1295. Kiss / Unmasked. 1980. 2.5/5

The dawn of a new decade was an interesting period for Kiss and where the band stood in the world of music. Having climbed to a period of immense and sustained popularity with their stage shows and make up personas, and on the back of their two live albums boxed around hit studio albums such as “Destroyer” and “Love Gun”, Kiss had marketed themselves to the point of overkill with their merchandising arm arguably drawing in more money and popularity than the band and its music itself.
The year off for the four members of the band to produce their own solo albums, followed by the next Kiss album “Dynasty” had also seen some changes. With the music world swirling between punk rock and disco, along with the rising of new wave and a new movement in hard rock and heavy metal, Kiss had chosen to infuse the disco craze into their album, which saw a divide in old fans and new fans as to what they were feeling about where the band was headed. The tour to promote the album, dubbed “The Return of Kiss” proved a disappointment in their home country with a marked decline in attendance, and yet their popularity in Europe and Australasia in particular grew with that album’s sound. The glam and disco styled outfits donned on this tour also proved to be polarising amongst the fan base.
Tensions within the band were also reaching a crescendo. Peter Criss had been unable to perform on the “Dynasty” album due to injuries received in a car accident, and on the tour that followed his drumming had noticeably eroded, to the point that he intentionally slowed down or stopped playing altogether during concerts. It was something that would need to be addressed. Ace Frehley was also offside with the band. His drinking was causing Paul and Gene frustration during interviews and in band situations, while Ace himself was beginning to question the direction the band’s music was taking.
The band spent three months at The Record Plant in New York at the start of 1980 coming up with the follow up album “Unmasked”, a title that just a couple of years later would become a prophecy fulfilled, but below the surface was perhaps as telling of this album than was known at the time. Because this was the beginning of a variety of changes that took place with Kiss over the next few years, as little by little the behind the scenes stories began to emerge and finally be unmasked themselves.

In many ways, "Unmasked” continued the trend where Kiss truly stopped being a band and became a revolving slate of solo members from a musical, with a number of outside influences involved in writing and performing, It wasn’t the first album that this had occurred on, but it did become a lot more prevalent on “Unmasked”, and the results on the album tend to be a little uneven.
As was the case on the previous album “Dynasty”, Peter Criss was not the drummer on the album. At least on “Dynasty” he had contributed to one song. Here on “Unmasked”, he is nowhere to be found. Anton Fig, who had played on the Ace Frehley solo album in 1978 and had then been recruited for the same role on the “Dynasty” album to cover Criss’s parts, was once again brought in to play drums on the album. And, it is fair to say that he sounds great, as he always does on whatever project he is on. Criss officially left the band with the release of this album and was replaced by Eric Carr as the permanent drummer of the band, a move that began to draw some of the strings back together.
When it comes to the writing and recording of the songs on the album, the same sort of tensions that had come since the solo albums period continued on. Ace wrote three songs for the album, one of those “Torpedo Girl” co-written with Vini Poncia. On these three songs, Ace again played all of the guitars and bass guitar as well as singing lead vocals on the tracks. Given Anton is playing drums here, these could easily just be an Ace Frehley solo album contribution. That’s fine, nothing wrong with that, but it’s hardly a band if members are not only writing songs on their own but also playing them on their own! In the same scenario, Paul contributes four songs to the album, all co-written with Poncia, two of which, “Tomorrow” and “Easy as It Seems”, he does an Ace by playing all of the guitars and bass guitar himself, while on “Shandi” he plays all guitars with the bass being played by Tom Harper. That means that Gene only plays bass on less than half of the songs on the album, something that is not an unusual occurrence through the history of the band, especially from this point going forward. He co-writes three songs on the album, all of which he sings. All of this gives the impression of three artists all writing their own solo albums, and combining them under the banner of Kiss, rather than the band Kiss writing and performing an album.
Then there is the one song on the album that is written by no one in the band, Gerard McMahon. Apparently, the producer had heard the demo of this song made by McMahon and enjoyed it so much that he brought it to Paul, who decided that he wanted to record it. Further to this is the influence of said producer Vini Poncia, who has co-writing contributions on no less than 8 of the 11 tracks. This would seem to suggest that he was influential in pushing the album’s direction towards a certain style, and as with the preceding album “Dynasty” it is reflected in the overall sound musically.
That opening track of the album, “Is That You?” sets a tone, one that does differ from what came on the previous album, and slightly differentiates what is to come. It’s a solid song that is not the kind of album starter that the band usually comes up with. Take a look at the Side 1 Track 1 songs from previous albums, and you’ll agree this doesn’t stack up against them – but perhaps more significantly, doesn’t give this album the starter it needs. Next comes “Shandi”, which if you live in Australia you know better than any other song on the album. It reached #5 on the singles chart in our fair land, which led to it being played live every single time the band came to Australia. Even on the last tour Paul still played it,.. and was surrounded by many adoring women... all as old as Paul himself. Anyway... it’s a perfectly fine ballad track that for me fits like a glove at the OJ Simpson trial. Ace’s “Talk to Me” follows, moving along the same lines lyrically as the opening tracks, but at least has an Ace solo within its boundaries to create some sort of excitement.
Gene’s “Naked City” has three co-writers, including Poncia and Peppy Castro, but also BOB Kulick, who also contributes extra guitar to the song. This is stylised very much in the pop genre of the era, much like songs written for movie soundtracks at the time. And yet, once again, Gene has found a way to make this an eminently enjoyable song, with Ace’s solo providing a lift as well, even though it is characteristically not what you expect from this band. Again, a solo track rather than a Kiss band track. Side one concludes with “What Makes the World Go ‘Round”, a song where parts remind me of ELO’s, “It’s a Living Thing”, and which for me encapsulates just where this album sits in regard to its genre and the style it has, because it is styled as pop rock, and that is definitely where “Unmasked” sits”.
“Tomorrow”, which opens side two, is pure pop rock, straight from 1980’s FM radio. It is noticeable too that Paul plays all of the guitars and bass on this track, because the one thing that would have lifted this song to a Kiss standard would have been an Ace guitar solo, but he doesn’t appear on this song and itis the lesser for it. It is pure treacle being poured over this whole track, and it definitely misses the harder guitar sound that would have given it a far better finish.
“Two Sides of the Coin” mirrors “Talk to Me” but with a harder rock friendly attitude, closer to what most Kiss fans would have been looking for on this album. Ace is always a favourite and while his vocals are sometimes only serviceable, he always induces more excitement in his songs through his guitar alone. Gene then comes at us with one of his typically themed songs “She’s So European”, one that is bouncy enough if you can ignore the almost AI written lyrics involved. “Easy as It Seems” is my favourite Paul track on the album, this one sounds much more like the best Stanley tracks that we know. He plays all guitars here again but has a nice little solo spot through the middle that enhances the song as well. It’s the tempo really, and his own backing vocals, that make this track one of the best here.
Unlike his other two tracks which he wrote by himself, there is a funk disco feel about Ace’s “Torpedo Girl” that feels as though it has been overtly influenced by the co-writer of the track. It seems so far out of place on this album, on what has come before it, even for an album that is posturing for the marketplace of the era. The album closes out with Gene’s “You’re All That I Want”, one which lyrically once again you can guess the way it is heading by the title. It’s another track that in the modern age of AI you can imagine that computers would have little difficulty in transcribing a Gene Simmons song on the basis of lyrical content.

Kiss. Would you like my backstory again? If you are coming in late to this podcast, here’s the short version. My eldest cousin was a huge fan of Kiss at about the period this album was released, and whenever we visited my grandmother with whom he was living at the time I would see and hear Kiss all the time. I knew “I Was Made for Loving You” through wining a dance competition at school to that song. And my first true discovery of the band on my own terms was through the album “Crazy Nights”. It is a tale that has been fleshed out more thoroughly in past episodes here and on my previous podcast. No doubt it will come again very soon as the next album reaches its anniversary.
As to this album, it wasn’t one I heard until I began to go back and find all of the albums in the Kiss discography. “Unmasked” for me came up about the time of the great reunion in the mid-1990's, when there came a chance that I might actually get to see them live in concert. What were my thoughts? Yeah, it was fine. I didn’t jump out of my skin about it, it didn’t have much that I was looking for at that time. I listened to it, and then when it came to my Kiss fix it was back to those albums that I truly loved. And on the few occasions over the years that I have listened to it my thoughts have never really changed. It was okay, when I put it on I could listen to it, but there was nothing that blew my mind about it.
So we come to the past two weeks, when my CD has again come off of the shelves and returned to my CD player. What did I expect to find when I pressed the play button this time? To be fair I was looking forward to listening to the album again. Through the course of my podcasting on my album collection, “Unmasked” is one of the last albums that I have come to over the almost four year period I have been doing this, which means that I have listened to almost all of the Kiss discography at some point over that time period, and this is one of the final pieces of that puzzle.
What did I find? I found an album that has noticeable flaws, that has the cracks opening that would eventually very soon see changes within the group and the band and its music. It is an album composed of its time, by individuals who perhaps were only held together by the vision of a producer who through his own intervention and/or contribution gave the album a contemporary sound that may not have agreed with the old fans but maybe was able to attract the younger fans. Whether any of that is true or not I cannot confirm or deny, it is more or less what I have gathered from listening to the album and reading books and articles from the time period.
For my own tastes, “Unmasked” is an average album. I don’t think it is a bad album, but it also isn’t a great album. It doesn’t have anything that jumps out and grabs you by the throat, and makes you want to play the album over and over. There are some good tunes, there are some nice riffs, there are some reasonable passages of songs that get you in the Kiss mood. It’s just that it doesn’t have the material or performances that push it to the being what I’d consider better than average.
There are 20 studio Kiss albums. For me, this one ranks at #15. It’s okay. I don’t mind listening to it. But I’ve now listened to it 12 times over the last couple of weeks. It is really time for me to try something else, something that makes me excited about listening to music again.

