Along with the "irrational happiness" in this album's title there are also flashes of madness and brilliance throughout the proceedings. Bringing together free roaming avant jazz with elements of tiki exotica, psychedelia, post rock and so much more, the new Bay Area combo known as Kipple craft a loose, open musical weave that's often quite reminiscent of awesome fellow SF artists such as pop collagists Milk Cult and the uncategorizable keyboardist Graham Connah. Keeps you on your toes, and keeps those toes a-tapping thanks to a creative and tight rhythm section. Moodily captivating. Recommended.
The third and final volume of this sprawling 6lp (two lps in each volume) drone haze ambient masterpiece from the man behind the Caretaker, and V/VM! All three 2lps have been compiled onto a triple cd, this week's Record Of The Week, but for vinyl folks, who have the first two, grab part three while you can...
For a couple of years now, Leyland James Kirby has been releasing a highly acclaimed catalog of maudlin ambient recordings culled from melodic phrases looped and blurred from old 78s. The bulk of these recordings (typically released under the Caretaker moniker) didn't seem to leave England or at least they didn't arrive in California. Now that the distribution has improved, we've finally been able to hear what the fuss has been all about. This album belongs to a trilogy called Sadly, The Future Is No Longer What It Was that Kirby has made now that he finds himself living under the grey skies of Berlin having relocated from grey skied Manchester; lo and behold, he's still making cold, rainy grey music for cold, rainy days. And yeah, he's pretty damn good at it.
As a piece of vinyl, When We Parted My Heart Wanted To Die eschews titles and doesn't even give us any information what so ever on the artwork, a paint-smeared canvas. It works as an endless loop of flipping the two records, forgetting which track you've drifted in and out of, and wondering where to start next. These pieces of blurred ambience, obfuscated field recordings, and sad piano melodies hint at the furniture music of Erik Satie, the mood engineering of Angelo Badalamenti, and the emotional resonance of William Basinski. Limited to 450 copies, these will not last.
It had to be an aQ Record Of The Week. Nearly four hours of warbly and washed out ambient beauty spread out over 3 cds (and 6 lps!), from the man behind the looped and warped ambient jazz minimalism of The Caretaker and the electronic fuckery of V/VM. We've been listing/reviewing the vinyl versions as they were released, part one: When We Parted My Heart Wanted To Die, part two: When Did Our Dreams And Futures Drift So Far Apart, and part three: Memories Live Longer Than Dreams (elsewhere on this week's list). We would have made the vinyl ROTW too, but we thought it was a lot to ask, 6 lps, nearly $80, so we held off, for THIS. A gorgeous compact collection of all 6 lps on 3 discs, in super minimal sleeves, gathered in an equally minimal and mysterious slipcover, printed to look like an old wooden crate. The art and the sound are all inexorably linked. The music of Kirby is mournful and mysterious, melancholy and otherworldly, everything shot through with a certain degree of sadness. Check the song titles: "When We Parted, My Heart Wanted To Die", "The Beauty Of The Impending Tragedy Of My Existence", "And As I Sat Beside You I Felt The Great Sadness That Day", "Tonight Is The Last Night Of The World", and the sounds those words represent, impart the same sense of heartbreak and loneliness, the music feels grey, like looking through a rain speckled dust coated window, at an old abandoned lot, the metal rusted, broken swingsets, collapsing barns, dead grass, mud and old pieces of wood, artifacts of a happier time, all reflecting the blackened sky above. But somehow, this isn't miserable music, it manages to be warm, and thick, and rich, and deceptively simple, lots of layers constantly shifting. It's definitely dronemusic, but not minimal or static, these sounds are alive, record crackle, buried voices, old record, warped instrumentation, sounds are looped and stretched and inverted, tied into knots and then pulled slowly and delicately apart. Fans of Philip Jeck, and Tim Hecker, and William Basinski, this is another gorgeously decayed artifact to add to your collection, evoking many of the same emotions as those like minded soundscapers, yet, the music of Leyland Kirby manages to sound unlike any of them.
This is the perfect soundtrack for introspection, for long nights, candlelight, grey days, windswept storm drenched hillsides, for drifting off, for huddling up with another and sharing warmth, dark, delicate and so beautiful. An incredible, sprawling collection of blurred ambience, obfuscated field recordings, and sad piano melodies hint at the furniture music of Erik Satie, the mood engineering of Angelo Badalamenti, and the emotional resonance of Basinski's Disintegration Loops.
While technically the vinyl wasn't Record Of The Week, it essentially has been, for a couple months now, just delivered in installments, each one a mysterious missive from some otherworld, those who have been keeping up, no doubt understand, and are surely already utterly and inexorably tangled up in Kirby's magical and mournful world of sound, but for the rest of you, who have yet to delve, to climb through, to step beyond, to lose yourself completely. Now is the time, and the message is clear, Sadly, The Future Is No Longer What It Was...
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Volume two of this sprawling 6lp (two lps in each volume) drone haze ambient masterpiece from the man behind the Caretaker, and V/VM!
For a couple of years now, Leyland James Kirby has been releasing a highly acclaimed catalog of maudlin ambient recordings culled from melodic phrases looped and blurred from old 78s. The bulk of these recordings (typically released under the Caretaker moniker) didn't seem to leave England or at least they didn't arrive in California. Now that the distribution has improved, we've finally been able to hear what the fuss has been all about. This double lp is the second in a trilogy called Sadly, The Future Is No Longer What It Was, and finds Kirby now living under the grey skies of Berlin having relocated from grey skied Manchester; lo and behold, he's still making cold, rainy grey music for cold, rainy days. And yeah, he's pretty damn good at it.
Like the first volume, When We Parted My Heart Wanted To Die, Memories Live Longer Than Dreams also eschews titles and doesn't even give us any information what so ever on the artwork, a paint-smeared canvas. It works as an endless loop of flipping the two records, forgetting which track you've drifted in and out of, and wondering where to start next. These pieces of blurred ambience, obfuscated field recordings, and sad piano melodies hint at the furniture music of Erik Satie, the mood engineering of Angelo Badalamenti, and the emotional resonance of William Basinski. Limited to 450 copies, these will not last. However, we have been told that a 3cd set will be emerging at sometime in the future containing the whole vinyl trilogy.
For a couple of years now, Leyland James Kirby has been releasing a highly acclaimed catalogue of maudlin ambient recordings culled from melodic phrases looped and blurred from old 78s. The bulk of these recordings (typically released under the Caretaker moniker) didn't seem to leave England or at least they didn't arrive in California. Now that the distribution has improved, we've finally been able to hear what the fuss has been all about. This album belongs to a trilogy called Sadly, The Future Is No Longer What It Was that Kirby has made now that he finds himself living under the grey skies of Berlin having relocated from grey skied Manchester; lo and behold, he's still making cold, rainy grey music for cold, rainy days. And yeah, he's pretty damn good at it.
As a piece of vinyl, When We Parted My Heart Wanted To Die eschews titles and doesn't even give us any information what so ever on the artwork, a paint-smeared canvas. It works as an endless loop of flipping the two records, forgetting which track you've drifted in and out of, and wondering where to start next. These pieces of blurred ambience, obfuscated field recordings, and sad piano melodies hint at the furniture music of Erik Satie, the mood engineering of Angelo Badalamenti, and the emotional resonance of William Basinski. Limited to 450 copies, these will not last. However, we have been told that a 3cd set will be emerging at sometime in the future containing the whole vinyl trilogy.
Apparently, Basil Kirchin is a highly regarded, even legendary composer in some circles. Not surprising we hadn't heard of him as his only two recordings were released in 1971 and 1973 and disappeared without a trace. Some of you may recognise the name as it can be found on that legendary Nurse With Wound list of influences, and it doesn't take more than a few minutes of Quantum to see why. This recording, also from 1973, has never been released until now and is a pretty wild ride. Perplexing but quite amazing. Buzzing synth tones weave a warm and warbly melody while sweet female vocals, soaked in reverb, emote atop them (think Bjork mixed with Brigitte Fontaine), sputtering free jazz (courtesy of Evan Parker) lurches wildly over a swirling sonic miasma of industrial clatter, found sounds, voices and birds chirping, rumbling drones, strings and xylophones, roaring lions, creaking and scraped strings and grand tonal swells. And that's just part one! Part two starts off with the moaning, hysterical vocals of an old woman (his wife) mixed with the random voices of autistic children, before a regal trumpet call sounds out over a swirl of hissing white noise and turns into a nursery rhyme rhythm played by a calliope and accompanied by what sounds like a very simple jazz combo. Eventually the voices return, over a writhing bed of screeching free jazz, intensifying, and lending the proceedings a truly terrifying and disturbed vibe. The rest of part two skips schizophrenically from atonal modern classical, to Bjorkish ballads, to haunting dronescapes, to mad jazz-splatter, to Namtchylak-ish wild vocalisations. Gorgeous and haunting and WAY OUT. Hard to believe this was recorded 30 years ago. And hard to believe he's remained a secret for so long. But according to the liner notes, this is just the first in a series of Kirchin reissues. Can't wait!
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
The Bad Vugum, er, 'super group' of Finnish luminaries from the likes of Circle, Sweetheart, Keuhkot, and Aavikko is a culmination of hypnotic experimental rock that resembles the more laid back 'cocktail' album from Circle "Hissi".
We can't really think of anything that more symbolizes our musical generation than the four Kiss solo records released way back in 1978. Well, okay, maybe if we tried we could think of a few things, BUT C'MON!!! KISS!!! ACE, PAUL, GENE and PETER!! Sure bands do solo records all the time. But it was never more of a production than when the biggest band in the world decided to simultaneously release 4 solo records, each adorned with a killer airbrushed painting of the artist, in full Kiss makeup and backlit with different colors. This was a huge deal when it happened, and while the records didn't sell nearly as well as the worst selling Kiss record, they still became instantly iconic and most folks we know, owned 'em, and listened to 'em and many of those same folks hung the covers on their walls!! Hell, even sludge masters the Melvins did their own version, even going so far as to emulate the original cheesy cover paintings. But now they are available as PICTURE DISCS!!! Holy shit!!! If there was ever a set of records more ripe for picture disc immortalization we sure as shit can't think of any. So the real question is which one to buy. C'mon. As if there was any other answer, ALL OF THEM. Seriously, what kind of doofus would only want one. They are a set. One at a time is okay, but you are gonna NEED all four. They have been on the wall at Aquarius facing the counter since they were released and they look SOOOO badass all in a row. Worth building a little Kiss shelf in your bedroom just to display these beauties for sure!
So Ace's solo record is pretty much univerally accepted as the best of the four. Pretty heavy and catchy, it definitely proved that maybe Ace and Gene could have let him write more songs for Kiss. "New York Groove" was an actual hit. But there were some killer hard rockers on there: "Rip It Out", "Snow Blind"... Definitely the only one of the four solo records that got heavy play (or any play at all actually). But who cares? You know you need all four!
We can't really think of anything that more symbolizes our musical generation than the four Kiss solo records released way back in 1978. Well, okay, maybe if we tried we could think of a few things, BUT C'MON!!! KISS!!! ACE, PAUL, GENE and PETER!! Sure bands do solo records all the time. But it was never more of a production than when the biggest band in the world decided to simultaneously release 4 solo records, each adorned with a killer airbrushed painting of the artist, in full Kiss makeup and backlit with different colors. This was a huge deal when it happened, and while the records didn't sell nearly as well as the worst selling Kiss record, they still became instantly iconic and most folks we know, owned 'em, and listened to 'em and many of those same folks hung the covers on their walls!! Hell, even sludge masters the Melvins did their own version, even going so far as to emulate the original cheesy cover paintings. But now they are available as PICTURE DISCS and as a super deluxe QUADRUPLE CD SET!!! Holy shit!!! If there was ever a set of records more ripe for that sort of immortalization we sure as shit can't think of any. So the real question is which one to buy. C'mon. As if there was any other answer, ALL OF THEM. Which is perfect cuz they come all together. Anyway, what kind of doofus would only want one. They are a set. One at a time is okay, but you NEED all four. The picture discs have been on the wall at Aquarius facing the counter since they were released and they look SOOOO badass all in a row.
