Alison Jiear - Xanadu

Stream Xanadu here (Soundcloud)

Recipe: Take the voice of dance smash I Just Wanna F***ing Dance, add it to one of the most iconic and frothy disco classics you can think of and through in a healthy dollop of a music producer whose CV actually includes credits such as "works with Kylie Minogue" and "If in doubt, apply more glitter". Garnish with fabulousness and you have an end product that makes me knees buckle in unabashed joy. Yes, Alison Jiear is back and she has bought her impressive set of pipes to the Steve Anderson produced Xanadu. It. Is. EVERYTHING. Timed both to celebrate the critically acclaimed run of the much beloved musical in the West End (which stars Alison) AND to be an essential edition to any self respecting Christmas shin-dig, it's a lovingly faithful version that accentuates and accessorises everything you loved about the ONJ version. It opens with Alison's distinctive and engaging voice set to a titillating beat and enough synth effects, carefully placed to amp up your excitement for the chorus. While it's doing that, Alison does a rather brilliant job of expressing the wide-eyed wonder you should feel upon entering Xanadu. It's an exhilarating start and a journey that only gets better with each seductive beat. The music feels sentient and responsive to Alison's guiding of that irrepressible melody - it crescendos and cascades like a muscle bound boy in shorts at the roller disco, strutting his stuff to impress the ladies and make his six pack ripple. And that's what this song does - it ripples with a tangible energy that infuses you with the power equivalent to a dopamine rush to the brain and just as satisfying. Alison really does command the song - yet she's a master of knowing how much vocal volume to give so as not to overtake that sensational score that is just as important as her seductive singing. All in all, it's as festive as the John Lewis Christmas advert and cannot fail to put a smile on your face. I'm breathless and giddy from just listening (and no, not just because I was thinking of the rippling muscles :D) Joyful and triumphant.