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Post by kds on Aug 8, 2019 12:21:27 GMT
Black Diamond and Strutter alone are worth the price of admission, although I tend to prefer the live versions of both.
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Post by Kapitan on Aug 9, 2019 15:45:06 GMT
KISS, Hotter Than Hell, 1974
Their second studio album of 1974, KISS's Hotter Than Hell charted even lower than their relatively unsuccessful debut, peaking at 100 in the USA. Like the debut, it did go gold ... in 1977. The record was so disappointing and the singles did so poorly that the band was pulled off tour to record the follow-up.
Recorded in unfamiliar Los Angeles, the album's sound was murkier, muddier than what came before or after. It also lacked the kind of classics that graced almost every other early KISS album, though some of the tunes have become fan favorites.
Ace Frehley stepped up as a songwriter, contributing two songs ("Parasite" and "Strange Ways") and co-writing another with Paul Stanley ("Comin' Home"). However, still uncertain with his voice, he gave the lead vocals to Gene, Peter, and Paul, respectively. Of his contributions, "Parasite" includes one of the original band's strongest riffs, a crunching chromatic, almost Zeppelin-sounding part. ("Watchin' You" is another great riff found on this album.) With tempos again slow, the band did feel more metal than was typical of them in those years.
With plodding again the norm, the excellent "Let Me Go, Rock and Roll" is a welcome change midway through the album. While to these ears it fits alongside the group's other rock anthems like "Shout It Out Loud" and "Rock and Roll All Nite," it was a miserable failure as a single. Stanley's "Mainline," sung by Criss, is another decent effort with a certain melodicism in the refrain and bounce in its step.
Overall, it's hard to say it's a better album than the debut, though it's not significantly worse, either. It might be most accurate to say it was a band treading water, trying to fine-tune its formula.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Aug 9, 2019 23:26:02 GMT
You pretty much nailed it. It's funny, but almost every part of Hotter Than Hell - the songwriting, the production, even the album cover! - was a slight step down from the debut album. That being said, Hotter Than Hell isn't "that" bad. It's a good album. I'll even go as far as to say that if KISS had released the first album and Hotter Than Hell as a double album, and just mixed up the songs at random, it would be hard to tell the difference in the two albums' tracks.
The standout songs are "Parasite", "Let Me Go Rock And Roll", "Watchin' You", "Strange Ways", and the title track. I like "Comin' Home". Ace was channeling Jimmy Page a little bit on this album wasn't he? Hey, it's KISS, the real deal. They were still hungry, still paying their dues, still perfecting their craft. This was a great period for the band. This was my favorite KISS period.
It's funny but a lot of great 70's (and 80's) bands were paying their dues around this time. They were producing some of their best material ever and playing all kinds of venues. Rock magazines like Creem and Circus were promoting these bands and giving them positive album reviews. However, it many cases, it would take a hit single to really get them on the map. Queen and Queen II were very strong albums, but it took the singles "Killer Queen" and "Bohemian Rhapsody" to help them break out. Blue Oyster Cult released three great studio albums that were critically acclaimed but didn't really sell. Then, in the summer of 1976, "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" hits big and everybody's talking about BOC. The Ramones first couple albums were classics and did fairly well, but it took stuff like "Rock And Roll High School" and "I Wanna Be Sedated" to reach the kids. Iggy Pop was touring Raw Power and his earlier Stooges' albums couldn't get that hit single. It would soon come for KISS.
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Post by Kapitan on Aug 9, 2019 23:30:08 GMT
This was my favorite KISS period. Interesting. Not mine: I'm definitely more into the Destroyer through roughly Alive II period guy, myself. But there's plenty to like in the first few albums (not to mention some of the ones after my favorite period too).
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Aug 10, 2019 0:07:47 GMT
This was my favorite KISS period. Interesting. Not mine: I'm definitely more into the Destroyer through roughly Alive II period guy, myself. But there's plenty to like in the first few albums (not to mention some of the ones after my favorite period too). I was in high school. It was the timing. This was the kind of rock and roll I was looking for. Hard rock. And you had to look for it. It wasn't easy to find where I lived. It definitely wasn't on the radio. I visited the magazine store regularly, and watched shows like Don Kirshner's Rock Concert. KISS was new, but they would soon become...old. More on that later.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Aug 10, 2019 21:18:18 GMT
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Post by B.E. on Aug 11, 2019 20:08:15 GMT
Is "Rock And Roll All Nite" the only KISS song that gets played regularly on classic rock radio? I'm very familiar with that song and have always identified it with KISS, but now that I think about it, I'm not sure that I can name any other KISS songs! Crazy. I might give them a shot, due to this thread. Maybe I'll catch up and listen to their first few albums.
