réserve bien de casser trois pattes chez un même canard, Kate lâche un cheat code avec l'apparition d'une cornemuse sur le morceau Night Of The Swallow. Pour notre plus grand plaisir.

wtf. i kinda love it.

A welcome relief after hearing ‘Running Up That Hill’ nonstop for the past year. Great to see an artist get weird with it and push the boundaries of what’s expected - not every track works here (the donkey sounds are a questionable choice, I gotta admit) but this is by far one of the most creative LPs I’ve had on this project in a while.

Ok album. Made me lose a lot of respect for Tori Amos as an innovator, she copied this whole aesthetic and style hard

This is gonna need some chewing. Some parts of it I absolutely adored, and other parts I could not stand. It’s getting a 3 for now, but that’s more of a stand in. This album deserves to steep for a while.

1982 fue el año de Thriller, 1999, Avalon, Pornogaphy, Nebraska y los debuts de Felt, Coucteau Twins, Laurie Anderson o Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. Otros realmente buenos también fueron New gold dream, Glassworks, The days of wine and roses, Too Rye Ay, The lexicon of love... Este disco de Kate es una obra de arte que se aleja de estándares comerciales como los de sus tres discos anteriores o el posterior, Hounds of love, su disco mas completo y recomendable. Experimental y poliédrico, buscando los límites o atravesandolos, Kate asimiló The Wall y otras influencias como la experimentación y teatralidad de Peter Gabriel o David Bowie, y las pasó por su personal filtro para componer un disco lejos de su tiempo. Lógicamente fue un fracaso de ventas y crítica. Comienza con brío Sat in your lap, de la que tomarían buena nota artistas como Bjork o St.Vincent. Prosigue con uno de sus mejores temas There goles a tenner para proseguir con una terrorífica Pull out the pin y volver a un cauce menos experimental con las sugerentes Suspended in Gaffa y Leave it open. The dreamer tiene ecos de Cocteau Twins pero sin su gancho melódico y onírico. Night of the swallow es un viaje trufado de voces , teclados y coros que finaliza con una flauta new age que te deja atónito después de haber sido sometido a un meneo de más de 5 minutos. No es su mejor disco sino uno mucho mas experimental y complicado de escuchar. Ha sido referenciado como influencia por artistas diversos pero carece de la magia del eterno wutherin heights o las canciones de Hounds of love. Sin embargo el no tener un tema que capitalice toda la atención le dota de una coherencia que aumenta su valor como obra completa en sí misma que con el paso del tiempo lejos de perder valor se mantiene igual de recomendable. Son muy interesantes las percusiones y bajos en este disco, cercanos al Post Punk , donde Siouxsie Sioux supo asimilar los avances de este disco para sus obras con los Banshees. Get Outlook of my house podría ser un buen ejemplo de ello.

En este disco de 1985 Kate Bush protesta reflexivamente sobre un mundo dominado por los hombres. Pop-rock alternativo, con incursiones en el music hall o en la música teatral y melodías en ocasiones abstractas y extravagantes, pero siempre muy emocionales. No es el disco que más me gusta de la cantautora británica, pero si tiene momentos brillantes, como "Suspended in Gaffa" o la vivaz "Get Out of My House".

Rather eccentric album. It definitely sounds like something that would have been made in the 80s. The main thing that threw me off was the upper octave echo parts throughout most of the tracks. I skipped a few tracks when that started up. Won't listen again. 2/5

So this is the 3rd Kate Bush album and i thought i knew what to expect. She still has a great an interesting voice, but i feel like she took some notes here to channel some bizarre Bjork-like cadences and then choose unusual art-house style vocalizations to drive people away. It's pretty challenging, especially as it seems she's chosen a new way to try to annoy us on every song. Music was fine, but can't make up for the overall strangeness. Don't really want to listen to it again.

First time listening to any Kate Bush. I appreciate the uniqueness here, but it's a bit too weird for me to actually enjoy. She might be more of an acquired taste.

