(Translated from my original Italian text by ChatGPT and Piero Scaruffi)
Kiss, formed in 1973 by Gene Simmons (bass) and Paul Stanley (rhythm guitar), with Ace Frehley on lead guitar, were the most famous of the early glam-metal bands. They were born and grew up in the New York clubs where decadent rock was rampant, in the era of Alice Cooper. With them, heavy metal completely shed its devil-messenger image and became the favorite fashion of perverted young bourgeois. Celebrating sex and rock as basic elements of teenage fun, Kiss forged a heavy metal devoid of social or existential connotations.
Brutal and monotonous, their songs could range from the wild fury of the MC5 to endlessly repeating the most tedious riffs. Their absolute technical ineptitude limited their stylistic horizons and forced them to invest in the visual aspect. But their macabre-obscene showmanship ended up recalling the grand guignol of burlesque more than classic horror. Their grim metallic grandeur was undoubtedly catchy, but in the same way as easy-listening and bubblegum, the genres Kiss transplanted onto the trunk of heavy metal.
The entire choreography, inspired as much by kabuki as by brothels, was invented by their manager, Bill Aucoin, a former television director.
Kiss (Casablanca, Feb 1974) is the quintessence of everything that would follow: predictable riffs and childish choruses, self-aggrandizement, lust, and the glorification of wild fun (Deuce, Strutter, Black Diamond). Hotter Than Hell (Nov 1974) contains Hotter Than Hell, but is much inferior (probably leftovers from the previous album). Dressed to Kill (Apr 1975) features their most famous choral anthem, Rock And Roll All Nite. But they became famous mainly for their show, a mix of heavy makeup, macho poses, and gruesome effects. Their "artistic" peak was reached with Destroyer (1976), which features God Of Thunder, Shout It Loud, Do You Love Me (a typical bubblegum song about winning girls with "seven inch leather hill" and piles of money), the anthem Detroit Rock City, and the orchestral ballad Beth.
Rock'n'Roll Over (1976) continues the shift toward pop with Calling Dr Love, I Want You, the ballad Hard Luck Woman (in the style of Rod Stewart), but also delivers the killer riff of Making Love (in the most classic panzer-paced style with piercing solos).
Double Platinum (Casablanca, 1978) is an anthology of their golden era.
The final outbursts of Love Gun (1977), namely Christine Sixteen and Plaster Caster, of Dynasty (1979), namely the disco hit I Was Made For Loving You, and of Unmasked (1980), only reinforced the banal vulgarity of their message.
(Original English text by Piero Scaruffi)
The disco-ballad I Was Made For Loving You and the
prog-rock concept album The Elder (1981) signaled the end of Kiss' devotion to
heavy-metal, despite a last-ditch attempt to regain their sceptre with
the less than mediocre Creatures Of The Night (1982).
On Lick It Up (1983) the Kiss abandoned the make-up that had become
a trademark of sort. The event obscured the music, which had little to
commend itself in any case (Exciter).
Animalize (1984) contains the exception to the rule, a brilliant
(everything is relative) Heaven's On Fire.
Asylum (Mercury, 1985),
Crazy Nights (Mercury, 1987), with Crazy Nights,
and Hot In The Shade (Mercury, 1989), with
another lame ballad, Forever,
continued the slide into mainstream pop-metal.
After a long hiatus, Revenge (Mercury, 1993) marked a return to
the heavy sound of the 1970s.
Their saga seemed to finally end after
Carnival Of Souls (1997) and Psycho Circus (1998), despite the
fact that the latter is one of their best.
More than a decade later Kiss returned with the utterly ridiculous
Sonic Boom (2009).
Frehley died in 2025.
