I love both Gene's and Ace's. I'd probably slot them in right behind Dynasty at #3 & #4. Not sure which I'd put over the other. Gene's is super weird and takes so many left turns and that's what I love about it, while Ace's is just a great, straight forward rock record. Paul's record is solid, and has a few great tracks, but ultimately his record mostly feels like a collection of songs that weren't good enough to be on the last KISS record. I might put at #11 (or 13 I guess, since we're now counting the other solo albums ahead of it.) Below Creatures, ahead of Unmasked. Peter's is interesting. It shows a lot of his influences that don't shine through very often in KISS's music. He's really a very good singer, too. It's just a little bit inconsistent as far as the actual songs go. A few really good ones, a lot of lackluster ones. Probably the worst of the four, but not by much. I want to like this record more than I do, because the things I like about it are really good. Probably would put it just below Unmasked. (#15 if you're keeping track.)
This is the best Kiss album ranking I've seen so far. (And there are tons!) The two best Kiss eras were the formative NYC years (Kiss, Hotter than Hell & Dressed to Kill) and the Eurovision years (Dynasty, Unmasked, the Elder). Thanks for the video.
Unmasked is really good. Way more 'mature' in terms of lyrical approach. Really love the slick Euro pop sheen. I love Easy As It Seems, Naked City, Shandi and Is That You?
1. Destroyer 2. Hotter Than Hell 3. KISS 4. Creatures of The Night 5. Music From The Elder 6. Dynasty 7. Dressed to Kill 8. Rock and Roll Over 9. Lick It Up 10. Love Gun 11. Psycho Circus 12. Carnival of Souls 13. Revenge 14. Animalize 15. Unmasked 16. Monster 17. Sonic Boom 18. Asylum 19. Hot In The Shade 20. Crazy Nights
I’ve just spent almost all day watching your videos. You deserve more subs, you are very knowledgeable. I love KISS but I won’t rank them all. My favourites are Rock N Roll Over, Creatures Of The Night, Asylum, Kiss and Hotter Than Hell Worst ones are Carnival Of Souls, Crazy Nights and Sonic Boom
Great list! And not so much different from my own ranking. Here it is: 01 Kiss - (First album) 02 Destroyer 03 Dynasty 04 Music from the Elder 05 Hotter than hell 06 Dressed to kill 07 Love gun 08 Rock and roll over 09 Unmasked 10 Creatures of the night 11 Carnival of souls 12 Psycho circus 13 Crazy nights 14 Hot in the shade 15 Lick it up 16 Animalize 17 Asylum 18 Revenge 19 Sonic boom 20 Monster
10 - Unmasked 9 - Lick It Up 8 - Dynasty 7 - Love Gun 6 - Dressed To Kill 5 - Hotter Than Hell 4 - Creatures Of The Night 3 - Destroyer 2 - Rock And Roll Over 1- KISS S/T (1974)
Good list Gary. Personally I can't put UNMASKED in my top ten. Because I really only have a top 9 unless you let me count the studio side from ALIVE 2! This guy can't be serious with The Elder at 5 and DYNASTY at 2! He liked it because it was POLISHED? There's an old saying that you can polish a piece of 💩 but it's still a piece of💩!!!!
Great list! Gotta say though, they seemed to have fun during the revenge time. Those songs were recorded with intention. The alive 3 tour was dependent on this album and they seemed to be a tight 4 piece band enjoying the tours at this time
Probably the most unusual Kiss rating I’ve seen. Fun to see what turns other people on. But I must say I love The Elder, Dynasty, and Unmasked. But I love Creatures and Destroyer too. Fun watch.
'Dynasty' was my purchase entry point (when it was released), so there's some sentimentality about it, but IT IS A GREAT ALBUM! Not only that but it might be their best sounding (production wise) out of all of them. The clarity is amazing. How Poncia did not get similar results on the also great, but muddy sounding 'Unmasked' I'll never know. I need to re-evalute 'The Elder', but after 'Unmasked' except for a few hits, I lost interest.
What I've always found interesting about Kiss is that, as they changed and evolved, they tried to bring in new elements outside of the hard rock world. First it was disco with Dynasty, then a lighter, poppier tone with Unmasked, then they went and did a full-on concept album with Elder. And none of them worked for their fans. Carnival of Souls was another experimental departure in their sound, but they didn't even release this for a while as they did Psycho Circus (a vastly inferior album IMO). It's as if their fans sort of dictated what the band would play, but something in this must have worked as they managed to stay around for decades instead of fading away. Favorite albums, spur of the moment: 1. Kiss (eponymous debut) - Just a straight up rocker that never lets up. Great songs here! 2. Hotter Than Hell - It sounds weird, no bass and all, but there are again some great rockers on here. 3. Creatures of the Night - I've always preferred the hard rocking stuff, and I really like this rocker of an album. 4. Love Gun - Cheesy in places, true, but it is the best of the 3 albums that came after Alive! 5. Kiss: Ace Frehley - Easily the best of the solo albums and another killer rock album from the Space Man.
You stated the obvious and are to smart for you own good by not listening to what you wrote! The fans do dictate what a band plays! Without fans to buy the music, a band is just for SELF GRATIFICATION. Music for self gratification is musical masturbation. It feels good to you, but your almost always better having a real life partner to satisfy. If you can't keep that partner satisfied you'll be back playing with your instruments in the garage. And they'll find someone else to ROCK their world
I’m convinced that anyone who automatically puts Sonic Boom and Monster last haven’t actual listened to them and are just upset over Ace and Peter’s replacements. They’re by no means Kiss’s greatest works, but there are some decent songs on them. Hard to justify putting them underneath snoozefests like Hot In the Shade or Psycho Circus.
Interesting take...i disagree with alot of it but that's perfectly fine, that's what makes seeing other people's lists so interesting! However one thing we agree on is Dynasty! I love that album, as it's a top 3 KISS album for me!
