the lowdown on Kim Wilde

Just yesterday, I was blathering on about artists that get a warm reception on the European continent, but are somehow snubbed by radio in the UK.

After the success of the album, "Never Say Never", Kim Wilde contemplated the possibility of it being a single moment rather than a return to former glories. Four years on, it seems the time is right for Kim to release her latest offering, "Come Out And Play", which will hit the "shops" on August 27. The first single, "Lights Down Low", is garnering lots of favorable attention.

The new album is receiving widespread press and interest in Germany much like its predecessor. However, like her previous longplayer, it won't see the light of day in the UK. A little strange considering KW has played hundreds of show across her homeland over the last half decade.

It seems the UK music scene is becoming more insular much in the way the US has been for over a decade. It should be pointed out that an artist signed in one territory doesn't mean it can automatically be picked up in another by the same or sister label. That's why a lot of albums don't get released outside the territory from which they were signed.

In the US, an album or artist from overseas costs more in royalties paid out to the local company where their deal was signed. So it's more fiscally responsible to promote an act in the territories where they were signed. On top of this, the cost of mounting a promotional campaign for an act signed in another country double or triple depending on the length and scope of it.

All technical BS aside, let's take a look at the video Kim lensed for her brand new single, "Lights Down Low". Sonically, it's a return to a more muscular, rock sound accompanied by gritty synth lead lines which is more in line with where started nearly 30 years ago.