So Ace's solo record is pretty much univerally accepted as the best of the four. Pretty heavy and catchy, it definitely proveed that maybe Ace and Gene could have let him write more songs for Kiss. "New York Groove" was an actual hit. But there were some killer hard rockers on there: "Rip It Out", "Snow Blind"... Definitely the only one of the four solo records that got heavy play (or any play at all actually).
Gene's record was the biggest surprise. We all expected some serious heaviness from THE DEMON, but instead got Beatlesy jangle, funk and DISCO!! Weird. Maybe the most listened to disc for novelty value. Featured some serious guest star power: Joe Perry from Aerosmith, Bob Seger, Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick, Janis Ian and Donna Summer. Woah.
Peter's record was considered by pretty much everybody to be the worst of the bunch. Some of us tried extra hard to like it, cuz, c'mon he was the DRUMMER. Of Kiss!!!! Peter leaned more toward the ballad end of the spectrum which should have boded well since most of his Kiss contributions were ballads, and were also some of the band's biggest hits! But his solo record, even in the ballad department tended to be a bit, well, weak. There are definite moments. And there might have been a minor hit or two, but mostly this disc exists to complete the set.
Paul's record sounded the most like a straight up Kiss record since he was the principal songwriter anyway. While it lacked the spark of a lot of the Kiss material it was still pretty decent. Hard rocking and catchy. Also featured legendary drummer Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge, Cactus, Rod Stewart, King Kobra!) on the skins!
This four disc set comes packaged in a super deluxe printed slipcase, the four covers on one side, some Russian text on the other. Inside, all the discs are housed in a massive fold out sleeve, like those things grandmas keep pictures of their grandchildren in, with each disc exposed, as each one has a reproduction of the cover ON the disc! So cool. Also includes a Detroit Rock City bottle opener. Fuck yeah!
Those of you who have been reading our New Arrivals list carefully for the past month know that I (Allan) have embarked upon a quixotic little project, reviewing one old KISS album per list. Why? Dunno. I guess 'cause Kiss rooooooooool. So, so far I've done write ups on two of the more kwestionable Kiss platters of the make up era, the disco inflected (infested?) Dynasty (1979) and the Styx-ish concept album Music From The Elder (1980). Go back and read about 'em if you didn't, we'd be happy to sell a few more of those...any of those. This time 'round, however, I thought it best to feature a maybe more acclaimed, essential Kiss album. I've chosen... Destroyer! From the Bicentennial year of 1976, their fourth studio album, coming after in-concert classic Alive!, Destroyer is one of the biggest Kiss successes ever. In part 'cause of drummer Peter Criss' surprise hit ballad, "Beth". But you're not gonna buy this for "Beth" (probably). You're gonna get it for the heavier fare here, such classics as "Detroit Rock City", remarkably Sabbathy in the riff dep't, and "God Of Thunder", a song Paul wrote for Gene for obvious reasons, of course this album's most heavy metal moment. Catchy, campy party starters like "King Of The Nighttime World", "Shout It Out Loud", "Do You Love Me?" (cowritten with Kim Fowley) are all over the place here too. Along with much studio embellishment both within and between songs, album opener "Detroit Rock City" getting a sound collage intro new to you if you've only heard it on the radio before.
Basically, if someone were to ask us what Kiss sounds like, we'd wouldn't hesitate to reach for Destroyer. The glammy, cartoony '70s kitsch Kiss phenomenon was about as full in effect here as anyplace else. Just check out the larger than life, band portrait on the cover. Wouldn't you want that on your lunchbox? And elementary schoolkids' older siblings could appreciate that Kiss was ready to rock hard for respect, capable of competing with the likes of Grand Funk sure enough but also doing battle in the arenas with some of the more metal acts of the era. So, Destroyer: hit ballad, hit rockers, good times all around, what more do you want? And well, heck, if we have to tell you too much about THIS album, maybe Kiss just isn't for you. C'mon nostalgia, do your thing...
All right, gonna wrap up the Kiss reviewing, for a little while anyway. Talkin' this week about not one, but THREE Kiss classics: Hotter Than Hell (1974), Dressed To Kill (1975), and Rock And Roll Over (1976). With these three reviewed, that means we will have covered all the Kiss studio albums up through 1981's Music From The Elder, except the universally loathed Unmasked... which might be for the best. (Crucial albums Alive I and II also remain to be reviewed.)
I don't mean to give any of these three short shrift by doing 'em briefly all together, it's just that lengthy reviews might not really be necessary. So, to begin: Hotter Than Hell, Kiss's second album, followed up their self-titled debut with another strong collection of songs, perhaps chief among them the heavy headbanging groove of Ace's "Parasite" (later covered by Anthrax) and the majestic lecherous lament of Gene's "Goin' Blind" (later covered by the Melvins). Meanwhile, tracks like "Let Me Go, Rock And Roll", "All The Way", and the title track are ones to crank come party-time. Actually the whole record is pretty much a rockin', rollin' barn-burner, aside from the aforementioned dirgey "Goin' Blind", and also album-ender "Strange Ways", whose lyrics and metallic plod have a sinister vibe that could weird out some partygoers. Cool though! Really, nothin' in they way of weak ones here, though maybe Paul's opener "Got To Choose" will be a bit too Bad Company sounding for some. Hotter Than Hell is an accurate album title I've gotta say, though it's too bad it didn't get the production job it deserved.
Next up, Kiss platter number 3, Dressed To Kill. There's a bunch of fairly poppy, finger snapping, boot-stomping hard rockers on here, Kiss again (almost) reminding us of the MC5 circa Back In The USA on opener "Room Service"... The immortal hits from this album include the Stonesy "C'mon And Love Me", mission statement "Rock And Roll All Night" (which you've probably heard a few million times too many), and "She", which lumbers a heckuva lot like BoC's "Godzilla". They go all flowery and acoustic for the first half of one song, but snap out of it in time to kick some ass ("Rock Bottom"). Incipient self-parody may be noticeable here, with groupie-themed lyrics and rock n' roll anthems making soon-to-be predictable appearances, but that's ok, some of my favorite Kiss albums later on are ALL self-parody and none the worse for it.
And then we skip ahead ('cause I've already reviewed the intervening Destroyer) to Rock And Roll Over, which fits in between the big D and Love Gun as their 5th studio album. This one starts off with one of my very favorite Kiss songs EVER, "I Want You", with its deceptively pretty n' sweet melodic intro immediately bursting into godlike amps-on-11, chest-thumping heavy metal riff rock that's about as catchy as it gets. Lyrically, it's the lustful essence of Kiss. But is Paul singing romantically about a longtime love, or rather more sleazily about the blonde in the third row, center, who just caught his eye? Probably the latter. Gene's "Calling Dr. Love" was another hit here, and definitely meant for that blonde... in fact, not just her, but all the willing ladies in the audience, no doubt!
What else? Peter sings an acoustic ballady number that's not too bad, "Hard Luck Woman", likely intended as this album's "Beth" (the sensitive, surprise hit he had on Destroyer, though this time, Paul wrote the song). Otherwise, not too much to say. "Take Me", "Love 'Em And Leave 'Em", "Makin' Love", "Mr. Speed", etc., it's all decent enuff Kiss stuff but nothing really stands out for me. Well, dumbest one "Ladies Room" maybe stands out, but not in a good way. But, dumb or not, Kiss knows what they're doing, and you'll be singing along to lots of Rock And Roll Over before it's over. And besides, it's got "I Want You"!
Ok, with these three albums, maybe that's all the Kiss we'll be reviewing for a while. Whew! But I'll start another series of reviews of another overlooked (by AQ) band, next time...
Ok, we just realized there's not nearly enough KISS reviewed on our website. All that's there really is some weird Russian picture disc 12" versions of the Peter, Paul, Gene and Ace solo albums. Also two of the three multi-dvd volumes of video KISStory. And that's it. Well, I (Allan) am going through a bit of a Kiss phase right now, so I thought I'd start stocking and reviewing some Kiss albums, one at a time. They're cheap enough. And no, I'm not reliving my childhood, it's not a nostalgia thing, actually when I was a kid I wasn't into Kiss at all. I remember looking at elementary school classmates Kiss lunch boxes and thinking, that's meant for kids, it's way too clownish, so I'm not into it... is that the sort of snobbery that led me to work in a record store? just kidding. However, I've come around on Kiss. Now I'm a bit obsessed, and lately have been trying to build up my Kiss collection on (remastered) cd.
This is the most recent one I've acquired, and it wasn't high on my list 'cause usually it's derided as one of the weakest of the Kiss albums from the original makeup era, its 1979 release finding Kiss incorporating some DISCO elements to their music, much to the chagrin of Kiss's hard rocking fanbase. Of course, that almost makes it all the more appropriate for reconsideration in today's pro-disco musical climate. And I was surprised to find out just how much I liked it!
It was the first Kiss studio album to appear after those solo discs, and song-by-song it's striking how such stylistically disparate tracks co-exist, from the four Kiss members, almost as if it was a various artist collection. That's because, while not only do all four original members get songwriting credit (along with some outside helpers), all four get vocal turns as well (which, I think, only also ever happened on its 1977 predecessor Love Gun). There's three songs sung by Paul Stanley, three by Ace Frehley, two by Gene Simmons, and one Peter Criss.
The album starts off with the hit single "I Was Made For Loving You" (written by Stanley, with an assist from producer Vinnie Poncia and song doctor Desmond Childs). It was one of Kiss's biggest hits, actually, and you can see why, but also why diehard fans might have been upset... total, total disco. Stanley really lets loose his inner diva! It's a pretty great song though, even with the smooth cheese factor. Supposedly Stanley wrote it to show how easy it was to write a disco song, though that doesn't explain why he needed those other guys to help with it. We could imagine a banging remix by somebody like Lindstrom being a big hit today!! Love the propulsive disco drumming (not catman Criss, but secret session replacement Anton Fig, as on most of the album). Stanley also came up with another disco-ish cut "Sure Know Something" and the heavier (but still cheesy) "Magic Touch", all of 'em catchy as heck. Gene's "Charisma" is another cool KISS-style (of course) bubblegum hard rock meets disco crossover, with groovy echoey production touches. Definitely a highlight. "X-Ray Eyes" is his other entry here, and it's always nice to hear the distinctive singing of the demonic one. Ace does a cool Stones cover ("2,000 Man") and two originals of his own, including the punkish "Hard Times". His other number "Save Your Love" is pretty garagey too. And then the sole Peter Criss cut, "Dirty Livin'", sorta explains why he wasn't in the band for that much longer.
In some ways, it's all the more awesome, that the same disc featuring the most disco-ish stuff also has total punk rock on it too. I mean seriously, Ace's rough, super shitty, shouty singing on "Hard Times" (as well as the streetwise lyrics about living in the "citay", cutting school to "space our heads out" in the park) is pretty darn punk, especially when you realize it's found on three million selling album that also boasts a super polished, poppy disco hit single!
So, even on one of the most maligned (next to Music From The Elder, perhaps) of the make-up era Kiss platters, I found a lot to like. I've been playing it a lot (ask anybody). Maybe it's time you should give it another chance... or, for the younger of you, a first chance... and like I said, it's cheap! I'll review some more Kiss soon, maybe The Elder, which also actually has its moments too.
We can't really think of anything that more symbolizes our musical generation than the four Kiss solo records released way back in 1978. Well, okay, maybe if we tried we could think of a few things, BUT C'MON!!! KISS!!! ACE, PAUL, GENE and PETER!! Sure bands do solo records all the time. But it was never more of a production than when the biggest band in the world decided to simultaneously release 4 solo records, each adorned with a killer airbrushed painting of the artist, in full Kiss makeup and backlit with different colors. This was a huge deal when it happened, and while the records didn't sell nearly as well as the worst selling Kiss record, they still became instantly iconic and most folks we know, owned 'em, and listened to 'em and many of those same folks hung the covers on their walls!! Hell, even sludge masters the Melvins did their own version, even going so far as to emulate the original cheesy cover paintings. But now they are available as PICTURE DISCS!!! Holy shit!!! If there was ever a set of records more ripe for picture disc immortalization we sure as shit can't think of any. So the real question is which one to buy. C'mon. As if there was any other answer, ALL OF THEM. Seriously, what kind of doofus would only want one. They are a set. One at a time is okay, but you are gonna NEED all four. They have been on the wall at Aquarius facing the counter since they were released and they look SOOOO badass all in a row. Worth building a little Kiss shelf in your bedroom just to display these beauties for sure!
