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KISS – Live In Las Vegas

Posted in DVD Review, KISS with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 28, 2010 by Metal Misfit

KISS – Live In Las Vegas (2002, Pixelon.com)

1. “Shout It Out Loud”
2. “Love Gun”
3. “God of Thunder”
4. “Rock and Roll All Night” (as it is labeled on the DVD)

Band:
Paul Stanley – Lead Vocals, Guitar, Backing Vocals
Gene Simmons – Lead Vocals, Bass, Backing Vocals
Ace Frehley – Guitar, Backing Vocals
Peter Criss – Drums, Backing Vocals

Awful, awful, awful! Subtitled “The unseen concert”, I wish this one had remained unseen… by me! I was young and naive and wasted $14.99 on this DVD back on February 23, 2003 (the receipt was inside the DVD case). Live In Las Vegas is a cheap and unauthorized KISS DVD featuring the band’s four song “limited appearance” at Pixelon.com’s iBash ‘99 from October 29, 1999 at the MGM Grand.

Pixelon was a fairly notorious dot-com company that got into the internet business by making ridiculous boasts about their video streaming technology and by throwing lots of money around to nab some big music names for their iBash launch party. Also notable is the company’s founder, who as it turned out, started the company under a false identity because he was wanted in Virginia for stock scams. The company only lasted a year before going bankrupt so I’m guessing this 2002 release was just a way to try to pay off some debts.

Paul Stanley issued a statement at one point saying “this DVD or Video has NOT been approved, endorsed or authorized by us”. I’m really surprised Gene & Paul would slip up to the point where someone else could market, own and release some concert footage of them. I thought they were pretty good about owning their performances, but I guess when someone is throwing an insane amount of cash at you to perform four songs, you tend to not worry about the details. Don’t feel bad for KISS only though, others were wowed by Pixelon as well. The iBash launch party also featured other big names like The Dixie Chicks, Tony Bennett, The Offspring, Faith Hill and The Who.

So why is this one bad? The performance is lip-synced, perhaps ripped straight from the albums themselves and then there’s the annoying issue of the video & audio not being sequenced correctly. Mouths are moving when they shouldn’t. The video is actually pretty good but the packaging of this DVD is very cheap. There is a director’s cut and a multicam cut to choose from. The director’s cut is horrible, there’s way too much jumping around from band member to crowd to band member. Your eyes never have time to settle and take in what you’re seeing. The multicam cut divides the screen in to quarters and those individual cameras are much more consistent, choosing to linger at different angles on the band as they play.

Surprisingly, there is a decent amount of special features. Perhaps Pixelon was feeling a bit bad about sticking us with a four song “concert”. I’m not sure how Pixelon got their hands on all of this extra KISS footage, but some of it is interesting.

Keeping with the failures of Pixelon, iBash was supposed to be broadcast over the internet, but the servers crashed at the last minute! Oops! Luckily, members of the KISS Army can now “finally see the concert that fate denied them the first time around”, as it says on the back of the DVD box.

But don’t bother, fate was looking out for you.

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KISS – Alive 35: Live at Cobo Arena – Detroit, MI – 9/25/09

Posted in KISS with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 17, 2009 by Metal Misfit

KISS – Alive 35: Live at Cobo Arena – Detroit, MI – September 25, 2009 (2009, Concert Online)

CD I
1. “Deuce” … 4:52
2. “Strutter” … 5:13
3. “Got To Choose” … 4:43
4. “Hotter Than Hell” … 4:31
5. “Nothin’ To Lose” … 4:32
6. “C’mon And Love Me” … 3:29
7. “Parasite” … 3:59
8. “She” … 11:09
9. “Watchin’ You” … 4:10
10. “100,000 Years” … 15:40
11. “Cold Gin” … 5:25

CD II
1. “Let Me Go, Rock ‘n’ Roll” … 9:49
2. “Black Diamond” … 5:39
3. “Rock And Roll All Nite” … 10:24
4. “Shout It Out Loud” … 3:07
5. “Lick It Up” … 10:37
6. “I Love It Loud” … 4:39
7. “Modern Day Delilah” … 5:32
8. “Love Gun” … 6:46
9. “Detroit Rock City” … 6:41

Band:
Paul Stanley – Rhythm Guitar, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals
Gene Simmons – Bass, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals
Tommy Thayer – Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals
Eric Singer – Drums, Backing Vocals, Lead Vocals

From the 9/25/09 Cobo Arena show in Detroit, Michigan, which I was lucky enough to attend live for my first ever KISS show. It was the kickoff show to the North American leg of the Alive 35 world tour. My initial thoughts can be found here in my concert review.