In addition to hearing "Rock And Roll All Nite" roughly 100 times on classic rock radio (and enjoying it), I actually have one other distinct KISS memory - E, snare, and 1234-1234-1231231234. I played a bunch of shows with a band during high school and for a while we kicked off our set with that intro/guitar riff. I was told that it was from a KISS song, but I hadn't heard the song until today when I tracked it down. As you've probably guessed, it's "Love Gun".
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Aug 11, 2019 21:22:24 GMT
Is "Rock And Roll All Nite" the only KISS song that gets played regularly on classic rock radio? I'm very familiar with that song and have always identified it with KISS, but now that I think about it, I'm not sure that I can name any other KISS songs! Crazy. Some radio stations play the two other KISS "hit singles", "Beth" and "I Was Made For Loving You". I think I've heard "Beth" more often.
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Post by kds on Aug 13, 2019 21:45:58 GMT
Is "Rock And Roll All Nite" the only KISS song that gets played regularly on classic rock radio? I'm very familiar with that song and have always identified it with KISS, but now that I think about it, I'm not sure that I can name any other KISS songs! Crazy. I might give them a shot, due to this thread. Maybe I'll catch up and listen to their first few albums. In addition to hearing "Rock And Roll All Nite" roughly 100 times on classic rock radio (and enjoying it), I actually have one other distinct KISS memory - E, snare, and 1234-1234-1231231234. I played a bunch of shows with a band during high school and for a while we kicked off our set with that intro/guitar riff. I was told that it was from a KISS song, but I hadn't heard the song until today when I tracked it down. As you've probably guessed, it's "Love Gun". I've heard Detroit Rock City, Lick It Up, Christine Sixteen, Dr. Love, Do You Love Me, Shout It Out Loud, and Beth, but none with the frequency of Rock and Roll All Nite.
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Post by Kapitan on Aug 13, 2019 22:00:56 GMT
I was going to add Detroit Rock City, but honestly that and RnR All Nite are probably 90% of what I've heard from them on classic rock radio.
By the way, probably moving on to Dressed to Kill tomorrow, so chime in on any Hotter Than Hell if you've got more to say, everyone.
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Post by kds on Aug 14, 2019 0:10:34 GMT
I was going to add Detroit Rock City, but honestly that and RnR All Nite are probably 90% of what I've heard from them on classic rock radio.
By the way, probably moving on to Dressed to Kill tomorrow, so chime in on any Hotter Than Hell if you've got more to say, everyone.
I feel like Kiss was more dominant on classic rock radio 20 years ago, when the original four were still touring. In fact, I just saw that the comedy Detroit Rock City was released 20 yrs ago today.
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Post by Kapitan on Aug 16, 2019 19:06:20 GMT
KISS, Dressed to Kill, 1975
What was that about plodding? "Room Service" kicks things off and is if anything, a touch rushed ... but in a good way! The sound is crisp, as well, a clear little rock song pumping along to get things started. It's a refreshing change, more representative of the energy of a live show (even though its clear production is obviously the work of a studio). If anything, the sound is a bit too trebly and crisp, the opposite of the dark mud through which the previous albums sludged.
But a cursory review of the track list does call to mind immediately the problem with the album: while the production is far and away better than its predecessors, the material isn't as strong, especially as that of the debut. "Rock and Roll All Nite" aside--it being the obviously best known KISS song ever, by far--there isn't a single popular classic. (A few tunes did become concert staples.)
The leadoff single was predictably "Rock and Roll All Nite," which became the band's strongest single to date, though it only peaked at #68. It was followed by "C'Mon and Love Me," which failed to chart. Both singles were backed by the Frehley-written, Criss-sung "Getaway." The album peaked at #32 on the charts and went gold ... though like the previous albums, its certification didn't happen until the band's later success, in 1977.
This was never among my favorite KISS albums, either in terms of just undeniable gems or under-the-radar favorites. I do enjoy "Love Her All I Can" more than a person might guess, a bouncy little tune with cool vocal harmonies in the verse. But mostly, this is an album whose better material was offered in better versions on live albums.
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Post by kds on Aug 16, 2019 19:08:24 GMT
This thread is reminding me how long its been since I've listened to any of my KISS albums, which is why I've not been participating as much.
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Post by Kapitan on Aug 16, 2019 19:09:48 GMT
Yeah, I'm actually using it as an excuse to revisit them. With a few exceptions, I haven't listened to a full KISS album straight through in years. Some, decades.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Aug 16, 2019 19:15:06 GMT
Yeah, I'm actually using it as an excuse to revisit them. With a few exceptions, I haven't listened to a full KISS album straight through in years. Some, decades. Same here. I'm loving this thread because I AM digging the old stuff out of mothballs - and it sounds good! More on Dressed To Kill, a personal favorite, later.
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