Gene's record was the biggest surprise. We all expected some serious heaviness from THE DEMON, but instead got Beatlesy jangle, funk and DISCO!! Weird. Maybe the most listened to disc for novelty value. Featured some serious guest star power: Joe Perry from Aerosmith, Bob Seger, Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick, Janis Ian and Donna Summer. Woah.
But who cares? You know you need all four!
All right, gonna wrap up the Kiss reviewing, for a little while anyway. Talkin' this week about not one, but THREE Kiss classics: Hotter Than Hell (1974), Dressed To Kill (1975), and Rock And Roll Over (1976). With these three reviewed, that means we will have covered all the Kiss studio albums up through 1981's Music From The Elder, except the universally loathed Unmasked... which might be for the best. (Crucial albums Alive I and II also remain to be reviewed.)
I don't mean to give any of these three short shrift by doing 'em briefly all together, it's just that lengthy reviews might not really be necessary. So, to begin: Hotter Than Hell, Kiss's second album, followed up their self-titled debut with another strong collection of songs, perhaps chief among them the heavy headbanging groove of Ace's "Parasite" (later covered by Anthrax) and the majestic lecherous lament of Gene's "Goin' Blind" (later covered by the Melvins). Meanwhile, tracks like "Let Me Go, Rock And Roll", "All The Way", and the title track are ones to crank come party-time. Actually the whole record is pretty much a rockin', rollin' barn-burner, aside from the aforementioned dirgey "Goin' Blind", and also album-ender "Strange Ways", whose lyrics and metallic plod have a sinister vibe that could weird out some partygoers. Cool though! Really, nothin' in they way of weak ones here, though maybe Paul's opener "Got To Choose" will be a bit too Bad Company sounding for some. Hotter Than Hell is an accurate album title I've gotta say, though it's too bad it didn't get the production job it deserved.
Next up, Kiss platter number 3, Dressed To Kill. There's a bunch of fairly poppy, finger snapping, boot-stomping hard rockers on here, Kiss again (almost) reminding us of the MC5 circa Back In The USA on opener "Room Service"... The immortal hits from this album include the Stonesy "C'mon And Love Me", mission statement "Rock And Roll All Night" (which you've probably heard a few million times too many), and "She", which lumbers a heckuva lot like BoC's "Godzilla". They go all flowery and acoustic for the first half of one song, but snap out of it in time to kick some ass ("Rock Bottom"). Incipient self-parody may be noticeable here, with groupie-themed lyrics and rock n' roll anthems making soon-to-be predictable appearances, but that's ok, some of my favorite Kiss albums later on are ALL self-parody and none the worse for it.
And then we skip ahead ('cause I've already reviewed the intervening Destroyer) to Rock And Roll Over, which fits in between the big D and Love Gun as their 5th studio album. This one starts off with one of my very favorite Kiss songs EVER, "I Want You", with its deceptively pretty n' sweet melodic intro immediately bursting into godlike amps-on-11, chest-thumping heavy metal riff rock that's about as catchy as it gets. Lyrically, it's the lustful essence of Kiss. But is Paul singing romantically about a longtime love, or rather more sleazily about the blonde in the third row, center, who just caught his eye? Probably the latter. Gene's "Calling Dr. Love" was another hit here, and definitely meant for that blonde... in fact, not just her, but all the willing ladies in the audience, no doubt!
What else? Peter sings an acoustic ballady number that's not too bad, "Hard Luck Woman", likely intended as this album's "Beth" (the sensitive, surprise hit he had on Destroyer, though this time, Paul wrote the song). Otherwise, not too much to say. "Take Me", "Love 'Em And Leave 'Em", "Makin' Love", "Mr. Speed", etc., it's all decent enuff Kiss stuff but nothing really stands out for me. Well, dumbest one "Ladies Room" maybe stands out, but not in a good way. But, dumb or not, Kiss knows what they're doing, and you'll be singing along to lots of Rock And Roll Over before it's over. And besides, it's got "I Want You"!
Ok, with these three albums, maybe that's all the Kiss we'll be reviewing for a while. Whew! But I'll start another series of reviews of another overlooked (by AQ) band, next time...
Finally, volume two in what seems to be an ongoing series of amazing archival dvd releases from "the hottest band in the world", Kiss, and as awesome as this set is, and it is, we're sort of hoping it's the last, cuz it spans the years 1978 to 1991, and by then, Kiss was a whole different, way less appealing proposition.�Obviously, EVERY Kiss fanatic is absolutely gonna NEED this (and at least a few of us here would count ourselves as such), but only the truly diehard (and dare we say, ummm... misguided) will make it all the way to disc 3, as that's the way later stuff, but up until then it's a total blast. It's probably best to just give a run down of all the amazing stuff included, beginning with:
1979's Kiss Meets The Phantom Of The Park!�Worth the price of admission alone for this legendary made for TV movie, presented here, on dvd for the first time, with the slightly altered title (not sure why) of Kiss In Attack Of The Phantoms. Maybe the altered title is due to the fact that it now includes additional and alternate Kiss concert footage as well as music from the various members' solo albums. Huh? But who cares?! What a prime slice of killer hard rock history. Filmed at Magic Mountain in Valencia California, the band take on a mad inventor who has created a legion of robotic phantoms who kidnap patrons of the park with the ultimate goal of destroying Kiss or stealing their secret amulets or something. Most notable for the fact that this was the first time most of us had ever seen Kiss -not- rocking on stage, sitting, talking, and hanging out and hamming it up BIG TIME. We get to hear Ace�Frehley's maniacal laugh, observe Paul Stanley's queen-y swish, and Gene Simmons barely speaks at all, mostly delivering his lines in an overdubbed monster roar/growl. But the band look amazing, and are goofy and funny and engaging, the live performances are killer. Made us feel like we were 9 years old again...
Also on the first disc, the band are interviewed by a very grumpy Edwin Newman on the short lived show Land Of Hype And Glory, with some cool interviews and some amazing live footage. And then disc one finishes off with a bang, featuring an excerpt of the band on The Tomorrow Show with Tom Snyder. It's a crime that it's only an excerpt. Super funny and animated, Ace�Frehley is on fire (and seriously wasted) cackling like a madman, sparring with Snyder, the whole band collapsing into uproarious laughter every few minutes, in jokes and barbs flying every which way, so casual and relaxed and super fun, they break for commercial and never come back... arrrghhh!!! Hopefully the rest will be included in a future Snyder/Tomorrow Show dvd release.
Disc two starts off pretty rough, with the music video for "Shandi" from 1980, remember that song? Neither do we. But it's brutal, Night Ranger ballady pap, with the super cheesy eighties style video, bad, but still kinda fun. Next up a CNN interview with Peter Criss after leaving the band, And for some reason, he keeps his face hidden the whole time, as he discusses his future plans and� his frustrations after writing a number one smash for Kiss ("Beth"). Then some amazing outtakes as the band attempt to film a promo for their upcoming trip to Australia, and to introduce new drummer Eric Carr. The band blow take after take, mainly because Frehley seems to be utterly wasted. Pretty funny stuff though. After that some killer footage of Kiss live on German TV doing two more random songs ("She's So European" and "Talk To Me") and then an amazing documentary about the band's first trip down under. Streets mobbed with Aussie youths in full Kiss makeup, and much like in the first volume, various public officials greeting the band with open arms. The rest of the disc is mostly live stuff, a long set in Australia in 1980, lots of hits, including the band doing some of our favorite tracks from Ace's solo record (the only truly great solo record of the four).�
Then a real treat (well, sort of) for the truly obsessed. A three song live performance of tracks form Kiss's concept record The Elder!!! The band have really short hair, and the songs are bizarre and proggy, but The Elder truly is weirdly cool for being one of the most hated Kiss discs. Finally, the band kick ass on a killer lip synched version of one of their better later songs "I Love It Loud", featuring new guitarist Vinnie Vincent.
Disc three is the weak link, but there are still some moments worth checking out. Mostly live footage, the best of it being the band performing in front of a huge crowd in Rio, doing some old Kiss classics, cuz up next is the legendary MTV special where the band were shown without makeup for the very first time. Hosted by MTV veejay J.J. Jackson, the show begins by showing awesome glamor shots of each member in full makeup, then dissolving to the haggard pasty makeupless dudes -behind- the masks. I remember even back in the day it being fairly anticlimactic. But seeing it again immediately transported us back to the living room of our childhood homes, Cheetos in one hand, coke in the other, DYING to find out what Kiss REALLY LOOKED LIKE. The rest of the disc is mostly live stuff, some pretty good, the band sans makeup, some awesome moments, the giant tank drum riser, some problematically glam costumes, and some really bad songs. There's a brief clip of the MTV news segment where it was announced that drummer Eric Carr had died from cancer at the age of 41. Still really sad. And it finishes off with the video for maybe one of the cheesiest Kiss songs ever, "God Gave Rock And Roll To You"....
Beautifully packaged as before, massive multi panel fold out dvd digipak style cover, with killer photos, a reproduction of a ticket to see Kiss And The Phantom Of The Park, a bonus dvd featuring Kiss live at Budokan in Japan on the Crazy Nights tour (of interest only to the most fanatic of the Kiss Army, like our friend Josh maybe...) and a huge booklet, with liner notes, and photos, and anecdotes regarding each segment, including our favorite, a bit about Eric Carr's original makeup before he became the Fox, when he was some sort of bird, with a ruffled feathered jumpsuit, padded in the front like a penguin and a yellow beak painted on his face! Wish there were photos of that.�
According to the booklet, volume three is coming soon, which would cover 1992 and beyond it would seem, although it's hard to imagine that being very interesting, but at least they could include footage from 11 farewell tours, and 5 or 6 last-tours-ever as well as 3 more unmaskings and 2 re-make-upings... but whatever, this volume and the first are absolutely well worth owning.�
Now we're gonna go make some popcorn, and watch Kiss Meets The Phantom Of The Park for about the millionth time....
We know you either want this, or know someone who would like it as a Christmas present! After all, it says right on the back of this thing: "Here it is, everything you ever wanted in one box." Wow. Some statement. But it's true -- as long as everything you ever wanted is more than six hours of over the top rock spectacle from "the best band in the land", the one and only KISS, back in their prime. This is all from their early days, when they were young and hungry and basically taking over the world. It's undeniably classic rock and roll from four guys who had come up with a great visual gimmick as well. Total childhood nostalgia for a lot of us, that's for sure (not for Allan here, though, who remembers thinking that KISS looked like clowns and felt he as a child was being condescended to...he's since changed his tune and now loves KISS). So yeah, we definitely recommend this DVD box. It's overwhelming, there's so much incredible footage on here. TV appearances (The Mike Douglas Show 1974, ABC's In Concert 1974, Don Kirshner's Rock Concert 1977, and more), full concerts (Cobo Hall, 1976, Budokan 1977, Winterland 1975, more), and miscellaneous goodies -- promo clips, interviews, and best of all, a documentary about KISS being invited to Cadillac, Michigan in 1975 to do a concert in the local high school gymnasium 'cause the high school football team was using KISS music and face paint to get pumped up and win their games. KISS is given the key to the city, has breakfast (in full regalia!) with the mayor, high school principal, and other local authorities, does KISS makeup for them (!), and then takes off by helicopter from the football field!! Amazing. Shows how much of a cultural phenomenon they really were, and remain.
