I thought I would try something a bit ambitious, and review a band's entire discography. Instead of reviewing the albums in chronological order, I'm going to go from my least favorite, to my absolute favorite. These won't be in depth reviews, but rather my quick thoughts on each album.
Some bands have a lot more albums than others, and the first band I've decided to try this with is KISS. They have quite a few albums. Going with only the studio albums, and counting the '78 solo albums, there are a total of 24 albums in the Kisscography (I think I made that word up myself... but with Gene, and his trademarking, who knows?!). So, I guess we have a lot of work to do, so it's best to start at the bottom. And let me just quickly say... I'm sorry 80's KISS. I'm so sorry.
At the bottom of the list, for me, is "Asylum". This is an album that I really don't go back to very often. Generally the only time I play it is if I'm having a Kiss marathon. The only tracks that stand out for me here are "King of the Mountain", and the albums biggest hit, "Tears Are Falling", which is a really well written power ballad.
Tied for bottom is "Animalize". To be honest, I couldn't decide which album I wanted to put at the bottom, because I'm not really a huge fan of either release. "Animalize" is a good album, as is "Asylum", but they just aren't discs I'm overly fond of. Again, only two songs on this album stick out for me: "I've Had Enough (Into the Fire)", and "Heaven's On Fire", which is a song that I'm sure everyone is familiar with.
This spot is taken by my very least favorite of the '78 solo album: Gene Simmons. This album, to me, is hard to listen to. In fact, I think I may go back to it less than the albums that ranked worse in my list. The reason being is that it's just an overproduced, under-written waste of time for me. Being The Demon, I was ready for something much different. What we got here was just a bunch of showing off, to luke-warm results. There are a few good tracks here, ("Radioactive", "Man of 1,000 Faces", and the already released by Kiss, "See You In Your Dreams), but overall, no thanks on this one.
Next on my list is "Lick It Up". This was the album that the band took the make-up off, and tried to be a bit louder. Unlike the previous album, "Creatures of the Night", I just don't feel like their continuation of being a heavy metal band worked as well. This time there are a few stand out tracks for me, the title-track, "Exciter", and "Not for the Innocent". But overall, the album just didn't keep my attention like so much of their other material.
"Hot In the Shade" comes up next. And while there are a few really killer tracks here, the album just
fell a bit flat for me. The biggest problem with the album for me is that there seems to be a lot of filler. The throw away tracks really outweigh the good. And with fifteen songs, I just get bored by the end of it. The best tracks for me are "Rise To It", "Hide Your Heart" (I mean, who hasn't covered this song?!), and the amazing ballad, "Forever".
Crazy Nights is the next album, and this one, though we are getting better with the 80's material, is still a bit of a hit or miss affair to my ears. Though there are a lot more songs that I enjoy here, once again it's an album that I just don't come back to very often. The "title-track", I'll Fight Hell To Hold You", "Bang Bang You", and the anthemic "Turn On the Night" are all stand out tracks for me.
Kiss' last album to date, "Monster", comes up next. I was disappointed in this album, after really enjoying the "Sonic Boom" album. To me this album feels a bit rushed, and needed a little more care, and love, before being released. In addition to some reused lyrics (didn't Gene sing about a back bone slipping on the last album?), the music just doesn't really feel new, or fresh at all. That's not to say there are some good tunes. "Hell Or Hallelujah", "Wall of Sound", "Freak", "All For the Love", and "Shout Mercy" are all great songs.
"Dynasty" was the album that Kiss came up with after their 1978 solo album releases. However, Peter Criss did not contribute much to the album. Just one track, "Dirty Livin'", which to be fair, is a good track. The band tried to get with the times on this album, and tried to dabble in disco with "I Was Made For Loving You", and while it sounds like it would be strange, I think it works pretty well. There are some amazing tunes on this album, the two songs I mentioned before, as well as Ace's incredible cover of The Rolling Stones song "2,000 Man", Gene's sort of creepy "Charisma", "Sure Know Something", and album closer, "Save Your Love".
While the placement of this one may surprise many Kiss purists, the next album on my list is "Rock And Roll Over". Let me start by saying that all Kiss albums are good to me, in one way or another, and this one is no exception. Every time I listen to it, I'm glad that I did. But for some reason, it's just not a high ranking album for me. All of the songs are good songs, there's just something about it that keeps me from going back to it all that often. My favorites are the Stanley penned / Criss sung "Hard Luck Woman", the heavy hitting opener "I Want You", and another Criss track, "Baby Driver".
This one will be another surprise to many, but I think "Dressed To Kill" ranking here is solely based on its sound. When looking at the track list, there isn't anything here that I don't love. I don't know if its maybe that these songs don't seem to belong together for me. I can't quite put my finger on it, but this is another that I just don't come back to all that often. Of course, live, these tracks kill. There's just something about the studio counterparts of these songs that just don't pop the way that the live versions do. Highlights for me are "Rock Bottom", "Getaway", "Room Service", and "C'mon And Love Me".
