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Twang Twang Shock-a-Boom - If I Loved You Would You Ache? |
| September 28th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 1989
Tracks: My Emaciated Heart; I’d Rather Be Lost; In My Family; Fish Sticks; Song For Our World; Burnwood; Lock of Your Hair; Big Stick; Vases & Shoes; Without a Doubt; 10-15
Best track: My Emaciated Heart
Track to skip: none
From here on out, I’m just going to refer to them as “Twang”. Unless you happened to be a fan of Happy Farmers while Davíd Garza was still in High School then this would’ve been everyone’s introduction to him and his songwriting. Twang was formed during Garza’s freshman year at the University of Texas in 1989 with friends Chris Searles (percussion) and Jeff Haley (upright bass). Now the stuff of legend, Twang started off by playing on the West Mall of the UT campus and sold their homemade tapes there and built up a following pretty quickly. This might be a rumor (I’m pretty sure it’s true), but Twang’s first ‘official’ gig was at Liberty Lunch, a club in Austin that most bands took a few years to work up to; it’s not a small place, that’s for sure. So, just from the amount of buzz they generated from their West Mall shows, they packed Liberty Lunch for their first gig. Impressive.
Twang really had an original sound and they still do. It’s all acoustic and pretty stripped-down, but the guys manage to make a lot of noise come out of those instruments. At this early stage (he was only 18) Garza was a DAMN good guitar player. He was on scholarship to UT for his guitar playing. The music on these songs is really impressive, while the lyrics are somewhat lacking. The songs are great, of course, but Garza hadn’t become the excellent lyricist that he is now. Still, all these songs are seriously fun and it’s impossible to not shake your ass while listening to this album.
Most of the songs are considered classics in certain circles (uh, mine), for instance My Emaciated Heart, I’d Rather Be Lost, Fish Sticks, Big Stick and others. This album, Twang’s debut, isn’t amazing quality but it sounds plenty good for enjoying. It was probably recorded in one of their bedrooms; it’s definitely not from a proper studio. So, the guys got a good sound from their 4 track. It’s really impossible to pick a best song because all of them have incredible life to them. They’re *all* great songs. Sure Fish Sticks, Burnwood & Big Stick are absurdly silly (also the Rush bit after Burnwood); the thing is, they are great songs. I’ll put My Emaciated Heart as the ‘best track’ simply because I never get sick of hearing it. Like all of Davíd Garza’s pre-CD albums, this is impossible to find. If you can either get it from the internet or get a copy from someone it’s highly recommended. Oh, and just to make sure I say it, this album (and band) just isn’t about Davíd Garza. Both Chris Searles and Jeff Haley are excellent players and equally important to Twang’s excellence.
Rating: 90
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Neal Schon - Late Nite |
| September 28th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 1989
Tracks: Le Dome; Late Nite; Softly; The Theme; I’ll Be Waiting; I’ll Cover You; Rain’s Comin’ Down; Smoke of the Revolution; Inner Circles; Steps; Blackened Bacon
Best track: The Theme
Tracks to skip: I would tend to skip the cheesier vocal numbers like Softly, I’ll Be Waiting, Rain’s Comin’ Down
This is first official solo album from Journey’s guitarist and leader. He made a couple of albums with Jan Hammer in the early 80’s, but this was the first under his own name. Let’s see, some brief history leading up to this: Journey’s last album (at the time), Raised on Radio, came out in ’86; the band toured into ’87 and then broke up; the Greatest Hits album came out in ’88; and this came out in ’89. So, for all Journey fans this was the first bit of new product out there after Journey’s breakup. I’m sure it wasn’t very popular (since he’s not Steve Perry), but I got it once I knew it existed. Although it’s credited to Schon, a mention should go out to keyboardist Bob Marlette who co-wrote most of these tracks. There are of course guest stars on here, including Journey’s Jonathan Cain, Steve Smith, Randy Jackson (yes, the American Idol guy), future Journey drummer Deen Castronovo and on background vocals Sheryl Crow of all people.
