Kiss - '40' CD Review (40th Anniversary Compilation)

“Ever get the feeling you’ve been cheated?” - John Lydon

Kiss’ latest greatest hits compilation, 40, has a unique hook in that it is a chronological walk-through of Kiss’ back catalog, pulling one track from thirty-nine of the band’s past releases. The downside is that this looks like yet another cash grab as Kiss has already released numerous greatest hits compilations and the only previously unreleased song on this release is a 1977 demo from Gene Simmons entitled “Reputation”. “Reputation” is decent track that is comparable to “Christine Sixteen” and “Radioactive” but this track alone doesn’t justify the purchase of yet another compilation.



Here is the track list for 40:

Disc 1
01. “Nothin' to Lose” (from KISS)
02. ”Let Me Go, Rock ‘n’ Roll” (from Hotter Than Hell)
03. ”C’mon and Love Me” (from Dressed to Kill)
04. ”Rock and Roll All Nite" (Live) (from Alive!)
05. “God of Thunder” (Demo) (from The Box Set) (Note: Paul on vocals)
06. “Beth” (from Destroyer)
07. “Hard Luck Woman” (from Rock and Roll Over)
08. “Reputation” (1977 Demo)
09. “Christine Sixteen” (from Love Gun)
10. ”Shout It Out Loud” (Live) (from Alive II)
11. ”Strutter ’78" (from Double Platinum)
12. ”You Matter to Me” (from Peter Criss)
13. ”Radioactive” (from Gene Simmons)
14. ”New York Groove” (from Ace Frehley)
15. ”Hold Me, Touch Me” (from Paul Stanley)
16. ”I Was Made for Lovin’ You” (Single Edit) (from Dynasty)
17. ”Shandi" (from Unmasked)
18. ”A World Without Heroes” (from Music from “The Elder”)
19. ”I Love It Loud” (from Creatures of the Night)
20. ”Down on Your Knees” (from Killers)
21. ”Lick It Up” (from Lick It Up)
22. ”Heaven’s on Fire” (from Animalize)

Disc 2
01. "Tears Are Falling" (from Asylum)
02. "Reason to Live" (from Crazy Nights)
03. "Let’s Put the X in Sex" (from Smashes, Thrashes and Hits)
04. "Forever" (Remix) (from Hot in the Shade)
05. "God Gave Rock ‘N’ Roll to You II" (from Revenge)
06. "Unholy" (from Alive III)
07. "Do You Love Me?" (from KISS Unplugged)
08. "Room Service" (from You Wanted The Best, You Got The Best!!)
09. "Jungle" (Radio Edit) (from Carnival of Souls: The Final Sessions)
10. "Psycho Circus" (from Psycho Circus)
11. "Nothing Can Keep Me from You" (from Detroit Rock City: Music from the Motion Picture)
12. "Detroit Rock City" (from KISS Symphony: Alive IV)
13. "Deuce" (from KISS Instant Live, 2004)
14. "Firehouse" (from Alive: The Millennium Concert)
15. "Modern Day Delilah" (from Sonic Boom)
16. "Cold Gin" (from Alive 35)
17. "Crazy Crazy Nights" (from Sonic Boom Over Europe)
18. "Hell or Hallelujah" (from Monster)
19. “Hell or Hallelujah” Live - Japanese Bonus Track

My challenge is that I can’t figure out what demographic this compilation is being targeted to. Long-time Kiss fans will already have all of these tracks and “Reputation” has commonly circulated on Kiss bootlegs (i.e. First Kiss, Last Licks). If this release is targeted to the ‘uninitiated’, the aging soccer dad/mom who wants to relive the radio hits of their youth may not be prepared for or want to hear the soft white underbelly of Kiss’ late 70’s/early 80’s lite FM/disco schmaltz. All-in-all, Double Platinum or any of the “Alive” albums would be a better place for this later demographic to start.