Hey, congrats on the 100 subscribers! (Sorry, I don't have much to say about KISS, even though I enjoyed your ranking anyway, as always.....just wanted to say congrats for reaching 100!)
I like your list. Dont forget what Paul didn’t know that singing the way he did on the elder was a premisision of things to come when he sang opera in the phantom. And did quite well too.
I just realized that you might be on to something. If they had NEVER made that dopey T.V. movie they could have done a concept album of an updated version of the PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. And could have gotten Andrew Lloyd Webber involved and sold it on Broadway. Now, I gotta go see when the Broadway play first opened. Edit..... Phantom the musical didn't open until 1986. The timeline would have worked out great. And the possibilities could have been endless. First of all they could have Truly UNMASKED. Then either went for the obvious with Gene playing the PHANTOM (seeing as he's a Lon Chaney fan) and Paul playing the pretty boy Viscount Raoul.
20. Monster 19. Sonic Boom 18. Carnival of Souls 17. Psycho Circus 16. Hot in the Shade 15. Crazy Nights 14. The Elder 13. Animalize 12. Revenge 11. Unmasked 10. Asylum 9. Dynasty 8. Love Gun 7. Dressed to Kill 6. KISS 5. Lick it Up 4. Destroyer 3. Rock n Roll Over 2. Hotter than Hell 1. Creatures of the Night
I like your list, it's unique. Yes, Kiss are really creative musicians and I love their "missdirections" like Music from the Elder, Carneval of souls, Psycho circus, Dynasty ... far better than repeating the same formula over and over again. And I agree with you on first 3 Kiss album...that 73-76 era is great! Check out black and white Whinterland '75 Parasite and Wachin you videos.
I’m sorry but I don’t agree with you sir ! I love the elder but it was well behind it’s time! All the ELP/Rick Wakeman style classical concept prog rock was done in the early/ mid 70s NOT 1981 😂
Great and very interesting ranking. I agree on some choices and disagree with some, but hey, it’s always good with unique views. You have got a lot of good points. Here is my list: 1) Creatures 2) Lick It Up 3) Destroyer 4) Hotter Than Hell 5) The Elder 6) Animalize 7) KISS 8) Revenge 9) Dressed To Kill 10) Unmasked 11) Asylum 12) Carnival Of Souls 13) Rock And Roll Over 14) Dynasty 15) Psycho Circus 16) Love Gun 17) Crazy Nights 18) Hot In The Shade 19) Sonic Boom 20) Monster
I liked Sonic Boom but not Monster. I like the Elder, but not more than Love Gun, Destroyer, etc. Ive been generally not a huge fan of the post makeup era. Dressed to Kill is really excellent. Hotter than Hell sounds so bad but has some great songs and riffs. Dynasty is excellent and holds up well. I like revenge and Carnival of Souls. Asylum through hot in the shade are the low points by my thinking.
I listened to their entire catalogue recently and I actually enjoyed it a lot more than I expected, especially the 70s and 80s stuff. I'd say personally that Destroyer is a little overrated - not a fan of the production on the album. The debut is decent but besides "Strutter" and "'Black Diamond" I don't really go back to anything else. Dressed to Kiss is also decent but I wouldn't put it in my Top 10 personally. Hotter than July suffers from horrible, sterile production. Dynasty would probably by my favourite. People say it's a disco record, which is insane because most of the tracks on the album are straight ahead hard rock. I also enjoyed Unmasked, Creatures of the Night, Lick It Up, Animalize, Crazy Nights, Love Gun, Carnival of Souls and Revenge. I'd say their most underrated album is Rock and Roll Over. It sounds really good and really balances the hard rock and pop rock side of the band really well.
1974-1982 Albums Only: 10 Unmasked 💫 0.5 9 Rock And Roll Over 💫 0.5 8 Dressed To Kill ⭐ 7 Hotter Than Hell ⭐ ⭐ 6 Love Gun ⭐ ⭐ 5 Dynasty ⭐ ⭐ 💫 2.5 4 The Elder ⭐⭐⭐ 3 Kiss ⭐⭐⭐💫 3.5 2 Creatures In The Night ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 1 Destroyer ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫 4.5
I wonder what the first two records would have sounded like with the early Sabbath productions. My top 5 are HTH, Ace, Dynasty, Alive 2, and Dressed to Kill. In no particular order. Totally agree on Gene's record. Paul's is way too wimpy of a production. And I love the Elder as well.
well, creatures is excellent regardless. but you're overall point is spot on, The Elder is damn good. And the thing is, people that see it as 'soft' haven't heard the record, because there's actually some of ther heaviest songs they'd made to that point. They also were my first band. I bought Alive1 and 2 with my own money at like 7 years old.
i always wanted to give rock n roll over a higher rating cuz its so great if only it wasnt for love em n leave em and see u in ur dreams. otherwise it wouldve been perfect....for me
i think you guys should re-do some of the older rankings that you've done. ie this one, KISS, i feel it could be longer. but some of the other older ranking videos could use a new listen and maybe new rankings.
You make a good point when you say "Bob Ezrin took a great rock-and-roll band and turned them into cartoon characters"... He did the same thing to Pink Floyd on The Wall, sadly.