If you know anything about Journey (other than “power ballads”) then you’ll know that Schon is a great guitar player and naturally his first solo album will have him playing great stuff all through it. He does some great stuff on here. I think my favorite part of the whole album is that one lick near the end of the title track. If you hear it you’ll know what I’m talking about. I’m obviously more partial to the instrumental tracks, but some of the vocal ones aren’t bad; I’ll Cover You for instance. Of course, his voice isn’t the greatest, but that’s not the focus of the album. His guitar playing is. And no, this isn’t an album of all guitar solos where he just shreds away like Yngwie Malmsteen or somebody. It’s all very tasteful and an essential part to the compositions. Going back to Marlette here, there are lots of keyboards on this album. For my tastes, it’s too much. It seems like Schon is always soloing over a keyboard bed. The keys are a bit too cheesy for me. The best song on here (besides the bit on Late Nite) is The Theme, which is pretty sweet. I think if you’re a fan of Neal Schon then you should pick up this album. It’s different from the smooth jazz tendencies of his later solo albums; lots more rock here. As a whole it’s not an amazing album, but it’s great to hear so much of his guitar playing.
Rating: 80
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Iron Maiden - Powerslave |
| September 28th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 1984
Tracks: Aces High; 2 Minutes to Midnight; Losfer Words (Big ‘Orra); Flash of the Blade; The Duellists; Back in the Village; Powerslave; Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Best track: Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Track to skip: none
This album jams. Powerslave is the best IM album up to this point in their career. I think, honestly, I could end the review by that and with you looking at the track list alone. I mean, this album has Aces High, 2 Minutes, Losfer Words, Powerslave & Mariner on here! Even if the other three tracks sucked (they don’t, no matter what Mick Wall thinks) this would still be a great album. But, as is more than apparent, they are also great tracks. I am just simply blown away by this album. It’s no wonder their subsequent tour was as successful as it was. Who can possibly sell out 4 nights in a row at major arenas in the US (like Long Beach Arena & Madison Square Garden)? In 1984/1985 only Iron Maiden, and it was largely on the strength of this album. Yes, I know, the other 4 are freakin’ excellent as well. This is BETTER.
I’m sure a lot of confidence on this album comes from the success of their first headlining tour of the US the year before. Also, I’m sure it comes from the bond that the five of them created. See, this was the first Maiden album that had the same lineup as the one before. They found the right 2nd guitarist, the right singer and the right drummer and Iron Maiden solidified into this Power. Powerslave is the sound of one the best bands of the era stepping it up and putting out their best album (like I said, at the time).
I love all of these songs. As I’m typing right now, I’m just floored by Dave Murray’s incredible solo on the title track. All 5 of these guys were just at their best all over this album. The rest of the crew, too, was at their best. Check out Derek Riggs’s album cover, excellent (if you have the vinyl you’ll see some incredible detail). Martin Birch’s production? Holy crap, it’s PERFECT. I have rarely heard in my entire life an album that sounded this perfect. Just from a technical standpoint, the sound on Powerslave is mind blowing. Very few can compete with Martin Birch in producing/engineering/mixing. And then we get to these compositions. All excellent songs, with Rime of the Ancient Mariner (yes, based on the poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge; much to the annoyance of English teachers everywhere) being the best. Dare I say, the best thing Steve Harris had ever written (until 1988)? The middle section of Mariner is currently giving me the chills. No one writes music like this. I love this album!
Rating: 98
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Halogen - Live at Club Dada |
| September 28th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Recorded: 1995?
Tracks: Slippery Seal; Anticipation; Third Wheel; Yahee!; Doubt; I Dream of Jeanie; Kept Simple
Best track: Yahee!
Track to skip: the cello is way out of tune in Third Wheel, but it doesn’t really warrant skippage
This was Halogen’s first gig, recorded at Club Dada probably in early 1995. The lineup on this one is the same Gallman/Gros/McCormick/Sisson/Talbert line up as Demo #2 before. I think with any group a first gig will always have some rough spots and this one is no exception. Leslie Sisson is clearly nervous during most of the performance. She also has some rough spots in her cello playing on Third Wheel. I was actually surprised at the amount of bad notes coming from Matt Talbert on Anticipation. For a lot of the song he’s just kind of soloing and he often hits some sour notes. But ya know, all this is expected because it is their first gig and these songs aren’t just simple 3 chord pop things. It’s clear that Halogen weren’t content to just put out average, predictable music. The group’s instrumental, Yahee!, is very Indian-sounding and pretty unpredictable. I always loved how Halogen was unafraid to push what could be done in pop songs. Another interesting aspect is how Aaron Gros chooses to just play percussion for this show instead of bringing his drum set along. Halogen was a *very* ambitious band; for example, their ‘smooth jazz’ version of the theme from I Dream of Jeanie. It’s not smooth in the way that Kenny G is, but it’s still a bit smoother than traditional jazz. It’s pretty cool regardless and quite fun to hear; a great arrangement of the tune. Oh, and Mike McCormick does some cool beanie bass fills all throughout. This tape of the gig stops in the middle of Kept Simple so the closer of the night, Bridged, is not here. Also, it’s entirely possible they could have played Rest Assured after Kept Simple, as it was in the set at the time. Since I wasn’t at this gig I have no idea and I bet that any of them wouldn’t remember. All in all, it’s a good show. Lots of imperfections, but it’s clear how good these songs are and how the group are really pushing things, at least within themselves. I wish more Halogen live stuff was out there, but I guess the few gigs they did just weren’t recorded.