As I said in that review, Paul’s voice was a little rough in the early going, but he got better after the first couple of songs. His voice is a bit weaker than what it used to be, but he’s still doing a great job, so it’s not like he’s out there embarrassing himself. Gene’s voice is as strong as ever though and Eric’s got a great voice that’s a dead ringer for Peter Criss. As for actual musicianship, everyone was on all night long. These guys are true professionals.

I LOVED getting to hear “Love Gun” in person (my favorite KISS song) and “C’mon And Love Me” has become another favorite of mine over the years. It was a real thrill to hear “Modern Day Delilah” performed live as well. Too bad we didn’t get “Say Yeah” from Sonic Boom as well (they added that to the set list a few weeks later).

I had been meaning to get this album for awhile, but at $30, I kept putting it off. I really wanted it the night of the concert, but was low on cash by that point in the week. I can safely say this is the most I’ve ever paid for an album! But it’s a great memento from the show and well worth the money. It’s a real treasure and a very personal album from my collection that means a great deal to me.

I was pretty impressed with the shipping process. I got the CD within only a matter of days of my order being processed.

Highlights: “Strutter”, “C’mon And Love Me”, “Parasite”, “Black Diamond”, “I Love It Loud”, “Modern Day Delilah”, “Love Gun”, “Detroit Rock City”

www.kissonline.com
www.myspace.com/kiss

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KISS – Killers

Posted in KISS with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 9, 2009 by Metal Misfit

KISS – Killers (1997, Mercury Records – German Import)
Original Release: 1982, Phonogram Records

1. “I’m A Legend Tonight” … 4:00
2. “Down On Your Knees” … 3:31
3. “Cold Gin” … 4:20
4. “Love Gun” … 3:17
5. “Shout It Out Loud” … 2:39
6. “Sure Know Something” … 4:01
7. “Nowhere To Run” … 4:33
8. “Partners In Crime” … 3:48
9. “Detroit Rock City” … 3:56
10. “God Of Thunder” … 4:11
11. “I Was Made For Loving You” … 4:20
12. “Rock and Roll All Night (live)” … 3:59

Band:
Paul Stanley – Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar
Gene Simmons – Lead Vocals, Bass
Ace Frehley – Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals
Eric Carr – Drums
Peter Criss – Drums

Additional Musicians:
Bob Kulick – Lead Guitar (Tracks 1, 2, 7, 8; uncredited)

Producer: Michael James Jackson (Tracks 1, 2, 7, 8 )

I don’t care for compilations these days. Sure, I own tons of them, but I only bought them as an introduction to a band, I didn’t and don’t buy them in order to have a complete collection from an artist. Even if there was a band I was curious about, I wouldn’t dare go for the compilation in this day and age, I would just start with the album that is generally considered as their best and proceed from there.

Even the now standard trick of “let’s record one or two new songs to get longtime fans to buy it” doesn’t work on me, but for this 1982 KISS compilation, I have been willing to make an exception ever since I heard to four new songs that were written for it. After the great, but poorly received and poorly timed “fantasy rock” of Music From “The Elder”, the international side of KISS’ label wanted a compilation package to reaffirm to the world that they were indeed a hard rock act. Forgetting about the four new tracks, this is a great listing for a KISS compilation.

Of course there are tons of songs missing if you intend a true best of/greatest hits album and having only 12 tracks just doesn’t cut it, but they hit the most important songs (besides “Beth”, but that would’ve ruined the whole “we’re hard rock band!” thing they were going for). What’s really important are the new songs: “I’m A Legend Tonight”, “Down On Your Knees”, “Nowhere To Run” and “Partners In Crime” and they make this album well worth seeking out. The songs aren’t as heavy as Creatures of the Night (which would be released months later), but it’s a welcome return to the catchy hard rock KISS was previously known for and between the Killers (sometimes referred to as KISS Killers) sessions and Lick It Up, KISS was really on a roll delivering some of their best music to date.

