Asshole

There are many reasons why artists that are part of a major band release solo albums: it's a chance to show a different side of their musical creativity, one that might not fit the norm or style of music from the band in which they play in; a chance to expand talents that they might be limited to within a band setting; purely monetary; piss off other people, etc. Let's go back to this question at the end of the review...... The last time Gene Simmons released a solo album was back in 1978 when all four members if KISS released solo efforts simultaneously. The end result was mixed between the four as far as sales and the musical styles used. It also marked the beginning of some major changes to come for the band. Things are different today. Gene Simmons and KISS seem to concentrate more on merchandising and touring rather than creating new music. The last KISS studio release was "Psycho Circus" back in 1998. They are at a point where they have already solidified themselves in rock history. What more is there for them to do but enjoy their success as much as possible? Gene has been wanting to do some solo material for a while and now seemed as good a time as any to finally release an album, appropriatly titled "Asshole". As with his first solo album from 1978, "Asshole" is rather unpredictable and diverse. In other words, the moods, style and pace of the album are constantly changing. It's hard for the listener to get into a listening groove when those elements are in a constant flux. Some of these songs could have been part of later KISS records, where others belong in another musical dimension all together. For this review, I'd like to concentrate on what I consider the killing tracks: The title track "Asshole" is an up-tempo rocker with a memorable chorus, "'how does it feel to be a real asshole?", and has some radio potential. Question is whether or not DJ's will want to play it. "Carnival of Souls" was a track that was originally demo'd during the KISS recording sessions of "Carnival of Souls" and "Psycho Circus", but never made it on to those albums. It's similar to the song "Hate" from the KISS album "Carnival of Souls". The song was reworked again for this release. "Weapons of Mass Destruction" is probably one of the heavier tracks on the album. This song was originally intended to be the title track for the KISS album, "Psycho Circus". "Sweet Dirty Love" has an Aerosmith/ Queen "Tie Your Mother Down" vibe to it with some bluesy slide guitar licks. It was actually recorded with Eric Singer on drums and Bruce Kulick on guitar. I can also hear some Paul Stanley on the background vocals. It was originally written in 1977 and has been reworked over the years. This is the best track on the album. "Black Tongue" has a psychedelic, grunge feel to it. It was actually based on an unreleased guitar riff by the late Frank Zappa, who Gene admired. He got permission from Zappa's wife to use some of Frank Zappa's unused material from his archives. Gene sings lead and plays bass, Zappa's son Dweezil plays guitar, while the entire Zappa family (Gail, Dweezil, Ahmet and Moon) sings backing vocals. The song also includes spoken parts by Frank Zappa plus some of his guitar solos. "Everybody Knows" is available on the Japanese retail version. It's another song that sounds very much like a lost, unused KISS song. It uses 12 string guitars and sounds very much like part of the "Rock Bottom" intro from the KISS album "Dressed To Kill". Another great track! So far that is roughly half the album. To sum up, the rest of the songs on this album are filler. They are lame attempts to create what seems like a mix of post grunge, industrial alternative, electronic and experimental pop ballads. He uses drum samples, distorted guitar sounds ("Firestarter"), some orchestral arrangements ("I Dream A Thousand Dreams"), etc. His vocals are laid back at times (he seems to talk through or rap through some songs), supported by children singing ("Now That You're Gone"). I think most people will find these songs unbearable, boring, shocking or even amusing. In order to even come close to appreciating "Asshole", one must go back to Gene's first solo album back in 1978 and learn from the unexpected result which that album produced. Everyone at the time was expecting a KISS oriented album and that just wasn't the case. Ace and Paul's solo albums were the closest thing to KISS and still stood apart as solo albums because they wrote most of the songs and played most of the instruments on their respective works. "Asshole" represents Gene just having fun, expressing another side of his musical creativity and the influences that helped form that creativity. He claims to have written hundreds of songs that are unused and don't fit KISS. Thank the maker he hasn't made more solo albums, especially if they are anything like what I mentioned two paragraphs ago. I don't think Gene did this album for the money (though he will probably make some) as much as he wanted to piss people off. Although he is one cocky son of a bitch who is more of a business man than a musician these days, I still give him credit for having enought balls to release something of this nature. I seriously recommend that one listen to this album before buying it if at all. Some might like the tracks I reviewed in detail. I suggest saving your money for the new albums by Therion, Motorhead, Borknagar and Metal Church. Reviews to come shortly! Stay tuned!