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Rating: "I'd like the latest Kiss album please"
How I missed saying this phrase in a record store, and I had almost resigned myself, trying to give explanations like "They must have realized they have nothing more to say in the studio, and decided to continue with concerts" or "Gene Simmons was too busy doing what they say he does very well and forgot how to play bass" or the more likely "They must have broken up". But eleven years after the excellent "Psycho Circus", the four hell-raisers come out with this "Sonic Boom" which Gene, between kidney stones sold on e-bay and licks here and there, describes as "The best Kiss album since the days of Destroyer and Love Gun", a statement that weighs heavily for a band once considered dead in the studio.
Few truly believe this is a return to their former glory (including myself), but I think all self-respecting fans will give (or have given) at least a listen to this new work.
After reconsiderations and changes of mind, the four New Yorkers, always faithful to the god of money, decide to release this album, betting on the motto "even if it sucks, people will buy it anyway", but there's a small detail: the album doesn't suck.
The CD presents itself as a journey in a flashy convertible, a journey that starts from the '70s to reach today, where tough tracks alternate with potential radio hits, in an album full of spirit played by old kids who apparently still enjoy screaming and partying like crazy.
I insert the CD, which opens with "Modern Day Delilah", from the very first notes you can't help but exclaim: "damn it's Kiss!" As you proceed through the tracks, while Gene and Paul alternate at the microphone, you are left more and more open-mouthed, with choruses that immediately stick in your mind, spot-on riffs and sharp guitar solos in typical Kiss style.
Each song is different from the previous one but maintains the same line, with "Never Enough", "Stand", and the incredible "All The Glory" standing out, sung by a very inspired Eric Singer, "I'm An Animal" is the "God Of Thunder" of the album, with an exceptional solo at the end and a Gene Simmons more and more devilish at the microphone. But there isn't a single underwhelming song, all of them are on par, inspired, fast, sharp, and incredibly catchy. This "Sonic Boom" races quickly, with a freshness typical of their early works, but with the addition of the experience (and a touch of savvy) that only veterans have. The cover harks back to "Rock N' Roll Over", which could have been a hint that the Kiss by now only know how to repeat themselves, as many claim, but this album silences everyone, fans and critics alike, who would have expected such an album from these over-fifty-year-olds?
Plenty of spunk and guts, a ballsy album, straightforward, which might be a bit tight in your home stereo, but will be perfect once you hear it in the car. You'll see your finger repeatedly pressing the button to turn up the volume, so when you drive by, everyone will turn, and perhaps some nostalgic person will stop to tell you: "But these are..." and you'll smugly reply: "They're the Kiss, dear".
And you will drive off screeching, convinced that for a good 45 minutes you went back to the '70s.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Deuce (03:07)
Get up
And get your grandma outta here
Pick up
Old Jim is workin' hard this year
And baby
Do the things he says to do
Baby, if you're feeling good
And baby if you're feeling nice
You know your man is workin' hard
He's worth a deuce
Honey
Don't put your man behind his years
And baby
Stop cryin' all your tears
Baby
Do the things he says to do
Do it
Baby, if you're feeling good
And baby if you're feeling nice
You know your man is workin' hard
He's worth a deuce
And baby, if you're feeling good
Yes baby if you're feeling nice
You know your man is workin' hard
Yeah
03 Shout It Out Loud (02:53)
Well, the night's begun and you want some fun
Do you think you're gonna find it (think you're gonna find it)
You got to treat yourself like number one
Do you need to be reminded (need to be reminded)
It doesn't matter what you do or say
Just forget the things that you've been told
We can't do it any other way
Everybody's got to rock and roll, whoo, oh, oh
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
If you don't feel good, there's a way you could
Don't sit there broken hearted (sit there broken hearted)
Call all your friends in the neighborhood
And get the party started (get the party started)
Don't let 'em tell you that there's too much noise
They're too old to really understand
You'll still get rowdy with the girls and boys
'Cause it's time for you to take a stand, yeah, yeah
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