It was only by chance that I found it while rummaging through a used record store across from the Michigan State University, but for $10, it was money well spent on this German import (notice the KISS logo). It was decided that 1976’s The Originals and 1978’s Double Platinum were already more than enough compiled KISS for America to handle, so that is why this album was only released in Japan and Europe. Which is a shame, but it still doesn’t explain why Japan got it on CD in ‘93, Germany in ‘97 and the U.S. still hasn’t gotten a proper release! Also, could someone explain why this type of “let’s not flood the market with compilations” thinking has fallen to the wayside post-’96 reunion?

To my knowledge, none of the four new songs have ever been performed live and only “Nowhere To Run” has shown up elsewhere (2001’s box set).

www.kissonline.com
www.myspace.com/kiss

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KISS – Peter Criss

Posted in KISS, Peter Criss with tags , , , , , , , , on November 6, 2009 by Metal Misfit

KISS – Peter Criss [Remastered] (1997, Mercury Records/Casablanca Records)
Original Release: 1978, Casablanca Records

1. “I’m Gonna Love You” … 3:19
2. “You Matter to Me” … 3:17
3. “Tossin’ and Turnin’” … 4:01
4. “Don’t You Let Me Down” … 3:43
5. “That’s the Kind of Sugar Papa Likes” … 3:01
6. “Easy Thing” … 3:54
7. “Rock Me Baby” … 2:53
8. “Kiss the Girl Goodbye” … 2:46
9. “Hooked on Rock ‘n’ Roll … 3:37
10. “I Can’t Stop the Rain” … 4:26

Musicians:
Peter Criss – Lead Vocals, Drums, Percussion
Art Munson – Guitar
Stan Penridge – Guitar
Elliot Randall – Guitar
John Tropea – Guitar
Brendan Harkin – Guitar
Steve Lukather – Guitar
Bill Bodine – Bass
Neil Jason – Bass
Allen Schwartzberg – Drums
Bill Cuomo – Keyboards
Richard Gerstein – Keyboards
Michael Carnahan – Saxophone, Baritone Sax

Producer: Vini Poncia

With the coolest album cover of the ‘78 KISS solo releases, Peter delivers the worst music. But hey, it shipped platinum, so what do I know?

I believe this was the last of the solo albums I bought, I had put it off because I kept reading about how bad it was. I’ve always loved Peter’s voice and I couldn’t believe it was a bad as people were saying it was. Well, after about two or three spins to get a good grasp on the album, I’m pretty sure I never reached for this album again unless I was in a SERIOUS KISS mode.

Really, it’s not horrible and if you like this style of music, it may be quite good, but I don’t have much of a taste for this hybrid of soft rock, big band, jazz and R&B music. A majority of this material was written in Peter’s previous band Lips. Oh well, for my own personal tastes, Peter would have better albums to come (but they also have been buried by critics and fans alike).

Despite being the most panned and least selling album of the four releases, KISS would enlist producer Vini Poncia for the next TWO KISS albums, Dynasty and Unmasked (generally considered the two worst KISS records), in an attempt to keep Peter happy and in the band.

Highlights: “I’m Gonna Love You”, “Tossin’ and Turnin’”, “That’s the Kind of Sugar Papa Likes”, “I Can’t Stop the Rain”

www.petercriss.net
www.kissonline.com
www.myspace.com/kiss

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KISS – Asylum

Posted in KISS with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 16, 2009 by Metal Misfit

KISS – Asylum [Remastered] (1997, Mercury Records)
Original Release: 1985, Mercury Records

1. “King Of The Mountain” … 4:19
2. “Any Way You Slice It” … 4:03
3. “Who Wants To Be Lonely” … 4:02
4. “Trial By Fire” … 3:26
5. “I’m Alive” … 3:46
6. “Love’s A Deadly Weapon” … 3:31
7. “Tears Are Falling” … 3:55
8. “Secretly Cruel” … 3:44
9. “Radar For Love” … 4:01
10. “Uh! All Night” … 4:03

