| Electric | ||||
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| Studio album by The Cult | ||||
| Released | April 1987 | |||
| Genre | Hard rock, gothic rock | |||
| Length | 38:51 | |||
| Label | Beggars Banquet, Sire | |||
| Producer | Rick Rubin | |||
| The Cult chronology | ||||
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Electric is the pivotal third album by The Cult. Released in 1987, the album marked a deliberate stylistic change in the band from a Gothic rock to a hard rock band. Rick Rubin, the producer on Electric, had been specifically hired to remake the band's sound in an effort to capitalize on the popularity of hard rock and heavy metal in the 1980s. The album was featured in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.
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After the breakthrough success of their second album, Love, the Cult began working on a follow-up to build on their success. In the summer of 1986, they recorded twelve tracks at the Manor Studio in Oxfordshire. These "Manor Sessions" were overseen by Steve Brown, who had produced Love. The twelve tracks were to be the basis of a new album, tentatively entitled Peace. However, on completion of the recording sessions, the band decided that they were unhappy with the sound, and looked for a new producer.
The band went on to re-record the entire album with producer Rick Rubin, with a slightly different track-list and running order. To that point, Rubin had been producing hip hop artists and thrash metal band Slayer. These new recordings became the album that was released, Electric.
Although all twelve of the "Manor Sessions" tracks were scrapped initially, four of them would turn up as B-sides to singles from Electric. A further five of them appeared on a limited edition compact disc EP. Eventually, with the release of the Rare Cult (boxed set) in 2000, the rest of the unreleased Steve Brown-produced album was made available.
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | link |
| Rolling Stone | (mixed) link |
All songs written by Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy, except where noted.
All tracks appeared on Rare Cult in 2000. Tracks 1, 2, 5, 6, and 10 first appeared on The Manor Sessions EP in 1988. Tracks 7-9, and 11 were issued as B-sides to singles from the Electric album in 1987.
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