After an elven year hiatus from the studio, when Kiss announced "Sonic Boom", I was understandably excited. This is the first album in the studio with Tommy Thayer, and to me, though he's no Ace Frehley, he's no slouch either. There is some really killer material on this album, and the band sound like they are really having fun in the studio. Songs like "Say Yeah", "Never Enough", "When Lightning Strikes", and "Modern Day Delilah" could easily stand up to any of the band's classic material, in my opinion.
When Kiss went into the studio with their new drummer Eric Carr, Ace Frehley was hoping to do an all-out, balls to the wall, metal album. What they wrote was instead a concept album, complete with strings, and falsetto singing. As a result, Ace was out. And with Ace out, the band decided to finally do what he wanted before leaving, and record an all out metal album. "Creatures of the Night" is a return to the heavy Kiss that had somehow gone missing in action after recording the "Alive II" studio tracks. Though this album is missing two of the founding members, Vinnie Vincent is more than capable of writing and recording some fantastic guitar licks, and it really shows on this album. With nine fantastic songs to choose from, I'll just pick the title-track, "Saints And Sinner", "Rock And Roll Hell", and "I Still Love You" as my favorite tracks.
For the follow-up to "Dynasty", the band would finally be "Unmasked", and it was clear that Kiss wanted to try something completely different, and explore a more pop-rock oriented sound. And while the album didn't work for many fans, I like it. Sure it doesn't have the crunch of much of the band's previous material, but I like the exploration here. The first post-Criss album, drummer Anton Fig takes the uncredited drum throne. The sound is a bit thin, but I blame that on the mix. For me, the Ace Frehley tracks are definite highlights, as are the Stanley songs "Is That You?", and "Tomorrow". Gene had a few songs on the album. Yes... he certainly did.
When Eric Carr was diagnosed with heart cancer, and underwent open-heart surgery, the band hired
Eric Singer to fill in on the drums, so that Carr could focus on getting better. Sadly, Eric Carr losts the battle in November of 1991, and Singer took over full time. Even though "Revenge" was, to me, Kiss' best album in years, there's still a sort of sadness in the album. A sort of "what could have been...". And even though Eric Singer does a great job stepping up to the drum throne, Carr is still very much missed. The band still included two tracks on the album featuring Eric Carr, "God Gave Rock And Roll To You II", and "Carr Jam 1981", though they weren't originally slated to appear on the album. "Revenge" is a much heavier album than its predecessors, and I think a step in the direction that the band should have never veered away from. This is another one that I find it hard to pick a few favorites. Still, if I had to, I would go with "Unholy", Domino" "Thou Shalt Not", "Every Time I Look At You", and "I Just Wanna".
Next up on my list is Peter Criss' 1978 solo album. Let me start by saying that this is nothing at all like a Kiss album. Peter was always more of a rhythm and blues, R&B man, and it definitely shows on this album. Made up of ten songs that wouldn't find their place on any Kiss, it's hard not to enjoy the catchiness, and groove of the tracks. I love all of these tracks, I think for their diversity from his day band. Stand outs are the cover of "Tossin' And Turnin'", "Easy Thing", "That's the Kind of Sugar Papa Likes", and "I Can't Stop the Rain" (which may be my favorite song from any of the four solo albums).
I'm sure that most Kiss lists would have "Destroyer" much higher on the list, but I think I like the album in this spot just fine. It's certainly not my favorite, but I love the songs, and I appreciate that the band were trying something new here. The album still retains much of Kiss' usual heavy sound, but there are moments of exploration, and leaving their comfort zone. To me this album is the second most prog-rocky album in their catalog. This was also the first studio album to blow up for the band, fueled by the success of "Alive!". My favorites would be "Detroit Rock City", "Flaming Youth", and "Sweet Pain".
"Love Gun" is up next, and is the final album with original Kiss line-up, which is a shame, because it is such a fantastic album. It's the best of their second bunch of studio albums, and also features Mr. Ace Frehley on vocals for the first time. Though, I hear that he had to sing his parts from underneath a table, on the song "Shock Me". For me, only one song keeps this album from being perfect, the weirdly chose cover of "Then She Kissed Me". I just find it odd, and it sort of sticks out like a sore thumb on an album of otherwise absolute classics. Stand outs include Peter Criss' "Hooligan", "I Stole Your Love", "Plaster Caster", and "Shock Me".
We go back to the beginning of the Kiss catalog with these next two albums. First up is "Hotter Than Hell", and though the sound/mix is lacking, the music more than makes up for it. This is an album that I play fairly often, just to unwind, and rock out. Their sophomore release has much in common with the debut, which makes sense as many of the songs were written at the same time. And though I find the lyrics to "Goin' Blind" a bit cringy, and creepy, I still rather enjoy the playful mood of the music. This album has so many classics, I'll just name favorites that were sort of forgotten over the years: "Strange Ways" (one of my favorite Criss vocal performances), "Mainline" (another fantastic Criss vocal performance), and "All the Way".