Links:
Kiss

Kiss - "Destroyer Resurrected" CD Review

I really wanted to write this album off as a cash grab after the planned 2CD deluxe reissue of Destroyer got scrapped and the 'Resurrected' edition adds just one bonus track - taking the original 34 minute release up to a running time of just over 37 minutes. What makes it hard to dismiss this release is that Bob Ezrin's remaster adds so much clarity and depth to the music that I'll probably toss out my original edition of Destroyer, which sounds compressed and muddy by comparison.

I'll come back to the sonic clarity momentarily but wanted to start by noted Ezrin's changes from the original recording:

- "Sweet Pain": A second version has been added as a bonus track which includes Ace Frehley's guitar solo as, evidently, the guitar solo on the original issue was played by Dick Wagner (from Alice Cooper's band). Unfortunately, this track serves just as a historical reference as Wagner's solo is more recognizable and distinctive. What is somewhat strange though is that the Wagner track is the disc's "bonus track" while the version with Ace is slotted in the original running order.

- "Beth": There is a extra "Ohhh" added that is hard to catch if you aren't looking for it. (In an interview with KissFaq.Com, Ezrin says "There was some stuff Peter did -- that little "Ah ooh" at the end. It actually occurred twice on the master tape and I only used one of them.") The real treat is that you can hear Wagner's acoustic guitar work throughout the whole song rather than just at the end.

- "Detroit Rock City": Paul's vocals have been changed from "Movin' fast, Down 95" to "Movin' fast, doin' 95".

Lastly, the disc's cover art has been reverted back to Ken Kelly's rejected art for Destroyer.



Getting back to the disc's sound quality - the remastered album is louder than the original though not 'bricked'. The separation between the instruments is significantly improved and the bass and drum tracks sound like they have been brought forward giving the disc a clean and crisp bottom-end. The orchestral instrumentation is much more distinctive ("Beth") and the non-traditional instruments (harpsichord and calliope) have also been pulled out from the original disc's wall of effects and give additional color and depth to the music. Lastly, the backing vocals and harmonies on "Great Expectations", "God of Thunder" and "Sweet Pain" have also been brought up in the mix.

While audio purists may liken Ezrin's remaster to the coloring of "Citizen Kane", the end result is that Ezrin has breathed new life into Destroyer. After all the 'throw-away' pseudo-remasters that have come out over the last twenty years, this is the first remaster where I think it is worth considering replacing a previously purchased CD.

Links:
Kiss

"Trick or Treat" - Nitehawk Cinema Screens Rare 35mm Print of Classic Heavy Metal Film on Oct. 21 & 22

Prepare to get caught in a 35mm mosh pit as Wild Eye Releasing presents The Heavy Metal Horror Show! Appearing at Brooklyn's own Nitehawk Cinema for two nights only, Friday, October 21st & Saturday, October 22nd, starting at Midnight.

Headlining the bill is the 1986 headbanging horror classic Trick or Treat directed by Charles Martin Smith. Experience the mysterious death and backwards record-induced return of Rock N' Roll superstar Sammi Curr (Tony Fields) as he haunts his biggest fan Skippy, er, we mean Eddie (Mark Price). Watch as Curr shreds till everyone on screen is literally dead, with special guest appearances by Ozzy Osbourne and Gene Simmons.

And if that isn't enough to satiate your sick minds, make sure to show up early to catch opening act The Ghost Of The New York Grindhouse Trailer Show performing a full hour of spine tingling horror and exploitation trailers from the 60's and 70's that will raise your hair, but without that can of Aquanet.

So cancel your Dungeons and Dragons game and raise your devil-horned hands in the air as we bring Heavy Metal to the silver screen in its purest form, with the entire evening's events being screened from original 35mm prints and the volume turned up to 11.



Avoid price gouging scalpers and get your tickets now! Advance tickets are available at the Nitehawk Cinema box office and at NitehawkCinema.com. For more information, visit wildeyereleasing on Facebook or wildeyereleasing.com.

