Midnight Boom

The Kills | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 18, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Domino
• ASIN: B0012IWHKU
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,970 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #10 in Music > Alternative Rock > Hardcore & Punk > Garage Punk
  • #26 in Music > Rock > Oldies & Retro > Garage Bands
  • #36 in Music > World Music > Europe > British Isles > Britain

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.co.uk

Jamie "Hotel" Hince might have become tabloid fodder thanks to his relationship with Kate Moss, but the third album by The Kills, his band with American vocalist Alison "VV" Mosshart, does relatively little to tidy itself up for mainstream consumption. Midnight Boom is a typically lean set of makeshift punk-blues characterised by Hince's raw, Nick Zinner-style guitar, and Alison's bad-attitude drawl: see the opening "U.R.A Fever", a beat-up call-and-response number reminiscent of Royal Trux than sees Hince and Mosshart swapping sour quips over loping bass and drum machine thud, while "Cheap and Cheerful" sees Mosshart declaring "I want you to be crazy/'Cos you're boring baby when you're straight". The presence of producer Armani XXXchange of Baltimore hip-hop outfit Spank Rock means there's a greater emphasis here on rhythm, often of a synthetic nature: "Alphabet Pony" bumps along on robust, lo-fi drum kicks and bursts of primitive electronics, while "Black Balloon" is a slow-burner that toys with layered percussion built from hand claps, scrapers, and tapped snare. The Kills still have problems with a big, memorable chorus–-assuming, indeed, that was ever their intention--but Midnight Boom is all about grit and grooves, and it does that just fine. –Louis Pattison

Product Description

2008 album from the Alterntive duo. The Kills subtly and organically fuses Pop, Glam,Bblues, Art-Punk, and Hip Hop in a manner that flits between light and dark, funny and morbid, experimental and cute. The result is a short, sharp twelve track album of sensual, fresh, and atmospheric songs. A reminder that no one on earth makes Rock 'N' Roll quite like The Kills.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Kills album I've been waiting for, March 21, 2008

By 

Shane Carpenter "sh6ne" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Midnight Boom (Audio CD)

I've been fan of the Kills since Keep on Your Mean Side. I listened to that album and heard a great foundation that could be built upon. They took a slightly different direction with No Wow, but they were steadily crafting their sound.

And then I heard news of Midnight Boom. I was excited, but many questions ran through my mind. Would they take what they've done so well and improve upon it some more? Would they go in a total different direction? Would they repeat what they've done on their first two albums? Would they completely flop?

Well, I can say without a doubt that this is their most accomplished album to date and it's the quintessential Kill's record people should own. It's fun, dark, and rockin' all at the same time. For people who've been listening to the Kills since their first two albums, this is that "home run" album that we've been waiting for. And for people who haven't heard of the Kills previous music, this is definitely the best place to start. I can't wait to see them in concert in May.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cheerful and not cheap!, June 6, 2008

By 

Nse Ette (Lagos, Nigeria) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Midnight Boom (Audio CD)

If you're in a rock band and you're going to date a super model, your music had better be good or you're simply giving more fodder to the press. Just ask Pete Doherty.

Actually, Mr. Doherty does have a link, albeit a wobbly one with Brit/American duo The Kills. Guitarist Jamie Hince is dating Doherty's ex, Kate Moss, assuring them ample space in the British tabloids.

"Midnight boom" is their third album (I was introduced to their sound when I got their sophomore "No wow") and it features more of their edgy, electro rock sound. They get compared to The White Stripes simply because they comprise a boy/girl duo.

Opening is the droning throbbing ""U.R.A. fever (you're a fever, with the pair trading lines) followed by the hand-clap adorned groovy "Cheap and cheerful". It reminds me a wee bit of the groovy "Born to hand jive" from "Grease".

"Tape song" is a gently pulsing ballad that wouldn't sound of place on a Garbage CD as does the beautiful "Black balloon" (with Alison Mosshart turning in a crystal clear, yearning performance).

More upbeat are the jangly "Last day of magic", "Hook and line", the drum kit-demolishing "M.E.X.I.C.O.U." (nice girl group sound), the hand-clap (this seems to be a new trend, what with The Ting tings doing it too) adorned "Sour cherry" (with syncopated beats), the eerie but bouncy "Alphabet pony", and the distorted sounds of "What New york used to be".

Closing is the tender acoustic "Goodnight bad morning" with Hince providing subtle harmonies for Mosshart's vocals. Lovely piano tinkling also.

A strong CD that should keep them in the public eye long after the tabloids tire of the Moss liaison.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An absolutely stunning album, September 20, 2008

By 

Robert Moore (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Midnight Boom (Audio CD)

I liked both of the Kills earlier albums -- KEEP ON YOUR MEAN SIDE and NO WOW -- but didn't think that they were so excellent that I needed another one. Lord, was I ever wrong. MIDNIGHT BLOOM is not merely a huge leap forward, but is one of the best rock albums of 2008. While the first two albums were excellent in every way, there was a bit of monotonous sameness that crept in as you listened to them in their entirety. They were best listened to in hunks, not wholes. MIDNIGHT BLOOM is diversely textured from beginning to end, with far more nuance to the arrangements and a wonderful diversity to the songs, without losing any of their hard edge.

The Kills are a duo like the White Stripes, except that they rely on recordings of Hotel aka Jamie Hince drumming with VV aka Alison Mosshart doing the bulk of the vocals. But they don't sound anything like White Stripes. They frequently have moments that remind me of PJ Harvey or the Pixies. Live they are extremely minimalistic, but MIDNIGHT BLOOM is deeply layered with a host of bells and whistles that can only exist in a studio. In listening to many of the album's cuts you might think that there would be no way that they could translate many of the songs to a stage performance, but it is amazing how completely they make the transition.

I could -- and will -- tick off what I think are the album's best songs, but what impresses me is that it really is a good album. The various cuts reinforce each other. I won't say the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, but all the parts do their work. For instance, "Black Balloon" is almost delicate and meditative compared to what precedes it, but the next cut, "M.E.X.I.C.O.," is a hard driving rocker. "Sour Cherry" is a masterpiece of rock minimalism combined with unorthodox percussion, with a sassy attitude ("I'm the only sour cherry on the fruit stand"). The first two cuts on the album, "U.R.A. Fever" and "Cheap and Cheerful" are great singles that set the tone for everything that comes. The song that follows, "The Tape Song," might objectively be as great a song, but I enjoyed it perhaps just as much. "What New York Used to Be" is a killer penultimate cut leading into the soft-edged "Goodnight Bad Morning" puts the album to bed.

If you love indie rock you have to have this album. That's all there is to it.