This album isn't for music lovers. Not music lovers in the traditional sense, anyway. This is an album made by a theater kid with dreams of working in show business, not the music industry. It's an audition for the West End. A beckoning to Broadway. I listen to all of these albums on YouTube. I mainly do this because I like watching the music videos. Each video for The Dreaming supports my "Theater Kid" theory. I don't remember seeing a single instrument being played in any of them. The music appears to be a secondary consideration to whatever the fuck Kate Bush is doing. Her "performance", I guess. Some may describe this album as "experimental". That's just a polite way of saying it sucked ass. Hard. 👎👎

Possibly the worst album I've ever heard. She should start a band with Yoko Ono.

I do not get Kate Bush. This sounds like a parody of a rock opera.

The summary of today's album states that it "is often characterised as her most uncommercial and experimental release." and it "initially sold less than its predecessors and was met with mixed critical reception." For fuck sakes, why are duds like this included in this fucking generator? If the album was shit then, it is shit now. I hate Kate Bush anyways, let alone an experimental album that sold poorly. I am not looking forward to this album at all. This album is literally as irritating as nails on a chalkboard. Kate Bush's voice is so fucking annoying. If she'd just sing the songs, that'd be one thing, but she opts to scream and moan quite a bit. She also puts her vocals in a range that I can only describe as Japanese geisha pop. She sounds like a pre-pubescent Japanese girl. In that range I have no fucking idea what she is saying, it could be japanese for all I know. Not that it matters, her vocals are nonsense anyways. Nowhere on this piece of shit album was there ever anything that resembled song structure, or music at all. It was all just noise, and random screeching. Overall, exactly what I thought it would be, pure garbage. Just because Bjork said she likes the album, doesn't mean it has any right to be on a list like this. This influenced nothing, and is just simply a huge pile of bullshit, just like everything else Kate Bush ever put to record. This was a waste of 43 minutes. Fuck Kate Bush. Favourite songs: Houdini.... I guess Least favourite songs: Sat In Your Lap, There Goes a Tenner, Suspended in Gaffa, Leave it Open, The Dreaming, All the Love, Night of the Swallow, Get Out of My House, Pull Out the Pin 1/5

I’m sorry, 20 seconds into the first song, I couldn’t stop laughing. I have a good tolerance for nonsense, but seriously?

Noup

Increíble disco. La experimentación en la composición, en los sonidos, en la voz, en lo surreal de las letras es fascinante. La capacidad que tuvo Kate Bush para utilizar elementos "raros" a nivel sonoro y hacer que suenen coherentes y cohesivos a la escucha es excelente. El estilo circense por momentos que da un aire risueño, la utilización de sonidos de ambiente alterados, los coros... todo hace de este un disco muy especial. Sin dudas un nuevo favorito para mí.

It's experimental, it's weird, it's difficult, it's freaking amazing from start to finish. It might be an acquired taste, but I love this album so much and find no fault in it. A desert island disc for sure. If you don't like it, go back and listen to it again. Louder. Let it sit. Repeat this process. If you still don't get it, that's a huge loss for you and I am so sorry because you are missing out. The songs: Sat In Your Lap: great start! There Goes a Tenner: so fun and catchy. Pull Out the Pin: oof...so good. Her voice is incredible here--there's so much power and emotion--and David Gilmour grounds her. I love life! Suspended in Gaffa: no notes; perfection! Leave It Open: We let the weirdness in. Yes, Kate, we really do. And it's fantastic. The Dreaming: such an interesting song. It's all over the place. The structure is fascinating. You hear something new each time you listen to it. The way this bleeds into Night of the Swallow is so enjoyable. Night of the Swallow: one of Kate's best songs ever. I've heard it so many times and it still elicits an emotional response. Play it loud. All the Love: it has a hard act to follow after Night of the Swallow, but it holds its own. It has a haunted quality to it. It's a nice layover before Houdini. Houdini: some people don't like the vocals on this; those people are wrong. This song is a rollercoaster in the best possible way. If you like metal, you should like this. There's so much emotion in Houdini--anger, fear, love, tenderness. It's beautiful. Get Out of My House: It's raw. It's difficult. There are donkey noises. It's freaking amazing. I feel like this is such a woman's song, coming from such a feminine perspective. What a way to end an album.