1221. Kiss / Psycho Circus. 1998. 3/5

Even for Kiss, the three years leading up to the release of this album was turbulent, with the twists and turns of the band and its fortunes being played out publicly as the unfolding story took place. Most of that began with the band’s appearance on MTV Unplugged, where the four band members were joined on stage for the end of the concert by original members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss, which got a huge reaction from the fans. Following this, as the public rumours of a possible reunion grew, the band went into the studio to complete the recording of their follow up album to “Revenge” titled “Carnival of Souls”, an album which certainly messed with the prototype Kiss sound to incorporate the more modern rock sound that was around in the mid-1990's. Though it was completed in early 1996, the release was shelved, as Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons then confirmed that a reunion tour with Ace and Peter as the original foursome would take place, and did so in the full makeup and outfits of the Love Gun era, to the rapturous accolades of their fans everywhere. As the ‘return of make-up’ tour wound through 1996, both Bruce Kulick and Eric Singer were paid a weekly salary as they sat on the sidelines to cool their heels, no doubt to assuage just how everything would play out once the tour was over. By the end of 1996, Kulick had left the band, obviously seeing the writing on the wall with the success of the reunion tour, and Singer also found his place had been reverted back to Criss.
The band continued to tour worldwide throughout 1997, with “Carnival of Souls” eventually seeing the light of day in October of that year. But the tours were only playing songs from the era prior to 1982, when this foursome had been the band, and the question from the fans now was; would this reunited line up go into the studio and record a new album? The eventual answer to that question was; yes, they would. But it wouldn’t be Kiss if there weren’t any further twists and turns in the story, and it is fair to say this was true once again of the writing and recording of the album that eventually became “Psycho Circus”.

For an album that was touted as the return of the original awesome foursome, the actual amount that was contributed to the writing and recording of “Psycho Circus” by both Ace and Peter was minimal. Peter only played drums on one song, the Ace Frehley penned “Into the Void”, with the remainder being done by session drummer Kevin Valentine. Peter did sing lead vocals on the Paul Stanley and Bob Ezrin written ballad “I Finally Found My Way”, which was apparently especially written for him to sing. Peter also sang on the song “You Wanted the Best”, written by Gene and featuring all four artists on lead vocals, the only song in the Kiss catalogue where that occurred. Beyond this, Peter Criss was non-existent on this reunion album. For Ace’s part, he co-wrote “Into the Void” with Karl Cochran, and also played lead guitar and sang lead vocals on the track, and also played lead and sang on the collaborative track “You Wanted the Best”. As with Peter, Ace was not involved with any other part of the album. He was quoted some years later as saying he had written quite a bit of material for the album, but it was rejected by Paul and Gene for various reasons. In his book, Peter Criss stated that both he and Ace were paid an enormous amount of money to stay out of participation of the album, while for their part Paul and Gene have suggested different reasons over the years as to why the other two were kept at arm's length, ranging from their not being capable, to them not showing up when required, to their wanting new financial deals, and to its being the producer's choice to not use them. Most of these reasons conflicted with each other at different times over the years, and indeed have changed over time. Even producer Bruce Fairbairn, who has cropped up a few times in recent episodes of this podcast, stated that he wanted to stay away from gimmicks and trends such as guest appearances, and just stay true to what Kiss does best and what people remembered them for. This being the case, why was this not followed? Tommy Thayer, who would eventually replace Ace as lead guitarist a few years down the track, played most of the lead guitar on this album, while there were a few other who contributed either instrumentally or creatively.
Logic would suggest that Paul and Gene felt THEY were in fact the band, and that the return of Ace and Peter was only as hired guns, paid contractors there to do their job of playing on stage and little else. And this was accurate, as both had sign short term contracts to play in the band once again. Thus, rather than have a collaborative effort such as the band did back in their glory days together, now it was not so much a band as four individuals who appeared on stage together.
Would this album have been better if they had played and written as the band? It’s difficult to say. Tommy Thayer is a skilled guitarist as he has shown in the past two decades as the band’s lead player, but he is also different. When you listen to “Into the Void” you immediately know it is Ace playing guitar as it is so distinctive, but that doesn’t make Thayer’s guitaring on the other songs less excellent, it’s just that it isn’t Ace, which sort of defeats the purpose of labelling this a Kiss album. And Ace does write some terrific songs, so surely at least one other of his tracks could have been used?
The album itself has its highs and lows. The ballad “I Finally Found My Way” does nothing for me, while songs such as “Journey of 1000 Years” and “We Are One” and “Dreamin’” are in that average section of Kiss songs that are inoffensive easy listening portions. Ace’s “Into the Void” is one of the better tracks here, as is the title lead off track “Psycho Circus”, a perfect concert opening song that gets the masses on their feet and first pumping from the very start. Why then it hasn’t been utilised as this opening song at their concerts for the last 20-odd years for me is very strange. This holds its own as one the bands best songs since the original foursomes demise. Of the rest, “You Wanted the Best”, that utilises all four members both instrumentally and vocally, reminds you most of the way these four used to be regarded.

Over the years this hasn’t been an album that I have given a great deal of listening to. I didn’t buy it on its release, judging at the time that it was a money grab from a band who were using the gimmick of going back to their original line up and donning the make up again. I don’t think that observation was far off the mark. I heard it a couple of times before I saw the band on their first farewell tour in 2001, where the only song they played was the title track, which did indeed sound great. From that point, it wasn’t for another decade that I heard it again, when I went on my mission to acquire all of the Kiss back catalogue that I didn’t have, and give it all a fair listen. And then we come to the last 12 months, where I saw the band again on their latest farewell tour, along with my son Josh. And it was Josh’s growing love of Kiss in the last six years that convinced me to delve deeper into the albums I didn’t know as well. Which then led me to a new appreciation of “Psycho Circus”.
The more I listen to this album, the more I think it was a missed opportunity. There are some terrific songs here, ones I still sing along to whenever I put the album on. And some great moments. My ears honestly still prick up on the two songs that Ace Frehley plays lead guitar on, because the two solos in those songs remind me of that early material so much, and it really triggers something when I listen to it. And like I’ve said, Thayer is a good guitarist... but he isn’t Ace Frehley. Whatever the reason was to exclude Ace and Peter from the recording of this album, I still think it was a mistake. It didn’t matter when it came to selling the album, because it was still Kiss and the Reunion, even if it really wasn’t in the long run. The “Revenge” album actually stands out more because it had both Vinnie Vincent and Bruce Kulick writing songs, and Kulick’s stand out guitaring. Here, Thayer is actually the hired gun, but is not significantly outstanding in his lead work to command the songs like any of those other three guitarists would have. Along with the other two dozen albums I have spent the last month listening to, this has received plenty of airplay, and I probably enjoy the album more now than I did when I started. The good is great, the average is average. In many ways, that sums up almost every Kiss album in existence.

1219. Kiss / Lick It Up. 1983. 3.5/5

Following the turmoil that had gone on during the writing and recording of the “Creatures of the Night” album – an episode of which you can catch up on in Season 3 of this podcast – and then the growing success of that album and the tour that followed, you’d have thought that everything would be in place for Kiss to have a smoother ride into the follow up to that album. Ace Frehley, whose personage had appeared on the front cover of that album but had not actually played on it, had left the band officially by this time. Vinnie Vincent, who had played in a guest slot on the album in his absence, was now considered the fourth member of Kiss and was ready to contribute on a more advanced stage than he had on the previous album. This, as it turned out, was only partially true, as Vincent refused to sign the contract offered to him to become a full member of the band. The sticking points apparently included what his actual role within the band would be, whether he would be considered a session player or a full member of the bad, and just what he would be paid as a result. Vincent apparently demanded a percentage of the gross profit, which was summarily dismissed. This meant that although Vincent appears on the cover of the new album, “Lick It Up” and has multiple writing credits and played all of the lead guitar on the album, he was not legally a member of Kiss at any point of this process. Or, as it turns out, afterwards once the band began to tour behind this album. It was an interesting scenario, with Vincent himself believing that he was almost solely the reason for the resurgence of popularity of Kiss at this time, and he wanting the rewards for that. It was to be a battle that dragged on over the next 18 months.
The final big reveal for this new album was the band’s final unmasking, deciding the time had come to forgo he makeup and appear in public as...themselves. This first occurred on MTV as the band launched the new album, and became a massive deal at the time. Although Kiss had performed without makeup at the very beginning of the band’s existence, it was the first time in 10 years that they had been seen performing without it. The album cover also included all four members without their makeup. It was a new era for the band in all of these ways. Now it had to be seen if they could back it up with an album worthy of all of this.

