KISS — Alive! (review)

KISS — Alive! album cover Live album · 1975 · Hard Rock Buy this album from MMA partners
5/5 ·
Warthur
The peak of Kiss' early career, Alive! might have been the victim of some mud-slinging about overdubs - completely unjustifiably, seeing how overdubs were an accepted practice in live albums of the era due to live recording technology not exactly being perfect - but it remains an irresistibly energetic live album which captures the live fury that the preceding three studio albums had only hinted at.

As well as providing riotous (and often superior) versions of the best album tracks - all killer and no filler here - the album also documents the group's rapport with their fans. Kiss are at their best when they come across as being on a god-given mission to party down and make sure every single fan in the audience has an awesome time; how sincere they are about that is of course a matter for debate, but the rabble-rousing banter with the audience certainly gives the impression that Kiss wanted their live shows to be unforgettable spectacles for their audiences - and if they performed like this at every show, their legendary live reputation is more than deserved.

All things considered, it's no surprise that this album proved to be Kiss' breakthrough - quite simply, none of their previous studio albums deserved to do as well as this monster, and Alive! is too damn good not to love. Its reputation as the first peak in the group's career is richly deserved; if you're considering buying any Kiss album, spring for this one, and if you're already a Kiss fan and don't have Alive!, what the hell are you thinking?
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Pekka wrote:
more than 2 years ago
A great review! Live Kiss is the best Kiss in my humble experience as well.
UMUR wrote:
more than 2 years ago
Sounds like a killer album" I guess this is where to start if you´re not familiar with seventies Kiss.

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