KISSology volume 2: 1978-1991
by Erick Von Erich
KISSology volume 2 showcases the most tumultuous and transitional period of the band's long career. Yet, it's probably the most interesting. The four original members, Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Peter Criss and Ace Frehley were split in half as the band's lineup fluctuated almost annually for the next 13 years. Picking up at the height of the band's popularity in 1978, it begins with the amount of excess that the band had indulged in. At this period, the characters of KISS were about as well known as Luke Skywalker or Scooby-Doo. Just like those two characters, they were fictional, cartoonish creations that were adorned on t-shirts of grade schoolers.
Disc 1 begins with a documentary piece by Edwin Newman. Perhaps foreshadowing the band's eventual downfall, Newman comes off as very condescending towards the "young millionaires". This is followed by the band's appearance on Tom Snyder's "Tomorrow Show". A rather infamous interview that has been seen on VH1 endlessly since 2001...and while the first half of the interview is included, the conclusion isn't. So you miss out on Ace dressing up a teddy bear as "Space Bear", and Gene trying to impress Snyder with his knowledge of Bugs Bunny cartoons. But you still get the "highlights", which are Gene acting like a frustrated school teacher on a field trip and Ace -- blitzed out of his mind-- laughing at every little thing. Ace laughs uncontrollably at you figure he would've passed out from laughter at the sight of something as mundane as a dump truck. In disc commentary, Paul Stanley mentions that Ace was growing distant and that the band should've embraced his attitude, more.
Disc 1 then finishes up with a restored and extended verison of the band's TV movie: "Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park". This is apparently the foreign theatrical release with the slightly-altered title of "Attack of the Phantoms" and with new background music added. The movie itself is an absolute trainwreck. It's like a live-action Scooby-Doo episode...which is not as far-fetched as it sounds, considering it was produced by Hanna-Barbera. All the action happens at California's Magic Mountain, with the animatronic creations of the park's resident mad scientist, Abner Devereaux. He plans to take over the entire park, and KISS, with his animatronic androids. KISS has been booked to play three nights of concert at the park and the recently-fired Devereaux is upset that his creations are no longer the main attraction. His master plan is to replace KISS and put on a crappy concert which will encite fans to riot and destroy the park. The plan culminates as the dupliate KISS-bots take to the stage and perform a re-worked version of "Hotter Than Hell" as "Rip and Destroy".
The movie is VERY campy..as you just have to accept the fact that KISS are all superheroes and usually begin their concerts by flying in from outer space. There's a flagrant use of stunt doubles, that the camera doesn't even attempt to hide. The band members all speak with the delivery of a 2 x 4 and it's just hilarious. There's also an eight-minute long, acoustic guitar rendtion of "Beth" to prolong the agony. While rightfully embarased by the movie, you have to give the band credit for including this thing in its entirety...and with extended scenes!
Disc 2 covers the band's final years in make-up and their nosedive into limbo. The music video for 1980's "Shandi" is included. It's a rarity and noteworthy for the fact that it was the last appearance Peter Criss made with the band. Both the video for "Shandi" and the album "Unmaksed" itself, teased at KISS ditching their makeup, yet it wouldn't happen for another 3 years.
After Criss's exit (and half of a CNN interview from late 1980), the band's excursion overseas and the introduction of new drummer Eric Carr is included. Carr is presented in a very complimentary and almost innocent light for the rest of the disc. Appropriate, since the guy died of cancer in 1991. Peter Criss, for all his popularity, was simply an awful drummer, and Carr definitely stepped up the band's rhythym section. Carr was more "hard rock", whereas Criss was a jazz drummer playing hard rock to get a huge paycheck. However, Carr's drums would seem almost too loud on some compositions.
The overseas portions include almost a full concert from Sydney, Australia. Most songs are sped up, with a standout being their version of "Is That You". A complete poppy song in its studio version on "Unmasked", it sounds quite heavy as they play it live. Lip-synched performances from Germany of "She's So European" and "Talk to Me" are included. While the band's commentary of "Talk to Me" is very complimentary, it's still an awful song. I counted, and they sing the title 33 times in the course of the song. "She's So European" is appalling and Gene's commentary makes no bones about that. He mentions that it was one of his random senseless songs that should've stayed in his head.
Disc 2 closes out with the band's appearance on the short-lived ABC late-night comedy show, "Fridays", in early 1982. They perform three songs from their ill-fated "The Elder" album, in their scaled-down make-up. Stanley says, of his pink-headbanded costume: "I looked like an evil member of Duran Duran". They also include hilarious commentary on some fans' constant insistence on playing an "all-Elder" show. "We write back to the hospital and tell those people that we hope they're improving and that they will be out soon". "The Elder" had some fairly heavy guitar work...but the vocals were goofy and the presentation killed the entire album. This has nothing to do with this DVD set: but if you're a hardcore KISS fan, hit YouTube and search for "KISS Elder" to see some really obscure stuff (like their appearance on the Flo & Eddie show and a UCP fundraiser in 1981).
