Editor's Choice...
And today... "Sonic Temple" - "The Cult's" 4th album that was released on April 10th, 1989.
This was the album that completed the US breakthrough for "The Cult". It brought them to mainstream radio playlists and a new and wider audience.
"The Cult", which started as a post-punk band just 6 years earlier, has managed to release a streak of 3 masterful albums in a row. from their second album "Love" released in 1985, through "Electric" released in 1987, to "Sonic Temple" which completed the masterpiece trilogy.
On these three albums, the band managed to produce an amazing fusion between "Led Zeppelin" and "The Cure", between "Aerosmith" and "Echo & the Bunnymen", between Hardcore Punk and New Wave to Hard Rock and Metal.
On this album, the band pulls this unique fusion more towards heavy and powerful Hard Rock. A very dynamic album led by layers of electric and acoustic guitars courtesy of Billy Duffy, a strong and bombastic drum production, and Ian Astbury's powerful baritone voice.
It's the band's last album with bassist Jamie Stewart and its first with Mickey Curry, former Hall & Oates, and Bryan Adams drummer.
It is also the band's first album with producer Bob Rock, who will later work on the production of "Metallica's" "Black Album".
(Photo: Andrew MacPherson)
The process of creating this album was not easy for the band.
This album started with 14 demos recorded with Eric Singer - who would later become the drummer of "Kiss", but the band decided to shelve all the songs and start from scratch.
On the second try, the band recorded 15 demos, this time with Bob Rock drummer Chris Taylor, but again they were not happy with the results.
The band reached the desired result only on the third attempt, with ten songs all written by Duffy and Astbury.
This album produced unforgettable hits like "Fire Woman", which was also released as the first single and reached number 2 on the American Billboard.
"Edie (Ciao Baby)" is another great song with an acoustic opening and string production, written about Edie Sedgwick who was part of the Andy Warhol scene in the early seventies. Sedgwick lived a troubled life with mental health issues and drug addictions. She died In 1971 from a drug overdose when she was only 28.
"Sweet Soul Sister" which sounds "AOR" compliant was written by Ian Astbury about the Americanization of European culture, especially of the youth in Europe.
But make no mistake, these are by no means the only excellent tracks on the album. The opening song "Sun King" with Billy Duffy's electric guitar intro, "American Horse" with oriental influences, the "Kashmiri influenced "Soul Asylum" that screams "Zeppelin" from the guitar parts and Bonham's drumming and the rhythmic and rocky "New York City" Feat. Iggy Pop, Bring this album close to perfection and makes it one of the most important rock albums of the eighties, no less!
Follow the link, enjoyment is guaranteed: Spotify.