Searcer have we recovered from the latest bout of Kylie fever and here on her trail is DANNII MINOGUE,
soap star, Fringe thesp and club diva. Words: Henry Northmore
ight. so we're planning Scotland’s largest clubbing festival of
2002. So who shall we book then'.’ X-Press 2. check. Erik
Morillo. check. 808 State. check. Danny Rampling. check. Scb Fontaine. check. David Morales. check. Sister Bliss. check. Dannii Minogue . . . what'.’
After her massive smash hit with Riva last year. “Who Do You Love Now‘.". Miss Minogue has decided to strengthen her dance roots. And Coloursfest. which starts at 2pm and ends at 4am the next morning. is gonna be the big unveiling of her new image and. more importantly. brand new sound. ‘There are spaces in the set list as the album is still in production and we don‘t even know what the first single is.‘ says Australia’s second most famous export.
‘But hopefully before Coloursfcst we’ll know. So it’s
rrrreally nerve wracking.‘
Dannii speaks with that distinctive Aussie twang. a “ate Of What I
him up and was like: "Hey Roger. I‘m putting my album together. sorry I bumped you off for yours. but how about doing mine?" And he was like: "Yeah man. I have my own home studio. come to New York!" He‘s a complete sweetheart}
So it looks as if she might have found acceptance in the world of clubbing. one scene above all others that can have a chip on its shoulder. ‘DJs have every right to be fickle.‘ she says. 'Their image is led by what records they play. so they must be very specific about what they choose and who they say they like.‘
(‘lub diva is just one more string to Dannii‘s bow. Of course there are the cheap Aussie soaps — how could we forget Home And Away"? — then there are the musicals: she starred in the massive West [ind hit Mitre Dame De Paris among others. But one of the biggest risks she took was taking on the role of Lady Macbeth outdoors in the Botanic Gardens at
voice you recognise instantly. almost identical to her do '5 the lzdinburgh l‘CSllVill Fringe of 199‘). ‘I thought the
omni resent big sis. 'l guess Coloursfest is gonna kick - l’ ~ ~ ~ to Kylie and I
off the summer.‘ she says. ‘lt‘s great that Scotland is
saying: “Hey don’t forget about us." It’s gonna have a don’t thlnk really good vibe. because the further noth you get the that’s
better it is. The girls are really nice. cos sometimes girls get nasty. going: “Aww she's gonna steal my boyfriend." and tip their drinks on you or something.‘ she giggles.
Dannii at a dance festival might not be as weird as it sounds: for her latest album. she‘s been working with some of the biggest names in the business. including the self-styled S-Man himself Roger Sanchez. He wanted me to do his album but I was taking a much needed break. I just told him: "I can't do it. I‘m kinda doing nothing. but it’s really important that I'm doing nothing." He thought it was really funny as no one was turning him down. so we became really good friends. So by the time it came to do my album I just called
try.
I":“"
whole issue about it was fascinating. how it provoked people.‘ she says. 'Iiveryonc was like: "How can this soap opera actress do Shakespeare?" But if you understood how hard it is to do those soap opera lines that don‘t really make sense on a cardboard set. whereas Shakespeare is so well written. it makes it very easy to act. And saying that pisses people off. as the RSC want you to believe that only certain people can perform it. which protects their jobs. But hey fuck 'em if they can't take ajoke.’
But how can you speak to Dannii without mentioning the all conquering. constant flavour of the week that is Kylie‘.’ ‘l‘d say it definitely doesn't help me out at all.‘ says the kid sister. 'Every single note of what I do is compared to her and I don't think that‘s healthy at all. The difficult thing is that if 1 do something that is like her. I’m copying her and if do something not like her. I'm distancing myself. It‘s not how I view my career or how she views our relationship.’
So it’s time to check out Dannii for who she really is and the non-stop. l-l-hour (‘oloursfcst is just the place to do it.
Dannii Minogue joins a whole host of dance music’s top DJs at Coloursfest, Braehead
Arena, Glasgow, Sun 2 Jun.
r‘dfl “
__i : r—é June 2002 THE LIST 1 1