The Good & The Bad: KISS (Non-Original Lineup Studio Albums)

        A few weeks back I did a run-through of the Kiss studio albums made by the original line-up (for the most part, at least). So I figured that now it made sense to also go over all of the other studio albums that Paul and Gene went on to make without Ace and Peter (again, for the most part). And just as a reminder; this review series does not involve any form of ranking, rating, etc. I just simply state the things I like and dislike regarding each entry.

So, without further ado, let’s just jump right in:

1.Music from “The Elder” (1981)

THE GOOD: So when I first listened to this album, I made the mistake of listening to the original track order that was mandated by the record label, against the band’s wishes, and didn’t like it at all. The reason that was a mistake on my part is because this is supposed to be a concept album, where the songs need to be heard in a specific sequence in order for the overall narrative to make sense. Thankfully, the band was able to eventually do a reissue of the album, with the correct order restored. I listened to that version shortly after, and instantly went from hating it to liking it. Is it as stellar as concept records made by the likes of Pink Floyd, Genesis, or The Who? No, of course not! But for those new to the whole concept album listening experience that may be looking for something a little “simpler” to digest, this is a solid starting point.

THE BAD: While I like the record overall, there are still a solid handful of clunker tunes on here that drag it down a bit, sadly. Paul’s “broadway” falsetto voice on tracks like Just A Boy still doesn’t really work for me. Odyssey goes on for way too long. And while I don’t mind the opening instrumental Fanfare (it “sets the tone”), I can see it giving most listeners a pretty bad first impression, and sometimes, first impressions really are everything…

2.Creatures of the Night (1982)

THE GOOD: Whoa! Holy crap… Now we’re talking! After the band’s last few records were poorly received (despite being looked back on as cult classics now), they decided to return to their hard rock roots here, and the result is fantastic! Also, as diehard fans know, while Ace appears on the cover art, he actually doesn’t play on this album at all, as he had already decided to quit after The Elder. Therefore, Paul and Gene decided to use this record as an opportunity to secretly “audition” various potential replacements. All of the uncredited guitarists who play on here were definitely determined to bring their A-game to the table, and it shows! All of the guitar work on this album is absolutely top-notch!

THE BAD: The song Saint & Sinner is definitely the weak link here (it grew on me, though). Also, the track Keep Me Comin’ sounds a bit like a Led Zeppelin ripoff, but a good Led Zeppelin ripoff, at least! Similarly, Killer is a ripoff of Highway Star by Deep Purple, but again, that never bothered me.

3.Lick It Up (1983)

THE GOOD: While Creatures received critical acclaim upon release, it still sold poorly, so the band wiped the makeup away to regain some public attention (shock value sells, after all) and made what could basically be seen as “Creatures 2.” Though not quite as strong as its predecessor, this is still a very solid release! And the guitar work is just as great as last time, Sadly, this is the only record to feature axeman Vinnie Vincent as a full member (which makes sense, since he's a raging asshole), but even though he was only in the band briefly, at least he made his time count.

THE BAD: The last three songs are all crap, and basically ruin what would otherwise be a perfect album, in my opinion. Funny enough, all three of those tracks happen to be written and sung by Gene, so it doesn’t surprise me that they suck, since this was around the start of when Gene prioritized his acting career over his music. As you could probably guess, the whole acting thing didn’t really work out for him, and by the time the 1990’s came around, he was back to focusing mostly on music (along with other business ventures, of course). Shame it took him that long to snap out of it… Another factor to take into account is the fact that, much like how Dynasty represented a shift towards appealing mainly to kids, this record represented a shift towards appealing more so than ever towards teens and adults, which only served to make things even more confusing than they already were!

4.Animalize (1984)

THE GOOD: The first two tracks, I’ve Had Enough (Into The Fire) and Heaven’s On Fire, serve as a solid start, and the rest of the songs all grew on me a bit over time too (expect While The City Sleeps, that shit still sucks).

THE BAD: While I no longer hate this record as much as I used to, it still feels a bit “flawed” to me. Why didn’t it work? I think part of it has to do with the fact that this was technically Paul’s first time producing on his own, and he clearly still had a lot to learn in that regard (the whole album sounds like shit, from a production perspective). Also, one-time guitarist Mark St. John (RIP), despite being talented, just didn’t fit with the band, I’m sorry to say. I’m not surprised that this ended up being his only outing with them…

5.Asylum (1985)

THE GOOD: After stumbling on Animalize, the band got back on track with this album. Paul improved a ton as a producer! Guitarist Bruce Kulick made his “official” debut here, and made sure to deliver the goods! The singles Who Wants To Be Lonely and especially Tears Are Falling are some of my favorite songs in the band’s entire catalog (terrible music videos, though, since the band outfits were atrocious during this era!). And there are plenty of other underrated tracks on here, most notably I’m Alive (seriously, why isn’t that one talked about more?!).