You've got to have a party
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
Turn it up louder
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
Everybody shout it now
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
Oh yeah
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
Hear it gettin' louder
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
And everybody shout it now
Shout it, shout it, shout it out loud
04 Hotter Than Hell (03:09)
Come on
She looked good
She looked hotter than hell
All dressed in satins and lace
I looked at her and it was just too clear
I had to get on the case
I said "Lady, oh lady, can I take you home
There's just so much we could do
I'll take you all around the whole wide world
Before the evening is through"
Hot, hot, hotter than hell
You know she's gonna leave you well done
Hot, hot, hotter than hell
Burn you like the midday sun
I asked her why she couldn't make up her mind
She said "You don't understand
I'd love to go, but there's something you should know"
She showed me her wedding band
Hot, hot, hotter than hell
You know she's gonna leave you well done
Hot, hot, hotter than hell
She'll burn you like the midday sun
Hot, hot, hotter than hell
You know she's gonna leave you well done
Hot, hot, hotter than hell
She'll burn you like the midday sun
06 Love Gun (03:14)
I really love you baby
I love what you've got
Let's get together, we can
Get hot
No more tomorrow, baby
Time is today
Girl, I can make you feel
Okay
No place for hidin' baby
No place to run
You pull the trigger of my
Love gun, (love gun), love gun
Love gun, (love gun), love gun
You can't forget me baby
Don't try to lie
You'll never leave me, mama
So don't try
I'll be a gambler, baby
Lay down the bet
We get together, mama
You'll sweat
No place for hidin' baby
No place to run
You pull the trigger of my
Love gun, (love gun), love gun
Love gun, (love gun), love gun
Love gun, love gun
Love gun, (love gun), love gun
Love gun, (love gun)
Love gun, (love gun), love gun
Love gun, (love gun), love gun
Love gun, (love gun)
Love gun, (love gun)
Love gun, (love gun)
Love gun, (love)
07 I Was Made for Lovin' You (04:41)
Do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do
Do, do, do, do, do, do, do
Do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do
Do, do, do, do, do, do, do
Tonight I wanna give it all to you
In the darkness
There's so much I wanna do
And tonight I wanna lay it at your feet
'Cause girl, I was made for you
And girl, you were made for me
I was made for lovin' you baby
You were made for lovin' me
And I can't get enough of you baby
Can you get enough of me?
Tonight I wanna see it in your eyes
Feel the magic
There's something that drives me wild
And tonight we're gonna make it all come true
'Cause girl, you were made for me
And girl I was made for you
I was made for lovin' you baby
You were made for lovin' me
And I can't get enough of you baby
Can you get enough of me?
I was made for lovin' you baby
You were made for lovin' me
And I can give it all to you baby
Can you give it all to me?
Oh, can't get enough, oh, oh
I can't get enough, oh, oh
I can't get enough
Yeah, ha
Do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do
Do, do, do, do, do, do, do
Do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do
Do, do, do, do, do, do, do
I was made for lovin' you baby
You were made for lovin' me
And I can't get enough of you baby
Can you get enough of me?
Oh, I was made, you were made
I can't get enough
No, I can't get enough
I was made for lovin' you baby
You were made for lovin' me
And I can't get enough of you baby
Can you get enough of me?
I was made for lovin' you baby
You were made for lovin' me
And I can give it all to you baby
08 Heaven's on Fire (03:23)
I look at you and my blood boils hot, I feel my temperature rise
I want it all, give me what you got, there's hunger in your eyes
I'm getting closer, baby hear me breathe
You know the way to give me what I need
Just let me love you and you'll never leave
Feel my heat takin' you higher, burn with me, Heaven's on fire
Paint the sky with desire, angel fly, Heaven's on fire
I got a fever ragin' in my heart, you make me shiver and shake
Baby don't stop, take it to the top, eat it like a piece of cake
You're comin' closer, I can hear you breathe
You drive me crazy when you start to tease
You could bring the devil to his knees
Feel my heat takin' you higher, burn with me, Heaven's on fire
Paint the sky with desire, angel fly, Heaven's on fire
Oho Heaven's on fire, oho Heaven's on fire, oho
I'm getting closer, baby hear me breathe
You know the way to give me what I need
Just let me love you and you'll never leave
Feel my heat takin' you higher, burn with me, Heaven's on fire