Band:
Paul Stanley – Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Bass (“Tears Are Falling”)
Gene Simmons – Lead Vocals, Bass, Rhythm Guitar (“Any Way You Slice It”, “Trial by Fire”)
Bruce Kulick – Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals
Eric Carr – Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals

Additional Musicians:
Jean Beauvoir – Bass guitar (“Uh! All Night”)

Producer: Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons

Bruce Kulick’s first album with KISS was the last KISS album I needed to complete my collection. It was always on my wishlist, but what really pushed me over the edge to buy it was buying and watching their Exposed video on DVD, which featured the music videos for “Who Wants To Be Lonely”, “Tears Are Falling” and “Uh! All Night”.

As with most of KISS ’80s output, the Gene songs are hit and miss. Despite getting a producer credit on this album, his focus was on Hollywood at the time and most of his songs during that decade were simply filler. Paul on the other hand is in his element with this pop-metal album. Paul is one of the true forerunners to the ’80s pop metal scene and despite downplaying the band’s work during this time (Gene & Paul have especially mentioned a dislike for this album), he really seemed to be enjoying his work. Even to this day, there’s an ’80s pop-metal vibe to virtually every song he writes.

“Tears Are Falling” was the only somewhat successful single from the album, and it’s a great ’80s KISS rocker. Another shining moment for Paul. Not many songs from this album were album played live, but in 2004 on their Rock the Nation, the band briefly brought “Tears Are Falling” back into the set list in an attempt to not be so predictable. I was really excited because I had bought tickets to see them on that tour in Pensacola, Florida, but only a handful of shows into the tour, the dropped the song from the set. Didn’t really matter though, because my show ended up getting canceled anyway! At least I got to see them play on the Rock the Nation DVD!

During this time, many people said KISS were following the bands that they themselves had inspired. And while that’s true to an extent, I’ve seen it pointed out in some reviews that the album cover was an “obvious” ripoff of Poison’s Look What the Cat Dragged In. Um… No. It is “obvious” this is an ’80s version of the Dynasty cover. Never mind the fact that Look What the Cat Dragged In came out a year AFTER Asylum! So Poison either ripped off Dynasty or Asylum, you pick.

This isn’t a heavy album, but it is a great balance of pop-metal and hard rock before they released Crazy Nights and went even softer. Essential KISS? Debatable. Essential ’80s KISS? Yes.

Highlights: “King Of The Mountain”, “Who Wants To Be Lonely”, “Trial By Fire”, “I’m Alive”, “Tears Are Falling”, “Uh! All Night”

www.kissonline.com
www.myspace.com/kiss

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KISS – Sonic Boom

Posted in KISS with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 7, 2009 by Metal Misfit

KISS – Sonic Boom (2009, KISS Records)

Sonic Boom
1. “Modern Day Delilah” … 3:37
2. “Russian Roulette” … 4:33
3. “Never Enough” … 3:27
4. “Yes I Know (Nobody’s Perfect)” … 3:02
5. “Stand” … 4:51
6. “Hot And Cold” … 3:36
7. “All For The Glory” … 3:50
8. “Danger Us” … 4:22
9. “I’m An Animal” … 3:48
10. “When Lightning Strikes” … 3:45
11. “Say Yeah” … 4:27

BONUS CD: KISS Klassics
1. “Deuce” … 3:08
2. “Detroit Rock City” … 3:57
3. “Shout It Out Loud” … 2:54
4. “Hotter Than Hell” … 3:10
5. “Calling Dr. Love” … 3:26
6. “Love Gun” … 3:14
7. “I Was Made For Lovin’ You” … 4:42
8. “Heaven’s On Fire” … 3:24
9. “Lick It Up” … 3:56
10. “I Love It Loud” … 4:09
11. “Forever” … 3:53
12. “Christine Sixteen” … 2:59
13. “Do You Love Me” … 3:39
14. “Black Diamond” … 4:20
15. “Rock And Roll All Nite” … 2:49