Just had “dressed to kill” on in the car ! Perfect rock/pop blend! Tbh I couldn’t pick between any of the albums done by the original line up ! All good in their own way ! I even like “crazy nights” (which some U.K. fans regard as a sell out” What ??!! Kiss have always embodied commercial good time rock n roll ! My least favourites are probably “lick it up” “animalise” and “asylum” They just didn’t suit the beefed up heavy stuff! I prefer kiss as a glam rock band rather than metal attack 😜
Some of their early albums and songs are actually pretty good rock 'n' roll, but I don't give much for their catalogue as a whole and there is so much to hate about them (especially one guy), even if they have written a couple of great rock tunes. 20. Monster (2012) ★½ 19. Sonic Boom (2009) ★★ 18. Revenge (1992) ★★ 17. Hot in the Shade (1989) ★★ 16. Crazy Nights (1987) ★★½ 15. Carnival of Souls: The Final Sessions (1997) ★★½ 14. Asylum (1985) ★★½ 13. Psycho Circus (1998) ★★½ 12. Animalize (1984) ★★½ 11. Music From "The Elder" (1981) ★★★ 10. Lick It Up (1983) ★★★ 9. Creatures of the Night (1982) ★★★ 8. Dynasty (1979) ★★★ 7. Unmasked (1980) ★★★ 6. Love Gun (1977) ★★★ 5. Rock and Roll Over (1976) ★★★½ 4. Destroyer (1976) ★★★½ 3. Hotter Than Hell (1974) ★★★½ 2. Dressed to Kill (1975) ★★★★ 1. Kiss (1974) ★★★★ ★★★★★ - Masterpiece ★★★★½ - Really great ★★★★ - Great ★★★½ - Really good ★★★ - Good ★★½ - OK ★★ - Bad ★½ - Really bad ★ - Awful ½ - The worst Top 10 songs: 10. Rock and Roll All Nite (1975) 9. Rocket Ride (1977) 8. Shandi (1980) 7. Tears Are Falling (1985) 6. Tonight You Belong to Me (1978) 5. The Oath (1981) 4. Parasite (1974) 3. You Matter to Me (1978) 2. Detroit Rock City (1976) 1. Strutter (1974)
Never before in the history of rock music has a band destroyed their own legacy quite like Kiss. What they've done with Ace and Peters make up on new members is a slap in the face to the original 2 members and all the fans who stuck with them through a lot of mediocre (to say the least) music from 1980 onwards. I used to love them now have nothing but contempt for Paul and Gene.
Great list! Kiss was the band that got me loving music, rock bands, albums and concerts etc. So, they will always b special to me. I’m always changing my top 10 album rankings w them. I agree w you that it was good for them to “stray “ off their comfortable path for awhile in early 80s. I do love Love Gun though. Try not to over analyze. Lol.
Im seriously impressed with your reviews on each album..makes you really think..LG,Dynasty Dressed to kill and the debut are the best Kiss albums in my opinion and i remember being a 7 yr old kid and hearing Dynasty, definitely my favorite since its release and nothing comes close to it except the debut and DtK..and thank you Destroyer i always felt the same way as Revenge and CoS are much better albums.CoS is incredible in my opinion as is Crazy Nights,which holds up better today as Kiss Pop sound and heavy at the same time! I cant believe you put The Elder that high!!! Excellent!
Great critique. Your opinions on Kiss' music is similiar to mine. The Elder is a masterpiece. I've loved it since i purchased it in 1981 as a child. Dynasty is a stellar choice for number two. Your assessment of Crazy Nights inspired me to relisten and draw the conclusion that it's a grand mix of pop and semi-thrash.
I very much disagree with your ranking of Sonic Boom and Monster - personally I love them, they're two of my favourite albums, but of course, each to their own, that's what makes these videos interesting.
Based on your high ranking, I gave The Elder a listen, and I was not disappointed. You say some powerful things about the album and its repercussions: "The band should have stood up for it, instead they let their fans and their critics determine their artistic direction." You go on to suggest 'Creatures of the Night' might possibly be viewed as "a cowardly retreat," and your "frustration" with the band is that Kiss are "too populist for their own good." This is all very powerful and proper commentary. I thought of Bob Dylan: He went electric, some of his fans hated it. He went country, some of his fans hated it. He went Christian, some of his fans hated it. All the while, Dylan kept doing what Dylan wanted to do. He had the courage of his convictions. Does this mark Dylan as "a true artist" and Kiss as a "cash-grab" band? (Perhaps so!) I would ask Kiss fans: don't we, as an audience, want to see our artists take chances, to grow and evolve? In this light, one might hear The Elder is a failed experiment - or perhaps not - but please don't suggest Kiss should be forbidden from exploring new artistic directions. If it is unfortunate Kiss's fan base wasn't willing to give them some artistic license, it is worse that Kiss's own reaction betrays their lack of artistic sincerity. When I listen to The Elder, I want to believe Kiss meant it. Instead... apparently not? How sincere are Kiss about any of their material, then? Do they even like their own music, or only the stuff that sells? In the end, it's Kiss's own reaction to The Elder that seriously harms Kiss's legacy - on The Elder itself, yes, but also for all their material. EDIT: Reading through the other comments here: What does it say that lots of people here admire The Elder, much more so than anything I've ever heard from the Kiss members themselves?
If someone told me they want to get into Kiss and which albums to listen to (other than compilation albums (they're the sort of albums to listen to when getting into a band)) I'd recommend Dressed to Kill. The songs are short, fun and great rock songs and the album is short too.
I think revenge is as good as creatures if I’m going to be honest. And also the elder, for all of its confusing elements is full of great songs like odyssey, the oath, a world without heroes and under the rose. If this album was like a one off album from an unknown band it wouldn’t be reviewed as poorly.
20 carnival of souls 19 sonic boom 18 asylum 17 monster 16 elder 15 animalize 14 unmasked 13 hot in the shade 12 dynasty 11 psycho circus 10 ccrazy nights 9 creatures of the night 8 hotter than hell 7 lick it up 6 dressed to kill 5 rock and roll over 4 revenge 3 love gun 2 kiss 1 destroyer
Superb video, and a great list. I agreed with 99% of what you said overall....mainly this idea that KISS had the potential to be a truly diverse and weird band, but they just kept chasing the big buck and bottling it. It's ironic (or maybe 'tragic' is a better word) that each time they bottled it, they sold it as returning to their 'roots', and each time they stepped outside the box they later condemned themselves for selling out. A couple of Christmases ago, Sean Zloch and I did an intensive 2 part video on the Unmasked album, and broadened the discussion to cover a lot of the stuff you discussed here, coming to largely the same conclusions. Good work, sorry I haven't been keeping up with your videos over the last few months.
