Swiss hard rock veterans GOTTHARD have kicked off the new year with the release of their second single, “Thunder & Lightning”, from their upcoming 12-track studio album “Stereo Crush”. As the world remains blanketed in snow, this new track spreads spring fever with its uplifting leads and emotionally charged storyline about love, quickly capturing the hearts of fans and heightening anticipation for the band’s eagerly awaited new album.
Today, alongside the worldwide launch of pre-orders, GOTTHARD is also excited to reveal the cover artwork for “Stereo Crush”, set to hit the shelves on March 21, 2025 via Reigning Phoenix Music (RPM). The artwork, designed by Thomas Ewerhard, who has previously collaborated with the band, perfectly encapsulates the album’s themes of honesty, rawness, and a broad spectrum of emotions.
GOTTHARD singer Nic Maeder comments: “Freddy [Scherer; guitars] came to my house with the musical idea for this song. We started there and came up with the structure and the vocal melodies together and recorded the demo there. I then spent quite some time figuring out lyrics. The sound of the chorus riff somehow sounded electric to me, and I was thinking of words like ‘lighting,’ ‘thunder’ etc…and then I thought of the concept of how lighting never strikes twice but in this case it does, using this as a metaphor for love. Also in French, which I’m fluent in, you can say that ‘love at first sight’ is like getting hit by a bolt of lighting.”
After releasing two singles, there’s no really doubt that GOTTHARD are more than ready for the future with “Stereo Crush”. Decorated with a powerful and contemporary production, the album delivers a series of big anthems but also a few surprises which help the Swiss icons to improve their DNA fresh and to spice up the essence of their trademark sound in an exciting way.
“Stereo Crush” track listing:
01. AI & I
02. Thunder & Lightning
03. Rusty Rose
04. Burning Bridges
05. Drive My Car
06. Boom Boom
07. Life
08. Liverpool
09. Shake Shake
10. Devil In The Moonlight
11. Dig A Little Deeper
12. These Are The Days
Produced and mixed by long-time partner Charlie Bauerfeind, who’s known for his work with the likes of HELLOWEEN and BLIND GUARDIAN, alongside Leoni, at Yellowhouse Studio, and mastered by Sascha “Busy” Bühren (TrueBusyness),“Stereo Crush” promises to set new standards which will additionally come to shine on the band’s forthcoming touring cycle: GOTTHARD will be touring in May, accompanied by special guests Y&T, rounded off by select festival and headline dates during the course of the year.
With 16 No. 1 albums, a Diamond Award for selling over one million units in Switzerland, and multiple platinum records, including their quadruple platinum album “Homerun”, and several double and triple platinum albums, GOTTHARD has an unmatched legacy of successes, rounded off by over 3.5 million units sold worldwide and more than 2,000 live performances. Their tracks like “Heaven”, a platinum single, and seven top 10 singles have cemented the band in the international music scene.
Maeder, who was born in Lausanne, Switzerland, lived in Melbourne, Australia and grew up between Switzerland and “Down Under”, joined GOTTHARD in 2011.
GOTTHARD‘s previous vocalist, Steve Lee, was killed on October 5, 2010 in what has been described as a freak road accident in Nevada.
GOTTHARD is:
Nic Maeder – vocals
Leo Leoni – guitars
Freddy Scherer – guitars
Marc Lynn – bass
Flavio Mezzodi – drums
Photo credit: Manuel Schütz