BONUS DVD: Live in Buenos Aires DVD
1. “Deuce”
2. “Hotter Than Hell”
3. “C’mon And Love Me”
4. “Watchin’ You”
5. “100,000 Years”
6. “Rock And Roll All Nite”

Band:
Paul Stanley – Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Backing Vocals
Gene Simmons – Lead Vocals, Bass, Backing Vocals
Tommy Thayer – Lead Guitar, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals
Eric Singer – Drums, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals

Producer: Paul Stanley & Greg Collins (Sonic Boom) and Paul Stanley & Gene Simmons (KISS Klassics)

Fantastic bang (boom?) for your buck! Following the template of Journey’s Revelation, we get: ONE brand new KISS album, ONE album featuring recently re-recorded KISS standards, and ONE DVD featuring excerpts from a Buenos Aires concert. All for $12. Not too bad.

KISS has finally returned with a brand new original studio album after 11 years of creative silence. How fitting that this larger than life band would choose to release this album exclusively in the United States with a larger than life retail store — Walmart. Hooking up with large retailers for exclusive releases is an incredibly wise move for veterans acts and AC/DC proved that in spades about this time last year with their own Walmart exclusive Black Ice.

This is a long review, but before I get into Sonic Boom, let’s discuss the bonus discs:

The first bonus disc is a CD called KISS Klassics, which features re-recorded versions of classic KISS songs by the current band members. The album was originally released on its own in Japan in 2008 under the title of Jigoku-Retsuden. It is also known as KISSology (and is not to be confused with the band’s retrospective live performance DVD series of the same name). You can’t argue with the songs here, it is what it is — a “greatest hits” compilation essentially, but I’m not a fan of the idea of a band re-recording their own material (I briefly considered ordering this as an import last year, but decided against it… I guess that worked out well!).

Basically, as was the case with Journey re-recording their own songs, this album really serves no purpose other than licensing. Gene & Paul can license these re-recorded versions out instead of the original versions (licensees won’t know/care as long as it still sounds like the originals), therefore, they don’t have to worry about splitting a large chunk of money with Ace, Peter or anyone else. Still, it’s a nice addition to the whole Sonic Boom package and it is kinda nice to hear these songs with an updated production.

Not much to say about the DVD other than it is another solid live performance from the band that is heightened by the cool visual of them playing to a HUGE crowd at River Plate Stadium in Bueno Aires, Argentina. It was recorded on April 5, 2009.

Two discs down, now onto the one that really matters… SONIC BOOM!

With KISS being my favorite band, this album was one of this decade’s most anticipated releases for me. I’ve been hoping for a long time that Gene & Paul would get up off their butts and play something NEW, but just two or three years ago both had stated they had no interest in doing that, so things seemed bleak. Thankfully, though Paul led the charge producing the album, and he made sure everyone played their instruments and the band used no outside songwriters!

Early sneak peek reviews of this album got me incredibly hyped with many of those reviews stating this was easily their best since Rock And Roll Over from 1976. I won’t take it to that extreme, but I could probably go back to 1983’s Lick It Up before I finding any album of theirs that would rival this one (Revenge is a contender, but I’ve always felt that album was overrated). Paul and Gene touted this album was a return to the “classic KISS” sound but it’s really a collection of their ’70s, ’80s and Revenge sound. At least it’s not the disappointing Psycho Circus (which was pretty much KISS singing about KISS!).

Track by track:

“Modern Day Delilah” – Great ’70s hard rock sound (though not necessarily a ’70s KISS sound), though it took me a few listens to get into it once KISS posted it online in August. One of my favorite songs from this album and check out Paul hitting those notes!

“Russian Roulette” – If I’m not mistaken, this has been a song and title that Gene has tried working onto a KISS album dating back to the 1980s. Makes sense because the song has an ’80s feel to it, maybe something from Asylum. It is another grower, I like it more than I did when I first heard it, but it barely rises above being classified as filler.

“Never Enough” – A bit generic sounding, and it is apparent that Paul’s voice has weakened a bit since his 2006 solo album Live to Win. It’s a bit more gravelly when he really lets loose, but he still sounds good.