This box is billed as "the definitive visual KISS collection." We believe it! It's all remastered & restored, with bonus audio commentary from Gene and Paul. And, while supplies last, we've got copies that come with an additional bonus dvd disc -- that's right, another half hour of live KISS, from Madison Square Garden, 1977. Plus, there's also a backstage pass sticker for the Spring Tour '75, and a booklet with photos and notes, wherein we learn, in a discussion of that Cadillac Michigan documentary, that Ace felt bad for Paul 'cause "you can't wear jackets over this stuff... [and] a lot of times he doesn't have a shirt on. A lot of times we would get sick but nobody would know." It's cold in October, in Michigan! Meanwhile, Gene had a difficult night of sleeping alone 'cause their manager insisted he not molest the underage high school girls... ----* ----* In Stock, Not Yet Reviewed : ----* If you want to order one of these, just search for it, then click on the buy button and it will be added to your cart! 3 LEAFS "Inward Sun" (self-released) cd-r 4.98 31 KNOTS "Polemics" (Polyvinyl) cd ep 8.98 AETHENOR "Deep In Ocean Sunk The Lamp Of Light" (VHF) cd 13.98 AGROVATORS MEETS THE REVOLUTIONERS "At Channel One Studios (Instrumental)" (Attack) cd 17.98 AHAB "The Call Of The Wretched Sea" (Napalm) cd 16.98 ALVARS ORKESTER "Organic Woodtrip 1991-1992" (Kning Disk) cd 17.98 AMBARCHI AND NG "Fateless" (Asphodel) dvd 17.98 AMPHIBIANS (CHRISTIAN MARTY & PHILIPPE GAUCHER) "Sound Guide To The Tailless Amphibians Of French Guiana (Guide Sonore Des Amphibiens De Guyane)" (CEBA/Centre Bioacoustique) cd 19.98 ANNUALS, THE "Be He Me" (Ace Fu) cd 12.98 APPLETON, JON & DON CHERRY "Human Music" (Water) cd 14.98 ASUNDER "Works Will Come Undone" (Profound Love) cd 14.98 ATOMIC ROOSTER "Death Walks Behind You... Plus" (Akarma) cd 16.98 AXEGRINDER "Rise Of The Serpent Men" (Peaceville) cd 13.98 BAIRD, MEG / HELENA ESPVALL / SHARRON KRAUS "Leaves From Off The Tree" (Bo'Weavil) cd 21.00 BASS COMMUNION "Loss" (Soleilmoon Recordings) cd+dvd 17.98 BELFI, ANDREA "Between Neck And Stomach" (Hapna) cd 16.98 BIRCHVILLE CAT MOTEL "Cranes Are Sleeping" (Ecstatic Peace) lp 14.98 BIRCHVILLE CAT MOTEL "Small Christian Victories" (Diagnosis... Don't!) 3" cd-r 10.98 BLACK DEVIL DISCO CLUB "28 After" (Lo) cd 14.98 BLACK ELK "s/t" (Crucial Blast) cd 14.98 BLACKSHAW, JAMES "Waking Into Sleep - Goteborg 27.05.06" (Kning Disc) cd 16.98 BOLA "Shapes" (Skam) cd 15.98 BOND, BILLY Y LA PESADA DEL ROCK AND ROLL "s/t" (Cloud Forest Recordings) cd 17.98 BOOK OF BLACK EARTH "The Feast" (20 Buck Spin) cd 12.98 BORAT (OST) (Atlantic) cd 16.98 BOTCH "Unifying Themes Redux" (Hydra Head) cd 14.98 BOUCHAIN, CATHERINE & JEAN-PIERRE GAUTTIER "Le Monde Des Singes 2 (Primate World 2)" (Sittelle) cd 16.98 BRITISH SOUNDSCAPES (JEAN C. ROCHE) "British Soundscapes (Paysages De Grande-Bretagne)" (Sittelle) cd 16.98 BUCKLEY, TIM "The Best Of..." (Rhino) cd 16.98 BURBANK, TOM "Famous First Words" (Planet Mu) cd/2lp 14.98/17.98 CALLS OF THE FROGS OF MADAGASCAR, THE (MIGUEL VENCES, FRANK GLAW & RAFAEL MARQUEZ) "The Calls Of The Frogs Of Madagascar" (Alosa) 3cd 34.00 CAPTAIN BEEFHEART & THE MAGIC BAND "Doc At The Radar Station" (Astralwerks) cd 15.98 CAPTAIN BEEFHEART & THE MAGIC BAND "Ice Cream For Crow" (Astralwerks) cd 15.98 CIRCULUS "Clocks Are Like People" (Rise Above) cd 16.98 CLOWN ALLEY "Circus Of Chaos" (Southern Lord) cd 14.98 CLUSTER "Sowiesoso" (Water) cd 14.98 COLDWORKER "The Contaminated Void" (Relapse) lp 16.98 CULPEPER'S ORCHARD "Second Sight +6" (Karma Music) cd 19.98 DEAD MOON "Dead Moon Night / Thirteen Off My Hook" (Music Maniac) cd 15.98 DEFTONES "Saturday Nights" (Maverick) cd 16.98 DENNY, SANDY "Under Review" (Sexy Intellectual) dvd 21.00 DISK, DJ "Tornado Of Urine Breaks" (Scarecrow Music) lp 12.98 DOCDAIL "Stone Me / Sad Harold" (Magic) cd 8.98 DRUMCORPS "Grist" (Cock Rock Disco) cd 14.98 DUB TRIO "New Heavy" (Roir Reachout International) cd 15.98 ELLIS, NOEL "s/t" (Light in The Attic) cd 13.98 ENTRANCE "Prayer Of Death" (S/R) cd 13.98 EOH "Wormy" (Diagnosis... Don't!) 3" cd-r 10.98 EQUITANT "Konstruckeur" (Tarot Productions) cd 14.98 ETERNAL MAJESTY "Wounds of Hatred & Slavery" (Candlelight) cd 16.98 ETHEREAL WOODS "Thickthorn" (Supernal) cd 15.98 EVERY TIME I DIE "Gutter Phenomenon" (Ferret) cd EXTRADITION "Hush" (Vicious Sloth Collectibles) cd 24.00 FAUST "IV (Remastered)" (Virgin UK) 2cd 26.00 FERN KNIGHT "Music For Witches and Alchemists" (VHF) cd 13.98 FLAVOR FLAV "Hollywood" (Draytown) cd 16.98 FRIJID PINK "s/t" (Akarma) cd 16.98 FUCKING OCEAN, THE "Le Main Rouge" (Double Negative) cd 9.98 GAINSBOURG, CHARLOTTE "5:55" (Because Music) cd 32.00 GENERAL SURGERY "Left Hand Pathology" (Listenable) cd 14.98 GESCOM "Mini Disc" (Or) cd 15.98 GLASS, PHILIP "Music In Twelve Parts" (Nonesuch) 3cd 54.00 GLAXO BABIES, THE "Dreams Interrupted : The Bewilderbeat Years 1978-1980" (Cherry Red) cd 16.98 GREAT SPECKLED BIRD "s/t" (Collector's Choice) cd 13.98 GURDJIEFF, G.I. & THOMAS DE HARTMAN "Oriental Suite" (Basta) 4cd+book 113.00 GURUH GIPSY "s/t" (Shadoks) lp 48.00 HAINO, KEIJI & KK NULL "Mamono" (Blossoming Noise) cd 16.98 HEADPINS "Turn It Loud" (Wounded Bird) cd 13.98 HIJOKAIDAN "Tapes" (Alchemy) cd 21.00 HIJOKAIDAN "Viva Angel" (Alchemy) cd 21.00 HUNTSVILLE "For The Middle Class" (Rune Grammofon) cd 16.98 I "Between Two Worlds" (Nuclear Blast) cd 16.98 ISIS "In The Absence Of Truth" (Ipecac) cd 16.98 JACKIE O MOTHERFUCKER "America Mystica" (Very Friendly) 2cd 19.98 JAY-Z "Kingdom Come" (Roc-A-Fella) cd+dvd 19.98 JOSEF K "Entomology" (Domino) cd 14.98 KAHVAS JUTE "Wide Open" (Aztec Music) cd 21.00 KIM JUNG MI "s/t" (World Psychedelia) cd 16.98 KIM JUNG MI "Wind" (World Psychedelia) cd 16.98 KING KHAN AND BBQ "What's For Dinner" (In The Red) cd 13.98 KOENIG, GOTTFRIED MICHAEL "s/t" (Editions.RZ) 2cd 33.00 KURUUCREW VS. GREEN MILK FROM THE PLANET ORANGE "Split" (Beta-lactam Ring) cd 13.98 LAMP OF THE UNIVERSE "Echo In Light" (Cranium) cd 14.98 LAMP OF THE UNIVERSE "The Cosmic Union" (Cranium) cd 14.98 LEFT, THE "Jesus Loves The Left" (Bona Fide) cd 14.98 LITHOPS "Mound Magnet" (Thrill Jockey) cd 14.98 LOON "Wizard Of Harlem" (Siccness.net) cd 16.98 LOYDE, LOBBY "Obsecration" (Aztec Music) cd 21.00 LOYDE, LOBBY WITH SUDDEN ELECTRIC "Live With Dubs" (Aztec Music) cd 21.00 MAHER SHALAL HASH BAZ "Live Aoiheya January 2003" (Chapter Music) cd ep 8.98 MANOLO Y RAMON "El Duo Din�mico en Londres : El Album De 1970" (Rama Lama) cd 24.00 MCLEAN, BARTON AND PRISCILLA "Electronic Landscapes" (EM Records) cd 23.00 MEMORY BAND, THE "Apron Strings" (DiCristina) cd 13.98 MILTON, ANTONY "The End Of This Short Road" (Deserted Village) cd 13.98 MIRRORS, THE "13 Patient Flowers" (Birdman) cd 14.98 MISSION OF BURMA "Not A Photograph" (MVD Visual) dvd 21.00 MITTOO, JACKIE "Wishbone" (Light In The Attic) cd 13.98 NATH, PANDIT PRAN "The Raga Cycle, PalaceTheatre, Paris 1972" (Sri Moonshine) cd 15.98 NELSON, WILLIE "Songbird" (Lost Highway) cd 14.98 NIHILIST SPASM BAND "In Mulhouse" (Les Mondes Mental) lp 23.00 NIRVANA "Live! Tonight! Sold Out!" (DGC) dvd 22.00 ORIGINAL HAMSTER "Trendsetter And The Followers" (Tigerbeat 6) cd 14.98 OZKENT, MUSTAFA "Genclik Ile Elele" (B-Music / Finders Keepers) cd 14.98 PALESTINE, CHARLEMAGNE/TONY CONRAD "An Aural Symbiotic Mystery" (Subrosa) cd 14.98 PARKER, EVAN "The Topography Of The Lungs" (Psi Records) cd 21.00 PARKER, EVAN "Time Lapse" (Tzadik) cd 16.98 PARLANE, ROSY "Jessamine" (Touch) cd 15.98 PERE UBU "Why I Hate Women" (Smog Veil) cd 12.98 PILIA, STEFANO "The Suncrows Fall and Tree" (Sedimental) cd 14.98 PINEBENDER "Working Nine To Wolf" (Lovitt) cd 12.98 PIXEL "Set Your Center Between Your Parts In Order To" (Raster-Noton) cd 17.98 PIXIES, THE "Loud Quiet Loud: A Film About The Pixies" (MVD) dvd 19.98 PLAGUE BRINGER "As The Ghosts Collect, The Corpses Rest" (Seventh Rule Recordings) cd 13.98 RADIGUE, ELIANE "L'ile Re-sonate" (Shiiin) cd 21.00 RADIOMOBEL "Tramsebox" (Transubstans Records) cd 14.98 RESIDUAL ECHOES "California" (Holy Mountain) lp 14.98 RICHTER, MAX "Songs From Before" (Fat Cat) cd/cd /14.98 RICKLES, DON "Speaks!" (Warner) cd/cd 15.98/14.98 ROCHE, JEAN C. "Le Monde Des Singes 1 (Primate World 1)" (Sittelle) cd 16.98 ROCHE, JEAN C. / BORIS JOLLIVET "Mammiferes D'Europe" (Sittelle) 2cd 31.00 ROCHE, JEAN C. / NELLY DESESQUELLE "Droles D'Oiseaux" (Sittelle) 2cd 31.00 SAMMES, MIKE & THE MIKE SAMMES SINGERS "Music For Biscuits" (Trunk) cd 16.98 SAN UL LIM "3" (World Psychedelia) cd 16.98 SCANDINAVIAN SOUNDSCAPES - 1 (KRISTER MILD) "Scandinavian Soundscapes - 1 (Symphonies Scandinaves 1)" (Sittelle) cd 16.98 SCHNITZLER, CONRAD "Klavierhelm" (Important) cd 14.98 SCHNITZLER, CONRAD "Trigger Trilogy" (Important) 3cd 28.00 SEAWORTHY "Map In Hand" (12K) cd 14.98 SHIGGAR FRAGGAR SHOW "Vol.4" (One Eyed Slug Entertainment) dvd-r 23.00 SHILO, J. P. "As Happy As Sad Is Blue" (Smells Like) cd 13.98 SIEGE "Drop Dead" (Deranged) cd 16.98 SILVERSUN PICKUPS "Carnavas" (Dangerbird) cd 12.98 SIXTING MUSIC "Rendering Pink Floyds" (Skyf Zol) cd 15.98 SKULL SNAPS "s/t" (Aztec Music) cd 21.00 SOLAR FIRE TRIO "Breakthrough / External Threat" (Invada) 12" 19.98 SPARKS "Dick Around" (In The Red) cd ep/7" 10.98/4.50 SPRIGUNS "Revel, Weird and Wild" (Acme) cd 21.00 SPRIGUNS "Time Will Pass" (Acme) cd 21.00 ST. HILAIRE, PAUL "ADSOM (A Divine State Of Mind)" (False Tuned) cd 15.98 STRANGER THAN FICTION "OST" (Columbia) cd 17.98 SUMAC, YMA "Recital" (ESP) cd 14.98 TENACIOUS D "The Pick Of Destiny" (Epic) cd 16.98 THIRSTY MOON "S/T" (Long Hair) cd 24.00 THIRSTY MOON "You'll Never Come Back" (Long Hair) cd 24.00 TROUBLE "Psalm 9" (Escapi Music) cd+dvd 14.98 TROUBLE "The Skull" (Escapi Music) cd+dvd 14.98 TWEEDY, JEFF "Sunken Treasure" (Nonesuch) dvd 21.00 TWILIGHTS, THE "Once Upon A Time" (Aztec Music) cd 21.00 UNKNOWN PASSAGE: THE DEAD MOON STORY (Magic Umbrella) dvd 14.98 V/A "#101 DIY 78-81 London I" (Messthetics) cd 14.98 V/A "#102 DIY 78-81 London II" (Messthetics) cd 14.98 V/A "7" Up" (Crippled Dick Hot Wax) cd/lp 16.98/15.98 V/A "Afro-Cuba : Tumba Francesa" (Soul Jazz) cd/2lp 21.00/21.00 V/A "Art Of Field Recording" (Dust To Digital) cd 15.98 V/A "Attack Gold Vol. 1" (Attack) cd/2lp 17.98/17.98 V/A "Chrome Children" (Stones Throw) cd/lp 17.98/16.98 V/A "Electric Gypsyland 2" (Ryko) cd 16.98 V/A "History Of Hip Hop Radio Vol.1 (NYC 1986-1991)" cd-r 11.98 V/A "How Low Can You Go?" (Dust To Digital) 3cd 58.00 V/A "Mary Anne Hobbs - Warrior Dubz" (Planet Mu) cd/3lp 14.98/17.98 V/A "Pop Ambient 2007" (Kompakt) lp 13.98 V/A "Power Up! Mutations & Mutilations of 8-Bit Hits" (Dwell) cd 16.98 V/A "Serious Times" (XL) cd 14.98 V/A "White Cock 1-4" (Cock Rock Disco) cd 14.98 V/A "You Can't Always Listen To Hausmusik, But..." (Hausmusik) lp+book 36.00 VARIATIONS, LES "Nador / Take It Or Leave It" (Magic) 2cd 19.98 WARHAMMER 48K "An Ethereal Oracle" (Papa Slag) cd 11.98 WARPIG "s/t" (Relapse) cd 14.98 WATSON, CHRIS AND BJ NILSEN "Storm" (Touch) cd 15.98 WEIRD WEEDS, THE "Hold Me" (Digitalis) cd 11.98 WILLIAMS, WENDY O "10 Years Of Revolutionary Rock & Roll" (Mvd) dvd 19.98 WRIGHT, FRANK "Unity" (ESP) cd 14.98 YOUNG, NEIL & CRAZY HORSE "Live At The Fillmore East March 6 & 7, 1970" (Reprise) cd 16.98 ZECHARIA, ZADIK "Kurdish Melodies Played On Zorna - Live At Mondial Hall - 14.12.1987" (Something On The Road) dvd-r 10.98 ZORN, JOHN "Astronome" (Tzadik) cd 16.98 _______________________________________________________________________ ABOUT MAILORDER
