Date: 1 December 1983
Originally published in: Tip Magazin (Germany)
Written by:
The Kim Wilde clan has taken its time. Kim’s third LP should be something very special. This endeavor can be seen on the record. Unfortunately not always to their advantage. One day (not too early) Kim Wilde will present the perfect pop LP. She’ll just need other sidemen for that. The brother / father team songs begin to sound a bit strained in places. The formula wears thin. Exceptions are “Shoot To Disable”, “Sing It Out For Love”, “Dream Sequence” and of course “Love Blonde”. Mix magician Nile Rodgers, on the other hand, is unable to conjure up a class track from “Dancing In The Dark”. And although the instrumentation on the album is consistently effective, only “Love Blonde” is allowed a musical life of its own. In principle, all other cuts were knitted according to the same pattern. What keeps these tracks alive is for a long time only Kim’s personality. Unfortunately, her confidence in her family’s pop potency is almost limitless, and even cautious doubts tend to be chased away by her with an unruly hand gesture. Breaking out of the transparent synth-pop cage is therefore not to be expected at least for the time being. Her single “Bitter Is Better”, produced in Japan, clearly shows that a delegation of production responsibilities to external, non-family elements would not least be profitable for them. Still: “Catch As Catch Can” is a very good LP.