“Creatures of the Night” had been considered to be a heavier album than Kiss had produced for awhile, and in most aspects that has continued on here into “Lick It Up”. In many ways, perhaps much as Vinnie himself suggested, this could be traced to Vincent’s involvement in the writing process, being credited as co-writer on all but two tracks. It’s an interesting discussion point, and one worth delving into. In particular, if you look at the songs that make up the second side of the album, there are cases both ways. That opening track is the second and final single released from the album, “All Hell’s Breaking Loose”, a song that is actually credited to all four members of the band. It has always seemed like a strange choice to be released as a single, with perhaps the only reason being all four would benefit if it didwell because all four have a writing credit. If that was the only reason they did it, then the fact the song didn’t chart at all makes that a poor one. This is followed by what entails a Paul Stanley soft rock ballad like track in “A Million to One”, but actually is more than that because of the harder guitar riffs throughout than would have normally been the case in this type of song. A Stanley inclusion? Or a Vincent inclusion? While the chorus still annoys me, the rest of the song is good, so perhaps this is a win for Vinnie?
Then you have the two songs solely credited to Gene Simmons. “Fits Like a Glove” takes on a faster tempo and harder chanting vocals through the bridge and chorus, and becomes an anthemic like track, and then “Dance All Over Your Face” is a more typical Gene track, mid-tempo with stagnated guitar over a heavy 2/4 drum beat with Gene vocalising over the top. Both of these tracks are more attractive than the previous two songs, which of course would then suggest Vinnie’s influence isn’t as great as it is thought. The other side of that is that all of the other songs where Vincent is co-writer with either Paul or Gene have the great harder qualities that the album is credited as having, and thus surely it is he who has pushed this vibe back into the Kiss catalogue. The side and album concludes with the upbeat anthem “And on the 8th Day”, which is a solid closing track, despite some interesting Gene lyrics in “You sold your soul and virginity, you can't rape a heart of gold”. Sometimes he just makes it hard to sing along...
Side A of the album is terrific and never fails to disappoint if you are a Kiss fan. “Exciter” is a great opening track, with great riffs from Stanley and Vincent that drive the song. It’s a head bobber, one that gets the blood pumping from the outset. “Not for the Innocent” is a great follow up, with Gene’s spitting vocals and bass and guitar riffs carrying on the harder edge from the opening song. This leads into the title track, the legendary “Lick it Up” that is one of the band’s best ever singles, and a song that has remained in their set list since this album’s release. It is a long time classic, and has everything that has made Kiss successful over the years. It is still a beauty. “Young and Wasted” is Gene and Vinnie’s youth anthem, Gene chanting away in his famous style, and Vinnie clocking into his solo with style. Gene’s lyrics aren’t quite as questionable here and as a song to sing loud as a teenager it isn’t the worst option. “Gimme More” is much more questionable lyric wise, back to that overdosed sexual innuendo that the band does stick with. The song is enjoyable, but singing the lyrics as a 53 year old is far more unsettling than you might think.

Those who have been around since the beginning of this podcast, and having heard me already do episodes on several Kiss albums, will already know that my love of Kiss came from different ages and different eras, and that I came across their albums at different times than when they were released. Most of the albums released from the early to mid-1980's I didn’t discover in full until the next decade had arrived, and “Lick it Up” was no exception. I knew the title track, but the rest was a mystery. I heard this, and many of this era’s releases, in the early 1990’s, but never owned my own copies until much later, and it wasn’t until then that I really started listening to the albums of that time.
And, unlike some older Kiss fans, I really enjoy most of those albums, and this one in particular. Vinnie Vincent might be a lot of things, but he does help to write a good song, and the songs on this album are great. His leads are different to Ace, as they should be, but no less interesting and enjoyable. There is a 50/50 mix in the songs here sung by Paul and Gene, and the combination works really well on this album. Eric Carr is also terrific on drums, making a great contribution throughout but especially (to my ears at least) on Gene’s songs.
While I knew this album, my true discovery of it came when my then 10 year old son found his way into Kiss of his own accord, started playing all of their songs on Spotify, and expressed an interest in seeing the band (which at the time I thought we had missed our opportunity). This actually led me to revisiting all of their albums again, and this was one of the ones that got stuck in the CD player of my stereo for some time. Six years later, and I’ve got it back in there again, and I am enjoying this album all over again. And I can’t help ask myself the question why I didn’t listen to this album more often when I was younger. Mainly, when it came to Kiss, I would fall upon my known favourites such as “Crazy Nights” and “Destroyer”, but it seems I missed a trick with “Lick It Up”. I have certainly made up for it ever since.

1218. Peter Criss / Peter Criss. 1978. 2/5

In 1978, Kiss and their management, in their wisdom, decided that each member of the band would record and release a solo album, with all four to be released on the same day. It had been mandated in the band’s contract, but the recording and releasing all at once was apparently not specified. None of the members were to be involved in the other’s albums, this was a chance for each member to express themselves in their own way. The style of all four solo albums were completely different from each other, which could be seen to be either a good move to be that counterpoint to the main band’s normal sound, or one that maybe went too far.
Peter Criss had never had a problem with singing. In fact, Paul and Gene had reportedly come down to see Peter play in his band when he was trying to get the original gig as drummer for Kiss, and it was when he started singing a song while playing that the two of them decided that he was the man for the job. He had then sung vocals on some of the band’s better known songs, such as “Black Diamond”, “Hard Luck Woman” and of course “Beth”, so performing the vocals on his own solo record was not going to prove to be a problem. The direction that his album was going to take though was to be more of a talking point than it was with the other three projects. Peter’s previous band Chelsea, which had then morphed into Lips, had been a late-60's early 70’s pop rock outfit, while “Beth” had been the song he was best known for, a song that had been co-written by his former Chelsea band mate Stan Penridge, and then given the production magic by Bob Ezrin. With that kind of success, surely it made sense to continue to write songs in that direction in order to make the most of his solo opportunity? As it turned out, Peter’s musical direction was a lot more varied than anyone may have guessed at the time.

It was probably only natural that Peter looked to continue his writing and performing partnership with his old bandmate Stan Penridge for this solo album. These two co-write 6 of the 10 tracks here on the album, and Stan plays guitar on the majority of them as well.
“I’m Gonna Love You” kicks the album off and immediately shows that this was going to be of a much different style than any Kiss album. The horns and sax gave that away immediately, and it almost has a big band sound to it as a result of this and the chorused backing vocals. Then you take a left turn down the next alley and come across “You Matter to Me”, which is a solid R&B tune. You can almost see this being played on stage, with all the members of the band swaying back and forth as Peter sings the vocals. There more of this genre of music with “Tossin’ and Turnin’”, a cover of the Bobby Lewis song that topped the American charts some 15 years earlier. Peter Criss has a real Billy Joel vibe gong on vocally in this song, it could so easily have come from that artist’s later album “An Innocent Man”. Up to this point, the album had taken a step back in time, and was as far away from the hard rock scene his main band was involved in as you could imagine. That continues into “Don’t You Let Me Down”, which now flows into a soul number, with Peter crooning away in his best rendition of that style of music. By the time you get this far into the album, you can begin to imagine just how the Kiss fans reacted to it all those years ago, having bought the album hoping for four automatic repeats of the kind of music they loved from their heroes. On this album, it certainly wasn’t the case. "That's the Kind of Sugar Papa Likes" then closes out the first side of the album in a feast of repeated lyrics with backing vocals that continues to adhere to the same style as the songs that have preceded it on the album.
If you thought that perhaps side two would bring you something a bit less unexpected, then you would be wrong. “Easy Thing” comes as close to “Beth” as you are going to find on this opus, with acoustic guitar starting off slow and reminiscent, and holding that feeling through the course of the song. “Rock Me Baby”, with the use of piano, sounds like a 60’s pop-rock song without the instrument completely dominating the song as it would have if it was actually from that era. “Kiss the Girl Goodbye” again descends to the acoustic “is this the next Beth?” kind of anthem, which again misses the mark a tad. “Hooked on Rock ‘N’ Roll” again returns to the same era as “Rock Me Baby” with extended use of the sax again echoing that big band sound. “I Can’t Stop the Rain” is the piano and string ballad that brings us back to another “Beth” type clone, the kind of thing that if you don’t enjoy, will definitely bring you close to the point of complete disinterest. That it is the final song on the album may well come as cold comfort in this situation.

Despite my enjoyment of Kiss, I did not hear any of these four solo albums until about 20 years ago. I just felt no compunction to go and find them and listen to them. I didn’t know anyone who owned them, so it wasn’t until the years of downloading that I decided to get around to checking them out.
This is by far the most diverse and perhaps experimental of the four solo albums. Rather than shoot straight down the line and produce an album that more or less copied the successful format of the band he was in, Peter Criss instead goes down a far winding path and reaches back into a selection of genres to create something that is unique and, without pulling any punches, would have been abrasively abhorrent to the band’s fan base at the time it was released. But he would have known that going in, and yet he stuck to his convictions and did it anyway. And you can only admire him for that, for making an album so different and far apart from a Kiss album that it stands out like a proverbial sore thumb. He took the chance to record the kind of album HE wanted to make, not one that fans may have expected him to make. It was panned by media experts at the time, and probably harshly so, given this was exactly the case, that it wasn’t what they had expected either.
On the other hand, though, does that make it an enjoyable album? If you enjoy that genre of music, I’m sure it would be. If you do not, then like me you are going to be left unimpressed. Because, like all of those fans from 1978, I’m looking for Kiss or at least Kiss-like material. I’m not after old school rock n roll, I’m not after soul, and I’m not after R&B. It just isn’t fun for me, and thus listening to this album does become a punish. I admire Peter for his convictions, but I just do not enjoy this album on any level. And having lived through it more over the past two weeks than the remainder of my life combined, it has been a very difficult thing to get through. And I don’t say this about many albums that I listen to, but I am almost certain that this week I have listened to this album for the final time in my life.

