In a year full of bad news, Maryland hard rock icons KIX are excited to bring some good news to their fans. On the 35th anniversary of the release of "Midnite Dynamite", KIX will release "Midnite Dynamite Re-Lit" on November 20. For "Midnite Dynamite Re-Lit", KIX partnered with long-time collaborator and the album's original producer, Beau Hill (ALICE COOPER, RATT, WARRANT), for a blistering update of the fan-favorite album. "Midnite Dynamite Re-Lit" is available for pre-order now on the band's webstore where fans can also purchase special commemorative merchandise including T-shirts, hoodies, keychains, and more.
KIX's third album, originally released October 7, 1985, "Midnite Dynamite" reflected the band's true essence, as the popular musical landscape of the mid-1980s had shifted in their favor. From the slash-and-burn riffing of the album's title track and the high-speed antics of "Layin' Rubber" to the AEROSMITH-flavored groove of numbers like "Cold Shower" and "Sex", to the heart-break melancholia of the album's sole ballad, "Walkin' Away", "Midnite Dynamite" is packed with material that delivers not only attitude in spades, but also pummels the listener with hook after hook.
Thirty-five years after its initial release, "Midnite Dynamite" remains a fan and band favorite, and Hill (who also remixed KIX's hit album "Blow My Fuse" to mark its 30th anniversary in 2018) relished the opportunity to return to the original 1985 multi-track tapes.
About the new mix, Hill says: "The guitars don't have as much schmutz on them as the original, and Steve's vocal just jumps off the page now without all the bulls**t that I was putting on it then. I guess that's what happens when you mix and produce for an additional 35 years."
"Back in the '80s, everything had way too much echo, way too much reverb," recalls vocalist Steve Whiteman. "It was so muddy that sometimes you would lose some really dynamic performances. Beau cleaned all that up on the 'Blow My Fuse' re-release, and he's doing the same thing on 'Midnite Dynamite', so it sounds incredible."
"Midnite Dynamite Re-Lit" also includes original demo recordings for seven out of the ten songs, plus one early album mix of the song "Walking Away".
"We chose to include a demo disc, like 'Fuse 30 Reblown', even though we were missing two songs," says bassist Mark Schenker. "Nobody had a copy on either cassette or two track stereo quarter-inch tape. I searched high and low and couldn't find the demos of 'Scarlet Fever' or 'Bang Bang'."
KIX will hit the road in 2021 playing select deep cuts from the album "Midnite Dynamite" to celebrate the release of "Midnite Dynamite Re-Lit".
"Midnite Dynamite Re-Lit" track listing:
Disc One: Re-mixed by Beau Hill; mastered by Jay Frigoletto
01. Midnite Dynamite
02. Red Hot (Black & Blue)
03. Bang Bang (Balls Of Fire)
04. Layin' Rubber
05. Walkin' Away
06. Scarlet Fever
07. Cry Baby
08. Cold Shower
09. Lie Like A Rug
10. Sex
Disc Two: Original Demo Recordings
01. Midnite Dynamite (Demo Version)
02. Red Hot (Black & Blue) (Demo Version)
03. Layin' Rubber (Demo Version)
04. Walkin' Away (Early Album Mix)
05. Cry Baby (Demo Version)
06. Cold Shower (Demo Version)
07. Lie Like A Rug (Demo Version)
08. Sex (Demo Version)