“Yes I Know (Nobody’s Perfect)” – Another Gene song. Now this song sounds like ’70s KISS. That’s why I hate to say this, but… it’s filler to me.

“Stand” – The album’s big anthem and it features both Gene and Paul on lead vocals. Sounds like it could be on Revenge. Would be pretty cool for them to play this one live.

“Hot And Cold” – More ’70s KISS with this Gene song with a very Ace-like solo from Tommy. I’m noticing a trend, Gene is doing ’70s KISS, Paul is doing ’80s KISS. Simple and catchy.

“All For The Glory” – Eric Singer takes over lead vocals for this one and he does a great job. I noticed this at the concert from 9/25, and I’m not sure whether this is on purpose or not, but he’s got that same kind of raspy, soulful voice that Peter has. One of the best moments on the album. Nice Tommy solo.

“Danger Us” – Great Paul song. Sounds like a mash-up of Revenge and ’70s. Such a fun chorus: “Danger you, danger me, danger us!”

“I’m An Animal” – This was the first song that really punched me in the face! This is a classic Gene stomper, showing him in all his arrogance, swagger and glory and it should be a concert staple for years to come. I would LOVE to hear this live. I’ve probably played this song more than any other.

“When Lightning Strikes” – Longtime coming, but Tommy buddy– you finally get to sing lead on a KISS album! Even better, it’s a good song.

“Say Yeah” – ’80s KISS closes out the album with another Paul song, but the chorus kind of reminds me of this decade’s Bon Jovi releases. I like it though and it ends the album on a good note.

So, the album isn’t what most of the hype led me to believe it would be, but I’m still really pleased with it and I love the fact that it is 2009 and there’s new KISS to listen to. Undoubtedly, this is one of the year’s best releases.

Highlights: “Modern Day Delilah”, “All For The Glory”, “Danger Us”, “I’m An Animal”, “When Lightning Strikes”, “Say Yeah”

www.kissonline.com
www.myspace.com/kiss

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KISS – Love Gun

Posted in KISS with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on September 8, 2009 by Metal Misfit

KISS – Love Gun [Remastered] (1997, Mercury Records/Casablanca Records)
Original Release: 1977, Casablanca Records

1. “I Stole Your Love” (3:04 )
2. “Christine Sixteen” (3:14 )
3. “Got Love for Sale’ (3:27 )
4. “Shock Me” (3:46)
5. “Tomorrow and Tonight” (3:38)
6. “Love Gun” (3:18)
7. “Hooligan” (2:59)
8. “Almost Human” (2:47)
9. “Plaster Caster” (3:28 )
10. “Then She Kissed Me” (3:02)

Band:
Paul Stanley – Lead Vocals, Guitar, Bass (“Love Gun”)
Gene Simmons – Lead Vocals, Bass
Ace Frehley – Guitar, Vocals
Peter Criss – Drums, Percussion, Vocals

Produced by: Eddie Kramer

An iconic hard rock record from an iconic hard rock band… And hey, guess what? The album sports an iconic album cover!

The great thing about KISS’ 1970s output was that the albums were short and sweet. The songs didn’t overstay their welcome (nothing touches the 4 minute mark here) and they usually kept the albums at 10 songs, so it really cut out the chance for filler.

Some of the band’s most well-known songs are here: “I Stole Your Love”, “Christine Sixteen”, “Plaster Caster”, “Shock Me” and of course my favorite KISS song — “Love Gun” (Paul has often said it’s his favorite as well).

“Hooligan” is another great lead vocal track by Peter Criss. I’ve always loved his voice and his songs always deliver on the KISS albums. It’s when he’s left to his own devices that his music becomes spotty. “Tomorrow and Tonight”, I have to admit, is pretty lame. It’s basically the band going for another “Rock And Roll All Nite” (“tomorrow and tonight, tomorrow and tonight, we can rock all day, we can roll all night…”). “Then She Kissed Me” is a re-working of The Crystals’ “Then He Kissed Me”. A lot of people have given this song a thumbs down over the years, but I think it’s pretty cool.

