Aerial
by Kate Bush
  • Record Label: Sony
  • Release Date: Nov 8, 2005
User Score
8.9

Universal acclaim- based on 325 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 291 out of 325
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 325
  3. Negative: 26 out of 325

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  1. ElC
    Mar 24, 2009
    10
    Frankly speaking, I did not like it too much the first time I have listened. Yet, with every time I listened it sort of opened up more and more. It is so rich that it unfolds and unfolds and unfolds, presenting each time with more, even when you thought you have it all. Kate must be a real witch, there is an incredible amount of "force" in this album. She is a very wise and mature person Frankly speaking, I did not like it too much the first time I have listened. Yet, with every time I listened it sort of opened up more and more. It is so rich that it unfolds and unfolds and unfolds, presenting each time with more, even when you thought you have it all. Kate must be a real witch, there is an incredible amount of "force" in this album. She is a very wise and mature person in sense of understanding the world and stuff, too - her songs prove it. Practically all songs on this album are charged with very deep emotions, and some are so much, that you can not hold tears listening. In short, this is an amazing, incredible album, one of the real treasures I have pleasure to listen to, ever.… Expand
  2. RasmaryC
    Nov 29, 2005
    10
    As a musician all i can say is, this is stunning!
  3. RachelD
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    What a trip. This gets right inside, heals your heart and lifts your spirits. Gorgeous.
  4. DaveC
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    One of the defining albums of the 21st century, in the same way Hounds of Love was a defining moment in late 20th century popular music.
  5. TimothyG
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    Very few albums surprise me, this one did... Having only started listening to Kate about 4 years ago, it was cool to see a new album emerge abd hearing her voice with more modern day production.. Also, the thought that went into everything is staggering... even the artwork with double CD case where laundry turns to birds..... I'm glad I own this one...
  6. MintyZ
    Nov 9, 2005
    10
    Most excellent. Makes every other purchase in the past two years seem frivolous by comparison. Oh, if only the other 99.9999% of artists had the vision to make a disc like this. . . .
  7. AdanR
    Jan 13, 2006
    10
    I don't know how this woman does it...with an album that focuses on domestic life and urges the listening to concentrate on the small things in life (birdsong, the changing light of the day, domestic chores, the smile of a child), she has ended up creating a mind blowing album. Amazing. Listen with an open mind and be swept away...
  8. JohnI
    Jan 20, 2006
    10
    While Kate Bush is a big star in the EU and Japan, here in the USA, she has only had a cult following. I am a happy member of this cult. Aerial is not an album that will yield hit singles, but Bush's complex, almost hypnotic songs grabbed my soul after a couple of listens. This is the work of a true, popular music genius!
  9. Reedman
    Feb 6, 2006
    10
    Kate is GREAT WORLD ARTIST.
  10. LeeB
    Jul 19, 2006
    10
    I doubt that there is or ever was a musician as unique as Kate Bush.Her music takes me away to another world.Aerial is one of her best(The Dreaming is still,for me,the best album ever made at any time by any artist).Let's hope that she records another well before twelve more years have passed!
  11. TakisS
    Oct 19, 2009
    10
    A real experimental masterpiece! Only Kate can make songs like Aerial Prologue or Prelude in that Age. The album is the successor of Hounds of Love! A masterpiece!
  12. PW
    Nov 12, 2005
    10
    An amazing album that gets better with each subsequent listen. Hands down the best album that I have heard all year. And frankly, I'm not even that much of a fan of Kate Bush!
  13. gregi
    Nov 10, 2005
    10
    By modern standards it should get 11. Really. Even though it's not perfect, even the failing points have so many redeeming qualities that it is way beyond the sum of it's parts. It gives many a contemporary musician a worthwhile goal: personal, experimental, daring, beautiful, emotional and against the grain. Not many can pull that off successfully in this world of By modern standards it should get 11. Really. Even though it's not perfect, even the failing points have so many redeeming qualities that it is way beyond the sum of it's parts. It gives many a contemporary musician a worthwhile goal: personal, experimental, daring, beautiful, emotional and against the grain. Not many can pull that off successfully in this world of same-o-same-o. And for the listner: countless of hours of listening, finding and enjoyment.… Expand
