Metal Underground.com

You remember the days when you'd hear a new song and it so inspired you that you either went over to your friend's house or picked up the phone and said "Oh my God, you have to hear this?" That's how I felt after hearing Kissin' Dynamite's "Addicted To Metal." At first glance these German hard rockers appear to be an act straight out of the glam movement, but the more you listen, the more you realize that like the closing track, "Metal Nation," this album is a combination of all things metal, with pieces of power metal, thrash, sleaze, glam, and the distinctive vocals of Johannes Braun all rolled into one.

Speaking of Braun, I can't say enough about his vocals. This guy has a voice that sends chills up your spine. He does mid-range well, but the first time you hear his wails in "Run For Your Life," your jaw drops. Step aside Sebastian Bach, there’s a new young voice in town that makes your screeches on "18 And Life" seem mediocre.

Truthfully, there is some similarity between Kissin' Dynamite and Skid Row. The album is laden with glam guitar riffs that will have fans of the genre feeling like they're back in 1987, but the ballad track, "Why Can’t You Hear Me" has a distinctive Skid Row sound in the intro. It soon shifts though into stadium rock territory, and though it has a Bon Jovi mainstream appeal, the flipside is it has big hit appeal.

From the opening "Addicted To Metal," which features a cameo by Udo Dirkschneider, to the closing anthem "Metal Nation," this album never slows down. There's no such thing as a bad track, though I'd have to say "Assassins Of Love" is probably the weakest point, with a power metal tempo that gets a bit draggy in the middle. Kissin' Dynamite even manages to cover Damn Yankees' "High Enough" without sounding melodramatic. Their addition of a funky, grungy bass in the intro helps a bit, but the chorus is so true to the original you might not realize it's a cover.

Like I said, "Addicted To Metal" isn’t entirely 80’s glam. "All Against All" and "In The Name Of The Iron Fist" are solid mid-tempo power metal reminiscent of HammerFall or the classic German band Gamma Ray. Sure, they may not be for everyone, but for those looking for high energy, heavily riffed, anthemic tunes, you can't go wrong with Kissin' Dynamite.