I don’t care much for “Plaster Caster” either, to be honest. It was written about Cynthia Plaster Caster, who was famous for making casts of um… male body parts. I’ve read rumors that this was written by Gene as a way to entice Cynthia to cast him, but I’m pretty sure if he called her up and asked, she would have done it. More than likely, it was just a song written to grab a few headlines and nothing more.

Highlights: “I Stole Your Love”, “Love Gun”, “Hooligan”, “Almost Human”, “Then She Kissed Me”

www.kissonline.com
www.myspace.com/kiss

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KISS – Unmasked

Posted in KISS with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 13, 2009 by Metal Misfit

KISS – Unmasked [Remastered] (1997, Mercury Records/Casablanca Records)
Original Release: 1980, Casablanca Records

1. “Is That You?” … 3:57
2. “Shandi” … 3:35
3. “Talk to Me” … 4:01
4. “Naked City” … 3:50
5. “What Makes the World Go ’round” … 4:12
6. “Tomorrow” … 3:16
7. “Two Sides of the Coin” … 3:15
8. “She’s So European” … 3:30
9. “Easy as It Seems” … 3:24
10.”Torpedo Girl” … 3:44
11.”You’re All That I Want” … 3:02

Band:
Gene Simmons – Lead Vocals, Bass
Paul Stanley – Lead Vocals, Guitar, Bass
Ace Frehley – Guitar, Lead Vocals, Bass
Peter Criss – Drums (credited, did not play)

Additional Musicians:
Anton Fig – Drums (uncredited)
Vini Poncia – Keyboards, Backing Vocals, Percussion
Holly Knight – Keyboards (“Shandi”)

Produced by: Vini Poncia

There’s not a single KISS album that I don’t like. KISS is my favorite band and despite the disco pop found on this album, I still like it. It’s funny because if this was released by an actual disco/pop act, I’d have no interest it it. So, I know, I know… I’m biased. If pressed, I will admit that this is my least favorite KISS album, but it’s a  guilty pleasure and I’ve always enjoyed the goofy comic book cover. Unmasked would’ve been a great album title for Lick It Up. Given that it would be another 3 years before they actually did unmasked, the title doesn’t really make a lot of sense (and all suspense that the title would bring is erased by the cover art).

With the success of “I Was Made for Lovin’ You” from Dynasty, KISS basically decided to an all album full of “I Was Made for Lovin’ Yous” and Dynasty producer Vini Poncia was back again to help the band achieve that.

This was the final album from the original four members, until the reunion. Peter Criss was not involved in the recording/writing of this album at all and he was gone from the band shortly after Unmasked was released (Anton Fig recorded the drums and Eric Carr would play on the ensuing tour).

Many of these songs could have actually been solid rockers had the album’s production not been given a disco pop sheen. I especially think “What Makes the World Go ’round” and “Easy As It Seems” could’ve been great traditional KISS rockers.

Though the album went gold in the U.S. in short order, it was not a success at all and the album’s lone single, “Shandi” failed to break the Top 40. Apparently, the album went over well internationally and “Shandi” was a HUGE hit for the band in Australia (where they played it every time they tour there).

Highlights: “Is That You?”, “Shandi”, “Talk to Me”, “Naked City”, “What Makes the World Go ’round”, “Easy As It Seems”

www.kissonline.com

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KISS – Alive II

Posted in KISS with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 23, 2009 by Metal Misfit

KISS – Alive II [Remastered] (1997, Mercury Records/Casablanca Records)
Original Release: 1977, Casablanca Records

DISC 1
1. “Detroit Rock City (3:56)
2. “King of the Night Time World” (3:05)
3. “Ladies Room” (3:14)
4. “Makin’ Love” (3:13)
5. “Love Gun” (3:40)
6. “Calling Dr. Love” (3:35)
7. “Christine Sixteen” (2:45)
8. “Shock Me” (5:51)
9. “Hard Luck Woman” (3:06)
10. “Tomorrow and Tonight” (3:25)

DISC 2
11. “I Stole Your Love” (3:35)
12. “Beth” (2:24)
13. “God of Thunder” (5:16)
14. “I Want You” (4:14)
15. “Shout It out Loud” (3:39)
16. “All-American Man” (3:13)
17. “Rockin’ in the USA” (2:36)
18. “Larger Than Life” (3:59)
19. “Rocket Ride” (4:07)
20. “Any Way You Want It” (2:33)