1217. Paul Stanley / Paul Stanley. 1978. 3/5

In 1978, Kiss and their management, in their wisdom, decided that each member of the band would record and release a solo album, with all four to be released on the same day. It had been mandated in the band’s contract, but the recording and releasing all at once was apparently not specified. None of the members were to be involved in the other’s albums, this was a chance for each member to express themselves in their own way. The style of all four solo albums were completely different from each other, which could be seen to be either a good move to be that counterpoint to the main band’s normal sound, or one that maybe went too far.
In many ways, Paul Stanley had the most to lose from this solo album arrangement. For all intents and purposes, Paul was the face of Kiss, the main lead singer and guitarist, the one with the moves and hips and that voice that screamed out of the speakers at you. While the fans would have been interested in what the other three produced on their own, they EXPECTED Paul’s work to be brilliant, which would have made the process for him a difficult one. Of the four albums, Paul is the only one who does not include a cover song on his album, with all of the songs written by himself alone or in collaboration with Michael Japp. Given he was by now renowned for his voice and his persona, how far did Stanley dare to drift from what the fans knew on this album that was supposed to portray all of the elements of the individual that they could not necessarily show in a band of four?

From the outset, the album allows you to wonder if you will get something old or something new. The opening track “Tonight You Belong to Me” almost without fail reminds me stylistically of the Kiss track “Sure Know Something”, a song that Stanley wrote for the next Kiss album “Dynasty”. I’ve often wondered if this track was the forerunner for that. This song is sung with less toughness than that song does. It’s still a good song, whether any of this is true or not. It is followed by “Move On” which could easily be a Kiss song, with an Ace solo and the band doing the backup vocals rather than the girls that do so on this song. Both of those things are where there is a difference with this solo album. The fact Paul plays most of the guitars apart from the odd solo from guest Bob Kulick, brother of Bruce who would eventually join the band, does actually give it a poor-man's-Kiss feel on occasions. Perhaps not necessarily on “Move On”, but definitely on “Ain’t Quite Right”, where the title of the song actually explains it pretty well. Something is missing from this song to make it either ballad or rock, and it sits in purgatory as a result.
“Wouldn’t You Like to Know Me” is a pretty simple straight up and down pop rock song with few bells and whistles, aimed at the audience it is composed for. This is followed up by the rock ballad stylings of “Take Me Away (Together as One)”. This seems like a strange composition, not for the style of the song, but the lengths of the song as a result. It is the longest song on the album at five and a half minutes, but it is already dragged out by the softer slower style of the song.
“It’s Alright” opens the second side of the album with more energy, gets us back closer to what most of us have come into the album for. Unfortunately, this is then immediately brought back to earth by the straight out ballad "Hold Me, Touch Me (Think of Me When We're Apart)", complete with the backing crooning of the back up singers and the atypical ballad guitar solo that proliferated these types of songs through the 1970’s and 1980’s. Perhaps not surprisingly, this was the single released from the album which to me is a real shame as it indicates that Paul's best work is this kind of track, and it patently is not. But perhaps my view is not shared by others. “Love in Chains” is a much better song, more of the real Paul attitude in both vocals and guitar. “Goodbye” closes out the album with a certain amount of style, giving the album the pleasant ending it deserves.

Despite my enjoyment of Kiss, I did not hear any of these four solo albums until about 20 years ago. I just felt no compunction to go and find them and listen to them. I didn’t know anyone who owned them, so it wasn’t until the years of downloading that I decided to get around to checking them out.
This album is the one of those four that I expected would be the best, and perhaps that expectation was misplaced. Like I said earlier, there always felt as though more would be expected from Paul’s contribution to the solo albums because of his stature within the main band, and looking back I would say that it would be accurate to say that I did have that expectation and that it harmed how I felt about the album when I first heard it.
I’ve listened to this a fair bit over the last couple of weeks, trying to form an opinion now that would be a more accurate one than perhaps I formulated 20 years ago. And in the long run, it hasn’t changed a great deal. It’s a 50/50 album, one when half of the songs are good solid 70’s hardish rock tracks that have the bones of enjoyable music, and the other half are... a bit soft. They sound under-developed, like they are missing a bit of oomph in order to have them complete. Whether or not this is what Paul was looking for when doing this project, or whether the tracks just lacked the final finish that perhaps they wuold have received in the band environment, I don’t know. For me though, it still rates as a slight disappointment. Indeed, almost 30 years later Paul released his second solo album, “Live to Win”, which is a damned sight better in all departments. Perhaps he had learned from this effort that more energy and grunt makes for a better overall album. It certainly showcases his talent better than this first effort did.

1161. Kiss / Revenge. 1992. 3.5/5

Coming into the new decade, after an up and down time through the 1980’s, Kiss had managed to find another top ten hit, the god-awful ballad “Forever” from the “Hot in the Shade” album, and as a fan I know I had my doubts that the next album wasn’t going to jump on that and follow its lead. As it turned out, there was a lot more other stuff going on when it came to writing and recording the follow up to that final album of the 80’s decade. Firstly, the band was asked to record a version of the hit song by Argent from the early 1970’s “God Gave Rock and Roll to You” to be a part of the movie “Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey”, the song that at the time I thought was the one that was supposed to unite the world. The third sequel proved that to be wrong. However, the success of that track, which had been produced by Bob Ezrin, whom the band had forsaken since they had worked together on “Music from The Elder”, led the band to decide to continue on with Ezrin in producing their next album. Along with this, long time drummer Eric Carr had been diagnosed with cancer, and though he had participated in the filming of the video for the “God Gave Rock and Roll To You II”, he was then told by the band to recuperate. Eric Singer was brought into the band to fill in as drummer until Carr was well enough to re-join the band, but sadly his condition deteriorated, and he died in November of 1991. Singer was then made a full time member of Kiss. Once the band returned to the studio to continue putting the album together, both Paul and Gene found themselves writing with some unusual partners. Paul wrote some material with both Dave Sabo from Skid Row and Jani Lane form Warrant, the latter as that band was putting together their biggest album “Cherry Pie”. Though the songs were completed they both missed out on inclusion on the album. One song that did make the cut was “Take it Off”, co-written with former Alice Cooper guitarist and composer Kane Roberts, and that song does have that vibe about it. Perhaps the most unusual was Gene getting together with former Kiss guitarist Vinnie Vincent. Vincent had left the band on very bad terms, but had now returned and wanted to patch up the relationship. Both Gene and Paul wrote songs with him during this time, but then as the album neared Vincent again reneged on a deal, then decided to sue, and lost. It was the final straw for Vinnie and Kiss, but as a result of the sessions Vincent gained three co-writing credits on “Revenge”.

The success of “God Gave Rock N Roll to You II” in the movie and the charts gave Kiss and “Revenge” the kind of boost they hadn’t had for quite some time. Coming in off the back of that, it just required the right attitude and sound for the album to be a success. And the band delivers on this from the outset. The Simmons/Vincent penned opener “Unholy” is a great track, and Gene’s dulcet tones actually make a great start to the album, the perfect hard rock beat along with chorus support vocals in the chorus. You can almost hear the explosion and fire being spurted on stage as you listen to Gene’s final scream. This moves into Paul and Kane Roberts “Take it Off”. Nothing outstanding about the lyrics (the only strip-club song), nothing technical in the song writing, but it is a typical straight forward Kiss hard rock track that sounds great with Paul singing and then a great lead from Bruce Kulick. And this sets the standard for the remainder of side A of the album. It won’t help you to love the songs as such if you study the lyrics and search for any meaning in the lyrics. Because that is not what Kiss is about, or has ever been about. The subject matter is... women, plain and simple, in several different...um... positions. And as we all get older, it becomes a little awkward at times, but mostly it’s just so ridiculous its funny, and mostly that is what Kiss has always been. But, do I like the songs? I do. I love Bruce’s guitar work on this album, and for the most part his solo breaks are the star of the album. And the songs are entertaining and fun... as long as you don’t think too much about what is being sung. “Tough Love”, “Spit”, “Domino”, they all have that fascination.
Not a lot changes on the second side of the album with “Heart of Chrome”, but from here we find the split in the album’s lyrical aspect at least, and for me it improves the style. Gone are the ‘let’s have sex” songs and in their place are a couple of different thoughts in the lyrical mix. Gene’s "Thou Shalt Not” changes things up nicely with an angry rant at street preachers, and it is one of my favourite songs on the album, with Gene spitting out his vocals in the fashion that he does on all of his best songs. Love it. “Every Time I Look at you” is the album’s power ballad, something that despite the band’s reputation Kiss have always done well. IF you like that kind of thing. Which, of course, I don’t. I’m sure it sells well where it is supposed to, but once it just stops the momentum of the album in its tracks. “Paralyzed” picks it up again with a more thought provoking style and great guitars from Bruce again. Clever entendres are at work in “I Just Wanna”, which is the best kind of Kiss song, with double meaning lyrics that are fun without the cringe, and hard rocking music that picks up the vibe along the way.
The album concludes with “Carr Jam 1981”, something Eric had played when he first joined the band, with Bruce playing guitar over the top. Originally neither this nor “God Gave Rock N Roll to You II” was supposed to be on the album, but were brought on once Eric had passed away as the band’s tribute to him.