Hopefully there's a bunch of you out there (at least 2 or 3), who have been eagerly waiting to read this Aquarius New Arrivals list mainly to find out which old KISS album Allan's gonna gush about now...
Last list, it was Destroyer. A classic. And before that, I talked up Dynasty and Music From The Elder, two rather more problematic yet still cool Kiss releases. This time, as you're already aware, I'm writing about 1977's Love Gun. Their 7th album overall. Released more or less in the midst of their pop culture superstardom (comic books, lunch pails, TV movies, platinum-shipping albums, record breaking concert attendance) it displays both their true rock n' roll charisma, and juvenile cheesiness too. This is entertainment, not high art, y'know? And furthermore, the thing is, despite Love Gun's Frank Frazetta styled cover painting, Kiss wasn't ever really a "heavy metal" band. They dabbled, and certainly had a hand in forging some of the tropes of the genre (corpsepaint, perhaps?), but first and foremost, Kiss was a moneymaking pop group on the hard rock side of things. So, while they DO have some heavy faves in their songbook, like ferinstance Love Gun's title track (which sounds a lot like W.A.S.P. later on, Blackie Lawless owing something to Paul Stanley in the vocal dep't.) you have to appreciate 'em for being, ultimately, a pop group, looking for hits how ever they could find 'em. And yet always, keeping it Kiss. Which means, sometimes corny, always catchy.
Uptempo opener "I Stole Your Love", shrieked by Paul Stanley, has an underlying high-energy urgency that maybe for a moment could remind one of the MC5 (Kiss must have been fans, cf. "Detroit Rock City"). Up next, "Christine Sixteen" is a bubblegum jailbait fantasy, the sort of subject matter that they leeringly specialize in so often. It's a Gene Simmons tune, as is the following one, "I Got Love For Sale" (hey, that's convenient, since mine just got stolen... hey wait a second). The album's first real surprise comes next, with the raw, rockin' "Shock Me", a number written and sung by Ace Frehley (actually the first ever time the guitarist did lead vocals on a Kiss album), his amateur-hour vox getting over on cheeky chutzpah alone - when he sings "Put on your black leather" you've gotta smile. Next, two Stanley tracks back to back, "Tomorrow and Tonight" and the aforementioned "Love Gun". Then drummer Peter "Beth" Criss, gets a tune in too, "Hooligan", this time neither a ballad nor a hit. Following that, there's two more from Simmons. "Almost Human" is a heavy groover that could only be sung so convincingly, with (extra-length) tongue-in-cheek, by someone of his demonic appearance and persona. And "Plaster Caster" finds Gene singing about what he knows best, groupies... Finally, "Then She Kissed Me" wraps things up with Paul Stanley at his campiest, doing a swoonsome cover of an old Phil Spector girl group tune (originally titled "Then He Kissed Me" when sung by The Crystals). Cheesy, but charming. And again, not altogether metal...
Kiss definitely delivers here, Love Gun firing many more hits than misses, nothing getting in the way of the (mostly) hard rock, (always) pop product. Keep It Simple Stupid apparently as much their motto as is alternate apocryphal acronym explanation Knights In Satan's Service.
I (Allan) have been going through a bit of a Kiss phase lately, as you already know if you saw my write-up of Dynasty last list. In that review, I said we needed more Kiss records on our website and I'd be trying to review a Kiss klassic every few weeks, as long as I continue on my current Kiss kick... I also suggested (threatened?) that the next one I'd review would be Music From The Elder, one of the least-popular Kiss albums ever. They didn't even tour for it. But it's also one of the strangest Kiss albums ever, and thus makes a perfect subject for review on the AQ site. It's also, I just found out, one of Andee's faves. So, here we go...
I'd been warily curious about this oddball album for a long time before finally picking it up. Why? Well, 'cause 1981's Music From The Elder was Kiss's misguided attempt at prog. That's right, Kiss doing a concept (koncept?) album! Or an imaginary soundtrack. That sort of thing. It was either Gene Simmons' or producer Bob Ezrin's brilliant idea, with Paul Stanley all for it too, though apparently Ace Frehley wasn't that into it (new drummer Eric Carr didn't get a vote). Commercially speaking, they should have listened to Ace, as The Elder stiffed sales-wise. And it's doubtful that The Elder earned Kiss any critical respect, either, though that's probably what they were hoping would happen. To be taken seriously as musicians... though why a band essentially famous for wearing clown makeup thought that would ever happen is of course a mystery!
As you might expect, plenty of The Elder is pretentious, with soundtracky, synthy orchestrated interludes, and a narrative that's on the murky side. Something about a immortal order of do-gooders finding and training a boy to become a champion against encroaching evil? There's a table and a rose and an odyssey and a character named Morpheus and some other stuff too. However, despite all that dodginess, it's also got some worthy songs on it that have been unfairly underrated and overlooked in the Kiss canon. Several of them, strangely enough, co-written by none other than Lou Reed! Fact. Though they don't sound much like The Velvet Underground...
It also includes one of Kiss's most medieval, metallic tracks up to that point in time, the galloping glory that is "The Oath". Paul Stanley breaks out the falsetto for that one, and it's simultaneously flowery and kick-ass. Kiss sounds a bit like fellow New Yorkers Manowar here, and maybe were responding to the rise of the NWOBHM.
Elsewhere, they're more like Styx, doing the pomp rock thing pretty well on such mellower, melodic cuts as "Only You", "Under The Rose", and the gentle lament "A World Without Heroes". I can see how fans would have found some of this even less acceptably Kiss-like than the disco-inflected Dynasty... but these tracks are growers.
Gene's plodding groover "Mr. Blackwell" (written with Reed) is another highlight. I'd love to hear the Melvins cover this one, I can practically hear it in my imagination. Meanwhile, Ace fans will be happy to hear from the Spaceman on the jaunty-sounding yet lyrically doomy "Dark Light" (wherein, despite his misgivings about this whole Elder idea, he contributes both his charmingly unpolished vocal stylings as well as some speedy guitar soling). The other track for which Ace gets a writing credit, "Escape From The Island" (what island?), is a crunching instrumental notable for his guitar solo as well.
And last but not least, album-ender "I" is definitely a decent Kiss anthem, uplifting & chest-beating ("I believe in me/I believe is something more than you can understand/Yes I believe in me"), with a cinematic voiceover dropped in to tie it to the "story line" of The Elder.
So, this is the album to get if you want to hear Kiss doing something a bit different. True, not many people did, but that doesn't mean it was all bad; in fact, it's much better than I expected. I've been spinning this quite a bit, actually. Consider it a contrarian cult classic. Its very failure as "Kiss product" really makes it all the more affecting emotionally, humanizing this oft-cartoony band somehow. And it's not like you've heard these songs a million times before, either. Hmmm... if I know AQ customers, chances are good that this will turn out to be our best selling Kiss title, by virtue of its very unpopularity everywhere else!
But, next time, I'll review something with actual hits on it, something less unusual/more essential, for those of you who don't have ANY Kiss in your kollection...
We can't really think of anything that more symbolizes our musical generation than the four Kiss solo records released way back in 1978. Well, okay, maybe if we tried we could think of a few things, BUT C'MON!!! KISS!!! ACE, PAUL, GENE and PETER!! Sure bands do solo records all the time. But it was never more of a production than when the biggest band in the world decided to simultaneously release 4 solo records, each adorned with a killer airbrushed painting of the artist, in full Kiss makeup and backlit with different colors. This was a huge deal when it happened, and while the records didn't sell nearly as well as the worst selling Kiss record, they still became instantly iconic and most folks we know, owned 'em, and listened to 'em and many of those same folks hung the covers on their walls!! Hell, even sludge masters the Melvins did their own version, even going so far as to emulate the original cheesy cover paintings. But now they are available as PICTURE DISCS!!! Holy shit!!! If there was ever a set of records more ripe for picture disc immortalization we sure as shit can't think of any. So the real question is which one to buy. C'mon. As if there was any other answer, ALL OF THEM. Seriously, what kind of doofus would only want one. They are a set. One at a time is okay, but you are gonna NEED all four. They have been on the wall at Aquarius facing the counter since they were released and they look SOOOO badass all in a row. Worth building a little Kiss shelf in your bedroom just to display these beauties for sure!