Nighthawk Cinema is located at 136 Metropolitan Avenue in Williamsburg. Tickets are $11 and the show starts at midnight.

Links:
Trick or Treat (IMDB)

Kiss Release Plushies, Announce Appearance in "Archie" Comic Book and New Album in 2012

Kiss has announced their 20th album, Monster, and the fourth volume of Kissology will be released sometime around the beginning of the year. In the run-up to these releases, Kiss has some new merchandise coming out.

First up are plushies of the original lineup (Gene, Paul, Peter and Ace) and each doll is 7" tall. The dolls were released yesterday and are available through Entertainment Earth and FYE stores. Each doll is $11.99 through Entertainment Earth.









(from KissOnline)
Come November, Riverdale will rock 'n roll all night -- not to mention, party every day -- for the four-part storyline "Archie Meets KISS" running through "Archie" #627-630. Written by Archie Comics' Executive Director of Publicity and Marketing Alex Segura with art by Dan Parent -- an Archie mainstay most recently known for creating Kevin Keller, the publisher's first openly gay character -- the story will find Sabrina's errant protection spell inviting a horde of demons to town, with the comics-inspired KISS personas of the Demon, Moonchild, Spaceman and Catman arriving just in time to help save the day.

CBR News spoke with Segura and Parent about "Archie Meets KISS" and how the two worlds will collide.

CBR News: First, guys, how did this unusual team-up come together?

Alex Segura: Pretty easily, actually. Gene Simmons called up our Co-CEO Jon Goldwater with the idea. Once the deal was struck, I pitched my story to Jon and President Mike Pellerito. I'd written an issue of "Archie and Friends" before, so they knew I was interested in writing more. The timing worked out really well and the chance to bring together two major pieces of Americana -- Archie and the KISS gang -- was impossible to pass up.

Lastly, Kiss' forthcoming disc Monster already has a Wikipedia page. In an interview, Gene Simmons said that this forthcoming disc is a "combination of three of the band's previous albums, Destroyer, Revenge and the album's predecessor Sonic Boom."

Links:
Kiss

Doro: Exclusive Interview with BrooklynRocks, Sept. '10 // 25th Anniversary Concert DVD Set Out in Europe Next Month

German metal queen Doro Pesch has completed work on her biggest project to date — the 2DVD/CD set, 25 Years In Rock, features the entire 25-year anniversary concert which was recorded in front of about 10,000 enthusiastic fans in Düsseldorf, Germany as well as footage from her 2008 shows in China, outtakes from Doro's 2500th concert and a whole lot more. The DVD will be released in Europe via Nuclear Blast on November 26, 2010 and in the rest of the world sometime in 2011.

Pesch celebrated her 25-year career as the reigning queen of German heavy metal by performing a three-hour set on December 13, 2008 at the ISS Dome in Düsseldorf, Germany. Holy Moses, Leaves' Eyes and Arch Enemy opened the show and were followed by full set by Doro herself, which included guest appearances by Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth (Overkill), Jean Beauvoir, Grave Digger's Chris Boltendahl and guitarist Axel Rudi Pell, former Nightwish singer Tarja Turunen, Scorpions' Klaus Meine and Rudolf Schenker, as well as a host of other female vocalists, such as Liv Kristine (Leaves' Eyes), Floor Jansen (After Forever), members of Girlschool, Liv of Sister Sin and Sabina Classen of Holy Moses.



I had the opportunity to speak with Doro just prior to her and her band heading out on a short three-date East Coast tour which kicked off in early October.

BrooklynRocks: Throughout your careers, you have collaborated with a “Who’s Who of Metal”. Could you talk about some of these collaborations?

Doro: It was an honor to work with Gene Simmon and Tommy Thayer on my second solo LP (1990). I was a huge Kiss fan and Gene was an incredible motivator who taught me so much about music. Tommy Thayer, who is now in Kiss, played most of the guitars on the record.

