by Steve Huey

More varied than its predecessor, Electric, Sonic Temple finds the Cult trying several different metal styles, from crunchy Electric-era '70s grooves and the fuzzy, noisy psychedelia of Love, to mellow ballads and commercial '80s hard rock. Not all of the experiments work, as some of the songs lean toward ponderousness, but enough of them do to send Sonic Temple into the Billboard Top Ten, due to the exposure provided by the hit single "Fire Woman."