Dude this is fascinating. It’s almost more like a theatre production than a typical album. This woman is insane.

A challenging one for the One Album A day format, as this album takes a few listens to fully appreciate. So I can see why this has some mixed scores, although anyone who gives the follow up Hounds Of Love less than 5⭐ should be instantly decapitated. It's dense and rich, and once you get to know such a rewarding listen. Absolutely an album that should be in the 1001, and 5⭐ from me.

Y'know, I thought I got Kate Bush. Not enough that I'm able to put it into words, I mean, but if I were to imagine it off the top of my head I feel like I'd get closer to her general sound than I wouldn't. Now, I'm not gonna say this album changes that too much about that, but this album does enter in an element of her sound that I don't think I ever considered before. Coming into this thing, I was expecting the more experimental aspects. After all, "experimental" is how I read this thing described — riveting, eh? But yeah, I knew this was still a pop record, so it wouldn't be **that** over the top, like a Residents record. What I hadn't been expecting, though, but I was very happy to discover... Was the theatricality of it all. Like, if I had to use any one word to describe the material on this album— I mean, I can't think of any other I'd want to use. Part of this comes from the variety of styles present on the album. There's stuff that I'd say sounds more typical, but then you got something like the title track, which is so Australian it hurts. The one after that, meanwhile, is a straight dive into Irish music — and following that, you've got this airy, floating ballad number. And surely, it's a compliment to how well this stuff is all arranged and composed. If there's any one thing, though, that gets me to call this album theatrical... It all comes down to Kate Bush's performance. Throughout the album, if I'm imagining anything, it's her on stage — but not a concert stage. More like a play stage, acting these songs out like disconnected numbers from various strange musicals. It's captivating to listen to. Like, honestly, of the Kate Bush albums I've heard before — and at this point it's just HOUNDS OF LOVE and THE SENSUAL WORLD — this might be my favorite thus far? And it's just for that fact. I mean, seriously, there are parts and styles on this album where I'm reminded of Sparks and their own odd British-by-way-of-California sense of glam theatrics. That's a compliment and a half right there from me. It made me wanna go and listen to some of her other work — or at least "Running Up That Hill" and "Cloudbusting" from the follow-up album, if nothing else. Obviously, being more conventional (on this side of the record, anyway), she doesn't aim as big or go as hard as she does on THE DREAMING, but... Keeping what she's capable of in mind, I'm able to appreciate her performance way more than I did before. Like, if I was an 8 before, then we've cranked it to 11. You've gotta give an album props if it can do that. And, hey, if I think those songs are even better with this context, I look forward to seeing what it'll do for my opinion of the **second** half of the album. I remember not being too fond of that half when I first heard HOUNDS OF LOVE... But I'll get there when the Randomizer's RNG randomly decides it's time. In the meantime, I think this album is really worth the people's time. Get a little theater in their day, y'know? And heck, some Kate Bush in general. She's the good stuff, y'know...

Wonderfully weird pop. 4.5 bumped up to 5.

I am surprisingly at a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5. It took a little bit for this album to really start registering in my brain, because it is SO wildly & radically different from what I’d expect a Kate Bush album to sound like at this point. Between “The Sensual World” & her features on Peter Gabriel’s albums, her style seemed pretty defined, so to get such an avant-garde & experimentally bold one like this threw me off guard. I think I liked this, though. Admittedly, I’m still not even quite sure what the overall theme of the album is – “The Sensual World” was a look into the human condition & how human connection is a necessary thing, but this album feels like a more scattered look into pain, panic, plight & paranoia, whether it’s Vietnam-induced PTSD, a seance to summon the ghost of Harry Houdini, the struggles of Australian aborigines, or whatever the hell “Get Out of My House” was. It’s a much wider album, and that wideness comes with a variety of soundscapes & styles, all rooted in a little bit of chaos. Well, chaos & a myriad of synths, drum machines & MIDI instruments. For 1982, this feels almost like Kate Bush trying to do a Bjork album, and it really did work for me. I don’t know that I can type too much more about this; it’s gonna vary wildly from person to person, and I’ll probably need another pass or two with this album to really dig deeper into its eccentricities. It’s an interesting listen, and I’m probably giving it the bump up to a 5 just because I found it captivating & fascinating; from a purely musical standpoint, it’s compositionally closer to a 4, but there’s something in the delivery & structure of the album, and how it ramps up the chaos even more from track to track, that commands attention. I liked it; it’s probably no less than a 3. Maybe a 2 if you’re THAT thrown off by how wildly different this is. For me, it’s a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5 – certainly a weird one, but it’s worth digging into.