BrooklynRocks: Can you talk about your collaboration with Lemmy?

Doro: After my father had passed away, I was heartbroken. One day I picked up the phone and it was Lemmy and I told him what happened. He said “come to Los Angeles and we will do something“ but I told him that I was so heartbroken and really, really sad. He said “please come to LA and we will do something to get your mind off the heaviness of this”. I went to LA and we recorded two songs, one that I love is the Motorhead classic “Love Me Forever” and another song “Alone Again”. It was two weeks and awesome how we could talk and have great laughs. I picked up Lemmy every day to go to the studio and each day we would sit in LA traffic and Lemmy would play me his favorite singers, old Motorhead records and new music and he would sing along.

All the other collaborations were just as special; always different and always unique. It was an honor to do and be a part of a great project; when people came to our studio it was always a big honor and usually always the highlight of each record.

BrooklynRocks: Now that you have been in rock for over twenty five years, do you look back on the Snakebite days or Megadeth tour and reminisce?

Doro: The Megadeth tour was my first big American tour and it was awesome and unbelievable. I remember it so well and it doesn’t feel like it was in 1988 but no more than five years ago. This tour was the first time we played in the States.

BrooklynRocks: What does the set list look like for these upcoming shows?

Doro: We want to play the highlights of each of the records, from older songs like "I Rule the Ruins", "All We Are" and "Burning the Witches" to the new record's (2009's Fear No Evil) "Night of the Warlock", "Celebrate" and "Running from the Devil", which seems to be one that the fans really like. From the last record (2006's Warrior Soul), "You’re my Family" and "Above the Ashes". "Love Me in Black" is one of my favorite songs - the record never officially released in the States but it is one of the best records that we have ever done. The die-hard fans knew this record and request the song. In concert, we will play everything from old Warlock songs to the newer songs. We will play as long as the fans want, generally 1 ½ - 2 hours as long as the venue doesn’t have a curfew, and the fans can call out the songs they want to hear. For the encores, we will play whatever makes the fans happy.

I don’t have a steady set list every night so the sets are always somewhat unique. We have fans that travel around and go to all the gigs of each tour and they can be sure that they will never get the same set each night. There will always be some new adventure each night with new and different stuff in the set.

BrooklynRocks: After recording over a dozen albums and playing different songs each night, how can you still remember the lyrics to all of your songs?

Doro: I love the songs so usually it is no problem. When I love the lyrics and it is a meaningful thing, I will always remember. I have a hard time remembering lyrics when I didn’t write the song myself or it is a song that I don’t like so much but then I just have to work on it. I remember at least fifty songs but when someone calls out a b-side that isn’t a favorite, it is hard. Here and there when we rehearse, I’ll read the lyric sheets but after a couple of times, it becomes second nature. When you tour so much, you don’t have to think anymore about it, it just flows. When I start a new tour, I have to start from scratch sometime but it is in my blood.

BrooklynRocks: As a wrap-up, is there anything that you want people to know about you?

Doro: I want to thank all the fans for all their great support for all these years. I would love to see them coming out to the shows and I will absolutely give at least 180%. I will try to make the fans happy as they always gave me so much motivation and inspiration. I wish everyone all the best. Keep Metal Alive!

The tour finished up at the Crazy Donkey on Long Island and one of the songs Doro performed on this last night of the tour was "Egypt (Chains are On)" as a tribute to Ronnie James Dio (who Doro has cited as being one of her biggest influences).



Links:
Doro Pesch

Signs of the Apocalypse - Hanah Montana Covers Kiss' "Rock and Roll All Night"

This is frightening...next we will have the Partridge Family reunion covering Slayer.



On a slightly more serious note, Kiss is going to have to do more than raid their vaults if they don't want to slip off that "Violent Femmes/R.E.M." nostalgia act cliff. It doesn't sounds like new material is coming anytime soon though as Gene Simmons gave the following quote in a recent Billboard interview: "There is nothing in me that wants to go in there and do new music. How are you going to deliver it? How are you going to get paid for it if people can just get it for free?"