The Kiss albums from the 1980’s, and more especially the ones where the make-up came off, get panned by a lot of Kiss fans, generally the older fans. But for me, I really enjoy all of them, and absolutely adore two or three of them. It helps to have grown up in that decade and had them there rather than judging them on the earlier material. I had been a bit cold however on “Hot in the Shade”, and probably wouldn’t have cottoned on to “Revenge” as quickly as I did if not for ‘Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey’ and the accompanying soundtrack. But it quickly got swallowed up by the big gun releases from that same period which took up almost all of my music listening at the time – Iron Maiden’s ‘Fear of the Dark’, W.A.S.P.s ‘The Crimson Idol’ and Black Sabbath’s ‘Dehumanizer’ - and I really never gave it much of a listen on its release. It wasn’t until a number of years later, into the new millenium in fact, that I came back to this album, along with a number of other Kiss releases, and found my love for it. And it wasn’t because I didn’t like it at the time, it just got lost. But on rediscovering it, I had as much enjoyment for it as I did for a lot of the Kiss discography.
What attracts me to this album still is that Kiss hadn’t changed their formula to find a way to fit into 1992. This album is actually a harder album than the past couple of albums had been that had moved with the 80’s flow. “Stripped back” is a phrase that doesn’t work here, but it does get back to basics in the musical department, with great drum work from Singer and especially terrific guitar licks and solos from Kulick which give it the oomph it needs to set itself apart and to individualise it. Many people would have come into “Revenge” for the Bill & Ted single, but would have stayed for the solid hard rock material that surrounded it. This reached #5 on the Australian record charts, and 6 in the US and 10 in the UK. Those numbers suggest that the enjoyment of this Kiss album was worldwide as they entered their third decade of rocking and rolling all night.

1019. Kiss / Kiss. 1974. 4/5

As all good Kiss fans know, the origin of the band can be traced back to a band called Wicked Lester, a New York City–based rock band led by Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley that recorded one album, which was shelved by their record company, at which point both Stanley and Simmons decided to move on and start a new band, which became Kiss. Following an ad placed by drummer Peter Criss in a magazine and having gone to see him play in his band (and indeed, legend has it that it was his singing ability that impressed them the most), he auditioned and got the job as drummer. A few months later, the band added lead guitarist Ace Frehley to the group, and the original foursome was complete.
The band was immediately focused on producing a harder style of rock than their previous bands had done, and they were also experimenting with their stage image, utilising makeup and trying out different outfits along the way.
The band’s first live performance took place on January 30, 1973, for an audience of fewer than ten people at a club in Queens that Gene Simmons had cold called and convincing them to hire the band for a three-night performance, despite never having played together before. The band was apparently paid $50 for performing two sets on that first evening. For those first three gigs, January 30 to February 1, they wore makeup, but not in the form that the world was soon to know them. Their iconic character designs that everyone now associates with Kiss made their debuts a month later.
The band recorded a demo early on, but it was on the back of constant gigging that the band got itself to be known, and through constant self-promotion. While the band entered the studio for the first time in October 1973, their affairs were still coming together. Firstly, they secured manager Bill Aucoin, apparently on the condition set by the band that he had to get them a record contract within two weeks. This came to pass in early November when they were signed by Casablanca Records. After spending six weeks in the studio, Kiss was ready to unleash itself on the world with its self-titled debut album, and the world would never be the same again.

There are some things in life that really make you feel your age. The fact that this album is now 50 years old, only four years younger than myself, really does remind you of your mortality in some respects. It’s a long time to be out there on-stage wearing makeup, that’s for sure. And it is on stage that Kiss make the magic happen, not just with the stage show, but with the energy of their performance. This is where their drive is at its best, and in some ways, this is what is missing from their debut album. Yes, it was a different age in regard to recording, but first impressions of the songs here should make this a monster. That it wasn’t on its initial release is part of that mystery.
Now, the ‘no energy’ phrase is not completely fair, but again on one hand I think it stands to reason. Listening to this album today, and then listening to the frenzied madness that comes from the same songs on the “Alive!” album, released just 18 months later and after another two studio albums – (and that is just...wow!) - and you can hear what they are missing from the recorded studio versions here. Where’s that bottom end? Where’s the blazing guitars? Where’s the high energy vocals? For the most part, that isn’t here. That doesn’t mean that, in retrospect, this isn’t a great album. It just means that it feels like the songs here have had their legs cut off at the knees compared to the live versions as they are played. You could use the same argument with other albums of the era of course, and you would be correct. It just seems a bit more noticeable here because of what Kiss became, and if you happened to listen to “Alive!” before you listened to this album, which was the case for a lot of people, you would wonder the same.
If you are a Kiss fan, you already know where the strengths of this album lie. If you aren’t a big fan, you still know the important songs off this album. There are still the strange moments. I know that the band was brought back into the studio to record the cover version of “Kissin’ Time” some three months after the album was initially released and not doing as well as they all hoped. But seriously, a Bobby Rydell cover? Did they really think this was going to lift their sales? Did they just record it because of the title? I don’t know. I do know that it is a bit of a misnomer on the album, and the band weren’t overly happy about it. I do wish I had one of those initial pressings of the album that doesn’t have it. But then you can add to that the instrumental piece “Love Theme from Kiss” which just seems out of place and unnecessary to the whole scheme of the album. Is it a time filler? Did the band really like it? Judge for yourself.
The rest of the album speaks for itself. “Nothin’ to Lose” has that 60’s rockabilly sound about it that can get a bit annoying depending on your mood and how often you are listening to it. Did Kiss really need piano in a song in the direction they were heading? The lyrics are also extremely dodgy, but perhaps that is just my old age showing. Anyway. “Firehouse” is a good song that just doesn’t have the energy and fire it should have. The plodding style of this studio recorded version, both musically and vocally from Gene, just holds back its potential. Of course when played live this is where Gene would breathe fire, so maybe that’s why the studio version is a very slight disappointment in this regard. The same can be said for “Let Me Know”, a re-recorded version of a Wicked Lester track, though there is no live version to compare it to. It sounds better when Paul is singing rather than Gene. It should be remembered that these are small and insignificant criticisms on my behalf. Again, it comes to the age of the recording rather than the quality. I’d just like to hear more grunt in them. You can’t change time though.
In some ways you could argue the same about the remainder of the songs here too, but they are the classics and it is hard to go past them. The awesome opening song “Strutter” continues to be a radiant gem after all these years, and still holds its brilliance to this day. Add to this “Deuce”, which could be considered to be the twin of “Strutter” such is their importance to the Kiss lineage of greatness. “Cold Gin” has become a staple of live cover bands all over the world. Anthrax, Skid Row and hundreds of other bands have all done their version, none as good as listening to Gene sing this original version. Along with “100,000 Years” and the album closer “Black Diamond”, these were the songs that built the palace that Kiss became in a short space of time, and these for me still hold the foundations for my love of the band.

For those of you who have listened to the other episodes on this podcast that relate to Kiss, you already know that my first experience with the band was through my cousin David, who at one stage was living with my grandmother, and had his room covered in Kiss memorabilia and played Kiss loud whenever we visited. Then I had those 80’s albums that many people stick their nose up at but which I still love to this day. This album I didn’t hear until I started going back to pick up the band’s back catalogue, and as I mentioned earlier, I knew many of the songs from the greatest hits compilation I had along with the “Alive!” album, which also cruelled my first experience with the studio versions of the songs.
That didn’t last long though. A number of listens back to back soon found those comparisons eradicated, and I just accepted the album for what it is. And overall, it’s a ripper. Sure, I would dispose of a couple of songs if I was editing it now, but for a debut album it is still an album that has everything you are looking for. I’ve had this spinning around again for the last 2-3 weeks, and enjoyed every moment of it. As soon as songs like “Strutter” and “Cold Gin” and “Deuce” come on, the mood lightens, the strut comes out with Ace’s guitar, and the vocals come out loud. And the strange looks from my family arrive not long after – except for my 16 year old son, who sings along heartily.
Kiss has not always managed to make great albums. They have had their ups and downs, and in many ways a lot depends on how you take the band and how seriously you want to take some of the lyrical content which they tend to throw up as to whether you enjoy their music or not. Some fans swear by the first four albums as the only ones you ever need. Others, myself included, find just as much joy in some of the work from the 1980’s as their early material. One thing that is for certain is that if you haven’t heard this album, then you have missed out on something terrific, because this is where it all began, and in particular the five ‘foundation’ songs here are the basis of what became the monster.

888. KISS / Rock and Roll Over. 1976. 2.5/5

Looking back retrospectively, given this album came after Destroyer made it a difficult task to keep the energy levels up. Destroyer was, and is, a classic, and following up any album of such note is a tough ask.

