The Norfolk five-piece push the boundaries brilliantly on their latest album, says ADAM AIKEN.
The touring plans of Bad Touch have gone the way of everyone else’s during the lockdown, with the shows to promote the Dereham band’s new album already being put back twice.
When they finally get the go-ahead, though, those shows are going to be something to behold if the songs on Kiss the Sky are anything to go on.
Come a Little Closer opens things on a familiar note, sounding like a close relation of regular set closer 99pc. I Get High is blues-infused rock ’n’ roll with satisfying harmonies while Let Go has the sort of huge chorus that this lot do so well.
Strut, with frontman Stevie Westwood’s vocal counterpoint, picks up the pace, leading nicely into the album’s curveball – a cover of I’ve Got the Music In Me. This take on Kiki Dee’s 1974 pop classic works brilliantly, and can expect decent airplay.
Elsewhere, the title track is what Bad Touch do best – a straightforward, foot-tapping, classic rock anthem – while See You Again is the emotional high-point of the album. Inspired by the loss of a loved one, it comes at a time when it’s going to strike a similarly poignant note for many others in the wider world.
Perhaps the biggest takeaway is how much they push the boundaries. Before I Die is the five-piece at their funkiest to date, with more than a hint of the Chilli Peppers, while Too Much of a Good Thing, with its thrilling twin guitars, delivers a taste of gospel.
Sun and the Moon brings things to an end – unless you’ve got the CD version, in which case there’s another treat still to come.
Something About Your Kiss is no unfinished afterthought or demo. It’s a superb atmospheric number that starts off à la Fleetwood Mac’s The Chain before crescendo-ing towards its climax with a superb guitar solo. It’s some bonus track.
Kiss the Sky is better known as a Jimi Hendrix lyric, which is fitting as he had his own link to Dereham, playing the Wellington Club in 1967. Bad Touch are still some way from such legendary status – who isn’t? – but this belter of an album varnishes the reputation of these Norfolk boys yet further.
• Kiss the Sky, by Bad Touch, is available on Marshall Records: https://fanlink.to/badtouch
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