With the Kiss debut album, every song, to me, is an absolute classic. The disc kicks off with a killer drum fill from Peter Criss on "Strutter", one of many songs on this album that still find their way into live set lists all of these years later. Everywhere you look on this one, you'll see a hit. And though the songs "Kissin' Time", and "Love Theme From Kiss" (one of only two Kiss instrumentals) have gone forgotten by the band, they certainly haven't been forgotten by the fans. Hard pressed, I'd call "Black Diamond", "100,000 Years", and "Let Me Know" my favorites, but all ten tracks are just so good.
I was a relatively late Kiss fanatic. I think it was somewhere during the big reunion tour of the original four when I finally noticed these God's of Rock 'N Roll rear their face-painted heads. So when I heard that a studio album was forthcoming, I was very excited to hear the new material. When I played this album the first time, there was no denying that Kiss was back. However, it was eventually revealed that in fact Gene, and Paul were back. Ace, and Peter were just sort of visiting. Peter contributes drums to only one track, ("Into the Void"), and Ace plays guitar on two tracks. Still, this is a fantastic album, and one of my very favorites. There is so much good music here, and it is easily classic Kiss. The title track, "I Pledge Allegiance To the State of Rock & Roll", "We Are One", "Into the Void", and "Journey of 1,000 Years" stand up with the best of Kiss for me.
Ace Frehley did not release my favorite of the '78 solo albums, but it was a close one. I've read that the band were surprised with the amazing quality of Ace's solo album, citing that he was just such an absent minded, and absent guitar player. But I wasn't quite surprised, as I didn't know the history of the band the first time I dropped the needle on "Rip It Out", an aggressive, all out metal tune, and still one of my very favorite Ace Frehley tunes. This album shows just who the real metal man in Kiss was. These songs are all smoking, and expertly played by a fantastic backing band. The album closes with "Fractured Mirror", and excuse me if you don't agree, but I find this to be one of the most beautiful, and well written instrumentals of all time. Other highlights include the smash hit cover "New York Groove", "Ozone", and the power ballad "What's On Your Mind".
My favorite of all of the '78 solo albums rests with Paul Stanley's album. Out of the four, this is the album that is by far the most Kiss like. As Paul shares these nine tracks with us, it's very clear that he is the heart, and the soul of Kiss. This is also the only album of the four that featured only original tracks. The other three band members included a cover on their albums. Whether it be "Move On", "Love In Chains", or the near anthemic vibe of the closing track, "Goodbye", it's clear that without Paul, there would have never been a Kiss.
My two favorite albums are the most shunned albums in the band's catalog. These albums are so hated by the band that they rarely play anything from either one. In the case of "Carnival of Souls", I don't think that a single track has ever been played live in a Kiss show. Written, and intended for release some time in 1996, the album got shelved for the hugely successful reunion tour of the original four Kiss members. However, this no-make up wearing, no-holds barred album is everything that a Kiss album should be. It's a shame to me that the band didn't back it the way that it deserved. The music is a natural progression from "Revenge", and features some of the best writing, and performing that they band had put forth in a long time. There's a passion, and a fire in these four musicians that I don't think any line up has had since "Love Gun". My favorites here are "I Walk Alone" (the only Kiss track with Bruce Kulick on lead vocals), the album's single "Jungle", album opener "Hate", and "Childhood's End".
My number one favorite Kiss album should really come as no surprise to anyone that knows me. I'm a die-hard prog fan at heart, and there was no album more proggy in the Kiss discography than "Music From The Elder", an album that was meant to be so much more than it ended up being. This album, for all intents and purposes, bombed. The first Kiss album with Eric Carr on drums, and the final album (for a very long time) with Ace Frehley on guitar, was an orchestrated, strings laden, prog-rock feast. Complete with an all-encompassing, medieval story of growth, and challenges, this album is by far the most ambitious album in their catalog. And though the band have downplayed this album at every turn, only playing a few of the tracks live at any point, I still find this to be the most pleasing, cohesive, and well written album from Kiss. Although I love every track, favorites include "The Oath", "Dark Light", "Just A Boy", and "Odyssey".
And finally, I want to give a shout out to the new tracks from side four of "Alive II", "Killers", "Smashes, Thrashes & Hits", and a few various tracks spread out here and there, mostly on the box set. There are some fantastic tracks that didn't make their own studio album, but are still very good
songs. "Nothing Can Keep Me From You" (from the "Detroit Rock City" soundtrack), "Rocket Ride" ("Alive II"), "Nowhere To Run" (from "Killers"), and "(You Make Me) Rock Hard" ("Smashes, Thrashes & Hits") are all the best of the bunch. But to me, Kiss have yet to realease a bad song.
songs. "Nothing Can Keep Me From You" (from the "Detroit Rock City" soundtrack), "Rocket Ride" ("Alive II"), "Nowhere To Run" (from "Killers"), and "(You Make Me) Rock Hard" ("Smashes, Thrashes & Hits") are all the best of the bunch. But to me, Kiss have yet to realease a bad song.
Comments
Post a Comment