Perhaps the major problem with Rock and Roll Over is that the best songs on the album just aren't really that great. They are generally upbeat rock songs that, when played within the context of an average KISS album, are recognisable and foot tapping at their best. The lyrics are repetitive and for the most part inane. The opening tracks "I Want You" and "Take Me" are the best examples of those songs here. They aren't terrible, they just aren't particularly exciting either.
It is somewhat of a surprise that a track like "Calling Dr. Love" makes the grade. In the end it is one of Gene's best tracks in that he derives enough attitude in his vocals to drive the song when the guitars fail to do their job. It should have been a much more pro-active song with the dual guitars, but in the long run it survives in popularity on the back of Gene's vocals. Who ever thought that would happen?
"Ladies Room" is one of the dud tracks available. The vocals can't hold this song. It is just an average track. "Baby Driver" sounds great, with the band doing everything right, but the repetitive vocals kill the mood about halfway through the song, which is a shame.
The second half of the album doesn't do a lot to redeem the first half. "Love 'Em and Leave 'Em" again over indulges in the repetitive chorus line, which will work in a sing-along environment if the song is strong enough to hold it. Again, I think the first half of the song works well, before it just fades out to a whimper. "Mr. Speed" has some very Rolling Stones sounding riffs and melodies running through it, so much so that I almost expect to hear Mick Jagger singing the vocals. Sadly I think the Stones could have done more with the song also. The short and sharp "See You in Your Dreams" tries to up the tempo, though the basic lyrics again seem to halt the efforts of the musical side of the song.
Just for good measure, the band then throws us another curve ball, as Peter Criss serves up his Rod Stewart impersonation with "Hard Luck Woman". For a band that often tried to claim it was ground breaking and cutting edge, the number of songs on this album that sound like replicas of other 1970's-era rock songs is amusing. Again though, Rod Stewart would have done this better. The album is completed by "Makin' Love", which while again implementing a similar repeating theme lyrically does at least provide more energy than most of the songs that precede it, closing the album on an upbeat note that decries those levels for the majority of the record.

Lyrically we all know where Kiss spent most of its headspace. In the cases where their collective tongues are stuck firmly in their cheek, then they can get away with a certain level of mediocrity. Here on Rock and Roll Overthere is little that stands out from the collective as outstanding material, leaving the album to wade in the waves of averageness.

Rating: "So if you please get on your knees, there are no bills, there are no fees". 2.5/5

737. KISS / Love Gun. 1977. 3.5/5

In my experience with the band – and don’t get me wrong, I love the band in all of its era’s and enjoy pretty much everything they have ever released – I still find that KISS tend to have an unnerving ability to write albums that are so uneven that it makes it hard to listen to, review or rate without bias. Apart from what I consider to be three or four outstanding exceptions, this could well be true of every KISS album. And, for me at least, It most certainly is the case with “Love Gun”, an album with two or three brilliant songs, mixed with some songs that almost defy explanation. Then it becomes a question as to whether the love of the band outweighs the possible unevenness of the tracks on the album, because if you desperately desire to, you can always find a way to make an album feel as though it is better than it perhaps in reality is.
“Love Gun” came on the back of some pretty heady years for the band. Their double live album “Alive!” had risen them from a good band with reasonable popularity to supergroup status, and this was followed up by the amazing “Destroyer” album that kicked them into the stratosphere. “Rock and Roll Over” came next and had great sales as well, and the band was flying. Their coverage seemed to be everywhere, on radio and TV, and the stage get up and personas only increased their interest. Something they didn’t have at this stage was a number one album in the US, and going into the studio that was something that was on all four band members minds.

When it comes to the songs here on “Love Gun”, I really believe that the good is brilliant. The opening track "I Stole Your Love" kicks everything off in the right direction, a jaunty rocking number of the type that Paul Stanley does so well. Just a great opening track. This is immediately followed by the much more sappy and less energetic "Christine Sixteen", which apart from the song's lyrics can just end up annoying you with the repeated ‘Christine Sixteen’ words from Gene, which are then repeated again by the other three members. This, along with Gene’s quite provocative spoken word in the middle of the song makes it a pretty creepy kind of song listening to in the 2020’s. It’s a tough one to completely love, but it is one of those songs that I mentioned earlier that you tolerate because of the band and not for the song’s greatness. And I do. I don’t know what it is about it… well, yes I do. It is quintessentially Kiss. And if you love Kiss you will like the song. Another Gene song "Love For Sale" is next, and it holds itself up better until the last minute of the song, where we just hear "I've got Love For Sale" over and over. That's great Gene, sell away, just come up with a less pop song ending to your song. Again, I enjoy this but through somewhat gritted teeth.
Ace Frehley's first lead vocal track, his own number "Shock Me" is a good song that is probably made a little average by the fact that he is singing it. Written about his own electrocution on stage on the previous tour, apparently he wrote it for Gene to sing, who then suggested he do it himself. Personally I think Paul singing it with enthusiasm would have made it a much better track. "Tomorrow and Tonight" closes out side one (for those that remember vinyl) on an upward note. Once again Paul's ability to write a track that gets you rocking is highlighted here. Apparently it was supposed to be this album’s “Rock and Roll All Nite”, but it certainly doesn’t reach those heights.
More is to come with Paul's title track. "Love Gun" is the best song on the album, and is still one of my favourite KISS songs. This is the moneyshot when it comes to this album. Gene’s bass line through the song is probably the highlight for me, it plays off Paul’s vocals superbly. Still one of the greatest ever Kiss songs. Peter Criss's solo vocals of "Hooligan" is another to add to the good songs category, but there is more unevenness in "Almost Human" and "Plaster Caster". They're not top shelf, but not complete losses either.
The pièce de résistance is the final song on the album, a cover version of The Crystals' 1963 pop song "Then He Kissed Me", reverse gendered to be "Then She Kissed Me". Now, I do not like the original song, so I may be biased from the start. But this version lacks any great enthusiasm, it hasn't been improved, and it feels as though it is forced. The question is, why is it on this album in the first place? Did they need one more song, had no ideas, and then just threw this on there? I don't know what the answer is, but I really, REALLY dislike what they have done here. It ends the album on a sour note that is hard to take. I’d almost settle for a power ballad...

How do you rate an album that probably has as much average material on it than absolute gems? I guess it depends on how often you play it, and how you are able to ignore the ordinary to get through to the brilliant. It may not be their best overall, but there are those timeless great songs on here that just keep you coming back for more. This album in particular gained a lot of late support with the release of the 1999 movie “Detroit Rock City”, which focused on a bunch of mates trying to get to a Kiss concert. “Love Gun was the album focused on it the opening scenes, and the opening credits rolled with the title track blazing over the top.
“Love Gun” was one of the first Kiss albums that I heard regularly. My older cousin was a huge Kiss fan in the days this was released, and the room he lived in at our grandmother’s in those days was covered in Kiss posters, and he would play this and “Destroyer” very loud from his bedroom. At the time I didn’t really get it, but when hard rock and metal music began to take hold of my senses a few years later it was Kiss and this album that again came into focus.
As you can probably imagine with many Kiss songs and albums, as they get older they tend to date a bit, perhaps more in subject matter than the music. But as I’ve said, I’ve known this album for a very long time, and it was easy to love it for what it is at the age I grew up with it. On occasions now when I listen to it I may offer the odd cringe moment – especially that closing track, I mean, really, what the hell were they thinking of with that? But for me “Love Gun” remains one of the band’s highlights, and is one of those albums that I didn’t listen to a lot in the process of recording this podcast episode, because I still put it on more often than not all these years later, because it is one of the classics.

510. Kiss / Hotter Than Hell. 1974. 3/5

In February of 1974 Kiss had released their self-titled debut album, rising on the back of their hard touring schedule and the marketability of their costumes and make up which were beginning to give the band some traction. Touring on the back of the album’s release saw them gain a core following, something that their management and record company looked to take advantage of. With this in mind, just six months after that debut album’s release, Kiss, was back in the studio, writing and recording the follow up album. In the modern day and age, it seems like a ludicrously short time between albums. Releasing albums every year must have been difficult enough, but creating another album in a timespan shorter than that surely would create some problems. In recent episodes of this podcast, we have seen the result of bands who have had to create new material under such time constraints as this, and the general feeling about those albums is that, given a little more time to compose and refine the material those albums may have ended up being better than they were.
Kenny Kerner and Richie Wise were again chosen as producers, but as they had just relocated to Los Angeles, the New York based band followed them to the west coast, something that didn’t take long to not sit well with them. They were out of their comfort zone, something that may have affected their mindset in that regard.
How much pressure would have been on the band to come up with an album that could be a worthy follow up to their debut just months after they had finished recording that album? To know now, looking back, at the number of iconic tracks that album contains, it feels as though it was always going to be a difficult proposition. Added to relocating to unknown territory to record the next album, the whole situation in retrospect looks as though it was a pressure cooker. IN fact, one might say that it was “Hotter Than Hell”

This album has been described as moody and darker than the debut album, and in a way that is channelled by the plodding pace of many of the tracks here as well. “Got to Choose” leads off that way, Gene’s bass taking prominence, and Paul’s vocals are in his lower range than his best tracks where he hits the high range which in most cases brings the enjoyment to the song. Here it is a slower and less energetic start to the album, brightened by Ace’s guitar solo through the middle of the song. “Goin’ Blind” is a reworking of a Wicked Lester song, that musically drags the mood down to the depths and the lyrical content about a romance between a 16 year old girl and 93 year old man hardly engendering itself to anyone. The title track on this studio album mirrors the opening song, barely getting out of second gear as the music plods along to a morbid drum beat and Paul’s vocals not being pushed at all. When it has been played live it always sound better, but the bones of the track remain as a slow tempo mood stomper.
The one major exception to this is “Parasite”, probably not surprisingly written by Ace given what is happening around this song on the album. It brightens up the album immediately after the slow start and jumps out of the speakers at you as one of the top shelf songs from the album. Ace’s guitaring is fabulous, and Gene’s vocals are at their best with the galloping beat. Ace wrote three songs on this album, handing one each to the other band members to take on the lead vocals of the track. His confidence in his own vocals at this point in time was visibly low. In the case of “Parasite” at least, the choice of Gene to sing it is perfect. Alongside this, the middle album tracks of “Let Me Go, Rock ‘N Roll” and “All the Way” show some enterprise and energy. “Let Me Go, Rock ‘N Roll” has a 1950’s rock and roll sound to it, with Ace’s guitar shadowing that era’s sound during his riff and solo, and Gene again getting up front and energetic in his vocals. It is only a little over two minutes in length, but it is a good pick me up. “All the Way” is a typically upbeat Gene song to follow it, with great support vocals during the chorus and another Ace special in the solo section. And yet another Gene song “Watchin’ You” follows in the same wake with a great drum beat from Peter helping to drive the track. After the downside mood in the first third of the album this middle section lifts the album, even if lyrically it isn’t Shakespearean.
“Mainline” is written by Paul but sung by Peter, and this combination gives the song a very early 70’s contemporary sound. At times Peter sounds like great Australian rocker Billy Thorpe, and on this song the resemblance is almost uncanny. This is followed by “Comin’ Home” with Gene’s bass line coming through as a dominant force, and Paul’s vocals sounding the most Paul-like for the album. One thing that is unusual on this album is that of the ten tracks, Gene sings five, Peter two, and Paul only three. “Strange Ways” is the second of those Peter sung tracks, with a tempo reminiscent of the earlier tracks on the album. Musically it is a strange choice to close out the album. Reverting back to what had come at the top of the album, and then having an abrupt end to the song and therefore the album, feels like a less than satisfactory conclusion.

