August 10th, 2007Kiss new fan-oriented albom
In the annals of rock n’ roll no other rock band has a more checkered or colored existence other than Kiss. Whether you love them or hate them, Kiss is undeniably one of the most influential rock bands on the planet. It’s funny to think that if not for a double live album, they may have potentially disappeared into obscurity. In 1975 on the heels of three poorly selling studio albums, the band and their record label, Casablanca, made the gutsy decision to release a double live album. It was not only a wise choice but to this day “Alive!” is viewed as the essential Kiss album and the one by which all others are judged.
Universal Music recently released a 4-disc live box set entitled ‘Alive 1975-2000′. Housed inside this package are the first three ‘Alive’ albums and an unreleased one from their 1999/2000 Millennium show. This fourth album was to have been ‘Alive IV’ and put out in support of the band’s farewell tour in 2000, however, it never saw the light of day until now. If one were to buy this box it would most likely be a double dip for most fans, so I’m here to break down the contents for you so you can make a decision.
With three tours of material to choose from, there is no reason for this to have been a one disc affair. It’s disappointing to Kiss fans as they would have gladly paid for a full two-hour concert. Secondly, as mentioned earlier, the band should have recorded these songs while on tour and not at a one off millennium gig. The band sounds semi hesitant on the 80’s numbers, as Peter and Ace were not around when these were written or recorded. But when I caught Kiss on back to back nights in May of 2000, they were magical and in truth, I couldn’t imagine them ever being better. This album unfortunately does not showcase the magic I experienced on those nights. I saw Kiss again in ‘03 without Ace and think they made a killer DVD with Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer filling in for Ace and Peter, but those live shows from ‘96 through ‘00 took us to another place and time back when we were twelve looking at the ‘Alive!’ album cover believing anything was possible. Great music makes you realize your full potential and often can give you the much needed kick in the ass needed to achieve your dreams. The reunion era Kiss was a time machine taking us back to our adolescence where there was no responsibility and there was nothing more important than three chords and the truth. The truth was, many of us had grown up and the music at times would seem almost laughable, but none of that mattered because for a five year period Ace, Peter, Gene and Paul made us believe once again that rock n’ roll is more than just a distraction but can truly be inspiring.
Album Grade: C+
So while this new “Alive 1975-2000″ box set does not venture into new territory, it does sum up nicely who Kiss was as a live entity for the better part of a quarter century. A better representation of who Kiss is can be found on their excellent “Kissology” DVD set but for those looking for companion releases on CD will find a lot of legendary rock n’ roll history here.