THE BAD: There are three tracks on here I don’t like. Two of them are Love Is A Deadly Weapon and Secretly Cruel, both of which are sung by Gene who, once again, was still phoning it in a bit at this point. The other track I dislike on here is Radar For Love which, like Keep Me Comin’ from Creatures, sounds like a Zeppelin ripoff, only this time, not a good one. Some of the other Gene songs like Any Way You Slice It and Trial By Fire aren’t necessarily bad, but still far from his best. Also, Uh! All Night is catchy, but a little too cheesy.

6.Crazy Nights (1987)

THE GOOD: So I actually avoided listening to this one for a long time cause I saw that it was ranked either dead-last or second-to-last on most people’s rankings, and I also heard it described as “Kiss Jovi” (and I’m not really a Bon Jovi person). I finally listened to it recently and while I understand why most people rank it so low, at the end of the day, I’d still much rather hear Gene and Paul sing than Jon Bon Jovi…

THE BAD: Aside from a few of the Gene songs (Hell Or High Water and Thief In The Night in particular), the rest of this record sounds very dated. Which is surprising, since Gene was apparently still focusing mainly on his movie career, at this point. I think on stuff like The Elder and Carnival of Souls, he was the one concerned with chasing trends, whereas on this record, it was Paul. Also, a bunch of label executives apparently gave this album a standing ovation when they first heard it. I guess I can see why it would’ve sounded cool way back in 1987, but it certainly hasn’t aged well…

7.Hot in the Shade (1989)

THE GOOD: This album, the last to fully feature drummer Eric Carr (RIP), is certainly a standout in the band’s catalog, with one of the biggest reasons being that it’s basically just a bunch of demo recordings with some “polish” on them. Most people would see this as a bad thing, but I actually kinda like it! The lo-fi quality helps the record to feel much more unique, when standing next to the rest of the band’s discography. This album also marks a nice return-to-form after Crazy Nights and those two god-awful bonus songs they did for that compilation in 1988!

THE BAD: At fifteen tracks in total, this record is certainly long in the tooth. Almost half of these songs would’ve fit better as b-sides, rather than album tracks proper, and Read My Body (a shameless ripoff of Def Leppard's Pour Some Sugar On Me) should've been deleted from existence altogether…

8.Revenge (1992)

THE GOOD: Damn! With Bob Ezrin returning to the producer chair, and Vinnie Vincent briefly back (as an outside songwriter), the band were able to recapture their “hard rock roots,” just like they did a decade earlier with Creatures (too bad neither record sold well, though). And once again, the result is fantastic! I love this album! It’s still not quite as strong as most of the makeup-era records, of course, but it comes pretty damn close, as far as I’m concerned! A nice return to form.

THE BAD: Parts of the song Spit sound like a ripoff of Led Zeppelin’s Whole Lotta Love, but that song was also a ripoff, so who cares? The only tracks I really dislike on here are Heart Of Chrome (who thought singing two different choruses at the same time was a good idea?) and Every Time I Look At You (most generic ballad ever). 

9.Carnival of Souls (1997)

THE GOOD: Recorded in early 1996, but shelved for a bit to avoid conflict with the original lineup reunion at that time, this is Kiss’s “grunge” album (they were still chasing trends, at this point). They even went as far as to recruit Toby Wright, producer of Alice in Chains’ seminal Dirt, which is funny since AiC have cited Kiss as an influence, in more ways than one. Most people see this record as a step too far, but I actually like it! Is it because I grew up on grunge? Probably, but at the end of the day, all I really care about is whether I like something or not. I try not to concern myself too much with the politics behind something…

THE BAD: Rain is a ripoff of AiC’s Rain When I Die, but once again, in this case, I don’t really care. There are only three tracks on here I truly dislike. Two of them are Childhood’s End and Seduction Of The Innocent (both sound really “desperate” to me). The other one is the closing track, I Walk Alone, which guitarist Bruce Kulick sings, and quite frankly, his voice sounds terrible. To be fair, I’ve never heard him sing anything else, so maybe his voice has improved since this recording…

10.Sonic Boom (2009)

THE GOOD: These last couple of records are gonna be hard for me to talk about cause they were made by “Scab Kiss.” For context, when the original lineup reunited in 1996, they also put the makeup back on. Eventually, Ace and Peter were replaced again by other people; the band’s tour manager Tommy Thayer and a returning Eric Singer, respectively. Only this time, Paul and Gene had the two of them maintain the makeup and costume designs that Ace and Peter once wore. I can only speak for myself, but I have very mixed feelings about this, but it would be too much to go through here, so I’ll save that for another day… As far as this album itself goes; I enjoy about half of the songs (mainly on the second side). I surprisingly like All For The Glory, which Eric sings. He did a good job capturing the “spirit” of Peter there, in my opinion.