Paint the sky with desire, angel fly, Heaven's on fire
09 Lick It Up (03:56)
Don't wanna wait 'til you know me better
Let's just be glad for the time together
Life's such a treat and it's time you taste it
There ain't a reason on earth to waste it
It ain't a crime to be good to yourself
Lick it up, lick it up, it's only right now
Lick it up, lick it up, ooh yeah
Lick it up, lick it up, come on, come on
Lick it up, lick it up
Don't need to wait for an invitation
You gotta live like you're on vacation
There's something sweet you can't buy with money - lick it up, lick it up
It's all you need, so believe me honey
It ain't a crime to be good to yourelf
Lick it up, lick it up, it's only right now
Lick it up, lick it up, ooh yeah
Lick it up, lick it up, come on, come on
Lick it up, lick it up
Come on - it's only right now (it's only right now)
Ooh yeah (ooh yeah) ooh yeah (ooh yeah), yeah yeah
Lick it up, lick it up, it's only right now
Lick it up, lick it up, yeah yeah yeah
Lick it up, lick it up, come on, come on
Lick it up, lick it up
11 Forever (03:52)
I gotta tell you what I'm feeling inside
I could lie to myself but it's true
There's no denying when I look in your eyes
Girl, I'm out of my head over you
I lived so long believeing all love is blind
But everything about you
Is telling me this time it's
CHORUS:
Forever, this time I know
And there's no doubt in my mind
Forever, until my life is through
Girl, I'll be loving you forever
I hear the echo of the promise I made
When you're strong you can stand on your own
But those words grow distant as I look at your face
No, I don't wanna go it alone
I never thought I'd lay my heart on the line
But everything about you
Is telling me this time it's
REPEAT CHORUS
Solo
Oh
I see my future when I look in your eyes
It took your love to make my heart come alive
Cause I lived my life believing all love is blind
But everything about you is telling me this time it's
REPEAT CHORUS (2X)
12 Christine Sixteen (02:59)
She's got me dizzy, she sees me through to the end
She's got me in her hands and there's no use in pretending
Christine sixteen, Christine sixteen
She drives me crazy, I want to give her all I've got
And she's hot every day and night, there is no doubt about it
Christine sixteen, Christine sixteen
"I don't usually say things like this to girls your age, but when I saw you
coming out of the school that day, that day I knew, I knew, I've got to have
you, I've got to have you."
She's' been around, but she's young and clean
I've got to have her, can't live without her, whoo no
Christine sixteen, Christine sixteen
Christine, Christine, sixteen, sixteen
Christine, yeah, yeah
So clean, Christine, sixteen, sixteen
Christine, yeah, Christine, yeah, yeah
Christine, Christine, sixteen, sixteen
Christine, yeah, Christine, yeah, yeah
Christine, Christine, sixteen, sixteen
Christine, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Christine, Christine, sixteen, sixteen
Christine, yeah, yeah, yeah
Christine, Christine, sixteen, sixteen
Christine, yeah, yeah, yeah
Christine, Christine, sixteen, sixteen, Christine, yeah, yeah
Christine, Christine, sixteen, sixteen
Christine, yeah, yeah, yeah
14 Black Diamond (04:19)
Out on the street for a living
Picture's only begun
Got you under their thumb
Hit it !!!
Out on the streets for a living
Picture's only begun
Your day is sorrow and madness
Got you under their thumb
Whoo, black diamond
Whoo, black diamond
Darkness will fall on the city
It seems to follow you too
And though you don't ask for pity
There's nothin' that you can do, no, no
Whoo, black diamond
Whoo, black diamond
Out on the streets for a living
Picture's only begun
Your day is sorrow and madness
Got you under their thumb
Whoo, black diamond, yeah
Whoo, black diamond
15 Rock and Roll All Nite (02:48)
You show us everything you've got
You keep on dancin' and the room gets hot
You drive us wild, we'll drive you crazy
You say you wanna go for a spin
The party's just begun, we'll let you in
You drive us wild, we'll drive you crazy
You keep on shoutin', you keep on shoutin'
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
You keep on saying you'll be mine for a while
You're lookin' fancy and I like your style
You drive us wild, we'll drive you crazy
You show us everything you've got
Baby, baby that's quite a lot
And you drive us wild, we'll drive you crazy
You keep on shoutin', you keep on shoutin'
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday
I wanna rock and roll all night
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Other reviews
By sturlas
"Paul Stanley, who, honestly, I don’t know how he does it at his age...but he’s still the same."
"It would have been better to just put together the original tracks, and they would have made a better impression."
