Gotthard - 'Stereo Crush'

It may have a naff title, but perhaps ‘Stereo Crush’ will be the Gotthard album that finally brings the naysayers back on board.

Red album cover with "GOTTHARD" and "STEREO CRUSH" text. A glass ball with letter 'G' shatters between two speakers. Dynamic, intense mood.

Gotthard are certainly a band that divide opinions these days, since vocalist Nic Maeder joined the band in 2014, but I have always had a soft spot for them. Of the four albums released in that time, ‘Firebirth’ was rather underwhelming for their “comeback”, ‘Bang!’ was an absolute... er... banger, ‘Silver’ is the only real disappointment, but ‘#13’ was hugely enjoyable. However, they’ve all hit the #1 spot in their native Switzerland, and the band are still a massive draw in Europe as a live act, so they must be doing something right.

Which brings us to album #14, ‘Stereo Crush’; my immediate impression was I didn’t like the title, and the first single release ‘Boom Boom’ just didn’t grab my attention at all, so I became concerned that the cycle of average album/good album would be continuing. However, then the second single ‘Thunder And Lightning’ arrived, and suddenly my interest was suitably piqued, as it’s a belter of a song with definite nods to Gotthard’s past... could the rest of the album live up to the same expectations?

And the answer is an absolute yes! As with ‘Thunder...’, huge melodies and

hooks are bursting from every aspect of ‘Stereo Crush’, be it the crushing opener ‘AI & I’ (once it hits the chorus), the piano-led and contemporary-sounding ‘Burning Bridges’, ‘Shake Shake’ (despite the title), the grooving ‘Devil In The Moonlight’ and ‘Dig A Little Deeper’, or the glorious ‘Liverpool’ (to these ears the best thing they’ve done since ‘Anytime Anywhere’)...even ‘Boom Boom’ has grown on me! Overall, it’s more Melodic Rock than the heavier Hard Rock territory the band have resided in more recently, and is all the better for it, full of shorter, concise songs with only one cracking the four-minute mark, the rootsy but anthemic ‘Rusty Rose’.

The ballads are top-drawer too, the classy ‘Life’ underpinned by a lovely orchestral backing, and ‘These Are The Days’ has more of a bluesy vibe. The band also return to the tradition of all the earlier Gotthard albums by including a cover of a sixties song, à la ‘Hush’ or ‘Mighty Quinn’; this time it’s The Beatles ‘Drive My Car’, and while not a song I’ve ever loved, they give it a great burst of life.

It may have a naff title, but perhaps ‘Stereo Crush’ will be the Gotthard album that finally brings the naysayers back on board.

Reviewer: Ant Heeks

Label: Reigning Phoenix

Genre: Hard Rock

Issue Reviewed In: 110

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