I like your list though Dynasty is way too high up there. Music From The Elder gets a bad rap and it should be in the top of Kiss lists. Hotter Than Hell would be my favorite but you cant go wrong with any of the first 3 albums. I agree with you about a lot of the 80's Kiss and the last two albums they just arent that good. Carnival of Souls is very underrated and I thin if you have the solo albums in there it has to be Ace, Paul, Gene and Peter. Good review though
I’m 59 and have been there since the beginning , crazy nights , trash , sonic boom trash , monster , trash , the elder Trash , unmasked trash , , animalize , asylum good , lick it up , creatures , saved their careers , kiss , hotter than hell , dressed to kill , dressed to kill rock and roll over and destroyer may be the most incredible 6 consecutive releases of any band of any Era , cmon guys the Elder sucks , just a boy? Odyssey? Wtf , KISS FROM late 73-77 was incredible and incomparable
Where are the Live Albums? Alive and Alive l l . I think some of the the Album's should've been Higher and Some of them Should've been Way Lower. I've been a KISS Fan since 77-78. I've will give you . My Top 20 . From Worst to Best. This weekend. I have a love and Hate relationship with KISS.
And in less than 2 minutes you name two of my favorite albums as back to back worst albums. I'm a fan since 1975 and love this band and can appreciate each album for its high points. Your take is just so far off with your list. Your right to have your opinion though. But you were just to far off from my tastes. Not saying you don't have right to your options.
the two worst for me are the two last ones , they sound uninteresting with the exception of a couple tunes. It sounds like they are trying to recapture the old style but with no luck. after that animalize and lick it up are the next bad albums for me.then crazy nights but that has some cool tunes on it mostly genes which is not normally the case.
My list: 20. Carnival of souls - Jungle 19. Monster - Hell or Halleluja 18. Sonic boom - Say yeah! 17. Psycho circus - Psycho Circus 16. Hot in the shade - Forever 15. Music from 'the elder' - The oath 14. Crazy nights - Crazy crazy nights 13. Animalize - I’ve had enough 12. Dynasty - I was made for loving you 11. Unmasked - Talk to me 10. dressed to kill - Room Service 9. Asylum - King of the mountain 8. hotter than hell - Parasite 7. Destroyer - Detroit rock city 6. Rock and roll over - Calling Dr. Love 5. Creatures of the night - I still love you 4. Revenge - Unholy 3. Love gun - Love gun 2. Kiss - Deuce 1. Lick it up - A Million to one
Live/Hit albums ranked: 7. Smashes, thrashes and hits: (You make me) Rock hard 6. Alive |||: Creatures of the night 5. Alive VI: Shandi 4. Killers: Nowhere to run (my favourite KISS song) 3. Alive ||: Shock me 2. MTV Unplugged: Every time I look at you 1. Alive!: Rock and roll all nite
Try not being a KAREN, and telling adults what to listen to. Or simply try keeping your mouth shut. That's why this virus keeps spreading, to many mouth breathers.
Interesting ranking - I applaud you putting Dressed to Kill at #1. That album doesn't get the respect it deserves. Dynasty is a guilty pleasure album for me. I play it loud at home, but if someone comes over, i turn it off immediately. Its total cheese.. Try as i may - I cant get into the Elder. Bob Ezrin needs to be kept far away from KISS and Alice Cooper at this point.
WOW-Somebody finally gets it right! Crazy Nights rules and is grossly underrated, while Revenge is grossly overrated and I personally hate it! Last night I was thinking that Dynasty and Dressed to kill would be #1 & #2 for me (even before I saw your flawless list), but I didn’t have the balls to submit that, fearing ridicule. Additionally, some of my top choices are similar to yours, e.g, The Elder, Unmasked, Hotter Than Hell. Love you man!,
Dude. I'm all for differing opinions. But Crazy Nights is atrocious!!!!! It's in a dead heat with Hot in the Shade for the worst slop they ever created. Those are straight up glossy pop songs. Wow. Hey, to each his own, right. I like your vids though. And I do like Elder too.
Gonna disagree on three points: 1. Sonic Boom, for me, is an excellent album and Monster is pretty darn good,too. 2. I hate to admit it, but Crazy Nights is pretty weak and I think Lick It Up, Animalize, and Asylum are all much better. 3. I will NEVER side with the Kiss haters. Not liking Kiss is their loss.
How would you rank the '78 solo albums?
I love both Gene's and Ace's. I'd probably slot them in right behind Dynasty at #3 & #4. Not sure which I'd put over the other. Gene's is super weird and takes so many left turns and that's what I love about it, while Ace's is just a great, straight forward rock record.
Paul's record is solid, and has a few great tracks, but ultimately his record mostly feels like a collection of songs that weren't good enough to be on the last KISS record. I might put at #11 (or 13 I guess, since we're now counting the other solo albums ahead of it.) Below Creatures, ahead of Unmasked.
Peter's is interesting. It shows a lot of his influences that don't shine through very often in KISS's music. He's really a very good singer, too. It's just a little bit inconsistent as far as the actual songs go. A few really good ones, a lot of lackluster ones. Probably the worst of the four, but not by much. I want to like this record more than I do, because the things I like about it are really good. Probably would put it just below Unmasked. (#15 if you're keeping track.)
@@TastesLikeMusic I appreciate your descriptive answers 👍
Ace and Paul were the best
4 - Peter Criss
3 - Paul Stanley
2 - Gene Simmons
1 - Ace Frehley
1 paul stanley
2 ace frahley
3 gene simmons
4 Peter criss
This is the best Kiss album ranking I've seen so far. (And there are tons!) The two best Kiss eras were the formative NYC years (Kiss, Hotter than Hell & Dressed to Kill) and the Eurovision years (Dynasty, Unmasked, the Elder). Thanks for the video.