Yes! It’s Kiss again! And my entry story remains the same. (I wonder if my cousin David ever actually listened to my podcast – which he definitely won’t - if he would actually remember his days living at our grandmothers and his walls covered in Kiss posters and me outside his bedroom door listening to him playing these albums at high volume...).
Anyway... yes... a foray from my cousin, to the singles on the radio and “Crazy Nights”. Most of you will know the story by now. And the discovery of the 1970’s albums was what came after all that. And when I started going back for those albums, there were some that grabbed me immediately, fastened themselves onto me, and clung on for dear life. And there were others that... just didn’t make the cut. “Hotter Than Hell” was certainly one of the latter. Through no fault of its own, it didn’t have the components that I was looking for in a Kiss album by the time I got around to listening to it. I like music with a good tempo, with energy. I like the vocals to be expressing themselves, not just going through the motions. And for the most part here, “Hotter Than Hell” can’t offer that. Compared to others such as the debut album and then “Dressed to Kill” and “Destroyer”, it was less enticing. I did listen to the album when I got it, but in the queue to be the Kiss album I chose to listen to when that desire came, it was a long way back.
As I have had my CD copy back in the stereo over the last couple of weeks, I have wondered if I would feel differently about this album if I had been old enough to listen to it when it was released, rather than trying to come to terms with it in a future time. And I still come to the same conclusion, even after giving this another dozen or so at least listens for this episode. That of those first four albums in particular, this is the weakest, where the material overall just doesn’t compare to those other three albums. And my tastes also want those opening songs to be faster and more energetic, such as they would have played them live on stage. Because then I think they would have all sounded far better than they do here.
In conclusion? I don’t mind “Hotter Than Hell”. Perhaps I have sounded harsher here than I need to be, and that is just my own musical bias coming through. In the Kiss catalogue, this is not a top 10 album. For me it is probably nearer the bottom than the top. That doesn’t make it a bad album, just one that I find less great than others. Far better was just around the corner for the band, including the live album that was to be the single greatest influence on their fortunes for the rest of their career.

508. Kiss / Hot in the Shade. 1989. 3/5

Since the band had decided to go sans-makeup, and with a couple of departures from the band, the line up of Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Bruce Kulick and Eric Carr had been able to create a solid foursome, and in the process through the mid-1980's had recorded and released albums that began to bring the fan base back to the band. “Animalize”, “Asylum” and “Crazy Nights” had not only increased record sales around the world, but also produced singles that had attracted attention on the charts both in the US and worldwide.
There is a deliberate step away from the synth driven tracks that the band delivered on “Crazy Nights” to what is composed here for “Hot in the Shade”. Whether the band through its two main writers in Stanley and Simmons could feel the wind of change in the air, and were looking to steer the band into the faster waters in open to question. What is obvious is that, in the same way that many bands were looking for a more stripped down sound when it came to their albums as the 80’s decade was about to close out, Kiss were thinking along the same lines. That didn’t mean toning down any of the vocals in the way they had been performed in the band’s history, but with the guitars at least being doused down to a more basic level. Bruce Kulick, in his article review of the album on its 25th anniversary, mentioned that to further this effect, the band elected to use the demos they recorded and polish them up via overdubs instead of re-recording the songs. This was not information that was about in the days when the album was released, but with hindsight, it actually explains a lot about the album and the sound it has. Given that Kiss albums have almost always been highly produced, in order to give them the glossiest finish they could possibly have, this decision by the album's producers, who also happened to be Stanley and Simmons, on the surface appears to be a measured one. It could also explain why they decided to have 15 songs on this album, perhaps unable to decide which songs perhaps needed to be removed at the end of the production. Whatever the case may have been, this was an album with a change in direction, with these ingredients coming out of the oven with the title of “Hot in the Shade”.

This album has 15 tracks on it, which is a lot. The most of any Kiss album. One of the longest of any Kiss albums at almost an hour in length. For a band that had spent their career writing catchy songs that sit in that 3.5 to 4.5 minute range, this album is a real extension of that. The song lengths remain the same, the number of songs does not. And the writer combinations on “Hot in the Shade” are like a who’s who of Kiss song writers. Co-writers on songs on this album include the ever-present hit maker Desmond Child, Bob Halligan Jr who had helped write with Judas Priest and many other bands in the past, future Kiss guitarist Tommy Thayer, and former Kiss producer and composer Vini Poncia, along with Bruce Kulick and Eric Carr as well. These writers all swapped and jumped around with Stanley and Simmons to help create the album that this became. And it all became very much split down the middle vocally, with Paul singing lead on seven songs and Gene also singing lead on seven songs, with the other sung by Eric.
All of this leads to the question as to how the direction of the album could be maintained with so many outside influences coming into the album. Obviously, Paul and Gene were still the main songwriters and would have kept a strong hold on the reins, but then to listen to the album does raise the odd eyebrow.
I mean, what is with the slide guitar opening to the album as a part of “Rise to It”? Are we going for a Bon Jovi sound now? Is that the direction Kiss wanted to take? Fortunately, it is all a sham as the song breaks out into the kind of song that Kiss has made a living out of writing and performing. Double down on this for “Betrayed” which follows the same course, in a typical Gene vocalled track and the heavier drum and bass rhythm throughout that always provide the best Simmons led songs. Then we have “Hide Your Heart”, written by Paul along with Desmond Child and Holly Knight during the “Crazy Night” sessions, but not used until this album. Of course, it was also recorded by several other artists in this 12 month period, including former guitarist Ace Frehley! As I mentioned in that episode, I prefer Ace’s version of the song to this one, but this version still has good qualities.
The middle section of side one of the album levels off a tad, with songs that don’t truly grab the attention you would expect of a Kiss album. Gene and Bruce’s “Prisoner of Love” has an upbeat vibe about it but never really takes off, Paul and Bob’s “Read My Body” sounds like a Def Leppard rip off song, and Gene and Vini’s “Love’s a Slap in the Face” sounds like something Gene has experienced a few times in his life, and the drum machine taking the place of Eric Carr is a terrible decision.
“Forever” is the single off this album that charted higher than any other for Kiss during their non-makeup years, reaching number 8 on the US charts. It was co-written by Stanley and Michael Bolton – yes, that Michael Bolton. And yes, you guessed it, it is a sugar sweet power ballad, so much so that you can almost hear Bolton singing the chorus himself. Like I said, it was a hit, and it funnelled fans into buying this album, so you can’t really blame them, can you? Or even suggest it should have been the first song cut off the album. Can you? This is followed by “Silver Spoon” that is a far better track, much more on the Kiss plane, and ends the first half of the album on a high note.
The second side of the album dishes up more atypical songs from the writers as you would expect. Paul’s tracks have the more commercial sound, the songs that could be hits about himself, such as “King of Hearts” written with Poncia. He sings in a different style on “You Love Me to Hate You”, and it sounds as if he is trying to change things up, which for me doesn’t really work. Gene’s have the attitude he likes to bring through in his vocals, but with a very 70’s style in “Cadillac Dreams”, the street-smarts and De Niro like portrayal in “The Street Giveth and the Street Taketh Away”, and one of his weaker efforts lyrically and musically in “Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell”. “Little Caesar” is co-written with Eric Carr and another Kiss writing alumni in Adam Mitchell, a song which Eric also sings, and again has 70’s tinges about it (tell me the bass riff isn’t from Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition”). The album is then closed out by Gene’s “Boomerang”, one of the most upbeat songs of the album, which at least give it some momentum as its finally reaches its conclusion.

