Sonic Temple is the fourth studio album by The Cult, released in 1989. Continuing in the hard rock direction introduced on their previous album, Sonic Temple features some of the band's most popular songs, including "Fire Woman", "Sun King", "Edie " and "Sweet Soul Sister". Sonic Temple was the last album recorded with longtime bassist Jamie Stewart, who left in 1990, and the first to feature former Hall & Oates and then-current Bryan Adams drummer, Mickey Curry.
Album information
During 1988, The Cult recorded the first demo version of this album with Eric Singer on drums. Later on, they tracked a new demo version of the record with Chris Taylor. Sonic Temple marked the first time the band worked with Bob Rock, who would later produce The Cult, Beyond Good and Evil, Choice of Weapon and Hidden City. The album reached the Cult's highest chart position in the US, peaking at #10 on the Billboard 200 charts, and was certified Platinum by the RIAA in 1993. In Argentina, the record was released as Templo Sonico with the titles translated into Spanish on the jacket sleeve and record labels. In Taiwan it was released with a pink cover; reportedly some of these were also found in mainland China. The album cover features guitarist Billy Duffy with his Gibson Les Paul, partially obscuring a picture of vocalist Ian Astbury. The back cover features bassist Jamie Stewart, and an additional illustration on the insert, from left to right, features Astbury, Duffy, and Stewart. On 4 October 2019, Sonic Temple was re-released as a 5 CD box set and as a 2 LP/1 cassette box set, with a different cover, the original album digitally remastered, numerous rarities, a live album recorded at London Wembley Arena and a comprehensive booklet featuring rare photos and background info on the album and the band. The LP/cassette edition has a limited release of 3500 copies worldwide. The album has also been re-released on vinyl as a 2 Disc remastered edition but featuring the original artwork and bonus tracks.
Critical reception
The New York Times wrote: "Sonic Temple is both most conventional album and its most convincing. Using a few simple riffs and images, the Cult creates an entire environment, one more exciting and stimulating than our own. Bob Rock, the album's producer, washes blunt, powerful sound over the broadness of most of the band's strokes. Sonic Temple makes a virtue of its lack of subtlety."
Track listing
All tracks written by Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy.
"Sun King" – 6:09
"Fire Woman" – 5:11
"American Horse" – 5:19
"Edie " – 4:46
"Sweet Soul Sister" – 5:08
"Soul Asylum" – 7:26
"New York City" – 4:41
"Automatic Blues" – 3:51
"Soldier Blue" – 4:36
"Wake Up Time for Freedom" – 5:17
Bonus tracks
"Medicine Train" – 4:42
"The River"
"Lay Down your Gun"
Saudi Arabian version
There was a Saudi Arabian version released, with the track listing expanded and slightly rearranged:
