Fellow nerds:
If you have enjoyed my KISS fan site located (under the skytower) I thank you, writing KISS reviews has been a labor of love as well as a chance to meet some kick ass KISS fans and share their memories as well. However, today I am writing to let you know the location of my KISS fan site has moved. The spirit will remain the same - only the location has changed. So...that being said if you are in the mood to wax KISS or just want to feel like that nerdy kid you were in high school...drop by for a visit:

www.itsallforyoudemon.blogspot.com

Thanks again - See you soon -
Ric

KISS - EXPOSED

This is where it all began…KISS – EXPOSED served as the catalyst that eventually led to my bedroom walls being plastered with KISS posters. From the first night Dan popped this cassette into a video machine to the following 100,000 viewing's in my basement, Brett’s basement, or countless other hangouts, my love for this video has never diminished.
Had I viewed this video at my current age (34), more than likely it would not have had the same effect. In fact I can be almost sure of it. When I first saw KISS – EXPOSED, I was 14 years old. Young enough, immature enough, and full of enough hormonal rage for everything to fall into place exactly as it was intended. KISS – EXPOSED served as my initiation into a world I had never dreamed of…the world of rock and roll and KISS.
Of all the images on the screen a few choice cuts left the biggest scars. "Who Wants To Be Lonely" had the ultimate impact on me. Beyond outer visions of fancy cars and platinum albums, this was the video that punched me in the gut. The song literally knocked me on my ass. I fell in love with Paul Stanley’s ‘rock swagger’ at that moment. "Uh! All Night" still has a bizarre effect on me even to this day. I was a sucker for hot blondes in their bare feet when I was 14 and those affections still ring true today. Something about that video turns me on like no other…pure rock and roll pleasures; a killer guitar groove set to hot chicks pouncing up and down on a bed…it just doesn’t get any better than that.
As a kid it was nice to believe that Gene and Paul really did live in the same house, bang the same groupies and truly keep all of their memorabilia in a "KISS ARCHIVES"…honestly it is still fun to imagine that same thing today. I believe if you ask any KISS fan they will tell you this segment of the video is by far the coolest. For the first time ever, in crystal clear VHS formatting you can watch; Gene spitting blood, Ace’s smoking guitar, Peter singing "Beth", and above all the absolute ‘tops’ of all KISS performances…the 1980 Sydney Australian Tour version of "Detroit Rock City"…. Yes…its overdubbed beyond belief, but my lord…. no outdoor rock and roll classic has ever sounded sweeter!
Finally getting to see an actual video for "I Love It Loud" (and a somewhat menacing one at that) was the icing on the cake for me. Along with the Houston 77’ performance of "I Stole Your Love", a song that had already taken a small piece of my heart thanks to KISS MEETS THE PHANTOM OF THE PARK…the entire package of KISS – EXPOSED was racing through my brain for weeks after the first viewing. I lived, slept, and dreamt KISS.
I can clearly remember one fine summer afternoon, mowing the yard at my mom’s house on 2523 Carter Avenue and imagining I was Paul Stanley…and once I got done mowing a bevy of gorgeous gals were awaiting my return to spend the afternoon with me in my rock and roll kingdom. Embarrassing? Yes. Heart warming? You better believe it.
At the end of the day…in all reality…that was the purpose. That was the goal…set out by KISS, their management, and their record label. The goal? "Sell yourselves…sell yourselves to an unknown 14 year old kid who has never really heard of you before and in the process you’ll maybe win over a few kids who will buy your records for the next 20 years." Well…it worked. The girls…the mansion…the rock and roll decadence…I bought into it hook line and sinker. As Paul Stanley ran around his Hollywood Hills home; scantily clad girls passed out around every corner; the entire home wreaking of sex and rock and roll…I (at the tender age of 14) believed this all to be true. It was then that I slowly fell into the magical make believe world of KISS and have gladly never looked back.