Band:
Paul Stanley – Lead Vocals, Guitar
Gene Simmons – Lead Vocals, Bass, Guitar (“Larger Than Life”)
Ace Frehley – Guitar, Lead Vocals, Bass (“Rocket Ride”)
Peter Criss – Drums, Lead Vocals

Additional Musicians:
Bob Kulick – Guitar (“All American Man”, “Rockin’ in the U.S.A.”, “Larger Than Life”)

Produced by: Eddie Kramer & KISS

For their second live album (coming a short two years after their first one), KISS wisely featured no repeated performances. Only songs from the three albums they had released since Alive! (Destroyer, Rock and Roll Over, Love Gun) were showcased here. The end result is an Alive album that is almost as strong as the original Alive!.

The last five songs are studio tracks recorded specifically for this album. They’re a mixed bag. “All-American Man”, “Larger Than Life” and “Rocket Ride” are very good, but “Rockin’ in the USA” and their cover of The Dave Clark Five’s “Any Way You Want It” are awful. Don’t quote me on this, but I don’t think KISS has ever played any of those five songs live.

This was the first KISS album I bought. I was on winter break visiting some friends in Virginia and we went to Walmart just to browse. I had started to get curious about KISS and for whatever reason, this was the album I picked up. I didn’t like it at first. Even my friend mentioned “this album sucks” and it very nearly killed the deal from the get-go. But I hung in, picked up Psycho Circus and then went for the rest of the catalog. The rest is history, KISS is my favorite band.

Just like the original vinyl version, this 2 CD set included some rub-on KISS tattoos. It’s always a nice touch when a CD reissue tries to keep the charm of the vinyl.

I the album cover though and I always have. The Alive! cover is so iconic and it makes you go “WOW! This has got to be a killer show!” This cover has always looked very cheap to me and hasn’t held up over time.

Highlights: “Detroit Rock City”, “Makin’ Love”, “Love Gun”, “Hard Luck Woman”, “I Stole Your Love”, “God of Thunder”, “I Want You”, “All-American Man”, “Larger Than Life”, “Rocket Ride”

www.kissonline.com

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KISS – Alive!

Posted in KISS with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 17, 2009 by Metal Misfit

KISS – Alive! [Remastered] (1997, Casablanca Records/Mercury Records)
Original Release: 1975, Casablanca Records

DISC 1
1. “Deuce” … 3:44
2. “Strutter” … 3:17
3. “Got to Choose” … 3:35
4. “Hotter Than Hell” … 3:12
5. “Firehouse” … 3:59
6. “Nothin’ to Lose” … 3:29
7. “C’mon and Love Me” … 2:53
8. “Parasite” … 3:22
9. “She” … 6:55

DISC 2
1. “Watchin’ You” … 3:40
2. “100,000 Years” … 11:59
3. “Black Diamond” … 5:51
4. “Rock Bottom” … 3:36
5. “Cold Gin” … 5:26
7. “Rock and Roll All Night” … 4:06
8. “Let Me Go, Rock ‘n’ Roll” … 5:46

Band:
Paul Stanley – Vocals, Guitar
Gene Simmons – Vocals, Bass
Ace Frehley – Guitar
Peter Criss – Drums, Vocals

Produced by: Eddie Kramer

This is one of those albums where there’s really not a whole lot left to say on the subject. It’s considered one of the best rock albums of all time and is perhaps THE greatest live album of all time. There’s a lot of fire and energy to these songs that wasn’t captured on the studio albums and that’s what helped prove to people that KISS was legit. Simply stated, this is the definitive KISS album and is a must have for anyone interested in the band.

Out of all the songs on this album, “Black Diamond” is my favorite track. The passion with which Peter performs this song gives me chills!

Highlights: “Deuce”, “Nothin’ to Lose”, “C’mon and Love Me”, “Parasite”, “She”, “100,000 Years”, “Black Diamond”, “Rock Bottom”

www.kissonline.com

Buy Alive! at Amazon.com

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