INXS – Kick

It would be great if someone would add the 2025 AP SACD to Discogs! :-)

I have this pressing, it is australian? coz it is not mentioned where is manufactured.
also is strange for a late eighties lp there is no bar code

Nothing beats the OG AU pressing of this album. Punchy as all hell and plenty of presence and life, like having INXS at the pub playing in front of you!

INXS had chart success in their native Australia and beyond with 1984's "The Swing", which contained the intoxicating "Original Sin", produced by none other than Nile Rodgers. Having toured their homeland extensively with only a marginal increase in local popularity to show for it, they set about conceiving even material. It wasn't until the infectious new wave-ish leadoff single "What You Need" from their fifth album "Listen Like Thieves" received critical acclaim and significant international airplay that the band finally broke through. In the US alone, the album charted just shy of the top ten on the Billboard 200. It was an indication that primary songwriters Michael Hutchence and Andrew Farriss were on a roll. Following on from the success of their previous two records, INXS actively combined the dance rhythms of "The Swing" and the brash Stones-y toughness of "Listen Like Thieves", culminating in a smart, cutting edge, opulently produced sound that would serve them very well indeed.

"Kick" was mostly rehearsed and written in the wake of their most recent tour, which obtained them a broader audience waiting with bated breath to hear new material. In 1987, the band entered the studio, recording the resulting songs in blocks, drastically altering arrangements and even contriving three demos towards the end of the process, with all being added to the final product: a dozen potential singles. "Kick" was designed to contravene the musical landscape of the time, emphasising elements of funk, electronic and contemporary pop. As a result, the unreleased album was promptly rejected by the band's label on the basis that it would not be marketable to their conventional rock audience. In a bid to prove Atlantic Records wrong and force their hand to release the album, INXS completed a short college tour and covertly sent "Need You Tonight" to campus radio, where it became a huge hit. Upon the official premiere of the track on mainstream radio, it soon climbed the charts in several countries and earned several accolades on the strength of its innovative music video. INXS were distinctly Australian, which initially harmed their chances of infiltrating the mainstream. By 1987, they diluted that aspect of their aesthetic, embracing the promotional power of visuals and marginally glamorizing their image, attracting an American audience in the process. That being said, Hutchence had taken advantage of the disarming vulnerability his craggy good looks and unbridled magnetism previously overshadowed, and Americans are nothing if not partial to a rugged, sybaritic rock god with feelings.

Between the slithering "Need You Tonight," swaggering "Devil Inside," irresistible "New Sensation," ionate "Mystify," and anthemic "Never Tear Us Apart", the more ubiquitous tracks were finessed, stylish pop rock with instant appeal and lasting impact. In spite of that, the less well-known compositions surrounding the hits were equally as impeccable, boasting varying moods, styles, corresponding immediacy and replay value. "Guns In The Sky," "Calling All Nations," and "Tiny Daggers", to name but a few, are at once ostentatious, sexy and exuberant, with Hutchence's intense and soulful vocal delivery according with the loose dance grooves, rendering the album in its entirety a hugely uplifting and gratifying experience replete with evocative hooks and lyrics. Unsullied by the conventional '80s production style, "Kick" still sounds fresh and dynamic, refining the abilities, techniques and instrumentation accrued across seven years in the business. INXS arguably reached their creative peak with their sixth album. As veterans of the alternative scene, suddenly being thrust into the spotlight would forever change them; they would struggle to maintain their success and stay ahead of the field. Shortly after the band were launched into stardom, only Hutchence would become the focal point; a desirable rock star of the highest order. For a short time, he was almost as established as Bono in of esteem, but that reverence quickly faded and he ended up a washed-up, reluctant celebrity just as the band were falling out of favour with the public. Owing to the unabashed frivolity and hedonism of INXS and Hutchence's personal downfall, they would be no match for U2 with regards to lasting significance, but for a while at least they were as much of a live draw.

With not one weak song in the bunch, "Kick" offers ample substance, strings, horns, riffs and synths, and sensual, smooth and snaky pop sensibility to beguile not only traditional rock fans, but even those born after 1987. From stirring balladry to hard-edged rock & roll, this masterpiece has something for everyone, containing enough might and majesty to outlast its blander, deeper contemporaries.

Rating: 5/5

This studio recording is so brilliantly diversified, it fits in well in genres from alternative rock, pop rock, new wave, funk, hard rock to even genres like electronic dance-pop with some of the past and current remixes.
Today, Kick is even considered a classic rock album!

And so, whichever version you may have, Kick remains one of the kick-ass albums of alltime!

I have a different version that I cannot find anywhere. The vinyl is really thin and floppy. I doubt it is an official release. Please check this picture and help me archive it correctly.

https://scontent-a-ams.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/10632740_10153039960119410_1214384355537325373_n.jpg?oh=6345331aceb2b025b3cf824d84d5a77a&oe=5548521E