KISS – Sonic Boom

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Loud & Proud Records
Produced by Paul Stanley & Greg Collins

After eleven years KISS fans finally get what they want. A CD of brand new KISS music, albeit just 43 minutes of it. KISS promised a return to the sound and feel of their mid-1970s heyday of albums like Love Gun and Destroyer, but what they’ve really delivered is more than a simple retreading.

There are some cases where the sound of a previous album is resurrected. The excellent Eric Singer-sung All For The Glory could come from any of the classic ’70s albums (even if it is just an updated We Are One lyrically), and Danger Us, poor on lyrics great on groove, has a strong Creatures of The Night feel to its riffs. But others, like opener Modern Day Delilah have a groove that’s new to KISS (despite ill-advised Paul Stanley wails from time to time) which could, if a comparison were totally necessary, be most likened to Revenge or Psycho Circus. Perhaps. Modern Day Delilah was the perfect choice for the lead radio single. It’s head-and-shoulders above the other tracks on the album and did its job of luring in the fans (and critics) with ease.

Despite being brand new the songs have a sing-a-long feel from the first listen. There’s a strange familiarity to them, like the words need to be sung, but are unknown. One of KISS’s main talents has always been writing songs that are immediate, and they’ve done that again here, but not all of the songs are actually that good. In the ongoing tradition of KISS guitarists Tommy Thayer can’t sing (Yes I Know (Nobody’s Perfect), also one of the album’s worst songs, against stiff competition), but his playing rescues several tracks, and defines others. Stand Up and especially Hot And Cold are also very weak tracks with sickly harmonies and uninteresting riffs, but every one of Thayer’s solos, including the ones on these poorer tracks, recaptures Ace Frehley’s classic tone of the ’70s perfectly. This is in stark contrast to the over-production of Gene Simmons’ vocals, which are softer and more melodic than he’s sounded in 30 years, lacking most of the growl which has characterised his voice on every track since God of Thunder.

Sonic Boom is not the instant classic it’s made out to be. It has several strong tracks, certainly more good than bad, but nothing stands out as a future greatest hit candidate. Paul Stanley’s Never Enough borrows the verse vocal melody from Ozzy Osbourne‘s Flying High Again but is otherwise classic KISS, while When Lightning Strikes follows the same riff pattern as Calling Dr. Love and closer Say Yeah would be at home on Paul’s solo album Live To Win. Everywhere else the band sound best when they’re exercising their riff-based muscles, like on the brooding groove of Simmons’ I’m An Animal and earlier numbers Modern Day Delilah and Danger Us.

The value-for-money special edition adds the 15-track re-recorded greatest hits CD released in Japan last year, where the current line-up achieve all that could really be hoped for. They add nothing to any of the songs beyond updating the production and beefing up some of the riffs, but they also don’t do them any harm, which is always a genuine worry when bands re-record fan-favourites. A six-track bonus DVD recorded at the Pepsi Music Festival in Buenos Aires rounds out the package, and while the footage is reasonably good visually (recorded for Argentine television) but quite poor sonically, it remains a slight mystery why more of the concert wasn’t included. The full set was broadcast live at the time (and is circulating amongst the bootleg community), and the songs here, including a mistake-ridden Hotter Than Hell, are of no better quality than that broadcast. Perhaps the television company wanted to hold on to the full recording. Still, a nice bonus.

KISS have tried to live up to their promises with Sonic Boom. A classic-sounding KISS record delivering good value. Some of the songs leave a lot to be desired, but are not amongst their worst, and Tommy Thayer in particular, on his first proper album with the band, has turned in a superb performance.

“ not the instant classic it’s made out to be ”

Tracklist: Modern Day Delilah / Russian Roulette / Never Enough / Yes I Know (Nobody’s Perfect) / Stand / Hot And Cold / All For The Glory / Danger Us / I’m An Animal / When Lightning Strikes / Say Yeah
KISS Klassics Bonus CD: Deuce / Detroit Rock City / Shout It Out Loud / Hotter Than Hell / Calling Dr. Love / Love Gun / I Was Made For Lovin’ You / Heaven’s On Fire / Lick It Up / I Love It Loud / Forever / Christine Sixteen / Do You Love Me? / Black Diamond / Rock And Roll All Nite
Bonus DVD: Deuce / Hotter Than Hell / C’mon And Love Me / Watchin’ You / 100,000 Years / Rock And Roll All Nite

Written by Andy Lye
More: Albums, Hard Rock, KISS