KISS - ASYLUM

By the end of the ANIMALIZE tour KISS had polished their non-makeup look, sound and lineup, garnered Platinum success and were well on their way to becoming the bonafide hard rock sensation they had aspired to be the greater part of the decade. Enter Paul Stanley; rock star front man extroidinaire, penning some of the coolest KISS tracks cataloged in the band’s 12-year history with the 1985 release, ASYLUM.
To label KISS as a ‘hair band’ is simply unfair. Yes, KISS spent their entire career relying heavily on image but for the most part steered clear from the rat pack of poofy haired bands that were crowding the Sunset Strip in the late 1980’s. Sure, the hair was large and the outfits were a tad flamboyant, but in the end KISS did what KISS does best; release kick ass rock and roll records.
Before any discussions of the classic 1980 KISS lineup go any further I feel now would be the best opportunity to clear the air. First off…(personal opinion only) I feel that LICK IT UP is the crème de la crème KISS (non-makeup) album. In my eyes it simply remains the most powerful. That being said, I would follow that release quickly with ASYLUM, third by REVENGE, fourth – HOT IN THE SHADE, and CRAZY NIGHTS coming in as 5th in the ranking standards (#1 being the best). Beyond that…. CARNIVAL OF SOULS, ANIMALIZE…. these releases have never done much for me. My point here is that ASYLUM, without a doubt is one of the finest KISS albums to hit the shelves and one that will always remain very close to my heart.
A few years before I fell headfirst into this whole ‘KISS’ thing, ASYLUM was the one album I had the most access to. This had more to do with Dan’s musical taste than anything; Unbeknownst to me Dan was quietly chasing his childhood and rediscovering the band that had brought him so much joy as a kid. No matter where we went or what we did those few late years of the 1980’s ASYLUM was always present in his Camaro’s tape deck. It almost feels as if I had grown up with this album. I didn’t realize it at the time but the album would one day have a profound effect on my adult life.
To trace back my fascination with Paul Stanley you would have to look no further than ASYLUM. It served as the ultimate rock soundtrack for my pre-teen life. Each Stanley penned track-oozed life from the speakers. Tracks like, "Who Wants To Be Lonely?", "Uh! All Nite" and "Radar For Love" simply drip with coolness and attitude. Everything a young kid longs for when facing the horrors of high school. The album definitely left a stamp on my life that to this day has not faded. Paul Stanley is, was and forever will be rock and roll to me. I can’t put it any more bluntly. He is the reason I love rock and roll.
Be it my transition into teenage life, the yearning for nights out on the town, or just the plain ol’ fashioned teenage adolescents kicking in, but the pop-metal sensibilities of ASYLUM still blow me away to this day. This feeling could have a lot to do with the addition of Bruce Kulick on guitar stamping out that classic KISS lineup with that perfect sound. This may also be the reason that ‘this’ KISS lineup has always remained closest to my heart…. who knows? The fact is, ASYLUM is a window’s down, spring evening, cruising album. It is classic formula 1980’s rock. Its album cover contains hints reminiscent of the ‘solo-era’ color scheme (a fact that I still grin madly about) and contains some of the coolest KISS guitar solos to ever touch vinyl. Without a doubt ASYLUM is one of the most underrated KISS albums in the bands catalog.

KISS - ANIMALIZE - LIVE UNCENSORED

It was the video boom. Video rental stores were sprouting like wildfire throughout small towns and more than likely you found yourself looking towards the family’s videocassette recorder for your ‘media’ fix. KISS lent themselves to the home video evolution quite well after establishing themselves as one of the most visually enticing bands of the 1970’s.
1984’s ANIMALIZE LIVE UNCENSORED served as KISS’ first venture into the world of home video. The band themselves, with their feet still firmly planted in the (the makeup’s off – how do we act?) awkwardness were featured in rare live concert form as they performed a gripping live performance filmed in Detroit on December 8th, 1984, originally to be aired on MTV’s Saturday Night Concert series.
Makeup and huge explosions aside, ANIMALIZE – LIVE UNCENSORED can simply be labeled as ‘cool’. Coming from a band whom since 1982 had only made minimal television performances and released a handful of videos, this was a pretty rare glimpse into a world most of us were not privilege to. Some of the coolest moments of the concert occur when Simmons, Stanley, and Eric Carr present for the first time (sans makeup) bass, guitar and drum solos’. As a kid, unless you or your older kin were KISS die-hards this quite possibly served as your ticket into catching a glimpse of the band live and in concert with all of the ‘extra’ concert gimmicks thrown in to-boot. Classic tracks like "Detroit Rock City" and "Love Gun" still made the set list as well as new comers, "Fits Like A Glove" and "Thrills In The Night", and with the chance to see Simmons breathe fire at the end of "War Machine"…this video is basically a no-brainer. Plain and simple fun…the way KISS has always done it.
ANIMALIZE – LIVE UNCENSORED represented a good start into an increasingly better line of home videos from KISS. KISS would continue this good fortune throughout the 1980’s releasing other gold mine successes like EXPOSED, X-TREME CLOSE UP, and THE SECOND COMING. Sadly, for a band that had adapted themselves so creatively to image related media KISS had a hard time adapting to the DVD age. However, for an intro into the Home Video movement….ANIMALIZE – LIVE UNCENSORED was the sweet beginning KISS needed.

