Post by Erik Rupp on Sept 3, 2009 23:53:32 GMT -5
KISS - Destroyer (1976)
KISS' Destroyer album has one of the most iconic album covers of the 1970's. The painting by Ken Kelly is one of the most familiar of that era. The album itself was a huge success. Many people consider it to be KISS' best studio album.
But is it? Or is it their most overrated studio album? Or does that all depend on the point of view and taste of the listener?
What is without question (well, for lot of Rock fans) is that the opening one-two punch of, "Detroit Rock City," and, "King of the Night Time World," is one of the best opening salvos in the entire KISS catalog. "Detroit," is an absolute classic, and is nearly flawless. Opening with a table-setting bit of someone eating while watching the news on TV leading into that person getting into the car and driving off to the sounds of KISS from ALIVE, this is clearly something different than KISS had done before. The song itself is a great, pulsing song with some fantastic sparse riffing and infectiously hooky vocals. Paul Stanley's vocal is particularly impressive, as his strong voice is showcased well. Part two of the song (as they are connected by car crash audio) is, "King of the Night Time World," a cover song of sorts that Paul reworked into a KISS classic. It sounds like something that could have fit right on their previous studio album, Dressed To Kill. It also would have been a highlight on that album, just as it is here.
The fascinating thing about the next song is that despite the fact that it is Gene Simmons' signature song of the 70's, it was written by Paul Stanley (in a different, more uptempo form). It is doomy and almost Black Sabbath-esque, and only the thin guitar sound which is mixed too low holds this song back at all. It is a monster, and one can only imagine how powerful it could have been with a fuller guitar sound placed further up front in the mix. Still, it is another iconic song for KISS, and it works well in the context of the album overall.
...and then the train went off the tracks.
Destroyer (and Alice Cooper) producer Bob Ezrin pushed the band to try new things. Add sound effects. Use layered production. Use outside co-writers. Try new styles. Yeah, that last one - that's one that Ezrin really pushed. (Well, he pushed all of them, but that last one brought with it some major changes for KISS.) And nowhere on Destroyer are those changes more glaring than on, "Great Expectations." Strings, a youth choir, tubular bells, pretty melodies - yeah, "Times, they are a-changin," for sure. The song was either really bold and showed tremendous growth, or it was pompous and overblown, and lacked the basic Rock instinct that KISS had shown in spades on their previous three studio albums. Whether it's more of the former or the latter has been debated by fans ever since the album first came out. That's a debate that will not likely be ended any time soon...
Side two opened with a more traditional KISS Rocker in, "Flaming Youth," or, well, it's sort of a traditional KISS Rocker, with organ added, but guitars mixed a little lower than usual in the multiple layers of the recording. Not as good as the two opening tracks on side one, "Flaming Youth," is still a solid Rock track that features some nice riffs and a good sing-along chorus.
Mediocrity is, by definition, neither good nor bad. "Sweet Pain," is fairly mediocre. It's got some decent riffs, some solid, if unspectacular vocal melodies, and a memorable chorus. "Sweet Pain," may just be north of mediocre, but not by much. The production actually helps this one, with an odd guitar tone that sounds like nothing KISS has used before or since.
So let's Rock and Roll All Nite, and party every day!
KISS' lone attempt at recreating that type of Rock Anthem on Destroyer ("Detroit," and, "King," seemed to have slightly different, and more mature, intentions) was, "Shout It Out Loud." Sharing vocals on this song are both Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, and their trading of lines in the verses workes extremely well. The song lacks a memorable riff, but has a HUGE twin guitar intro that is as memorable as anything the band has ever done. On this one they go for the song, basing the whole thing around the vocals, rather than their usual M.O. of going for a killer set of riffs and adding vocal melodies over the top. It works, and it works well. "Shout," is another timeless KISS classic, and with good reason.
...and then the wheels came off the car.
Or they found the pot of gold (platinum?) at the end of the rainbow.
Take your pick. "Beth," was a huge hit for the band. Their biggest hit single to date (and we're talking about 36 years of history thus far). It took KISS to heights of popularity that most people in the industry had previously thought impossible for a band like KISS. Reworking a song written by Peter Criss and Stan Penridge, Bob Ezring championed a song that the other members of the band all thought wouldn't fit at all on the album. If not for, "Great Expectations," they would have been right - it wouldn't have fit the album at all without, "Expectations," on the first side of the album. But with that song on there Peter Criss's soft, orchestral love song to his wife gave the album symmetry.
Now it may not have been a symmetry that many of their earlier fans wanted, but it was a symmetry that gave the album that balance - and an extremely radio friendly song - that wouldn't have existed otherwise. "Beth," is an extremely well written song, and the production is as smooth as silk. It just doesn't fit with what KISS was all about prior to Destroyer.
Closing out the album (prior to some more audio FX) was, "Do You Love Me," another Paul Stanley chest thumper that relied less on riff than on vocal melody. Simple, catchy, melodic - it was all of those things, and it was propelled by Peter Criss's almost Dave Clark Five-ish drumming. Like, "Flaming Youth," "Do You Love Me," is not a great song, but it has many good qualities.
In the end Destroyer really should have been credited to KISS AND BOB EZRIN, as Ezrin really took charge of the album and got KISS to change up a lot of what they had done up to that point. Some of those changes were successful, while others weren't. Destroyer ends up being something of a mixed bag because of that. Some fans love that diversity, while others dislike the lack of focus (and what some, including myself, think is overproduction).
What isn't debatable, however, is the fact that Destroyer is a classic KISS album, and the one that took them from being a big time Rock band to being superstars.