THE BAD: Aside from Modern Day Delilah and Hot & Cold, all of the songs on the first side of this record sound like total trash. There’s also a song on the second side I dislike, and that’s When Lightning Strikes, which Tommy sings. Unlike Eric, I think he failed to capture the spirit of Ace (at least on this album in particular, he failed)…

11.Monster (2012)

THE GOOD: Wow… I can’t believe I’m saying this, but the “scabs” actually made a decent album here. Guess they needed to make a “practice record” in the form of Sonic Boom before finding their own chemistry as a band for this one. Even Tommy finally figured out how to properly capture Ace’s character on the track Outta This World, while Eric continued to channel Peter’s character on For The Love Of Rock & Roll. On top of that, Paul and Gene sound full of energy here! Even the bonus track Right Here, Right Now kicks ass! This ended up being the last studio album before the band announced their farewell tour (I’m pretty sure they mean it for real this time). Not a bad way to end things, I’d say…

THE BAD: Back To The Stone Age is a ripoff of MC5’s Kick Out The Jams, but once again, I don’t really mind. The only track I legit don’t like is The Devil Is Me. It’s not bad, necessarily, just kinda boring, is all… Also, I enjoy Wall Of Sound, for the most part, but I also feel like something is missing on that track, in particular…

So there you have it! Overall, I like all of these other versions of Kiss too. While I complained last time about Kiss “chasing trends,” in a way, I’m kinda glad they did so, particularly on these records. It allowed each release to “stand out,” while also showing the band’s persistence to grow and evolve. I respect them for that. It’s sad that none of the lineups ever got more recognition for their actual talent…

It was also while listening to these specific records, however, when I started to notice just how repetitive Kiss can be sometimes. The older records had this sense of repetition as well, but at least Ace and Peter were also there to “balance it out.” Eric Carr was a good vocalist too. I kinda wish they would’ve had him sing more, back in the day. Maybe that would’ve helped. Oh well. Too late now…

Peace!

The Good & The Bad: KISS (Original Lineup Studio Albums)

        I thought it’d be good to do some “fun” posts, while this blog is still in it’s infancy. With that, I welcome you to my new review series: The Good & The Bad!

In case the title didn’t make it clear, I’ll be discussing things I both like and dislike regarding a specific topic. Something that I feel isn’t highlighted often enough (at least not in my social sphere) is the fact that both positive and negative attributes can be found in, well, pretty much anything. I feel like there’s a lot of people that either blindly love something too much or blindly hate it too much (sometimes both). I’ve been guilty of this toxic thought process myself in the past, and part of my goal for this blog is to try to move myself as far away from that mindset as possible.

Furthermore, there will be no ratings, rankings, etc. I used to do rankings and whatnot all the time, but I’ve recently grown more towards the attitude that art can’t really be “quantified” like that. Besides, my opinions on things change often, so who am I to tell you what to like and what not to like?

Now that we got all of that out of the way, let’s dive into today’s topic; the hottest band in the land… Kiss!

Ah, Kiss… I remember the first time I laid eyes on these characters! It was the early 2000’s. I was a little kid, watching a copy of Austin Powers 2 on VHS that my parents had lying around (probably by accident), when suddenly a trailer for the Detroit Rock City film came on during the previews section of the tape. I remember being blown away by the very sight of Gene Simmons, but what blew my mind even more was the song that was playing; Rock And Roll All Nite…

And so, my fascination with this band began! Like most fans, however, I went through my “phase” of thinking of them as a joke when I was a teenager. Now as an adult, however, I’ve learned to appreciate them and what they represent for rock history more than ever. Not only that, but with more time on my hands during quarantine now, I’ve actually made the effort to explore all of their albums in full for the first time ever (I had only really been familiar with the hit singles before). And fuck, was I missing out!

Many people seem to think of this band as nothing more than a “gimmick” with a few good songs here and there, but once you take the time to actually dive deep into their work, you begin to realize that they’re so much more than that! As a matter of fact, I chose this band specifically as my first to review in the hopes that I can highlight their massively underrated catalog to at least one other person out there (if not more than one).