As I related in the previous episode of this podcast, this album came out within days of Ace Frehley’s “Trouble Walkin’” album, and it was this one that I plumped for when I went to my record store to load up on a new album. I adored “Crazy Nights” - still do – and I was pumped to hear what the band was going to offer me as a follow up. Well, it wasn’t “Crazy Nights”, and I still remember the intense disappointment that I had over what I heard when I listened to it over those first couple of weeks. It was a different style to that 80’s synth-based rhetoric that “Crazy Nights” gave us, and obviously at that moment in time, that was not what I wanted from Kiss. Many years later I dragged it out again, and though I was not averse to what I heard, it still had nothing that interested me.
Flash forward another few years, to a decade ago, and I had begun to start working my way through band discographies again, looking for albums I may have underappreciated in the past. And I came to Kiss and felt my way through their albums in order of release. And having once again gone through complete joy on reaching “Crazy Nights”, I came to “Hot in the Shade” with trepidation. Could this album convert me to what it has to offer, or was it destined to continue its life on the shelves collecting dust for eternity? The short answer is, I found more than I had in the past, mostly because now I wasn’t trying to judge it against the other albums I was listening to at the time. The style of song on this album had definitely changed again which I still know is why it threw me for a loop back in 1989, but the album was now better to listen to.
To the past few weeks, and “Hot in the Shade” has come out of its CD case again (my original vinyl copy having been lost in that flood from 24 years ago) and has been doing the rounds at work and at home. And it hasn’t been a difficult task, but it also hasn’t been an easy one. Most of the albums I review for this podcast are ones that I really enjoy listening to while I am in the zone, and some become firm favourites for a time after I am done with the episode. “Hot in the Shade” was not one of those albums. It was a tough slog. Is there a case to be made that this album needed to be shorter, that the band could have put a line through a few songs to bring it back to say 45 minutes, thus not only making it an entertaining listen but just cutting out some of the chaff from the wheat?
There are some catchy songs and some tracks that are fine to listen to, but overall it just tends to drag out. Is it uninspiring? Is it the multitude of writers? Is it just that in 1989 the band didn’t quite fit the profile of what was going on? Or is it just an average album. Given my history with the album, and the fact that I have just never ever been able to get on board with it, I would suggest that... it is just an average album. I can listen to this album, and have done for this episode, but I gain no inspiration from it like I do so many of the band’s albums and songs. How I felt about it 35 years ago is pretty much how I still feel about it today.

256. KISS / Dynasty. 1979. 3/5.

Riding on the crest of the wave of enormous popularity, Kiss had spent the 12 months prior to this album’s production moving in different directions, looking to find a way to continue the cash train that had been barrelling them along over recent years. After the release of the “Alive II” album, all four members of the band had gone off on their own and recorded their own solo projects, all of which were released on the same day in September 1978. The episodes for all four of those albums can be found in Season 5 of this podcast for your listening pleasure. Kiss's commercial popularity was at its peak by 1978, and the band’s manager Bill Aucoin felt that the cycle of album releases and touring had taken Kiss as far as they could go, and that it was time to elevate the group's image to the next level. He came up with a plan to make a movie starring the band as themselves but superheroes, a process that began with the 1977 release of a Kiss comic book. The band agreed, no doubt seeing further fame and dollars as a result. It culminated in “Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park”, a film that ultimately the band hated as they felt that it made them look like ‘buffoons’ in their own words. What had begun as the band’s next step toward total domination had turned into a setback, despite the cult following the film has found in the years since.
The release of the band’s first best-of compilation album “Double Platinum” became a smash hit, and so all that was left for the band to do from this point, was to come together, and write and record a new album. Was there pressure on the band at this point of their career? The six studio albums they had released up to this point in time were continuing to sell around the world, and the popularity of the group was unquestioned. And although the music world was beginning to swing on its axis, with equal parts of disco and punk revolving into a surge in heavy metal, was the Kiss sound one that could be retained, or was it time for it to be tweaked?

For anyone of my generation, everyone knows the opening bassline to the album, the song that, in Australia at least, caught the imagination of everyone aged 6-26. “I Was Made for Lovin’ You”, whether you are a Kiss fan or not, is a song that is burned into everyone’s psyche of that generation. That running bass riff, the middle of the track drum solo into Paul’s guitar riff, the joining of Gene on bass again and then Ace’s short sharp fired solo. The lyrics that you can’t help singing along with. All of it is iconic. Sure, the segueing with the disco era had become more of a problematic talking point with the hard core fans at the time, but as a kid, I just loved it.
The cover of the Rolling Stones song “2000 Man” – not something I realised until long after I had enjoyed this album over and over – is a great exhibition of Ace Frehley’s vocal range. No doubt invigorated after his solo album, Ace sounds great ere, and the song for me is a favourite. I love his guitaring on this song as well. Like I said, I just assumed this was a Kiss song for some years.
The second single on the album is “Sure Know Something”, another long time crowd favourite that still sounds great on this album but is definitely in its element when played live, and just ramped up slightly in tempo and energy. “Dirty Livin’” is the Peter Criss contribution to the album, and when I say that I mean ‘contribution’. Peter wrote the song, and sang the lead vocals, but it is also the only song on the album that Peter actually played drums on. Criss was hindered by injuries to his hands that he had suffered in a 1978 car accident, although there were also rumoured to be other problems with drugs and alcohol that may have contributed to a decline in his skills. Anton Fig, who had played on the Ace Frehley solo album, was brought in, and played drums on all other tracks on the album apart from this one.
The second side of the album doesn’t have quite the same magic as the first, but still has its moments. Gene’s “Charisma” is what you expect from a Simmons penned track, with a solid rhythm and sordid vocal line throughout. “Magic Touch” is written by Paul alone, and comparing it to the two singles on the first side of the album which he had co-writers in Desmond Child and disco producer Vini Poncia, it lacks something that makes both of those songs memorable. “Hard Times” is the second Ace song, and again I really enjoy this. It has the hard rock edge that make his contributions so enjoyable. Once again, his vocals are great, and his riff and solo are both great. Gene returns with “X-Ray Eyes”, another atypical Simmons song with his charismatic vocals and lurid lyrics, but with a nice mix of the guitars and some keyboards. The album concludes with Ace’s “Save Your Love”, which does not touch the heights of his previous contributions. His almost-talking vocal lines during the verses don’t do it for me, it feels weak, and there is a too dominant vocal backing from Paul and Gene that just doesn’t mix as well. It’s a slightly disappointing end.
It is interesting how this became Kiss’s ‘disco’ album. Peter’s song had been updated to a modern sound, which then tended to affect some of the direction this album took. Apparently Paul and Gene had spoken to producer Giorgio Moroder leading up to this album, before deciding to call in Vini Poncia to produce “Dynasty”. Poncia had produced Peter’s solo album, and also helped compose “I Was Made for Lovin’ You”, all of which created the disco album hype that “Dynasty” has since resided in.

Remember how I first heard Kiss? C’mon. Surely you have all heard the previous episodes on this podcast of all of the Kiss albums that I have done? If you haven't, well go back now and listen to them immediately! So, as you all know I first discovered Kiss through my eldest cousin, who had taken up residency at my grandmother’s house and had plastered his walls with Kiss memorabilia as well as playing Kiss albums at the highest volumes possible. It was the early 1980’s, and he was obsessed.
My greatest memory of this album is of course the lead single “I Was Made For Loving You”, and back in the day in 5th and 6th class in primary school we used to have a school dance at the end of the year in the last week of school for all the Year 5 and Year 6 students. At the end of that particular dance the teachers would… enforce… a dance contest where you and your partner, who you had been corralled into asking to BE your partner, usually against her will, would dance to particular songs and you would be marked as to how good you were. At this dance, my partner, who will never ever listen to this podcast so I can safely say that she was MOST disappointed that I always chose her, whose name is Stephanie Hill and I eventually came to be the Champions of that dance contest. And the song that we danced to was “I Was Made For Loving You”, and for that win I won a cheese stick and a packet of Toobs chips. And since that day I have used the Jerry Seinfeld-ism… “I choose not to dance!”
I didn't actually get this album until after I left high school, when I was going back to chase all of those old Kiss releases, and it was one of those albums that was difficult to get into at the time, mainly because I was listening to thrash metal rather than just Hard Rock, and because in the long run how many great songs are there on this album? Some would say just two and some would say none. But apart from the opening track and of course the big single “Sure Know Something”, sometimes it's difficult to imagine that this album was a great one. It is often held up as Kiss’s disco album, which in the long run is only accurate for a couple of the songs.
Flash forward to the current day and I have been listening to this album for a number of weeks leading up to this podcast episode, mainly to get my own facts straight in my head because as to how I feel about it in 2024. Because over the years when I’ve pulled this off the shelves to have another listen, I’ve always enjoyed it. It's easy to just go with the flow and say that “Dynasty” is only an average album, but for the most part I've always found this album to be very listenable and enjoyable. Whether that is because there is more of Ace Frehley being utilised on this album which makes it a change up for the band in that respect, or whether it's because at the time it was released I was coming to the end of my primary school years and this kind of album was one that was starting to attract my attention, I don't know what the answer is. If I was going to rate or rank Kiss albums then I know this probably wouldn't rank in my top 10, but I still believe this is a very listenable album for me and one that I can and have easily put on and enjoy without any qualms.
Did this album signal the end of the great first era of Kiss? In the long run that probably came on the album before, and this along with the next couple are perhaps the state of limbo as the band tried to work out exactly what it was going to do going forward. This was the end of Peter Criss's time as drummer with this album, and with Ace Frehley going by the wayside not long after there are certainly arguments made that this album along with the next couple of Kiss albums are being in that state of flux. However, while “Dynasty” may well be different from the remainder of the 1970’s Kiss albums and for some might not be considered as enjoyable, it certainly showed that Kiss was able to adapt to the situation that music was in at the time, and release an album that could still be popular and still draw in the masses at concerts. Sometimes it is hard to remember when Kiss WASN’T able to do this.