Kiss/Gene Simmons Readies the Next Batch of Archival Material

Kiss has announced that Kissology Volume 3, the third volume in their DVD series, will be released on December 18th. I am a big Kiss fan but enough is enough.

Gene/Paul - All the Kiss fans already have most of these shows as KissVision bootlegs!

Where I was particularly disappointed with Kissology Vol 2 was that the KissVision bootlegs were more complete. Hopefully that isn't the case with the shows on Vol. 3. There is one interesting show in this new set that I haven't seen before but, strangely, it isn't the bonus disc.

The shows in the Kissology Vol. 3 set are:
* Detroit – 1992
* Detroit – 1996
* Los Angeles – 1998
* New Jersey – 2000
* Queens, NY - 1973 (this should be really interesting)

The bonus disc (it sounds like it is available at all retailers) is the KROQ Weenie Roast show from 1996 which was the band's first reunion show.

In other Kiss news, Gene Simmons has given some recent interviews where he talks about a box set of solo recordings, "Monster", of "150 unreleased songs" and a box set of unreleased Kiss songs. Be warned though that both box sets will likely have "monster" price tags. We will see what happens in 2008.

Kiss has also announced a series of shows in Australia and New Zealand based around Indy car racing. The mini-tour kicks off in Melbourne on March 16th.

Kiss - Kissology Volume 2 Will Be Released Tomorrow, August 14th

The second box set of Kiss DVDs, Kissology Volume 2, will be released on Tuesday, August 14th. Like the first volume, there will be three different bonus discs released to different retailers.

Here is the list of bonus discs:

FYE/TARGET bonus disc: (advertised this week for $21.98)
Nippon Budokan - Tokyo, Japan (April 21, 1988)
Track listing: `Love Gun', `Cold Gin', `Crazy Crazy Nights', `Heaven's On Fire', `War Machine', `I Love It Loud', `Lick It Up', `I Was Made For Lovin' You', `Detroit Rock City'

WAL-MART bonus disc : (advertised this week for $24.88)
Capital Center - Largo, MD (July 8, 1979)
Track listing: `Radioactive', `Move On', `Calling Dr. Love', `Firehouse', `New York Groove', `I Was Made For Lovin' You', `Love Gun', `Tossin' And Turnin'', `God Of Thunder', `Shout It Out Loud', `Black Diamond', `Detroit Rock', City', `Rock And Roll All Nite'

BEST BUY bonus disc: (advertised this week for $24.99)
The Ritz - New York, NY (August 13, 1988)
Track listing: `Deuce', `Love Gun', `Fits Like A Glove', `Heavens on Fire', `Cold Gin', `Black Diamond', `Firehouse', `Crazy, Crazy Nights', `Calling Dr. Love', `War Machine', `Tears Are Falling'

Kiss Readies Kissology Volume 2 and Peter Criss Readies New Solo CD

On August 14th, Kiss will release the second volume of the Kissology DVD set. This will be a three disc set with a bonus 4th disc available at "select retailers". It looks like there will only be one version of the bonus disc (unlike the previous Kissology set where there was a different bonus disc at Best Buy, Wal-Mart and "select retailers".


Here is the track listing:

Disc One:
Interviews
Land Of Hype And Glory with Edwin Newman - (1/10/78)
The Tomorrow Show With Tom Snyder - (10/31/79)
(This one is funny as h*ll as Peter is wasted out of his mind)
+ More