Rating: 4.5/5 | Favorite Track: The Dreaming --- I adore this album. I love Kate Bush's art pop take on gothic music – it's weird and surreal and quirky in all the best ways.

she is everything

mischievous sexy clown music

Ok wow, I need to start listening to Kate Bush cause this album is crazy. Like sonically it sounds like someone made this album high on adhd meds cause it’s wild. It’s kinda silly at parts, and at other parts it’s very brooding and emotional. And what Kate does with her voice on this album is super unique I’ve never heard an album that sounds like this and I ADORE it!

March 1, 2025 (T-27) The last time this website gave me a Kate Bush album was in 2022. Perhaps the long wait for the second is the universe's punishment for me calling 2022 "the year of Bush"*, in reference to the Stranger Things-led renaissance of "Running Up that Hill (A Deal With God)". My curiosity and impatience led me to listen to The Hounds of Love on my own time, but I never heard this one before. This one definitely required a second listen; I almost docked a full star for the “turning into a mule” section, but I appreciate that building on the oddness of previous tracks like in “Sat in Your Lap” and the partly screamed “Houdini” ten tracks in couldn’t have been easy. But she did it. “Leave it Open” is another song that made a bit more sense on the second listen. “We LeT tHe WeIrDnEsS iN!” Having listened to Hounds of Love and The Sensual World before, knowing that we’re 3 for 3 in Kate Bush albums featuring Irish traditional elements is surprising. (Didn’t know her mother was Irish). My thoughts on The Dreaming can be summarized as “Why? …Why not?” HL: “Night of the Swallow”, “There Goes a Tenner”, “Pull Out the Pin”, “Suspended in Gaffa”, “Houdini” *the title track contains the lyric “push them from the pull of the Bush”, so I don’t feel quite as weird now

I can see why so many people would be turned off by this. Kate Bush is not super accessible at the best of times (maybe excepting Running Up That Hill, who doesn't love that song?), so her "least accessible" album is probably gonna be a stretch for a lot of people. That said, I love it. I've always really liked the sort of weirder female performers like Kate Bush and Bjork. They kind of have a 'fuck you I'm doing this how I want' attitude about them that I feel makes their music better. For this album, is it weird? Yeah, it's weird. It isn't so weird to be off putting or weird for the sake of being weird. But it's not like anything else you'll hear today and I do feel like you'll be better off for having heard it. I don't think it's her best work, but it's a fantastic record for sure and one that I would recommend to people looking to get a little outside of mainstream. 5/5

Incredibly creative; a thoroughly engaging listen. People who can’t at least appreciate this album are boring

Stunning and creative, a songwriter at the peak of her powers, and oh so strange!

Incredible. This is up there for one of my favorite pop albums ever. Such a unique tapestry of sounds and it has gotten better every listen. This or Never for Ever I think is my favorite of hers. The like the first half more but still great Rating: 4.8

KATE BUSH FUCK YEAHHHHH one of my favorite albums of all time, happy to see her here, she deserves it. fav tracks: night of the swallow, there goes a tenner, suspended in gaffa, sat in your lap, leave it open

One of my all-time favorites. Just overflowing with great musical ideas.

Somehow I've never heard this before, but it reveals another side to Kate Bush, makes her more human and less of a manic pixie dreamgirl type.

Kate Bush.

This albums fucking bonkers and I loved it. Just one listen and I don't think I fully appreciated it but that first impression was something special. Kate Bush at her Bushiest and I'm here for it.