Rating: 84
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King Crimson - Red |
| September 28th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 1974
Tracks: Red; Fallen Angel; One More Red Nightmare; Providence; Starless
Best track: Starless
Track to skip: none
Best King Crimson album up to this point and probably 2nd best overall. Yes, Red is better than In the Court of the Crimson King. It’s really the summation of everything that happened to the band in the previous 5 years. They started out high, then dipped down a bit, and then came storming back up. Red is the sound of 3 professionals achieving a perfect synthesis of musical being. Ha! Did I just type that sentence? Ugh, see, that sounds like usual rock critic talk. What I mean to say is that Bruford, Fripp & Wetton had become such a powerful unit over the past 2 years of touring that they reached their creative peak on this album. Yes, I did say ‘3’, as violinist David Cross was kicked out of the group following the band’s Central Park show. Cross does pop up on the instrumental Providence, which was recorded at the Providence, RI concert (see Great Deceiver, Disc 1 for a description of this show). The other guests provide a wonderful rounding-out of King Crimson. Both of the band’s previous two saxophonists Ian MacDonald and Mel Collins play on here (alto and soprano, respectively) and it brings a nice completion to it all.
Like the last album, we get all the best aspects of King Crimson on this album: powerful opening instrumental, nice ballad (Fallen Angel), live improv (Providence), & epic genre-breaking final track. Although I’ve become tired of hearing it live so much in the past few years, Red is a perfect album opener and the best since 21st Century Schizoid Man on the debut. It’s also a fun song to play as my first band covered it. I was seriously blown away first time I heard it. I really like both Fallen Angel and One More Red Nightmare (that cymbal!), but I’m not going to bother going into them. They’re just great, ya know? So, about Providence…I totally prefer this version to the extended one from Great Deceiver. Wetton’s bass is mixed a lot louder in this and his tone knocks me down. I want that tone. Very cool improv.
Oh my gosh I love Starless. It starts out so melancholy with that GORGEOUS melody, then goes into the biggest tension-fest (in 13/8!) ever with the release coming in the jazz destruction of the last bit and with MacDonald soloing like his life depended on it. Starless is the best Crimson song from these early incarnations, by far. What I really love about this track is how Fripp just *knew* that this was the last King Crimson album (it was, minus compilations, until 1981) and the band actually DIES at the end of Starless. I have no idea how to possibly convey the heaviness of this, but it’s true. At the end of the 12 minutes of Starless the music and the band itself just…die. It’s death, absolutely and positively. You hear it; it’s all there on the recording. It’s such an emotional experience to listen to this gorgeous song and eventually have it kill the band. That’s one of the many reasons why I love this album so much. The songs here are world class and overall it is just an amazing album.
Rating: 97
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The Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour |
| September 28th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 1967
Tracks: Magical Mystery Tour; The Fool on the Hill; Flying; Blue Jay Way; Your Mother Should Know; I Am the Walrus; Hello Goodbye; Strawberry Fields Forever; Penny Lane; Baby You’re a Rich Man; All You Need is Love
Best track: I Am the Walrus
Tracks to skip: Your Mother Should Know, Baby You’re a Rich Man
I love this period of the Beatles’ history. Of course I love the latter stuff a lot, but the middle period, super-psychedelic stuff is my favorite. It starts with Revolver, goes into Sgt. Pepper and through Magical Mystery Tour. As you can read before this, both of the previous two are some of the best albums ever released by anyone. So…what happened to this one? If you take out the 3 excellent tracks (Walrus, Strawberry Fields & Penny Lane) you’re left with a slightly average album. Maybe it’s not fair to say, “take away the three best and what are you left with…”, but most of the rest of this album is a serious let down. OK, of course I love All You Need is Love, Hello Goodbye and Fool on the Hill, but this really isn’t that strong of an album. And it STILL irks me that an album that has my two favorite Beatles songs (Walrus and Strawberry Fields) isn’t that hot all around.
