Destroyer (REMASTERED)

Destroyer is an album that many consider to be a major turning point for the original members of KISS. It is one of the most musically diverse albums ever released by the band. It is an album whose very name was somewhat prophetic for what was to come in the years ahead. It is easily identified by what is one of the most memorable album covers in rock history (courtesy of artist Ken Kelly). Destroyer is to KISS what Sgt. Peppers is to The Beatles. 1975's Alive! was the most successful KISS album at the time. This put a lot of pressure on KISS as far as toping that success. The release of Alive! gave the band some time to really perfect their craft in song writing and take their music to another level. KISS recruited the production talents of Bob Ezrin in order to help. The end result was an experimental effort that was interesting and contained some of the strongest material ever written by the band. Destroyer was originally released in March of 1976 and became the group's first platinum album. The first song is Detroit Rock City; an up tempo stadium rocker that has been used numerous times as the opening track for their live shows. It's about an ill fated concert goer. Detroit Rock City is filled with numerous sound effects like news audio, the washing of dishes, the sweet purr of a car muffler while it is accelerating and the violent car crash at the end. There are some great guitar harmonies, strong vocals and a solid drum beat that seemed to make KISS sound larger than life. The crash at the end of Detroit Rock City leads right into the next track, King of the Night Time World. This is another rocker which also has some really cool lead guitar harmonies between Paul Stanley and Ace Frehley. God of Thunder is an ominous track. It is slow yet heavy. It contains some sound effects of a little kid giving out stage directions to KISS in spots. It was written by Paul Stanley but Gene Simmons does the vocals. Probably one of the most unique tracks on the album is Great Expectations. It is a slow ballad sung by Gene Simmons that contains a boys choir, bells, piano, acoustic guitars and electric guitars. It almost has a Christmas feel to it. The song is about a rock musician who fantasies about what the fans fantasize about him as he performs for them. Flaming Youth is another teenage anthem rocker. It's up beat with lyrics the refer to how parents should recognize the potential of the young. It's got a very catchy chorus, "Flaming Youth, will set the world on fire". It's even got a little bit of organ in it. Sweet Pain is an ode to the pleasures of S & M. It's got a riff and chorus that really hooks you in! I love the Ace Frehley guitar fills towards the end of the song. Shout It Out Loud might as well be called Rock and Roll All Nite Part II. It's another great concert anthem that has been used as an encore for their live concerts. It's upbeat and is a confidence booster of a song for when the chips are down. Beth, the orchestra-laden, heartfelt ballad, would prove to be the one song that would both make and break KISS. It was actually released as a B-side to Detroit Rock City. It would be one of the most successful KISS songs ever. It was a top ten hit about how life on the road affected Peter Criss's relationship with his love. This song and the success that came with it gave Peter Criss more confidence as a song writer. He would later contribute more songs, some of which were used on albums to follow like Rock and Roll Over, Love Gun and Dynasty. This success would also eventually create Peter Criss into a substance abuser which would later lead to his departure from KISS. The album closes out with Do You Love Me; a song driven by a strong drum back beat by Criss. It's another track, this time from Paul Stanley's view, about how a rock musician views his fans and what they think of him. There are some female back up vocals on here as well as some bells and piano. The production on Destroyer by Bob Ezrin is somewhat over produced to the point where I feel the rhythm guitars are not as prominent like they were on albums such as Dressed To Kill or Rock and Roll Over. The guitars on songs like Detroit Rock City, King of the Night Time World , God of Thunder and Shout It Out Loud translate much better live on an album like Alive II. (God of Thunder is also much faster in tempo). Also, it was rumored that Ace Frehley was M.I.A. for several tracks here, so we get guitar solos from Dick Wagner of Alice Cooper & Lou Reed fame. I was only nine years old when Destroyer came out. I can remember being in a room with school friends listening to this on a record player while jamming out to the songs by trying to play air guitar and lip synch the vocals. The type of longevity this album has had on me is just amazing. It is one of the most timeless KISS albums ever!