by Justin Gaines
– Senior Columnist/News Editor —
Swiss melodic rock kings Gotthard are back with a new studio album, their eleventh overall, titled Bang!. It’s the second album since the unfortunate death of founding vocalist Steve Lee, whose shadow still looms large over the band. The band made a strong comeback with 2012’s Firebirth though, so expectations for Bang! were fairly high.
Despite the title, the album doesn’t exactly get started with a bang. It’s not till about the fourth track – “Feel What I Feel” – that you start to feel that old Gotthard groove break through, and for the next half dozen tracks the band delivers the kind of soulful, hook-laden melodic rock songs we’ve come to expect from Gotthard. Unfortunately they lose steam again towards the end. It just seems like the band overdid it here. At 9-10 songs, Bang could have been a good, but not great, Gotthard album. At 14 tracks it feels a bit bloated.
Padded or not, there are some really memorable songs on Bang. “C’Est La Vie” and “Maybe” have a sweet D-Frosted vibe, and “Jump the Gun” and “Spread Your Wings” are very catchy melodic rockers. And the album as a whole does grow on you after repeated listens. That’s just not something most of us are used to from a Gotthard album. For his part, new singer Nic Maeder seems to be fitting in just fine, though it remains difficult to accept the idea of a Gotthard without Steve Lee.
In the end, Bang! is a solid enough melodic rock album, and one that most Gotthard fans should enjoy if they’re willing to give it a chance to grow on them. It’s not a highlight of the Gotthard discography though, and given the spectacular releases by H.E.A.T, Brother Firetribe, Work of Art and Free Spirit, it isn’t going to stand out in the crowd.
Edition Notes: The U.S. version of Bang includes three bonus studio songs – “I Want It All,” “You Can’t Stop Me” and “My Daddy Told Me.” All are decent songs, but none are any better than the regular album tracks.
Genre: Melodic Rock
Lineup:
Nic Maeder (v)
Leo Leoni (g)
Hena Habegger (d)
Marc Lynn (b)
Freddy Scherer (g)
Track Listing:
1. Let Me In Katie
2. Bang!
3. Get Up n’ Move On
4. Feel What I Feel
5. C’Est La Vie
6. Jump the Gun
7. Spread Your Wings
8. I Won’t Look Down
9. My Belief
10. Maybe
11. Red On a Sleeve
12. What You Get
13. Mr. Ticket Man
14. Thank You
15. I Want It All
16. You Can’t Stop Me
17. My Daddy Told Me
Label: The End
Website: www.gotthard.com
Hardrock Haven Rating: 7/10