The explanation for the excellence of Strawberry Fields & Penny Lane is that they were the first things recorded after the Beatles stopped touring. They were the A/B sides of the single that preceded Sgt. Pepper. As for All You Need is Love, I think since it was a deliberately written special song (for the first world-wide satellite broadcast) John Lennon made a better effort than he had on the other songs recorded around this time. Speaking of that, John’s batch of post-Pepper contributions on here is surprisingly small. He did write the excellent …Love and the best-Beatles-song-ever I Am the Walrus, but other than that the rest of the ‘new’ songs on here are all McCartney’s: the title track, Fool on the Hill, Your Mother, Hello Goodbye & …Rich Man. So while Lennon was more or less absent during this time (*way* too much LSD for him) what he did produce was great. The remaining two songs, Flying and Blue Jay Way, are average but nothing special. Flying is nothing more than a psychedelic 12-bar blues attributed to the whole band and Blue Jay Way was Harrison’s only contribution to the album, though not a great one. I think Harrison was either too far into the LSD like Lennon was, or had his head still in India. Probably some of both. The other songs recorded during this time weren’t that hot either, as they ended up being extras on the Yellow Submarine soundtrack (All Together Now, It’s All Too Much, Only a Northern Song…songs not good enough for Pepper OR Magical Mystery Tour).
Once the band took their holiday/pilgrimage to India in early ’68, they recharged their collective batteries and regained their focus, which resulted in Hey Jude/Revolution and the White Album. For MMT as a whole it’s just an OK album. Just sort of meandering in this haze. Like I said earlier, a few of these songs are some of the best the band ever did. I Am the Walrus is easily the band’s best song ever, making a cool and catchy song out of absolute nonsense words and music that is the opposite of pop. That ‘radio’ break in the middle, and the following cello melody, are two of the strangest things to ever appear in a ‘pop’ song and yet, they fit so perfectly and elevate the song to the highest level. I still hear all these things in that one composition that just blow my mind every time I hear it. I do want to say, in regards to the whole album, that I don’t blame McCartney for the quality of this album. While his friends were just hanging out, he took control out of necessity and did the best he could. I wouldn’t expect *any* of them in 1967 to be able to carry an entire album virtually by themselves; so I don’t blame Paul, I blame all of them. And in the end (har), it’s not a bad album. It’s certainly better than With the Beatles & Beatles For Sale and honestly slightly better than Rubber Soul (yeah, more blasphemy), but it’s just not in the top group of albums the band ever did. Shame too, because their best songs are on here.
Rating: 83
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Dogma & the Universe - S/T Demo |
| September 20th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 1998
Tracks: Antifreeze; Spaceage Afternoon; Stereo; Consider Me
Best track: Antifreeze
Track to skip: none
Ah yes, the first sound you hear is Matt Talbert’s guitar. Can’t get much cooler than that, can ya? This was the early version of a group that eventually evolved into Ezra Thomas. Besides Talbert on lead guitar and “creative sound effects”, the band consisted of Ezra Vancil (previously the main force in Gypsy Tree) on vocals and guitar, Aaron Gros (the “Thomas” in ET) on drums/percussion and Gary Thorne (currently in Shaolin Death Squad) doing the cool ass bass lines. This tape doesn’t sound so much like what the Ezra Thomas CD sounds like, but more of how the band sounded live (only difference is that Gary wasn’t in ET). Antifreeze is a GREAT song and I wish they’d still play it. It’s really funky and sounds like what Dave Matthews would be if he wrote *excellent* music and had an off-the-wall lead guitar player. I’d rather listen to these guys over DMB any day though. Spaceage Afternoon is another great song with another cool guitar solo. Stereo later appeared on ET’s debut CD and that version actually lifted Gary’s bassline directly from this recording. I keep saying it, but Matt does exceptionally cool coloration on this song. Excellent stuff. This version of Stereo is actually quite a bit more subdued than the ET version. I dig it. The only ‘weak’ spot on this is the last song, Consider Me. It was obviously recorded rather quickly and the mix isn’t as strong as the rest. Still, it’s a good one (though, Matt’s solo is pretty pathetic on this song). The production on the first three songs is really good though. Aaron Gros recorded this in his home studio and he knows how to get the most out of it. This is an excellent sounding demo. Some of these songs used to be available on the Leftovers CD put out by Ezra Thomas, but that’s been out of print for a few years now. If you can somehow get a hold of one, it’s worth it to hear these tracks, especially Antifreeze.