Finally someone taking my side on this. Thanks.
Unmasked is really good. Way more 'mature' in terms of lyrical approach. Really love the slick Euro pop sheen.
I love Easy As It Seems, Naked City, Shandi and Is That You?
Spot on man!
You’re so on the money:)
The Eurovision Years? Never heard that term before, related to Kiss. Is it about the sound of these albums or about the succes outside the US?
Great list. I just subscribed. My favourite is probably Hotter Than Hell these days. I always loved Music From The Elder too.
1. Destroyer
2. Hotter Than Hell
3. KISS
4. Creatures of The Night
5. Music From The Elder
6. Dynasty
7. Dressed to Kill
8. Rock and Roll Over
9. Lick It Up
10. Love Gun
11. Psycho Circus
12. Carnival of Souls
13. Revenge
14. Animalize
15. Unmasked
16. Monster
17. Sonic Boom
18. Asylum
19. Hot In The Shade
20. Crazy Nights
Dressed to KIll is my favourite too
I’ve just spent almost all day watching your videos. You deserve more subs, you are very knowledgeable.
I love KISS but I won’t rank them all.
My favourites are Rock N Roll Over, Creatures Of The Night, Asylum, Kiss and Hotter Than Hell
Worst ones are Carnival Of Souls, Crazy Nights and Sonic Boom
Great list! And not so much different from my own ranking. Here it is:
01 Kiss - (First album)
02 Destroyer
03 Dynasty
04 Music from the Elder
05 Hotter than hell
06 Dressed to kill
07 Love gun
08 Rock and roll over
09 Unmasked
10 Creatures of the night
11 Carnival of souls
12 Psycho circus
13 Crazy nights
14 Hot in the shade
15 Lick it up
16 Animalize
17 Asylum
18 Revenge
19 Sonic boom
20 Monster
10 - Unmasked
9 - Lick It Up
8 - Dynasty
7 - Love Gun
6 - Dressed To Kill
5 - Hotter Than Hell
4 - Creatures Of The Night
3 - Destroyer
2 - Rock And Roll Over
1- KISS S/T (1974)
Good list Gary. Personally I can't put UNMASKED in my top ten. Because I really only have a top 9 unless you let me count the studio side from ALIVE 2! This guy can't be serious with The Elder at 5 and DYNASTY at 2! He liked it because it was POLISHED? There's an old saying that you can polish a piece of 💩 but it's still a piece of💩!!!!
I agree, original album is the best!!!!!!
I really liked this video... You are not far of which I would rank them... Only about 3 albums... You picked a good choice...
Great list! Gotta say though, they seemed to have fun during the revenge time. Those songs were recorded with intention. The alive 3 tour was dependent on this album and they seemed to be a tight 4 piece band enjoying the tours at this time
Dressed to Kill is so awesome. I can't stop listening to it!
Very interesting and original list. The only thing I find indefensible is Dynasty being #2.
Dressed to Kill at #1 more than makes up for it.
Nice to see some love for The Elder! I thought it was great when it came out and it's still brilliant.
I would rate Creatures of the Night a bit higher, but I agree that Dynasty is underrated and seriously badass.
True. The Elder is amazing.
The Oath
Under The Rose
Escape From The Island
A World Without Heroes
C'mon...undeniable.
Probably the most unusual Kiss rating I’ve seen. Fun to see what turns other people on. But I must say I love The Elder, Dynasty, and Unmasked. But I love Creatures and Destroyer too. Fun watch.
'Dynasty' was my purchase entry point (when it was released), so there's some sentimentality about it, but IT IS A GREAT ALBUM! Not only that but it might be their best sounding (production wise) out of all of them. The clarity is amazing. How Poncia did not get similar results on the also great, but muddy sounding 'Unmasked' I'll never know. I need to re-evalute 'The Elder', but after 'Unmasked' except for a few hits, I lost interest.
5: Asylum
4: Hotter than hell
3: Destroyer
2: Lick it up
1: Creatures of the night
20. "Monster" (2012)
19. "Sonic Boom" (2009)
18. "Music From The Elder" (1981)
17. "Carnival Of Souls" (1997)
16. "Hot In The Shade" (1989)
15. "Psycho Circus" (1998)
14. "Unmasked" (1980)
13. "Lick It Up" (1983)
12. "Asylum" (1985)
11. "Creatures Of The Night" (1982)
10. "Crazy Nights" (1987)
09. "Animalized" (1984)
08. "Dynasty" (1979)
07. "Hotter Than Hell" (1974)
06. "Love Gun" (1977)
05. "Destroyer" (1976)
04. "Rock And Roll Over" (1976)
03. "Revenge" (1992)
02. "Dressed To Kill" (1975)
01. "Kiss" (1974)
What I've always found interesting about Kiss is that, as they changed and evolved, they tried to bring in new elements outside of the hard rock world. First it was disco with Dynasty, then a lighter, poppier tone with Unmasked, then they went and did a full-on concept album with Elder. And none of them worked for their fans. Carnival of Souls was another experimental departure in their sound, but they didn't even release this for a while as they did Psycho Circus (a vastly inferior album IMO). It's as if their fans sort of dictated what the band would play, but something in this must have worked as they managed to stay around for decades instead of fading away.
Favorite albums, spur of the moment:
1. Kiss (eponymous debut) - Just a straight up rocker that never lets up. Great songs here!
2. Hotter Than Hell - It sounds weird, no bass and all, but there are again some great rockers on here.
3. Creatures of the Night - I've always preferred the hard rocking stuff, and I really like this rocker of an album.
4. Love Gun - Cheesy in places, true, but it is the best of the 3 albums that came after Alive!
5. Kiss: Ace Frehley - Easily the best of the solo albums and another killer rock album from the Space Man.
You stated the obvious and are to smart for you own good by not listening to what you wrote! The fans do dictate what a band plays! Without fans to buy the music, a band is just for SELF GRATIFICATION. Music for self gratification is musical masturbation. It feels good to you, but your almost always better having a real life partner to satisfy. If you can't keep that partner satisfied you'll be back playing with your instruments in the garage. And they'll find someone else to ROCK their world
You guys should do an updated one of kiss with the 3 of you
There’s only 2
Fun to watch but a really strange ranking, I´ve disagreed a lot, but everyone has their own opinions.