In other reviews before and for sure in the future I've made the comment "lord save me from the mid guy with a singular guitar music" and the answer to that is THIS album. Bert Jansch or Gene Clark could never hope to be this interesting. I'd never heard this album prior to today but this album is FANTASTIC. Its so incredibly interesting in musicality and vocal performance. There's so much here, but I will happily listen to it multiple times to dig into it further.

Can never say anything bad about Kate Bush, the most creative influential singer/songwriter of a generation. Overall not her best album but still up there. Brilliant

Kate Bush utilizes emotion like she would a Fairlight; this time, she used mania. every song is filled with a histrionic turn, a swing of one's fists in the dark as they feel the walls closing in on them. it's cabaret, it's theater, it's drama, it's a dance in the misty grass. nothing like The Dreaming existed before it was released, and nothing like it will exist after. no notes. perfect, in every sense.

i keep trying to put down words about it and i just cant. im considering a full kate bush re-dive at some point so maybe ill try to be articulate than but all i can ever manage to say about this one is that it feels like ive unlocked the secrets of the universe while im within it and than am unceremoniously jolted awake. kind of like the ninth wave but even more disorienting and harder to connect in any way to the waking world. kate gives possibly the best vocal performance in pop music across this record, if u wanna call this pop music. i do, but in a strange partially-remembered way. if i hadnt gotten the downward spiral recently this would be the best record ive rolled in this whole project so far by a landslide and its not like it lacks competition

This album is beautiful, mysterious, weird, experimental, ahead of its time, and clearly an influence on several well-known musicians and bands that came later. And for all that it deserves 5 stars.

This is great. It's experimental but I found it to be easier to get into than other Kate Bush albums

Actually interesting, creative, progressive music.

The Dreaming, released in 1982, is one of the most original and eccentric albums of Kate Bush’s career. From its opening, with the title track “The Dreaming,” we are immersed in an experimental sound that blends elements of rock, pop, and folk music. Kate utilizes a variety of vocal and instrumental techniques, creating a sonic experience that defies the norms of pop music at the time. The production, which features innovative mechanisms and complex arrangements, makes each song feel like a new adventure, highlighting not only her talent as a songwriter, but also as an artist willing to take risks. The lyrics on The Dreaming are equally striking and reveal Kate Bush’s creative mind. She addresses themes of dreams, identity, and the human condition in poetic and often surreal ways. Tracks like “Sat in Your Lap” and “There Goes a Tenner” not only defy simple interpretation, but also invite the listener to delve deeper into their narratives, providing a continual reflection on dreams and the realities of life. The way Kate articulates her emotions and personal experiences is a testament to her originality, allowing listeners to connect with the essence of her songs in unique ways. Furthermore, the visual aesthetic of The Dreaming, reflected in its artwork and videos, complements the album’s eccentric musicality. Kate Bush has always been a figure who transcends convention, and this album is no exception. It encapsulates not only her individual artistic vision, but also a spirit of freedom and innovation that sets her apart in the music scene. With The Dreaming, Kate has not only delivered a body of work that stands out for its originality, but has also helped to upend expectations of what a pop artist could achieve, inspiring a new generation of musicians to explore uncharted territories.

This album is absolutely fantastic. So many great songs I can't pick a favorite. The songs fit seamlessly together and you can hear the ingenuity in the sound. She is so creative and has a real strong musical perspective. Perfect album!

kate bush is brilliant and to me, this is one of the biggest pieces of evidence. every song on here is dramatic as fuck and i love every second of it. her vocal range is great, as usual. everything about this album is so creative and out there, and yet, not really inaccessible (although admittedly, it's not her most accessible album). the production on here is pretty dated (full of of-the-era synth sounds that have not aged particularly well) but if you can get past most of this album sounding like an old video game, it is truly great. it's definitely an album that i'm sure most people think sounds like a cat getting its tail stepped on, but to me, that's part of the charm of kate bush. she's out of left field and unabashedly so.