Paul's record sounded the most like a straight up Kiss record since he was the principal songwriter anyway. While it lacked the spark of a lot of the Kiss material it was still pretty decent. Hard rocking and catchy. Also featured legendary drummer Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge, Cactus, Rod Stewart, King Kobra, Blue Murder!) on the skins!
But who cares? You know you need all four!
We can't really think of anything that more symbolizes our musical generation than the four Kiss solo records released way back in 1978. Well, okay, maybe if we tried we could think of a few things, BUT C'MON!!! KISS!!! ACE, PAUL, GENE and PETER!! Sure bands do solo records all the time. But it was never more of a production than when the biggest band in the world decided to simultaneously release 4 solo records, each adorned with a killer airbrushed painting of the artist, in full Kiss makeup and backlit with different colors. This was a huge deal when it happened, and while the records didn't sell nearly as well as the worst selling Kiss record, they still became instantly iconic and most folks we know, owned 'em, and listened to 'em and many of those same folks hung the covers on their walls!! Hell, even sludge masters the Melvins did their own version, even going so far as to emulate the original cheesy cover paintings. But now they are available as PICTURE DISCS!!! Holy shit!!! If there was ever a set of records more ripe for picture disc immortalization we sure as shit can't think of any. So the real question is which one to buy. C'mon. As if there was any other answer, ALL OF THEM. Seriously, what kind of doofus would only want one. They are a set. One at a time is okay, but you are gonna NEED all four. They have been on the wall at Aquarius facing the counter since they were released and they look SOOOO badass all in a row. Worth building a little Kiss shelf in your bedroom just to display these beauties for sure!
Peter's record was considered by pretty much everybody to be the worst of the bunch. Some of us tried extra hard to like it, cuz, c'mon he was the DRUMMER. Of Kiss!!!! Peter leaned more toward the ballad end of the spectrum which should have boded well since most of his Kiss contributions were ballads, and were also some of the band's biggest hits! But his solo record, even in the ballad department tended to be a bit, well, weak. There are definite moments. And there might have been a minor hit or two, but mostly this disc exists to complete the set. And who cares anyway? You know you need all four!
All right, gonna wrap up the Kiss reviewing, for a little while anyway. Talkin' this week about not one, but THREE Kiss classics: Hotter Than Hell (1974), Dressed To Kill (1975), and Rock And Roll Over (1976). With these three reviewed, that means we will have covered all the Kiss studio albums up through 1981's Music From The Elder, except the universally loathed Unmasked... which might be for the best. (Crucial albums Alive I and II also remain to be reviewed.)
I don't mean to give any of these three short shrift by doing 'em briefly all together, it's just that lengthy reviews might not really be necessary. So, to begin: Hotter Than Hell, Kiss's second album, followed up their self-titled debut with another strong collection of songs, perhaps chief among them the heavy headbanging groove of Ace's "Parasite" (later covered by Anthrax) and the majestic lecherous lament of Gene's "Goin' Blind" (later covered by the Melvins). Meanwhile, tracks like "Let Me Go, Rock And Roll", "All The Way", and the title track are ones to crank come party-time. Actually the whole record is pretty much a rockin', rollin' barn-burner, aside from the aforementioned dirgey "Goin' Blind", and also album-ender "Strange Ways", whose lyrics and metallic plod have a sinister vibe that could weird out some partygoers. Cool though! Really, nothin' in they way of weak ones here, though maybe Paul's opener "Got To Choose" will be a bit too Bad Company sounding for some. Hotter Than Hell is an accurate album title I've gotta say, though it's too bad it didn't get the production job it deserved.
Next up, Kiss platter number 3, Dressed To Kill. There's a bunch of fairly poppy, finger snapping, boot-stomping hard rockers on here, Kiss again (almost) reminding us of the MC5 circa Back In The USA on opener "Room Service"... The immortal hits from this album include the Stonesy "C'mon And Love Me", mission statement "Rock And Roll All Night" (which you've probably heard a few million times too many), and "She", which lumbers a heckuva lot like BoC's "Godzilla". They go all flowery and acoustic for the first half of one song, but snap out of it in time to kick some ass ("Rock Bottom"). Incipient self-parody may be noticeable here, with groupie-themed lyrics and rock n' roll anthems making soon-to-be predictable appearances, but that's ok, some of my favorite Kiss albums later on are ALL self-parody and none the worse for it.
And then we skip ahead ('cause I've already reviewed the intervening Destroyer) to Rock And Roll Over, which fits in between the big D and Love Gun as their 5th studio album. This one starts off with one of my very favorite Kiss songs EVER, "I Want You", with its deceptively pretty n' sweet melodic intro immediately bursting into godlike amps-on-11, chest-thumping heavy metal riff rock that's about as catchy as it gets. Lyrically, it's the lustful essence of Kiss. But is Paul singing romantically about a longtime love, or rather more sleazily about the blonde in the third row, center, who just caught his eye? Probably the latter. Gene's "Calling Dr. Love" was another hit here, and definitely meant for that blonde... in fact, not just her, but all the willing ladies in the audience, no doubt!
What else? Peter sings an acoustic ballady number that's not too bad, "Hard Luck Woman", likely intended as this album's "Beth" (the sensitive, surprise hit he had on Destroyer, though this time, Paul wrote the song). Otherwise, not too much to say. "Take Me", "Love 'Em And Leave 'Em", "Makin' Love", "Mr. Speed", etc., it's all decent enuff Kiss stuff but nothing really stands out for me. Well, dumbest one "Ladies Room" maybe stands out, but not in a good way. But, dumb or not, Kiss knows what they're doing, and you'll be singing along to lots of Rock And Roll Over before it's over. And besides, it's got "I Want You"!
Ok, with these three albums, maybe that's all the Kiss we'll be reviewing for a while. Whew! But I'll start another series of reviews of another overlooked (by AQ) band, next time...
"Whooohoooo, yeah!" Allan's kavalcade of Kiss reviews kontinues. Here's maybe where I should have started, which is where Kiss started, with their 1974 self-titled debut... at the time, record buyers who weren't already hip to the styles of the NYC glam scene were probably puzzled when they saw this album's cover. Why were these guys wearing that stupid makeup? Turns out Kiss were cleverer than people thought. From the get-go, they were aiming to be the "biggest band in the land", with this album being an important first step along the way, and then some.
There's ten tracks here. And y'know what? We bet in 2023, on their umpteenhundreth reunion tour, a blind, geriatric Kiss will still be playing a bunch of them. Likewise, any Kiss "best of" would have trouble not including, like, half this album. "Firehouse", "Cold Gin" (written by happy alky Ace of course), "Strutter", "Deuce", "Black Diamond", "Firehouse", "100,000 Years".... killer Kiss classics all of 'em. Harvey Milk covered "Deuce", you may recall, on Live Pleaser, and Kiss was definitely an influence on The Pleaser itself. Meanwhile, the Melvins too are of course mega Kiss fans, and already on this album you can hear some parallels: the slower and slower, lower and lower outro to "Black Diamond" could be them, and even the brief bouncy instrumental "Love Theme From Kiss" has a Melvins-y hook, though they'd play it considerably heavier.
But forget about Harvey Milk and the Melvins, ever consider Kiss's parallels with their heroes, the Beatles? A four piece band, the two main songwriters and vocalists on bass and rhythm guitar, but everyone (eventually even the drummer) writing -and- singing songs. And they all sang backup, with vocal harmonies and all. And take a look at the album cover again - looks a little bit like Meet The Beatles, which was apparently their intent. Of course, Kiss weren't the Beatles, so if they were gonna become the biggest band in the land (which they pretty much did, for a while) they had to make up the difference, with, well, makeup - and a loud n' proud stage show, pure glammy spectacle unmatched by any other band. And they got in on the ground floor of the up and coming heavy metal genre. Though Kiss can't be considered as a heavy metal band entirely... maybe the first pop, bubblegum metal band? They certainly weren't as heavy or serious as Black Sabbath. They rocked, all right, but on this album sounded more like Grand Funk Railroad, Aerosmith, or the James Gang (check out "Firehouse", Ace busts out some Joe Walsh sounding guitar licks on that one fer sure). Elsewhere on this debut, they hark back to rollicking '50s rock ("Nothing To Loose" and goofy cover "Kissin' Time", the latter of which also reminds us of the Beach Boys, it's sorta Kiss's "Surfin' USA"). Which is kool too, but they coulda left the latter off and it wouldn't have hurt the album any. All in all, a fine debut, standing the test of time as one of their best albums, full of some of their rawest rockers - and thus good place to start, if you haven't already!
Ok, so this is my fifth Kiss review in this series, and eventually the lesson of these reviews should be... you want 'em all. Maybe I'll stop after a half-dozen Kiss reviews and turn to essentials from other classic bands we haven't given enough attention to, like maybe Queen or Thin Lizzy or Uriah Heep...
It's been ages and ages since we last heard from Kiss The Anus Of A Black Cat. All three of the previous KTAOABC records: An Interlude To The Outermost, If the Sky Falls, We Shall Catch Larks and The Nebulous Dreams, were all huge hits around here. KTAOABC, aka Stef Heeren is a Belgian musician, who also builds his own instruments, and past records have all played out like some impossible mix of Comus, Woven Hand, Swans and Current 93. A brooding, dark apocalyptic folk, that has definitely evolved over the years, always spare and haunting, but also always mysterious and ominous, slightly sinister, and a little witchy. Heeren employed quite a varied sonic palette as well, the core vocals and acoustic guitar augmented by piano, bells, strings, and on the last record, even drums, transforming the more drifty vibe of past records into something more rocking and propulsive.
But on Hewers Of Wood, Heeren seems to pull back a bit, there are still drums, but the songs seem more subdued, hauntingly minimal, back to the creepy dirgey folk of Kiss The Anus records of old. In fact, more than ever, KTAOABC is sounding like Woven Hand / Sixteen Horsepower, a similar knack for melody, the same sort of strident vocalizing, at times his voice a dead ringer for David Eugene Edwards, the swampy bluesy folk, it's a sound we love, and Heeren is a master, and these songs are super intense and emotional, hypnotic and mesmerizing, and so catchy and gorgeously creepy.
The first three songs are practically perfect, the slo-mo Comus-y waltz of the title track, the buzz flecked urgency of "All Your Ghosts Are Worried", and "Argonaut And Magneto" which could easily mistaken for a Woven Hand song (if it wasn't for that Belgian accent), so much so that it almost sounds like a cover, but also means it's gorgeous and powerful intensely moving.
The whole record oozes with a sense of foreboding, as if each song was some sort of cautionary tale, stories of lives lost, loves lost, forgotten memories and other, better times, and this sense of loss and regret, as well as some hope for redemption and forgiveness, that all seems to seep into every note, every lyric, helping transform this swampy bluegrassy folk music into something more, acid tinged, subtly psychedelic, emotionally powerful, sonically revelatory, dark meaningful music. Gorgeous!
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
The sticker on the new record from longtime aQ faves Kiss The Anus Of A Black Cat, the project of musician / instrument builder Stef Heeren, compares the band to Current 93, Woven Hand, Richard Youngs and Comus. That's some serious company for sure, and typically we scoff when a band is compared to Comus, but in fact, we too have compared KTAOABC to the mighty Comus, an honor reserved for an elite few. And that comparison still stands, but this time around, it's not so much the urgent pagan folk vibe as the overall misanthropic feel, the new Kiss The Anus is the least song oriented, the most abstract, definitely the most doomy, with long stretches of thick droning noise, simple pounding drum plod, the vocals in most cases seem like an afterthought, just another layer of sound. The Woven Hand vibe is much more pronounced, but we also hear plenty of Codeine, some Skepticism, even some Earth and SUNNO))). This might be the record that turns a whole new crowd onto the freaked out apocalyptic doomfolk of Kiss The Anus.