I’m convinced that anyone who automatically puts Sonic Boom and Monster last haven’t actual listened to them and are just upset over Ace and Peter’s replacements. They’re by no means Kiss’s greatest works, but there are some decent songs on them. Hard to justify putting them underneath snoozefests like Hot In the Shade or Psycho Circus.
If I come back to this comment I will likely be ranting lol
Cool rank! I don't agree with Crazy nights but the rest I'm with you (maybe I would change some of the orders but not by much)
Interesting take...i disagree with alot of it but that's perfectly fine, that's what makes seeing other people's lists so interesting! However one thing we agree on is Dynasty! I love that album, as it's a top 3 KISS album for me!
Hey, congrats on the 100 subscribers! (Sorry, I don't have much to say about KISS, even though I enjoyed your ranking anyway, as always.....just wanted to say congrats for reaching 100!)
CalicoSilver Thanks for noticing! And for being a regular commenter!
Wow a very refreshing list. I'm glad you're giving some love to Crazy nights and Carnival of souls.
I like your list.
Dont forget what Paul didn’t know that singing the way he did on the elder was a premisision of things to come when he sang opera in the phantom. And did quite well too.
I just realized that you might be on to something. If they had NEVER made that dopey T.V. movie they could have done a concept album of an updated version of the PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. And could have gotten Andrew Lloyd Webber involved and sold it on Broadway. Now, I gotta go see when the Broadway play first opened.
Edit..... Phantom the musical didn't open until 1986. The timeline would have worked out great. And the possibilities could have been endless. First of all they could have Truly UNMASKED. Then either went for the obvious with Gene playing the PHANTOM (seeing as he's a Lon Chaney fan) and Paul playing the pretty boy Viscount Raoul.
20. Monster
19. Sonic Boom
18. Carnival of Souls
17. Psycho Circus
16. Hot in the Shade
15. Crazy Nights
14. The Elder
13. Animalize
12. Revenge
11. Unmasked
10. Asylum
9. Dynasty
8. Love Gun
7. Dressed to Kill
6. KISS
5. Lick it Up
4. Destroyer
3. Rock n Roll Over
2. Hotter than Hell
1. Creatures of the Night
Unmasked has my three favorite Kiss songs - Is That You? Easy As It Seems. Naked City. Highly under rated.
I like your list, it's unique. Yes, Kiss are really creative musicians and I love their "missdirections" like Music from the Elder, Carneval of souls, Psycho circus, Dynasty ... far better than repeating the same formula over and over again. And I agree with you on first 3 Kiss album...that 73-76 era is great! Check out black and white Whinterland '75 Parasite and Wachin you videos.
KISS ALIVE! is my all time favorite album even though we aren't discussing live albums. Hotter than hell is my favorite studio album.
Hotter Than Hell definitely has some of their coolest material on it. Just wish the production was better.
Best list so far, perfect pace. Yes, creatures was a retreat. I Love the Elder , it was just ahead of it's time.
I’m sorry but I don’t agree with you sir ! I love the elder but it was well behind it’s time! All the ELP/Rick Wakeman style classical concept prog rock was done in the early/ mid 70s NOT 1981 😂
Great and very interesting ranking. I agree on some choices and disagree with some, but hey, it’s always good with unique views. You have got a lot of good points.
Here is my list:
1) Creatures
2) Lick It Up
3) Destroyer
4) Hotter Than Hell
5) The Elder
6) Animalize
7) KISS
8) Revenge
9) Dressed To Kill
10) Unmasked
11) Asylum
12) Carnival Of Souls
13) Rock And Roll Over
14) Dynasty
15) Psycho Circus
16) Love Gun
17) Crazy Nights
18) Hot In The Shade
19) Sonic Boom
20) Monster
The Elder over Destroyer? What? ? ?
I liked Sonic Boom but not Monster. I like the Elder, but not more than Love Gun, Destroyer, etc. Ive been generally not a huge fan of the post makeup era. Dressed to Kill is really excellent. Hotter than Hell sounds so bad but has some great songs and riffs. Dynasty is excellent and holds up well. I like revenge and Carnival of Souls. Asylum through hot in the shade are the low points by my thinking.
Wow “Destroyer” at number 8! It easily my favorite album by them.
So basic. Great album but lot more that are better
I listened to their entire catalogue recently and I actually enjoyed it a lot more than I expected, especially the 70s and 80s stuff. I'd say personally that Destroyer is a little overrated - not a fan of the production on the album. The debut is decent but besides "Strutter" and "'Black Diamond" I don't really go back to anything else. Dressed to Kiss is also decent but I wouldn't put it in my Top 10 personally. Hotter than July suffers from horrible, sterile production. Dynasty would probably by my favourite. People say it's a disco record, which is insane because most of the tracks on the album are straight ahead hard rock. I also enjoyed Unmasked, Creatures of the Night, Lick It Up, Animalize, Crazy Nights, Love Gun, Carnival of Souls and Revenge. I'd say their most underrated album is Rock and Roll Over. It sounds really good and really balances the hard rock and pop rock side of the band really well.
We need a remaster now that kram is gone
I'm sorry, but Destroyer on top. That orchestral wall of sound is perfect for those songs...