Rating: 93
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Alice Cooper - Hey Stoopid |
| September 20th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: 1 ]
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Released: 1991
Tracks: Hey Stoopid; Love’s a Loaded Gun; Snake Bite; Burning Our Bed; Dangerous Tonight; Might as Well Be on Mars; Feed My Frankenstein; Hurricane Years; Little By Little; Die For You; Dirty Dreams; Wind-up Toy
Best track: Might as Well Be on Mars
Tracks to skip: Dirty Dreams
I didn’t list it on the tracks up there, but the first track is actually Poison, the main single from Alice’s previous album, Trash. I dubbed this album from my brother and decided to stick Poison on here. Kind of a cheesy song, but it’s all right. Now, on to the ‘official’ album. Damn, just the sound of this thing takes me back to 1991. Alice Cooper had gone underground for quite a while in the 80’s and it was really the previously mentioned Trash that brought him back into being in the public eye. This album expanded on that and itself spawned some popular singles, Hey Stoopid & Feed My Frankenstein. There are all kinds of guest stars on this album, like Ozzy Osbourne, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Slash and a whole lot more than I can’t remember right now. Before I put this in I was thinking I might not like it (a lot of albums I’ve reassessed have not aged well for me), but I’m pleasantly surprised that this album still holds up. This is definitely heavy metal, but I’d put it somewhere in between the glam stuff like Motley Crue/Ratt and the heavier stuff like Judas Priest/Ozzy. It’s catchy. These guys are average enough players, so the musicianship isn’t mind blowing or anything, but I’m really impressed by the songwriting. These are all damn good songs. I think that’s always been one of Alice Cooper’s strengths.
Of course Hey Stoopid is a great lead off track (and an anti-drug one too) as are all the rest of the ones on side 1. Dangerous Tonight reminds me of King Diamond, as does Might as Well Be on Mars. He’s kind of like a poppier version of King Diamond (in places). Speaking of Mars, that’s a great song. The verse riff is cool as hell. Feed My Frankenstein got some nice exposure due to being in Wayne’s World and even though it’s a ‘penis song’, it’s still pretty amusing. Steve Vai does a bizarre and extremely cool solo in it. Hurricane Years freakin’ rocks. A lot of the lyrical subject matter on this album is love/sex based, and it can get annoying after a while. I don’t really care for most of the song part of Die For You, but the chorus is good. Dirty Dreams is the only bad song on here. Once again it’s sexual (with that title? No, never!) and it’s just lame. I guess he had space to fill.
The album ends with a very different song. Odd. It seems to be about a kid who’s locked up in his room because he’s a tad hyper and has a vivid imagination. It’s kinda trippy. Good song though. Well, all in all I’m quite surprised I liked the album as much as I did. Face it, Alice Cooper is a good songwriter. It’s apparent to me now (well, still) why we listened to this so much back when it came out; it’s a good album.
Rating: 85
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Bruce Dickinson - Shoot All the Clowns singles |
| September 19th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 1994
Tracks: [1] Shoot all the Clowns (Remix); Tibet; Tears of the Dragon [alt.];
[2] Shoot all the Clowns (Extended Mix); Cadillac Gas Mask; No Way Out – Continued
Best track: Tibet
Tracks to skip: Extended Mix of Clowns, Cadillac Gas Mask
Shoot all the Clowns was the 2nd single from Balls to Picasso and there were 2 versions released as CD singles. I decided to combine them for this review because I keep them in the same case and it’s just easier this way. The remix of Shoot all the Clowns on disc 1 is actually better than the album version; it didn’t bother me to listen to it. Tibet and the alternate version of Tears of the Dragon on single #1 are both from the ‘lost’ Keith Olsen album that I talked about in the last review. Tibet is a lot more poppy than anything Bruce has ever done, and while it’s a simple track, it’s very cool. Excellent song in my view. This version of Tears of the Dragon is cool as hell (OK, the flute bit at the end is pretty fruity, but who cares). It’s a total and complete re-working of the track and it’s very cool. A lot of different musical bits are here and Bruce really presents it in a whole different way. I really, really dig this and it’s just another reason why he should get off his butt and go ahead and release that ‘lost’ album. As a single (with the extra goodies) it’s pretty damn good. It’s more experimental than Bruce usually gets and he gets some big thumbs up from me.