The opening track is the perfect example. For nearly half of its 15 minutes, the track plays out like a doomier Sunroof!, a squall of high end skree, upper register tones, wailing and squealing, weirdly harmonious and soothing, a massive trancelike ur-drone underpinned by a drifting languorous bassline, and then the drums come in, simple and slow, powerful and subtly propulsive, It's like Birchville Cat Motel covering Codeine, until the high end fades out, leaving just the bass and drums, to slither along into the second half, where the vocals come in, a dead ringer for Current 93's David Tibet, offering up a haunting invocation, over a minimal doom drift, that is soon joined by piano, a second vocal, and builds to a bit of a dramatic climax before drifting off.
The second track begins as another strange doomdrone guitar workout, at least in the beginning, a moaning scraping landscape of low end swoops and drones and rumbles, atop which tribal percussion clatters restlessly, sounding not unlike Finnish forest folk Avarus, before slipping into a deep, synthy minimal drone, long wheezing tones, an ominous minorkey melody, accordion and pump organ beneath passionate vocals that soar dramatically, gorgeous and intense, and weirdly minimal and trancelike, and again, the Woven Hand vibe is uncanny.
The record finishes with the shortest, and least abstract, track of the bunch, but also maybe the best, and most Comus-y, simple fingerpicked acoustic guitars, plaintive vocals, reverby piano, all lowkey, offering up a deep shimmery counterpoint to the main melody, peppered with brief sort-of-choruses, with urgently strummed steep string guitar, haunting falsetto harmonies, subtle effects, strange ethereal production, the whole thing pagan and ritualistic, but still folky and lovely, super moving and powerful, a gorgeous bit of dark apocalyptic dream folk for sure.
We've been into the delightfully-named Kiss The Anus Of A Black Cat for a long time now, long enough for this Belgian one-man-band to have morphed quite a bit, from his earlier style of droney, experimental "apocalyptic folk", in the tradition of Comus and Current 93, to a newfound electronic-based manifestation, a sound more akin to some sort of Gothic coldwave, that surprised us on previous disc Weltuntergangsstimmung. We're no longer so surprised, but still super into it, as Kiss The Anus Of A Black Cat continues to explore that electronic, coldwavey sound on To Live Vicariously, with nine new songs that somehow seem instantly familiar while still being strange - replete with earwormy melodies, catchy tick-tick-tocky rhythms, whipcrack beats, dark synth textures, weird bleep bloop, and last but definitely not least, dramatic vocals to match the dramatic orchestration that's a part of some of these compositions, especially evident on the epic "Evening Of Light" late in the disc, that brings back something of a medieval folk troubadour aspect to the KTAOABC equation. So good
Hey, we like surprises, especially pleasant ones like this. The return of longtime aQ faves Kiss The Anus Of A Black Cat, the project of Belgian musician Stef Heeren, is indeed a bit of a darkwave departure from his previous work, but still totally welcome, once we got our heads around it. Perhaps the purple-and-black cover graphics should have been a clue to something new, 'cause all earlier Kiss The Anus Of A Black Cat covers were black-and-white.
KTAOABC's previous four albums, while each varied to some degree (the introduction of drums, and heavier drones, on 2008's The Nebulous Dreams being a bold move back then), all hewed to the same basic sound/concept: foreboding experimental apocalyptic doom folk, that caused us to draw strong comparisons to the likes of Current 93 (especially Current 93!), Comus, Richard Youngs, Swans, and even Woven Hand. KTAOBAC's witchy rituals were dark and ghostly, a mix of sparse pagan folk and deathly industrial drone, with vocals intoned like David Tibet.
But, with Weltuntergangsstimmung, Kiss The Anus Of A Black Cat has really taken a new tack. If we thought drums were a change, how about drum machines? The sinister old KTAOABC sound is present, but transformed. It sounds like Heeren has been listening to a lot of early '80s minimal new wave music (perhaps there's influence here from Belgium's own Snowy Red and The Neon Judgement?), and has now made a very song-based album with electronic instruments that, if it were an authentic release from the era, would fit in nicely on a reissue label like Dark Entries. Or indeed, we wouldn't have been surprised had this come out on Wierd, alongside the likes of Xeno & Oaklander.
His vocals here are reminding us less of C93's Tibet, and more of another favorite folk shaman, Daniel Higgs. But imagine Daniel Higgs making a gothic coldwave record!! Clicking-ticking drum machine beats and electronic handclaps underpin reverb heavy electric guitar lines and washes of analog synth, over which Heeren croons his lyrics of sadness and surrender, baring his soul in a catchy new gloom-pop context. (There's also a bass player, and some female backing vox.)
We're loving it, even though now KTAOBAC sounds more like Bauhaus or The Cure, than Comus. But, while quite different, this is rapidly becoming one of our favorite KTAOABC albums yet, we can't stop playing it. And, we all can be happy that Heeren at least didn't see any need to change the delightful name of his band.
FYI, there's a vinyl version of this too, on OnderStroom Records, that we hope to get in sometime soon as well.
You know you want it. THE HOTTEST BAND IN THE WORLD!! Well, er...anyway, it's KISS monopoly, how cool is that? As much as it pains us to give any more money to the Kiss business concern, this game is pretty awesome. Instead of little metal cars and boots, you get Gene's bass, Gene's boot, a bag of money (obviously), Paul's Kiss fireman's hat, the Kiss Army logo, and a guitar (hard to tell if it's Paul's or Ace's). And the board is totally redone too with the railroads replaced by the four solo albums (although Music From The Elder is conspicuously absent), the jail space is replaced by the SOLD OUT SHOW: Standing In Line space and the "properties" are all albums and singles and action figures and of course the pinball machine. Then the cards are things like breaking a string on Starchild's guitar, getting singed by Gene's firebreathing, winning second place in a Girls Of Kiss beauty pageant and of course getting inducted into the Kiss Army. Not sure how fun it is to actually play (we haven't cracked one open yet), but boy will this make your dusty old game shelf a whole lot cooler!
Many moons ago, a strange disc passed through our doors from a mysterious Swedish post-punk outfit called Kitchen & The Plastic Spoons. That disc collected one of the band's albums plus a bunch of random odds and ends. Dark Entries has now reissued that album proper from the collection - Screams To God. Weird. Fucked-up. Angular. Totally great. Here's what we had to say about K&TPS way back when:
An amazingly weird synthy Swedish new wave punk band that burned bright for one short year way back in 1980. Kitchen & The Plastic Spoons were herky jerky, full of demented pep and enough deranged energy to make themselves a seriously freaked out and super unique proposition. Sort of how we always wished new wave sounded, not overly polished but instead kind of demented and mad in all the right ways. Like The Pop Group and the Dead Kennedys all mixed up with Siouxsie and Johnny Lydon taking turns on vocals. As much as this makes us think of some of the more well known (relatively) bands of the era like The Slits, Raincoats, Au Pairs, Liliput and Maximum Joy, there is something so singular and unique about Kitchen And The Plastic Spoons that makes it kind of surprising that this is the first time these tracks have been dug up in almost 30 years. It's amazing how vibrant and timely this still sounds. It's hard not to imagine that bands like Erase Errata had somehow gotten their hands on one of the few hundred original lp's and used it as a sort of template or inspiration. With all the hype in recent years over lost punk reissues this might just take the cake for a long overdue rediscovery of a truly weird punk classic!
Wow! An amazingly weird Swedish new wave punk band that burned bright for one short year way back in 1980. Kitchen & The Plastic Spoons were herky jerky, full of demented pep and enough deranged energy to make themselves a seriously freaked out and super unique proposition. Sort of how we always wished new wave sounded, not overly polished but instead kind of demented and mad in all the right ways. Like The Pop Group and the Dead Kennedys all mixed up with Siouxsie and Johnny Lydon taking turns on vocals. As much as this makes us think of some of the more well known (relatively) bands of the era like The Slits, Raincoats, Au Pairs, Liliput and Maximum Joy, there is something so singular and unique about Kitchen And The Plastic Spoons that makes it kind of surprising that this i the first time these tracks have been dug up in almost 30 years. It's amazing how vibrant and timely this still sounds. It's hard not to imagine that bands like Erase Errata had somehoww gotten their hands on one of the few hundred original lp's and used it as a sort of template or inspiration. With all the hype in recent years over lost punk reissues from the likes of The Homosexuals, Crime and The Metal Boys this might just take the cake for a long overdue rediscovery of a truly weird punk classic!
Latest in the series of reissues of obscure Lee Hazlewood productions from Light In The Attic comes this great anthology of tracks by a band of Nuggets-worthy never-weres from Amarillo Texas, The Kitchen Cinq (pronounced "Sank", a play on the French word for five, as they were a five piece, see!). The groop's sole 1966 album (Everything But....) and string of singles should have made them more than a mere blip in the regional psych scene as they were influenced both by the British Invasion and the emerging West Coast jangle folk sound. Like a mix of The Thirteenth Floor Elevators and The Byrds, with a seemingly aphetamine-fueled fuzz-pop sound, the band's probable lack of longevity was likely due to the fact they didn't record much of their own material - though songs like "Dying Daffodil Incident" and "When The Rainbow Disappears" by title alone should have set them apart. Instead, we largely get great covers of Neil Diamond ("Solitary Man"), Buffy Saint Marie ("Codeine") and The Hollies ("I Can't Let Go"), amongst many others. To their credit, they make these singles sparkle with gritty pop urgency, tremendous harmony and of course Hazlewood's top-notch production which accentuates the reverb and twang in such a beautifully satisfying way. As always with Light In The Attic releases, comes a great history of the band and lots of pictures. Great stuff for vintage garage beat geeks like us!
Latest in the series of reissues of obscure Lee Hazlewood productions from Light In The Attic comes this great anthology of tracks by a band of Nuggets-worthy never-weres from Amarillo Texas, The Kitchen Cinq (pronounced "Sank", a play on the French word for five, as they were a five piece, see!). The groop's sole 1966 album (Everything But....) and string of singles should have made them more than a mere blip in the regional psych scene as they were influenced both by the British Invasion and the emerging West Coast jangle folk sound. Like a mix of The Thirteenth Floor Elevators and The Byrds, with a seemingly aphetamine-fueled fuzz-pop sound, the band's probable lack of longevity was likely due to the fact they didn't record much of their own material - though songs like "Dying Daffodil Incident" and "When The Rainbow Disappears" by title alone should have set them apart. Instead, we largely get great covers of Neil Diamond ("Solitary Man"), Buffy Saint Marie ("Codeine") and The Hollies ("I Can't Let Go"), amongst many others. To their credit, they make these singles sparkle with gritty pop urgency, tremendous harmony and of course Hazlewood's top-notch production which accentuates the reverb and twang in such a beautifully satisfying way. As always with Light In The Attic releases, comes a great history of the band and lots of pictures. Great stuff for vintage garage beat geeks like us!
Latest single from this Aussie post punk downer pop outfit, but unlike their Siltbreeze lp, which we likened to vintage Guided By Voices or Strapping Fieldhands, the A side here is way more subdued, and definitely fits the song title, a gorgeous woozy lament, all detuned guitars, and lazy sad boy vox, over a skeletal shuffling beat, the sound fuzzy, and gauzey, when the record first started we though it was spinning at the wrong speed, it had that sort of warped warble. It's all drowsy, and darkly psychedelic, slo-mo garage pop, like some classic indie pop jangle jam slowed way down, softly noisy and really quite lovely.
The flipside is more of the same, a minor key, Velvets style chunk of minimal dirge pop, shimmery and reverby and sweetly melancholy, washed out and woozy, this time the sound laced with what sounds like a harmonica or some sort of organ, adding a druggy bit of wheezing whir, softening the edges, and making the already soporific pop seem just that much more wasted and dreamlike. Nice!
LIMITED TO 300 COPIES!!
Not one, but two new(ish) singles from this Aussie post punk downer pop combo, whose Siltbreeze lp we flipped for a while back, and ever since have been on a mission to find as much KF as we can, so up first, is the awesomely titled "Deadshits", which finds the band in a seriously weird and seriously stripped down mood/mode, getting all Jandek-y, with urgently strummed acoustic guitar, primitive drumming, warped percussion, distorted vocal warble, and on the opener, a demented sounding falsetto chorus, the whole thing unwinds like some brain damaged outsider bedroom 4-track pop, although in places, like on "Left", the band get a bit more melodic, adding some female vocals, sounding a bit like a super minimal Eric's Trip, still super spare and mostly acoustic but a bit more melodic and poppy, the whole record has a serious early Flying Nun /Xpressway outsider indie jangle vibe to it, which was present to a lesser degree on the full length proper.