1974-1982 Albums Only:
10 Unmasked 💫 0.5
9 Rock And Roll Over 💫 0.5
8 Dressed To Kill ⭐
7 Hotter Than Hell ⭐ ⭐
6 Love Gun ⭐ ⭐
5 Dynasty ⭐ ⭐ 💫 2.5
4 The Elder ⭐⭐⭐
3 Kiss ⭐⭐⭐💫 3.5
2 Creatures In The Night ⭐⭐⭐⭐
1 Destroyer ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫 4.5
CRAZY NIGHTS OVER CREATURES????
I think most KISS fans have a love/hate relationship with the band.
carnival of souls was a cool album for me. i also loved motley crues trying to fit in album, the one with corabi.
I wonder what the first two records would have sounded like with the early Sabbath productions. My top 5 are HTH, Ace, Dynasty, Alive 2, and Dressed to Kill. In no particular order. Totally agree on Gene's record. Paul's is way too wimpy of a production. And I love the Elder as well.
Hoter than hell album is on fire. 🤟
well, creatures is excellent regardless. but you're overall point is spot on, The Elder is damn good. And the thing is, people that see it as 'soft' haven't heard the record, because there's actually some of ther heaviest songs they'd made to that point.
They also were my first band. I bought Alive1 and 2 with my own money at like 7 years old.
i always wanted to give rock n roll over a higher rating cuz its so great if only it wasnt for love em n leave em and see u in ur dreams. otherwise it wouldve been perfect....for me
i think you guys should re-do some of the older rankings that you've done. ie this one, KISS, i feel it could be longer. but some of the other older ranking videos could use a new listen and maybe new rankings.
We’ve redone some of them. (The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, ELO, Pearl Jam, George Harrison, etc.) We’ll get to Kiss eventually
Love Gun is my favorite album
You make a good point when you say "Bob Ezrin took a great rock-and-roll band and turned them into cartoon characters"... He did the same thing to Pink Floyd on The Wall, sadly.
Just had “dressed to kill” on in the car ! Perfect rock/pop blend! Tbh I couldn’t pick between any of the albums done by the original line up ! All good in their own way ! I even like “crazy nights” (which some U.K. fans regard as a sell out” What ??!! Kiss have always embodied commercial good time rock n roll ! My least favourites are probably “lick it up” “animalise” and “asylum” They just didn’t suit the beefed up heavy stuff! I prefer kiss as a glam rock band rather than metal attack 😜
Dressed to Kill RULES!!
Some of their early albums and songs are actually pretty good rock 'n' roll, but I don't give much for their catalogue as a whole and there is so much to hate about them (especially one guy), even if they have written a couple of great rock tunes.
20. Monster (2012) ★½
19. Sonic Boom (2009) ★★
18. Revenge (1992) ★★
17. Hot in the Shade (1989) ★★
16. Crazy Nights (1987) ★★½
15. Carnival of Souls: The Final Sessions (1997) ★★½
14. Asylum (1985) ★★½
13. Psycho Circus (1998) ★★½
12. Animalize (1984) ★★½
11. Music From "The Elder" (1981) ★★★
10. Lick It Up (1983) ★★★
9. Creatures of the Night (1982) ★★★
8. Dynasty (1979) ★★★
7. Unmasked (1980) ★★★
6. Love Gun (1977) ★★★
5. Rock and Roll Over (1976) ★★★½
4. Destroyer (1976) ★★★½
3. Hotter Than Hell (1974) ★★★½
2. Dressed to Kill (1975) ★★★★
1. Kiss (1974) ★★★★
★★★★★ - Masterpiece
★★★★½ - Really great
★★★★ - Great
★★★½ - Really good
★★★ - Good
★★½ - OK
★★ - Bad
★½ - Really bad
★ - Awful
½ - The worst
Top 10 songs:
10. Rock and Roll All Nite (1975)
9. Rocket Ride (1977)
8. Shandi (1980)
7. Tears Are Falling (1985)
6. Tonight You Belong to Me (1978)
5. The Oath (1981)
4. Parasite (1974)
3. You Matter to Me (1978)
2. Detroit Rock City (1976)
1. Strutter (1974)
Never before in the history of rock music has a band destroyed their own legacy quite like Kiss. What they've done with Ace and Peters make up on new members is a slap in the face to the original 2 members and all the fans who stuck with them through a lot of mediocre (to say the least) music from 1980 onwards. I used to love them now have nothing but contempt for Paul and Gene.
Great list! Kiss was the band that got me loving music, rock bands, albums and concerts etc. So, they will always b special to me. I’m always changing my top 10 album rankings w them. I agree w you that it was good for them to “stray “ off their comfortable path for awhile in early 80s. I do love Love Gun though. Try not to over analyze. Lol.
Im seriously impressed with your reviews on each album..makes you really think..LG,Dynasty Dressed to kill and the debut are the best Kiss albums in my opinion and i remember being a 7 yr old kid and hearing Dynasty, definitely my favorite since its release and nothing comes close to it except the debut and DtK..and thank you Destroyer i always felt the same way as Revenge and CoS are much better albums.CoS is incredible in my opinion as is Crazy Nights,which holds up better today as Kiss Pop sound and heavy at the same time! I cant believe you put The Elder that high!!! Excellent!
Great critique. Your opinions on Kiss' music is similiar to mine. The Elder is a masterpiece. I've loved it since i purchased it in 1981 as a child. Dynasty is a stellar choice for number two. Your assessment of Crazy Nights inspired me to relisten and draw the conclusion that it's a grand mix of pop and semi-thrash.
I very much disagree with your ranking of Sonic Boom and Monster - personally I love them, they're two of my favourite albums, but of course, each to their own, that's what makes these videos interesting.
Revenge that low? Are you crazy?! Carnival of souls that high?! No way dude
Hotter Than Hell is my #1 and Dynasty is my #2
Dynasty: "the rock songs rock and the pop songs pop".... what a great line. My first concert was Kiss on this tour, at about 8 years old.
Dynasty fuckin sucks ass!!! As a die hard Peter Criss and Ace fan, I would buy a huge bag of blow and bottle of booze as well!!!!