For today, we will just be looking at the studio albums from the original lineup. I’ll probably go through the non-original lineup albums, the 1978 solo albums, and the live albums (or at least the Alive! ones) in separate posts. Before we begin, however, there are a few quick caveats to address:

1. Yes, I know Peter Criss only plays on one song on Dynasty and no songs on Unmasked, and he and Ace only play on a couple of songs on Psycho Circus. However, those were all still “marketed” as original lineup studio albums, hence why I am including them here.

2. Like with many rock bands from times of old, some of Kiss’s lyrical content can be seen by today’s standards as a little bit, well, “racy” (for lack of a better term). My advice to those exploring their deep cuts for the first time would be to just not really take any of it too seriously, in that regard (it was a different time, after all).

3.Yes, I know these guys are pretty much all assholes, in some way or another. Newsflash: We all have flaws. Sometimes you just gotta separate the art from the artist…

So, now that we finally have all of that out of the way, let’s jump right in!

1.Kiss (1974)

THE GOOD: Every song on here (yes, even the controversial cover of Kissing Time and the bizarre instrumental Love Theme From Kiss) showcases a promising start to a great and important legacy!

THE BAD: Some songs here probably sound a little too similar to one another. That being said, this is still one of my favorite studio albums of theirs.

2.Hotter Than Hell (1974)

THE GOOD: They wanted to get heavy, and heavy they got! Some of my favorite tracks are on here (the title track, Parasite, Watchin’ You and Strange Ways, just to name a few). In some ways, this album can be seen as a “grunge prototype,” of sorts.

THE BAD: While I particularly enjoy the “proto-grunge” production style on this record, I could see it being a bit of a turnoff for some. Thankfully, a good portion of these songs were redone for the acclaimed “live” album Alive! (1975) with much better production, courtesy of Eddie Kramer.

3.Dressed To Kill (1975)

THE GOOD: Once again, some of the band’s best songs are on here (Come On And Love Me, She, Rock And Roll All Nite, etc.), but they would all go on to sound much better on Alive!. This album also features the underrated gem Love Her All I Can, which unfortunately never appeared anywhere else.

THE BAD: The writing and recording process of this entire album was rushed due to tight record label demands, which led to a very “raw” production that may be off-putting at first (it grows on you, though!).

4.Destroyer (1976)

THE GOOD: After finally achieving success with Alive!, the band needed to prove that they could get “big and epic” in the studio as well, and with the help of producer Bob Ezrin, they pulled it off! As a matter of fact, I even kinda like the “weird” songs on here like Great Expectations and the minute-long “satanic” track Rock And Roll Party. Sure, the album is a little too “commercial,” and not really an authentic representation of the band’s “true” sound, but still a solid “entry point” for general audiences who may be trying to get into the band for the first time... Oh, also, check out the Destroyer: Resurrected remix album from 2011. In some ways, I actually like that version better than the original one!

THE BAD: Many die hard fans would argue that Ezrin’s influence prevented this record from sounding like “true Kiss.” Personally, I feel like this was absolutely the type of record they needed to make after Alive!, but I can only speak for myself, I guess.

5.Rock And Roll Over (1976)

THE GOOD: While I think some people these days are too hard on Destroyer, I’m still glad it was poorly received when it first came out, or else we wouldn’t have ever gotten this brilliant follow-up. Basically, it was here on this album where the band found a way to combine the “raw” sound of their earlier records with some of the songwriting techniques that they had learned with Ezrin on Destroyer, proving to everyone that they could deliver the best of both “feels.” One need look no further than the seminal ballad Hard Luck Woman, which is pretty much what Beth would’ve sounded like had it been done for one of the earlier albums, instead of Destroyer. Nearly all of the other tracks on here kick ass in pretty much the same way.

THE BAD: Love ’Em and Leave ’Em is a little boring.

6.Love Gun (1977)

THE GOOD: Almost everything that was great about Rock And Roll Over was carried over onto this album. Furthermore, we finally got to here Ace on lead vocals, and what better way to introduce his voice to the world than on the flagship track Shock Me!

THE BAD: In ways I can’t quite explain, you can kinda already hear the band “dying” a little bit on this LP. After all, this was the last full album that all four original members actually made together, and honestly, I’m not surprised. I don’t know what it is, but there was just some sort of “chemistry” that they had on all previous albums that just isn’t quite as palpable on this one… Oh, also, whoever had the idea of including the gender-bent cover Then She Kissed Me on here needs to be punished!

7.Dynasty (1979)

THE GOOD: An album chock-full of guilty pleasures (for me, at least)!