Disc 2 (single #2) starts off again with Clowns, this time in an extended version. It’s pretty useless and hearing it twice in 15 minutes is really annoying. I don’t like the extension of it. I mean, it’s a bad song anyway, so why would I want to hear more of it? Eh, it’s a skipper. Next comes a truly awful song, Cadillac Gas Mask. Yes, I know it’s an AC/DC ‘tribute’, but it’s just horrible. Plus I can’t stand AC/DC anyway! The problem with this song, besides being poorly written and annoying, is that it’s what AC/DC would sound like as a pop band…AC/DC without the balls. Possibly the worst song Bruce has ever written. Ugh. Part 2 of No Way Out is the last song on this disc. It’s definitely the redeeming part of this single. Pretty cool track. I love the ‘drowning man sees daylight’ part. That rocks. The good thing is that this track is available on Bruce’s Best Of Bonus Disc (a disc of B-sides and rarities) so you dorky collectors really don’t need to bother getting this 2nd single of Shoot all the Clowns (unless you’re *really* dorky!). I think the first disc is essential for collectors since both of the extra tracks kick ass and aren’t available anywhere else.
Ratings: Single #1 - 90, single #2 - 67
*****
In 2005 all of Bruce’s albums were remastered and reissued with a bonus disc of all B-sides associated with the particular album. Well now! This means that *all* of the B-sides for Balls to Picasso can now be found on the bonus disc and thus, you’ll get all of the Keith Olsen tracks…at least all the ones that were released. The bonus disc for Balls to Picasso has 16 tracks and this means that you no longer have to search out a million different singles to get all the tracks: they’re all on the Balls to Picasso Expanded Edition. Hooray!
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Kiss - Alive! |
| September 19th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 1975
Tracks: Deuce; Strutter; Got to Choose; Hotter Than Hell; Firehouse; Nothin’ To Lose; C’mon and Love Me; Parasite; She; Watchin’ You; 100,000 Years; Black Diamond; Rock Bottom; Cold Gin; Rock and Roll All Nite; Let Me Go, Rock ‘N’ Roll
Best track: I have no clue…all of disc 1 rocks
Track to skip: FFWD through the drum solo and sing-along on 100,000 Years. Skip Rock Bottom too
Revenge was the first Kiss album I bought, but the first Real Kiss album I picked up was this. OK, regardless of the stuff about it not being very ‘live’ or who played Ace’s guitar parts in the studio, Alive! *still* kicks ass. When I first got this I was expecting old Kiss to be the heaviest thing ever. Growing up in the 70’s and 80’s and not actually hearing Kiss, it always seemed like they were pure evil or something. I don’t know what I was thinking, but I was expecting something like Slayer. So upon my inaugural listening, I was very surprised that Kiss was essentially a pop band. They rocked, sure, but basically they were a pop band. And besides the make up and stage show, the thing that separates Kiss from the other pop bands of the 70’s is that they are a GOOD pop band and write GOOD songs.
There are now 4 different ‘alive’ Kiss albums and this is still the best one. *Nearly* all of the band’s best early songs are here (Love Her All I Can is surprisingly absent) and they’re played much better than the studio versions. The first disc in particular is near perfect with every song sounding great. Of course most of these songs on the first disc are classics, so naturally they’ll all be great. I noticed in Nothin’ to Lose they add some more stuff to the middle section and that improves the track (not to mention the absence of the piano). Ace’s guitar solo in She is short (a rarity if you’ve seen them in concert or heard Alive 2) so that’s nice. Overall the first disc is the meat of this thing. Things do kinda falter on the second disc, esp. with the extension of 100,000 Years and coulda-been-a-Spinal-Tap-song, Rock Bottom. 100,000 Years on its own a damn good song, and this version is excellent, but once they do the idiotic drum solo and the stupid sing-along bit it gets really bad. Peter Criss’ voice on Black Diamond is so bad it’s funny, but the rest of the track is pretty good. The other bad thing about this disc is the outright horrible in-between song banters that Paul Stanley does. He comes across as extremely gay (on purpose, I think) and then launches into songs about getting laid by girls. Or maybe that’s Gene always singing about the girls?
Anyway, all in all this is good album. It still stands up, almost 30 years later. Like I said, the first disc is all solid (I totaled up the times on this album and they could’ve easily put it all on one disc. Both discs together are only 78 minutes. That’s really annoying.) and while the 2nd disc is lacking a bit, Cold Gin and RNR All Nite really help it out. If you’re interested in Kiss then this album is absolutely essential.
Rating: 87
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