En 1982, Kate Bush, la sorcière du son, nous offre "The Dreaming" qui reste sa plus belle porte d'entrée dans son mode onirique. Son 4e album, mais le 1er sur lequel elle exerce un contrôle artistique absolu, est une oeuvre singulière et personnelle où Kate Bush s’efforce de revenir aux origines du rythme. Celui du tam-tam, des battements de coeur, des sonorités tribales et slaves où violon, rhombe, mandoline, bouzouki et didgeridoo viennent se greffer sur des instruments électroniques et traditionnels. "The Dreaming" est un rêve éveillé, rempli de sons, de textures, de couleurs, mais "The Dreaming" malgré toutes ses qualités sera un échec commercial cuisant. Le disque deviendra par la suite un véritable objet de culte et tous les fans s'accordent aujourd'hui pour admettre que c'est le sommet de sa discographie. "The Dreaming" est une oeuvre d'art où Kate Bush change le registre sa voix, l’emmenant dans des tessitures graves, déchirantes, inédites, sur des morceaux d’une beauté fascinante. Un gros 5/5 qui j'espère vous donnera envie de rentrer dans le monde de Kate Bush.

Ir’s just wow

Historic - Kate's first self-produced album and her first efforts creating with a Fairlight CMI. A huge leap in her artistic maturity from her prior efforts. Fascinating, incorporating world music; truly unique and clearly influential for artists like Bjork. I've loved this album since I first heard it in 1983.

Classic

my favorite kate bush album i love everything about it

This is pretty great. I think that not only is it brilliant, but it will likely get better the more time spent with it. its weird, its atmospheric, its different, its just really really good. i think it's a 5, i think it might be better collectively than Hounds of Love but doesn't have those big hits that Hounds has. I think 5

I wasn't much of a fan of the first album of hers that was offered on this site. But this one was outstanding. I totally dig it. Especially the first half. Just the weirdness but in an artistic sense that makes sense, vs. weird for the sake of weirdness. This is still melodic for the most part.

-AHHH ONE OF MY FAVORITE ALBUMS OF ALL TIME… Kate at her absolute most daring and creative. The storytelling aspects are incredible and every song feels like a whole new world. I wish she did more like this -Favorites are uhh all of them this album has zero flops. But if I had to choose, Sat In Your Lap, Suspended In Gaffa, Night Of The Swallow, Houdini, and Get Out Of My House

Well, Kate Bush officially joins the ABYD 5-star Club. Criteria seems to be an artist or album I’m not already very familiar ++ significant repeat value in that I feel like I could listen to it, intentionally, forever and don’t want to move on. I don’t want to move on after 2-3 listens. These rating are all relative, of course, so this one could have been influenced by the fact that its predecessor was Sade — meh — but The Dreaming is now in good company with Talking Heads Remain in Light and a near 5-star Eiensturzende Neubaten debut. Something about the production techniques and sensibilities of the time period seems to really be resonating with me, as both a music fan and hobbyist music maker. Hmmm…

💙 incredible. I liked this the first time I heard it, and then listened again and liked it more, and now it's definitely in the rotation. A very weird and cool album that she produced herself (werk). The effects she uses must've been wild in the early 80s. Even now, they're super unique to Kate Bush's sound. You can totally hear the influence Kate Bush had on Björk. Rad as hell

J’aime beaucoup Kate Bush, sa voix particulière, ses explorations singulières, une vraie artiste

An inspiration for many contemporary popular artists. She’s just perfect and this album is way ahead of its time.

Second album of Kate Bush on this list that I absolutely love. I think this list is converting me into a Kate Bush fan.

The album was so bizarre but in a very structured way. Absolutely fantastic.

Some fives are better than other fives. I read one guy who worked with Kate Bush who felt that this album was over cluttered with too many sounds but I think that's what makes it so great. Every time you come back you hear new things. Also some of her best lyrics and use of different styles of singing in the one song, line even.

WOW. Kate seems totally unhinged and unrestrained on this album, and just so over-the-top theatrical and dramatic. I love so many aspects about this album including the wild orchestral instrumentation, mix of Kate's and deep male (almost chant-ish) vocals and just how raw it all feels. Since starting this list I've gotten quite a bit into Björk and I can absolutely see this as a huge influence. Crazy fun! 9/10