THE BAD: Unfortunately, this album also marks the start of when Kiss began trying way too hard to market themselves to little kids (well, technically the Phantom of the Park movie and the comic series and merch that started running a year prior was the start of that, but this is where the phase began as far as the albums are concerned). From this point onward, it seemed as though they didn't really know who their audience was anymore. Furthermore, this album also marked the start of when Kiss began trying (and again, way too hard) to chase whatever genre was “trendy” at the time. That meant trying to go disco, for this album in particular. If you’re one of those people that absolutely loathes disco, then this album probably isn’t gonna work for you.

8.Unmasked (1980)

THE GOOD: There’s a few good tracks here and there… The songs Easy As It Seems and Naked City have always been favorites of mine, in particular, and tracks like Shandi and What Makes The World Go ‘Round are guilty pleasures.

THE BAD: The thin production leaves a lot to be desired. Also, all of the lyrics here are extremely cheesy, even by Kiss standards! The “cheesy-ness” of the lyrics on all the previous albums felt intentional (as if the band was “in on the joke”). Here, almost all of the lyrics are just downright embarrassing! Even Ace feels like he’s being forced to sing lines that sound more “poppy” than what he would really like to be singing...

9.Psycho Circus (1998)

THE GOOD: This “reunion” album of the original lineup has some underrated gems; those being the title track, the song that Ace sings, the song that ripped off Alice Cooper, the closing track, and the Japanese bonus track.

THE BAD: Unfortunately, the rest of the songs sound like a bunch of failed attempts at trying to be the Kiss version of Queen’s We Are The Champions. Don’t get me wrong, I like that song… But not when Kiss is trying to do their own “version” of it, let alone six times in a row! Different band members blame different people for this. I don't know who to believe anymore, and at this point, I don't really care.

So there we have it! All in all, the original lineup of Kiss is a band that started out very strong, but unfortunately lost the plot, and then never quite found it again. Nevertheless, their good records are really good, and definitely deserve a spin! If you were a skeptical non-believer before, hopefully this post has helped you to recognize the fact that maybe this band is actually more than “just a gimmick,” as everyone says.

Peace!

Welcome to Thoughts On Anything!

So who else here is starting to go crazy from quarantine fatigue? Yeah, me too. And if you’re like me, you probably hit a point in your life now where you told yourself “Fuck, I need to do something already!” I reached that point not too long ago, and now here we are.

So, that being said, welcome to my new blog! As you could tell by the title, this is going to be a space where I talk about, well, anything! Whatever’s on my mind, really.

For now, I plan to start with a bunch of posts related to pop culture, as it has come to define a huge part of my life up until now (as I’m sure it also has for many others). Currently, my plan is to alternate back and forth between posts about movies and posts about music, where I analyze particular subjects in either topic. Not sure how frequently I’ll post. I would like to aim for every weekend, but it may be a little less frequently than that. We shall see!

As the blog evolves, I imagine I will eventually move away from the pop culture stuff and dive into more psychology-themed topics that are far more personal. Only time will tell, though. Funny enough, I originally wasn’t planning on launching this blog series this soon, as I had another project I was hoping to finish first:

I’m an aspiring writer of fiction, and I’ve recently been working to finish up a collection of very short stories that I hope to self-publish via Amazon. At the time of writing this very post, I only have three short stories left to revise. After that, my collection will be complete and ready to format and then release. My original plan was to wait until then to launch this blog at the same time, and use it as a means of “promotion,” so to speak, for the book.

So why am I launching it now instead? When my book is so close to being complete anyways? Well... I don’t know, honestly. Launching my blog now, of all times, just felt like “the right thing to do,” for reasons I can’t quite wrap my mind around.

Does it have something to do with quarantine making me go a little nuts, and wanting to find new ways to “express myself” to people again ASAP? Yeah, probably. I suppose it also has to do with the fact that, now more so than ever, I can’t seem to get my inner monologue to “shut off,” so the least I can do is try to channel it into something.

Whatever the case, I’m here now! And I’m really happy to finally be getting this little “pet project” of mine going! Will it be perfect? Probably not. Will it change a lot over time? Most likely. Will it last? Who knows.

But the biggest question of all is; will it actually “scratch the itch” that I’m trying to scratch (whatever that may be)? No idea. But I have to try, don’t I?

Whatever happens here, I’m looking forward to all of the blog posts to come, along with any comments from any readers who may be out there! And once my book is finally out (and it will be out someday!), I’ll be sure to say so here, and then provide ongoing updates on any other books I may write in the future. But for now, I’ll just take this one entry at a time. And with that, I will catch you all on the next one!

Peace!