Disc 3 begins with the final days in make-up and the introduction of new guitarist Vinnie Vincent. Vincent, the sixth member to don the face paint, is seen in-costume for a concert from Brazil's Maracana Stadium-- the last show that the band did in make-up. Cut to an September, 1983 appearance on MTV with JJ Jackson, where the band finally unmasked and began a new era. Stanley mentions that MTV, one of the hottest properites in the country at the time, had shunned KISS for years. The band had filmed several promo spots of them proclaiming "I want my MTV", but the station ignored them. Only until they wiped off the face paint did they finally land airplay. From 1983 until 1990, the "non make-up" KISS would be a dominant force on MTV's rotation. It helped the band's sales, although their creativity seemed to be in neutral.
The rest of Disc 3 includes two live concerts: half of a show from Philadelphia for the 1987 "Crazy Nights" tour and a full cut from a 1990 Detroit show for "Hot in the Shade". It leaps dramatically from 1983 to 1987...but all of the band's work was extremely repititive during this phase. The song "Bang, Bang You" is probably the most forgettable single of the band's career. Considering the stinkers they've turned out, that's saying a lot. No mention of the brief KISS career of guitarist Mark St. John is included, either. The band goes crazy with their use of rags, spandex and outlandish "glam metal" garb. At one point, Paul Stanley is seen wearing leopard-skin spandex while playing a zebra-skin guitar in a technicolor nightmare.
Another funny difference between the "clean" KISS and the make-up KISS is the use of cussing. Without their make-up and in the 80's, Paul Stanley would frequently drop f-bombs at concerts, like asking the crowd if they were "rock n' fuckin' rollers". These bombs are bleeped out for this DVD release. The band was marketted toward a family and grade school audience in the late 70's, but in the 80's they targetted an adolescent or junior-high demographic. Not surprisingly, when they went back to the make-up in 1996's highly successful "Reunion" tour, they went cold turkey on the naughty words.
It wasn't until the 1990 tour that KISS began to fully embrace their catalog and worked in several old staples with their newer hits. Although it's not mentioned on the disc, this "grass roots" trend in the band's work was probably established with the release of their 1988 album "Smashes, Trashes and Hits", which featured re-worked version of their old 70's hits, along with two new goofy 80's tunes. The 1990 tour is probably when they began to feel secure with their place in rock. Unfortuantely, after that, drummer Eric Carr began having health problems which would lead to his death. The disc concludes with a short MTV excerpt about Carr's passing, followed by his last performance (while wearing a wig) in the video for "God Gave Rock n' Roll to You". Stanley and Simmons talk about the peculiarity of how, shortly after the video shoot, Eric Carr was given back to God. I'm not religous at all, but it is kinda' touching.
Depending on where you buy your discs, you'll receive a fourth "bonus disc". Since I snagged mine at KMart, I received an abbreviated 1988 concert from Budokan. While watching the 1987 and 1988 shows, I came to the realization: "damn, Bruce Kulick was one UGLY dude". Wal-Mart and Best Buy reportedly offer either a 1979 "Dynasty" concert, or another 1988 "Crazy Nights" concert. The 1979 concert has been widely available on the bootleg trading network for years (I believe it was originally shown on HBO), but if you want good quality and an (almost) full make-up show, then it's probably the best one to track down.
Why'd You Buy This?
I didn't really discover the true KISS until 1992. As a wee lad in the 70's, I was deathly afraid
of clowns, so the make-up version of KISS used to scare the shit out of me. I never understood
how some of my classmates in kindergarten were okay with wearing a t-shirt of Gene Simmons. In the 80's, I would
see KISS on MTV frequently, but their songs were quite awful, their vocals annoyed me and I preferred
the "NWOBHM" stylings of bands like Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. I had one KISS album: "Asylum" that
I got in one of those "12 tapes for a penny" deals that used to run, ad naseum, in the mid-80's. I think I listened to
it once and that was it. I even had to fast-forward through songs like "Trial By Fire" and "UH! All Night".
But in 1992, I saw the 1982 video for
"I Love it Loud" on Headbanger's Ball and began to rethink my opinion of KISS. They weren't a buncha'
dorks in tiger-striped spandex. They had a unique, larger-than-life history and were the hard rockin',
good-time band I had always dreamed about. They were the perfect combination
of theatrics and rock n' roll.
While KISSology volumes 1 and 3 show the origins and appreciation, respectively, of the band, this volume shows the dynamics of the band. There's a wide variety here: the highs, the lows and the changes. For me, the appeal of this set was getting "Attack of the Phantoms" and the Sydney concert. If you just want to see four guys in make-up playing "Rock and Roll All Nite", then this isn't for you (not to say Volumes 1 and 3 are bad collections, mind you). If you want to see something interesting, funny, embarassing and enjoyable, that you'll want to watch several times, then this is the volume to get.
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