Kate Bush is quite possibly my favorite artist ever. I can't think of anyone more creative, risk-taking, or beautifully unusual. I understand how her music is an acquired taste for some (the woman's a huge quirkster), but I'm always struck by how much of an unknown she is here in the States.
She's epic in the UK, and has been since she was a 19-year-old chart-topper. Kate was signed to EMI records in 1976 after a little help from a family friend named, oh, Dave Gilmour. A few years later she released her first LP titled The Kick Inside, which is a surprisingly mature album, considering that Kate was just 13 when she penned some of the tunes.
She quickly rose to fame across the pond, in no small part due to her unusual voice and knack for taking really nice pictures (see above, she's lovely). But Kate's career was carried by her own determination and willingness to push the bounds. She took control of her music's direction by learning about production and sound engineering. The result was the creation of her landmark album, Hounds of Love (1985), a concepty double disk, the second half of which details a drowning victim's last night in the water.
Her last release was 2005's Aerial, another great double album. I'm not aware of any more current material, but I'm always in anticipation something new from Kate.
Here's "Wuthering Heights," Kate's debut single:
http://www.giantpanther.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Kate-Bush-Wuthering-Heights.mp3
She is.
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