KISSIN' DYNAMITE: Not The End Of The Road (MELODIC HARD ROCK): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

According to the saying, German mechanics are reliable and solid. Kissin' Dynamite has lived up to this reputation by offering a new album every two years since 2008 with the release of "Steel Of Swabia". While the excellent "Ecstasy" marked its passage from AFM to Metal Blade in 2018, the machine seemed to stall and 2020 did not see the release of a new opus. It must be said that the band had to deal with another label change by signing now to Nuclear Blast. Of course, the health crisis has also passed through, but it is especially the departure of Andreas Schnitzer that made the effect of a bomb since the Teutonic formation had never recorded a change in its heart since its beginnings in 2007. It is thus with a new drummer (Sebastian Berg) that Kissin' Dynamite finally comes back to business with a "Not The End Of The Road" whose title seems to be hopeful.

Kissin' Dynamite's ability to bring good mood, without necessarily falling into certain clichés in terms of lyrics, is no longer to be proven. However, this new album seems to take the cursor up a notch, as if the quintet wanted to oppose with all its strength the different dramas that could hit the world or its own country. This is the case with the eponymous track that wants to bring hope after the catastrophic floods that Germany suffered in July 2021. With its fast and dynamic riff and its anthemic chorus, this track is simply euphoric. In a more mid-tempo but still positive register, 'Good Life' sees Charlotte Wessels (ex-Delain), Guernica Mancini (Thundermother) and some members of Saltatio Mortis join the band to support children affected by cancer. Here too, the atmosphere is optimistic and the melody is embedded in mind for long hours.

Without revolutionizing a style that is his since "Generation Goodbye" (2016), Kissin' Dynamite continues to clarify the contours while relying on a dazzling talent to find the unstoppable chorus in each track. The most catchy aspect of this opus comes from the nods to some of the 80's legends with finesse and respect. The groove and the bass of 'What Goes Up' remind us Def Leppard. It's hard not to think of early Bon Jovi on a slightly pop 'Yoko Ono' with crazy lyrics, on the moving mid-tempo ballad 'Gone For Good', or on 'Voodoo Spell' with tribal touches and a talk-box worthy of 'Livin' On A Prayer'. Finally, the big brothers of Scorpions can be guessed behind the riff of the dynamic 'Defeat It'. But let's not be mistaken, these are cleverly made tributes and not crude copies.

It is thus a faultless performance that Kissin' Dynamite realizes with a "Not The End Of The Road" devoid of any weak point and whose various choruses squat your memory. You can dive without reserve into this opus with its contagious good mood and positive vitality. - Official website

KISSIN' DYNAMITE

NOT THE END OF THE ROAD

NAPALM RECORDS

MELODIC HARD ROCK