On Regrets, the band drifts a bit closer to the sound of the Siltbreeze lp, still pretty lo-fi, but with buzzy gnarled guitars, stumbling trashcan drumming, wild squalls of psychedelic leads, and the vocals buried in the mix, a bit more punk than Deadshits, but not nearly as poppy and polished as the full length, but hidden amidst all the stumbling pound and atonal guitar noise, is some seriously dreamy gloom pop, and minor key jangle, culminating with closer "Still Night", which adds deep dramatic vox, much higher in the mix, a primitive druggy drone pop that somehow still hits the spot. Both are probably crazy limited, as things like these usually are...
Man are we digging this new wave of Australian post punk / downer pop / psychedelia, having gone a bit nuts recently for Naked On The Vague and Total Control, Kitchen's Floor is having the same effect. We somehow slept on their debut, but this, our first exposure to these guys, didn't take long at all to win us over. Exactly the sort of shit we love. A modernized mix of classic old post punk indie rock. Think classic Aussie outfits like Feedtime and the Celibate Rifles, and give it a bit of a 2011 garage psych makeover. But only a little cuz lots of this sounds like it could actually be from back in the day. In fact, much of this harks back to the early days of Siltbreeze, like the second track "Graves", which sound like it could be some lost nineties SB 7", released right between a Guided By Voices and Strapping Fieldhands, and if you're a fan of either of those bands, then some of this is a dead ringer for what some weird hybrid of the two might sound like. The whole record is petty stellar, jangly, fuzzy, distorted, hooky, the vocals melodic but sort of world weary and occasionally yowly, lots of wheezing organ, the drumming is pretty awesome too, and hooks galore of course, one of those records that sounded pretty good at first, but after just one play, we found some of these songs lodged pretty firmly in our head, which of course required further and repeated listening.
Fans of Crystal Stilts, the Mantles, Naked On The Vague, Royal Baths, Pink Reason, and similarly dour, jangly, noisepop will be in heaven!
Includes a download coupon too.
Not one, but two new(ish) singles from this Aussie post punk downer pop combo, whose Siltbreeze lp we flipped for a while back, and ever since have been on a mission to find as much KF as we can, so up first, is the awesomely titled "Deadshits", which finds the band in a seriously weird and seriously stripped down mood/mode, getting all Jandek-y, with urgently strummed acoustic guitar, primitive drumming, warped percussion, distorted vocal warble, and on the opener, a demented sounding falsetto chorus, the whole thing unwinds like some brain damaged outsider bedroom 4-track pop, although in places, like on "Left", the band get a bit more melodic, adding some female vocals, sounding a bit like a super minimal Eric's Trip, still super spare and mostly acoustic but a bit more melodic and poppy, the whole record has a serious early Flying Nun /Xpressway outsider indie jangle vibe to it, which was present to a lesser degree on the full length proper.
On Regrets, the band drifts a bit closer to the sound of the Siltbreeze lp, still pretty lo-fi, but with buzzy gnarled guitars, stumbling trashcan drumming, wild squalls of psychedelic leads, and the vocals buried in the mix, a bit more punk than Deadshits, but not nearly as poppy and polished as the full length, but hidden amidst all the stumbling pound and atonal guitar noise, is some seriously dreamy gloom pop, and minor key jangle, culminating with closer "Still Night", which adds deep dramatic vox, much higher in the mix, a primitive druggy drone pop that somehow still hits the spot. Both are probably crazy limited, as things like these usually are...
Kite-Eating Tree get your blood pumping with their very mid/late '90s-ish feisty emo rock. Each time this is in our cd player, it strikes us as being immediately familiar sounding. High octane chunky guitars and angsty male vocals that in turn brings to mind Rocket From The Crypt, Foo Fighters and At The Drive-In. Features ex-members of AQ faves Death Cab For Cutie and emo rockers Sunday's Best.
More Load-label craziness.
Kicking up her heels and cooing up a storm, Kitten On The Keys is one-ma'am band Suzanne Ramsey.
And (It's Not A) Pretty Princess Day is a delightful album full of quirky, charming old tyme piano numbers. She sings and plays with plenty of spritely wit and sass. Each song is steeped with saucy vaudevillian and pouty burlesque excess. Ramsey performs both her own originals as well as a plethora of covers, even tackling Sex Pistols and The Cure with a giggle and a wink. Actually (if she hasn't already!) she'd be a great human performer at the Musee Mechanique!
There is something so damn special about family bands. You know... the Jackson 5, The Beach Boys, the Bee Gees, ESG, people who share roots that really allow them to communicate with each other on another level. These three young siblings (we think they still might be in their teens!) out of North London, Kitty, Daisy and Lewis, have that special something together and with it, they tap into the vintage sound of Sun records, classic rockabilly, that awesome intersection of country music and rock n roll. They nail the sound and aesthetic so perfectly.
The recording is totally analog and its warmth and rugged quality shines through so strongly. These are kids who grew up in a totally amazing musical environment, with a father who is one of the top engineers at the London mastering studio The Exchange and a mother that played drums for The Raincoats!! So it makes perfect sense that these kids have so much respect for the history of music and that they would make something with all the right ingredients and their own unique energy. This really is in so many ways to vintage rock n' roll what folks like Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings and Nicole Willis & The Soul Investigators are to classic vintage soul. They capture the absolute sound and mindset of that special moment in time, yet bring a spunk and enthusiasm that is truly their own. Think if Holly Golightly and a more revved up Jolie Holland joined forces and tackled covers from the Sun Records catalog, AWESOME!
This compilation of singles circa 1971-1975 by new-to-us Anatolian folk-psych singer and guitarist Fikret Kizilok has been blowing our minds this week We don't much about Kizilok, except he was a dentist who, inspired by the Beatles, got into music, and recorded with Baris Manco, which led to a friendship-ending affair with his girlfriend. He is also rumored to be one of the first Turkish musicians to introduce the sitar into Turkish popular music (a bit hard to believe, and strangely there is no sitar on these recordings, but nevertheless that is what a cool-looking photo from a music magazine in the liner notes seems to state). However, Kizilok's hypnotic psych-tinged folk music, played with both electric and acoustic instruments (including lots of hand percussion and electric organ provided by Mogollar's Turhan Yukseler!), is impossible to ignore. Equally dreamy, moody, groovy, complexly arranged and politically driven, this is another great Turkish-psych discovery right up there with Selda, Mogallar, Cem Karaca, 3 Hur-el and Edip Akbayram. Also if you loved those Psych 101 compilations, this will be right up your alley!
Last list we reviewed the new Young People album which we quite liked. Its minimal avant pop and stripped down approach got us thinking of Young Marble Giants and a record by a UK band called Klang that came out a few years back but sadly didn't seem to make much of a splash here in the states. This is that record. So seductive, sensual and mesmerizing in it's ability to rope you into its luring world of post krautrock fake-em-out-with-simplicity approach to indie rock that will make you think of groups like Broadcast, Quixotic and Electrelane. The vocals of Donna Matthews (ex-Elastica) are so perfectly suited for this style. We're so happy she left Elastica to form this outfit as this is leaps and bounds more creative and satisfying then anything her previous band ever did. One of those records that ends before you want it to and never has a weak moment throughout. They leave you wanting so much more and we'll keep our fingers crossed for something new from them soon. Until then make sure you check this out!
Yes, lords and ladies, here's another new band that the UK press are shitting their pants over... Sometimes their hyperbole can be utterly maddening and other times we'll admit we're right there with 'em... like maybe this time. Good thing it's a laundry day. Anyways, in our ongoing series of 'what if' musings, here's another one for you: what if TV On The Radio took a fistful of amphetamines before leaping into the recording studio (or onto a stairmaster for that matter -- hahaha!)? We'd bet the results would sound a lot like this, The Klaxons' debut album. No, it's not a new sound, but it is a very 'now' sound. Really the resemblance between the two bands carries through from the falsetto-reaching vocals to the densely packed production to the overall heady, brooding quality. These Londoners' vigorous, rigorous modern rock arrives full force like a giant tidal wave. Infectious, feverish, at times overwhelming and very cool. Some might call this a guilty pleasure, but we think it's simply a pleasure.
While they were only an active band for a few years, the legacy and impact of Kleenex's (later Liliput's) music is immeasurable. Along with their peers The Slits and Raincoats, they helped spearhead female fueled post-punk. Raw, angular catchy and free from any kind of commercial gloss. Their sound was the blueprint for the riot grrl scene that would be born a decade later, with bands like Bikini Kill, Excuse 17 and Team Dresch all most definitely inspired by the amazing and uncompromising sounds this Swiss band conjured up way back in the day. Kill Rock Stars (home to many of the best of the '90s riot grrl scene) do a great job in going back to the true source of much of the label's inspiration in releasing this loving cd/dvd collection. The music portion is all from live recordings, demonstrating how stripped down, and full of fiery energy these ladies were. While we're not usually a huge fan of live records, this one makes total sense. It's not as if their studio records were recorded with much, if any budget, so hearing them live actually seems like the most proper way to enjoy their already raw infectious sounds. What made them so cool was that there was a nice variety to their sound, they could go from being really fast and punk sounding one moment to bouncy and poppy the next, and underneath their scrappy aesthetic they always managed to infuse their sound with awesome melodies.
The list of bands they have influenced could go on and on. From the aforementioned leading ladies of the riot girl scene to folks like Erase Errata, Wetdog, Dog Faced Hermans, Silver Daggers, Brilliant Colors, Electrelane, Klang, Slant 6, Deerhoof, etc.!
The dvd features really cool footage from them on tour, all shot in super 8 which makes the visuals as raw and impactful as the sounds...
**MISSISSIPPI RECORDS ALERT** **MISSISSIPPI RECORDS ALERT** **MISSISSIPPI RECORDS ALERT**
Finally on vinyl, the complete recorded works by these seminal punks. This vinyl version contains all of the music from the 2cd on Kill Rock Stars, but Mississippi has gone ALL OUT, cramming that same music into a massive QUADRUPLE lp set, each lp in its own heavy sleeve, all housed in a super striking and seriously hefty box! Here's what we had to say about this when we first listed the cd version a while back:
Well all right! Lots of folks have been waiting a loooong time for this collection!! Kleenex were a Swiss punk band who released one record in 1978 before being forced to change their name to LiLiPUT, the moniker they used for the next four years until they disbanded in 1983. For the five years of their existence, Kleenex / LiLiPUT amassed an astonishingly cohesive (considering they went through three vocalists) body of work that was championed by everyone from John Peel to Rough Trade Records, who were their label for a while. Since their demise, the legend of LiLiPUT has only grown larger and larger. At one point a brief 1993 cd reissue of their work was reportedly going on eBay for over $300! The riot grrl scene, among other punk movements, has been inspired by and today rightfully acknowledges and champions the influence of Kleenex/LiLiPUT (heads up, fans of Le Tigre, this will kick your ass and you'll thank them and ask for more). Somehow it seems appropriate that stalwart indie-punk label Kill Rock Stars first got this stuff to a lot of the kids today!
But what do they sound like? Well, no fan of the Slits, Raincoats, or X-Ray Spex should be without this for a moment longer. Yeah, it's got that much unbelievable energy, choppy melodies, and three-chord majesty... and the band was similarly female fronted (one guy was only briefly a member). The two constants in the band - the two people who were present throughout all the incarnations of Kleenex/LiLiPUT - were guitarist Marlene Marder and bassist Klaudia Schiff, so there's driving, relentless, yet thoughtful basslines, coupled with slash 'n burn, jumpy guitar terrorism that at times recalls the band's contemporaries in the scene, like Gang of Four, Joy Division, and Wire. The vocalists ferociously crowed and cackled mostly in sing-song English, making for funny and evocative lyrics. Violin and skronkin' saxophone were occasionally used as embellishment to their already full, solid sound. Every song is unique, approachable... every song is good. And boy do Kleenex/LiLiPUT sound as good now as they did then!!