KISS - ANIMALIZE

I sometimes find it mind boggling the differences KISS fans see in the bands records. One fan can hate LOVE GUN but love CRAZY NIGHTS. One fan can love DESTROYER and be 'so-so’ when it comes to discussing ROCK AND ROLL OVER. Each album is steeped within rock and roll featuring loud guitars and pounding drums but for one reason or another one album tugs at one person’s heartstrings more than another.
My point to all of this is simple. Within my circle of geeky KISS fans and friends there are two particular albums that are continually lumped together in roundabout discussions. Those particular albums remain the experimental MUSIC FROM THE ELDER and the somewhat hard to swallow, ANIMALIZE.
In countless interviews I have read, Gene has rated the KISS catalog giving MUSIC FROM THE ELDER a (zero star rating) for a KISS record and (two star rating) as a bad Genesis record. Sadly, every time I hear this quote I must disagree. My choice for a KISS album receiving a (zero star rating) would be ANIMALIZE.
AMINALIZE stands out of the pack as the one KISS record that is trying the hardest just to fit in. Most KISS albums make a statement. Hell…even THE ELDER had a mission…ANIMALIZE is simply ‘there’. And for a band with the charisma and drive of KISS…simply being ‘there’ is never enough. Be it the era (1980’s) or the ever changing lineup, or simply the absence of an actual producer, ANIMALIZE strives more than it hits the mark. ANIMALIZE showcases forgettable tunes and less than stellar packaging, which ultimately drives the album to the bottom of my KISS (fan-favorite) play list.
When ANIMALIZE was released in 1984 I was steadily rocking out my Quiet Riot - METAL HEALTH ringer-tee in the 4th grade. More interested in FOOTLOOSE than former rock stars of the 1970’s ANIMALIZE passed almost completely under my radar. My only notification of the its existence came from a novelty shop in the St. Joseph mall called, Martin Enterprises.
For St. Joe, Martin Enterprises was the closest a small town kid could get to rock and roll fashions. They had everything from T-shirts, bandannas, hatpins, and the ever so cherished spiked wristbands. One afternoon I found myself in the shop with an acquaintance from church, both hoping to add to our hatpin collections, when ANIMALIZE fell flat in my lap.
As we waited for our mothers patiently on the benches outside of the store I asked to see what hatpin he had purchased. He carefully slid a tiny metal pin out of his card stock envelope and showed it to me. It was a cheap metal copy of the KISS – ANIMALIZE album cover, complete with KISS logo, ANIMALIZE font and wild animal print. At the time I didn’t know what it meant but it looked a lot cooler than the Harley Davidson Eagle logo pin I had just purchased.
"I’ve never heard it," I questioned…feeling dumber than ever.
"Heaven’s On Fire?" he exclaimed, proceeding to sing a few bars,
"Feel my heat…taking you higher…burn with me…Heaven’s On Fire!"
The warning alarms went off in my head…. Visions of my mom looking like that robot from LOST IN SPACE….DANGER!…DANGER!…
There was no way on God’s green earth my mom would allow me to listen to something like that…not at the age of 10…for that matter not at the age of 15! ‘Burn with me’?...'Heaven’s On Fire’?….I was carefully pushing the envelope with kid friendly hits like "Cum On Feel The Noise", playing a song like that would only ensure my mom’s 1970’s notions about KISS. Lyrics like that would only press home the fact that this band were dangerous and yes….quite possibly satanic. (My mom believed every minister who had his own talk show on television…what else can I say? Growing up in my house was no picnic).
All of these 1980’s Reagan fears / small Midwestern minds and values being said…thanks to my mother and that day…ANIMALIZE remained out of my grasp well into my late teens when the collecting bug finally hit hard and the album found its way into my collection. Fortunately, I wasn’t missing out on all that much.