3.75/5
KISS' Destroyer album has one of the most iconic album covers of the 1970's. The painting by Ken Kelly is one of the most familiar of that era. The album itself was a huge success. Many people consider it to be KISS' best studio album.
But is it? Or is it their most overrated studio album? Or does that all depend on the point of view and taste of the listener?
What is without question (well, for lot of Rock fans) is that the opening one-two punch of, "Detroit Rock City," and, "King of the Night Time World," is one of the best opening salvos in the entire KISS catalog. "Detroit," is an absolute classic, and is nearly flawless. Opening with a table-setting bit of someone eating while watching the news on TV leading into that person getting into the car and driving off to the sounds of KISS from ALIVE, this is clearly something different than KISS had done before. The song itself is a great, pulsing song with some fantastic sparse riffing and infectiously hooky vocals. Paul Stanley's vocal is particularly impressive, as his strong voice is showcased well. Part two of the song (as they are connected by car crash audio) is, "King of the Night Time World," a cover song of sorts that Paul reworked into a KISS classic. It sounds like something that could have fit right on their previous studio album, Dressed To Kill. It also would have been a highlight on that album, just as it is here.
The fascinating thing about the next song is that despite the fact that it is Gene Simmons' signature song of the 70's, it was written by Paul Stanley (in a different, more uptempo form). It is doomy and almost Black Sabbath-esque, and only the thin guitar sound which is mixed too low holds this song back at all. It is a monster, and one can only imagine how powerful it could have been with a fuller guitar sound placed further up front in the mix. Still, it is another iconic song for KISS, and it works well in the context of the album overall.
...and then the train went off the tracks.
Destroyer (and Alice Cooper) producer Bob Ezrin pushed the band to try new things. Add sound effects. Use layered production. Use outside co-writers. Try new styles. Yeah, that last one - that's one that Ezrin really pushed. (Well, he pushed all of them, but that last one brought with it some major changes for KISS.) And nowhere on Destroyer are those changes more glaring than on, "Great Expectations." Strings, a youth choir, tubular bells, pretty melodies - yeah, "Times, they are a-changin," for sure. The song was either really bold and showed tremendous growth, or it was pompous and overblown, and lacked the basic Rock instinct that KISS had shown in spades on their previous three studio albums. Whether it's more of the former or the latter has been debated by fans ever since the album first came out. That's a debate that will not likely be ended any time soon...
Side two opened with a more traditional KISS Rocker in, "Flaming Youth," or, well, it's sort of a traditional KISS Rocker, with organ added, but guitars mixed a little lower than usual in the multiple layers of the recording. Not as good as the two opening tracks on side one, "Flaming Youth," is still a solid Rock track that features some nice riffs and a good sing-along chorus.
Mediocrity is, by definition, neither good nor bad. "Sweet Pain," is fairly mediocre. It's got some decent riffs, some solid, if unspectacular vocal melodies, and a memorable chorus. "Sweet Pain," may just be north of mediocre, but not by much. The production actually helps this one, with an odd guitar tone that sounds like nothing KISS has used before or since.
So let's Rock and Roll All Nite, and party every day!
KISS' lone attempt at recreating that type of Rock Anthem on Destroyer ("Detroit," and, "King," seemed to have slightly different, and more mature, intentions) was, "Shout It Out Loud." Sharing vocals on this song are both Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, and their trading of lines in the verses workes extremely well. The song lacks a memorable riff, but has a HUGE twin guitar intro that is as memorable as anything the band has ever done. On this one they go for the song, basing the whole thing around the vocals, rather than their usual M.O. of going for a killer set of riffs and adding vocal melodies over the top. It works, and it works well. "Shout," is another timeless KISS classic, and with good reason.
...and then the wheels came off the car.
Or they found the pot of gold (platinum?) at the end of the rainbow.
Take your pick. "Beth," was a huge hit for the band. Their biggest hit single to date (and we're talking about 36 years of history thus far). It took KISS to heights of popularity that most people in the industry had previously thought impossible for a band like KISS. Reworking a song written by Peter Criss and Stan Penridge, Bob Ezring championed a song that the other members of the band all thought wouldn't fit at all on the album. If not for, "Great Expectations," they would have been right - it wouldn't have fit the album at all without, "Expectations," on the first side of the album. But with that song on there Peter Criss's soft, orchestral love song to his wife gave the album symmetry.
Now it may not have been a symmetry that many of their earlier fans wanted, but it was a symmetry that gave the album that balance - and an extremely radio friendly song - that wouldn't have existed otherwise. "Beth," is an extremely well written song, and the production is as smooth as silk. It just doesn't fit with what KISS was all about prior to Destroyer.
Closing out the album (prior to some more audio FX) was, "Do You Love Me," another Paul Stanley chest thumper that relied less on riff than on vocal melody. Simple, catchy, melodic - it was all of those things, and it was propelled by Peter Criss's almost Dave Clark Five-ish drumming. Like, "Flaming Youth," "Do You Love Me," is not a great song, but it has many good qualities.
In the end Destroyer really should have been credited to KISS AND BOB EZRIN, as Ezrin really took charge of the album and got KISS to change up a lot of what they had done up to that point. Some of those changes were successful, while others weren't. Destroyer ends up being something of a mixed bag because of that. Some fans love that diversity, while others dislike the lack of focus (and what some, including myself, think is overproduction).
What isn't debatable, however, is the fact that Destroyer is a classic KISS album, and the one that took them from being a big time Rock band to being superstars.
3.75/5