Disc Two:
TV Appearances
"Shandi" (music video) - (1980)
CNN Interview with Peter Criss - (9/24/80)
Countdown - (9/21/80)
Rockpop - (9/13/80)
- "She's So European"
- "Talk To Me"
KISS Invades Australia - (11/80) Documentary
Sydney Showground: Sydney, Australia - (11/22/80)
- "Detroit Rock City"
- "Cold Gin"
- "Strutter"
- "Shandi"
- "Calling Dr. Love"
- "Firehouse"
- "Talk To Me"
- "Is That You"
- "2000 Man"
- "I Was Made For Lovin' You"
- "New York Groove"
- "Love Gun"
- "God Of Thunder"
- "Rock And Roll All Nite"
- "Shout It Out Loud"
- "King Of The Night Time World"
- "Black Diamond"
Fridays - (1/15/82)
- "The Oath"
- "A World Without Heroes"
- "I"
Top Pop - (11/82)
- "I Love It Loud"

Disc Three:
Maracana Stadium: Rio De Janeiro, Brazil -(6/18/83)
- "Creatures Of The Night"
- "Cold Gin"
- "Calling Dr. Love"
- "Firehouse"
- "I Love It Loud"
- "War Machine"
- "Black Diamond"
- "Rock And Roll All Nite"
MTV Special: KISS Unmasking -(9/18/83)
Cascais Hall: Lisbon, Portugal - (10/11/83)
- "Creatures Of The Night"
- "Detroit Rock City"
The Spectrum: Philadelphia, PA - (12/18/87)
- "Love Gun"
- "Bang Bang You"
- "No, No, No"
- "Crazy Crazy Nights"
- "Reason To Live"
The Palace At Auburn Hills: Detroit, MI - (10/14/90)
- "I Stole Your Love"
- "Deuce"
- "Heaven's On Fire"
- "Crazy Crazy Nights"
- "Black Diamond"
- "Shout It Out Loud"
- "Strutter"
- "Calling Dr. Love"
- "I Was Made For Lovin' You"
- "Fits Like A Glove"
- "Hide Your Heart"
- "Lick It Up"
- "God Of Thunder"
- "Forever"
- "Cold Gin"
- "Tears Are Falling"
- "I Love It Loud"
- "Love Gun"
- "Detroit Rock City"
- "I Want You"
- "Rock And Roll All Nite"
Music Video - (1991):
- "God Gave Rock ‘N' Roll To You II"
Day In Rock - (11/25/91): MTV News excerpt

Bonus Fourth Disc:
The Crazy Nights Tour (4/21/88) – Tokyo, Japan – Budokan Hall
- "Love Gun"
- "Cold Gin"
- "Crazy Crazy Nights"
- "Heaven’s On Fire"
- "War Machine"
- "I Love It Loud"
- "Lick It Up"
- "I Was Made For Lovin' You"
- "Detroit Rock City"

I would pick up the bonus edition(s?) as soon as this set is released as Volume 1 seemed to go straight from the stores to eBay. I'll likely pick up this set but there is one thing that I am a bit disappointed with...my speculation is that these two volumes were released to quash the KissVision bootlegs that came out 10+ years ago and the DVD copies of these tapes that were floating around eBay 2-3 years ago. Here is the problem -- If you want to squash a bootleg, you have to include ALL of the tracks from the bootleg on the official release. One of the magic moments on the Philadelphia '87 show was Paul singing White Christmas and there were a lot more tracks on the Tokyo '88 show. Guys -- all you are doing is creating demand for the KissVision material.


Peter Criss is releasing his first solo CD in years on July 24th. This could be an interesting release as Peter recorded with Paul Shaffer and Will Lee from the David Letterman show. Peter also is releasing a limited edition autographed version of this disc through BestBuy:

In dedication to his fans, Criss personally autographed a limited amount of CDs of the “special edition” package, which will be marked with a “gold” sticker on the CD, and will be available in the U.S. at the retail chain BEST BUY.

I'd bet that the limited edition will also go quick and end up on eBay.

Here is the track list for the CD:

One For All
Doesn’t Get Better Than This
Last Night
What a Difference a Day Makes
Hope
Faces in the Crowd
Send in the Clowns
Falling All Over Again
Whisper
Heart Behind Hands
Memories
Space Ace