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It’s hard to come up with a British hard rock band, still recording top-quality albums today, as loved by their fanbase as much as Thunder are. Deep Purple maybe? They certainly are on an (ahem) purple patch of form with recent studio albums ‘Infinite’ and ‘Whoosh!’, so maybe we can call that one a tie. But casual Thunder fans are pretty much unheard of; it’s Thunder for life, mate. And on thirteenth studio album ‘All The Right Noises’, Thunder continue their own recent hot streak which began with ‘Wonder Days’ in 2015 and continued on 2017’s ‘Rip It Up and 2019’s ‘Please Remain Seated’ (which saw the band reimagining their back catalogue in a more relaxed manner). ‘All The Right Noises’ is on a different level from the others though; they were good, even great, but ‘All The Right Noises’ goes a step further and is incredible. Arguably (what a cop-out that word is) their best to date. It’s certainly their most instant.
Opening the first album of brand new material in four years with ‘Last One Out Turn Off The Lights’ was a calculated move that raises a middle finger to anyone who suspected that, with the release of ‘Please Remain Seated’, the band were slowing down. An instant shot of adrenaline comes via some killer Luke Morley power chords. A real sense of urgency with the pacing and another stellar performance from Harry James proves that although he plays the role of goofy-drummer to a tee, he is deadly serious about his craft. Throw in some lovely female backing vocals and Beatles-esque harmonies, and some fiery guitar-work from Morley and the end result is stunning. Fuelled by the ongoing Brexit saga, this is Thunder making a point and staying relevant. The topical subject matter continues on their heaviest song to date; ‘Destruction’, a thumping beast of a track that tackles depression and mental illness head-on. Morley’s guitar work is phenomenal and with a bit of fuzz attached to some of the playing, it’s got some real snarl about it. Current world affairs are providing songwriters with plenty of subject material, and dealing with Morley’s observations regarding a particular English demographic’s “…blinkered…xenophobic…” mentality surrounding immigration, ‘St George’s Day’ is Morley’s most serious song to date, and with the dark, atmospheric arrangements it is a real slow-burning beauty of a track.
Danny Bowes? Is there a better British rock vocalist around today? Try on ‘The Smoking Gun’ for size and listen to the stature in his voice; the sheer, natural fun he exudes on ‘Going To Sin City’ (great horn arrangements on this one) and ‘You’re Gonna Be My Girl’, or the restraint he shows on moments like ‘Young Man’, he really does make it look effortless. A band renowned for their ballads, thanks to Morley being “a sentimental twit”, Thunder have many in their arsenal. ‘I’ll Be The One’ is for sure their best since since ‘A Better Man’ way back in 1992. A fantastic musical composition with a short, bombastic intro that gives way to a simple, haunting piano sound that runs throughout the track, and the gradual introduction of the band. A gorgeous string arrangement heightens the anticipation for the guitar solo that everyone knows is on the way, and when it comes, it truly is magnificent. Bowes again makes it look bloody simple and sounds as strong as he did on the 1990 debut album ‘Backstreet Symphony’.
During a recent interview with Luke Morley, he suggested that one way of judging whether ‘All The Right Noises’ was a success or not, would be the number of tracks from it that make it into the live setlist. There are at least six here that deserve their place amongst Thunder staples once live shows resume. ‘All The Right Noises’ is a piece of class from a band for which the word “consistent” seems to have been specially created for. Find out for yourself from March 12th, and in particular when Thunder launches the album with the ‘All The Right Noises Online TV Special’ on March 13th. More details here.
Live images – Rob Wilkins