  14. JasperPo
    Nov 27, 2005
    10
    Just fantastic!
  15. WaltonS
    Nov 7, 2005
    10
    An album that has genuinely touched me, and I dare say may be one of the finest I've ever heard. From anyone.
  16. ArchwayJack
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    A tremendous return, especially after the slightly disappointing Red Shoes album.
  17. josk
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    astonishing! magical!
  18. Greg
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    Pure Magic. Well worth the wait we have had to endure. Perhaps not as great as hounds of love but defintley a masterpiece. Grammy will be singing areials toon.
  19. ChrisB
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    Back and better than ever!
  20. NeilB
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    Worth every year. Worth every damn second.
  21. billl
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    We are so not worthy. Would have waited 50 years for this album, and it would have been worth it. Aerial is stunning. Joy and beauty on A Sky of Honey; 7 diamonds on a Sea of Honey. mesmerizing and tear-inducing.
  22. JonathanM
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    Wow, I've been a Kate fan for several years now and after The Red Shoes being such an overcooked record I really wasn't expecting anything as beatiful and beguling as this. Nearly 30 years on she still manages to be one of the most essential artists around.
  23. LeonardoF
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    cd1 is great, cd2 is perfect and when it ends, it makes you want to listen to a cd3. aerial is the kind of album that gets better and better with each listen. hope we don't have to wait another 12 years for more.
  24. MichaelB.
    Nov 8, 2005
    10
    This is what genius sounds like... A simply amazing and accessible work from an incredibly talented artist.
  25. enricob
    Nov 9, 2005
    10
    Absolutely superb...it gets better and better and better with each playfrom the Lemon Jelly-styled paean to numbers which is "Pi", moody rocker "How To Be Invisible", the tearjerking "A Coral Room" (worth the price alone) to the gorgeous "Sky of Honey" suite. This album will make you feel delirious and slightly high after listening to it!
  26. LloydC
    Nov 9, 2005
    10
    Kate's back and better than ever. Aerial is her most cohesive and fully realized album thus far.
  27. JamieH
    Nov 9, 2005
    10
    My god, what a comeback. Every moment of the album is perfection. "How to be Invisible" is the catchiest song she's done since the HOL era, "Pi" makes numbers sexy, "Mrs. B" and "A Coral Room" show off Kate's piano ballads, and the entirety of the concept album is filled with lush, stunning arrangements. It's another fantastic album from a fantastic artist.
  28. fredn
    Dec 1, 2005
    10
    Brilliant - anything that you like the first listen is crap. It took a few listens to discover how unashamedly brilliant this recording is!
  29. GC
    Dec 8, 2005
    10
    An outstanding album by anyone's standards. Some of the most beautiful music she has ever recorded. One to treasure for many years to come.
  30. Paolo
    Jan 14, 2006
    10
    Masterpiece!
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Awards & Rankings

52
#52 Best Album of 2005
12
#12 Most Discussed Album of 2005
17
#17 Most Shared Album of 2005

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
81

Universal acclaim - based on 23 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 23
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 23
  3. Negative: 0 out of 23
  1. AllMusic
    80
    There's no pushing of the envelope because there doesn't need to be. Aerial is rooted in Kate Bush's oeuvre, with grace, flair, elegance, and an obsessive, stubborn attention to detail.
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  2. Billboard
    80
    Despite her prolonged absence, Bush sounds as vital as ever.
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  3. musicOMH.com
    90
    Like all ambitious double albums, [Aerial] is not without its flaws, but even Bush's moments of failure are much more interesting than those of her contemporaries.
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