Will you ever do an update of this with Joe and Kramzer?
I’m sure, eventually.
@@TastesLikeMusic good - you guys are one of the best channels on UA-cam. You should have your own tv show
Based on your high ranking, I gave The Elder a listen, and I was not disappointed. You say some powerful things about the album and its repercussions: "The band should have stood up for it, instead they let their fans and their critics determine their artistic direction." You go on to suggest 'Creatures of the Night' might possibly be viewed as "a cowardly retreat," and your "frustration" with the band is that Kiss are "too populist for their own good." This is all very powerful and proper commentary. I thought of Bob Dylan: He went electric, some of his fans hated it. He went country, some of his fans hated it. He went Christian, some of his fans hated it. All the while, Dylan kept doing what Dylan wanted to do. He had the courage of his convictions. Does this mark Dylan as "a true artist" and Kiss as a "cash-grab" band? (Perhaps so!) I would ask Kiss fans: don't we, as an audience, want to see our artists take chances, to grow and evolve? In this light, one might hear The Elder is a failed experiment - or perhaps not - but please don't suggest Kiss should be forbidden from exploring new artistic directions. If it is unfortunate Kiss's fan base wasn't willing to give them some artistic license, it is worse that Kiss's own reaction betrays their lack of artistic sincerity. When I listen to The Elder, I want to believe Kiss meant it. Instead... apparently not? How sincere are Kiss about any of their material, then? Do they even like their own music, or only the stuff that sells? In the end, it's Kiss's own reaction to The Elder that seriously harms Kiss's legacy - on The Elder itself, yes, but also for all their material.
EDIT: Reading through the other comments here: What does it say that lots of people here admire The Elder, much more so than anything I've ever heard from the Kiss members themselves?
Well done!
I don't know why they haven't re-mixed Hotter Than Hell. It sure needs it.
Disagree, the bad production is part of its charm in my opinion. Just sounds so muddy and sludgy and it gives the record a hard edge that I love
Who wabts to be lonely is great on asylum
If someone told me they want to get into Kiss and which albums to listen to (other than compilation albums (they're the sort of albums to listen to when getting into a band)) I'd recommend Dressed to Kill. The songs are short, fun and great rock songs and the album is short too.
I love how high you have The Elder.
So underrated.
He's HIGH alright
I think revenge is as good as creatures if I’m going to be honest. And also the elder, for all of its confusing elements is full of great songs like odyssey, the oath, a world without heroes and under the rose. If this album was like a one off album from an unknown band it wouldn’t be reviewed as poorly.
I massively disagree with ranking sonic boom and monster so low, I love those albums, but that’s just my opinion
I have to strongly disagree with putting Revenge so low on the list. That album kicks ass in my opinion.
The only LP choice I disagree with you on is Revenge. The album has some of the best production and playing of any KISS lp post 1982.
20 carnival of souls 19 sonic boom 18 asylum 17 monster 16 elder 15 animalize 14 unmasked 13 hot in the shade 12 dynasty 11 psycho circus 10 ccrazy nights 9 creatures of the night 8 hotter than hell 7 lick it up 6 dressed to kill 5 rock and roll over 4 revenge 3 love gun 2 kiss 1 destroyer
Great to see Music From The Elder so high in your ranking… it’s my favorite KISS album.
Dressed to Kill is the favorite?!
You should definitely get the other 2 for there ranking on KISS also I want to see if your opinion has changed over time!! That would be a fun video!!
I want to, but it’s been a hard sell with Kram.
@@TastesLikeMusic I wonder why he doesn’t like KISS!!
Thank you!!!!
Superb video, and a great list. I agreed with 99% of what you said overall....mainly this idea that KISS had the potential to be a truly diverse and weird band, but they just kept chasing the big buck and bottling it. It's ironic (or maybe 'tragic' is a better word) that each time they bottled it, they sold it as returning to their 'roots', and each time they stepped outside the box they later condemned themselves for selling out. A couple of Christmases ago, Sean Zloch and I did an intensive 2 part video on the Unmasked album, and broadened the discussion to cover a lot of the stuff you discussed here, coming to largely the same conclusions. Good work, sorry I haven't been keeping up with your videos over the last few months.
Thanks! Definitely going to look for that Unmasked video now.
@@TastesLikeMusic Let me know if you can't find it, it's quite far back in my deluge of crap.
I like your list though Dynasty is way too high up there. Music From The Elder gets a bad rap and it should be in the top of Kiss lists. Hotter Than Hell would be my favorite but you cant go wrong with any of the first 3 albums. I agree with you about a lot of the 80's Kiss and the last two albums they just arent that good. Carnival of Souls is very underrated and I thin if you have the solo albums in there it has to be Ace, Paul, Gene and Peter. Good review though
I’d love to see a Metallica worst to best
I’m 59 and have been there since the beginning , crazy nights , trash , sonic boom trash , monster , trash , the elder Trash , unmasked trash , , animalize , asylum good , lick it up , creatures , saved their careers , kiss , hotter than hell , dressed to kill , dressed to kill rock and roll over and destroyer may be the most incredible 6 consecutive releases of any band of any Era , cmon guys the Elder sucks , just a boy? Odyssey? Wtf , KISS FROM late 73-77 was incredible and incomparable
Sounds like you have a very narrow taste in music. That’s fine.
Where are the Live Albums? Alive and Alive l l . I think some of the the Album's should've been Higher and Some of them Should've been Way Lower. I've been a KISS Fan since 77-78. I've will give you . My Top 20 . From Worst to Best. This weekend. I have a love and Hate relationship with KISS.
Dude, interesting & different taste and album order!
Destroyer is overrated!
Dynasty & Asylum are underrated imho!
And in less than 2 minutes you name two of my favorite albums as back to back worst albums. I'm a fan since 1975 and love this band and can appreciate each album for its high points. Your take is just so far off with your list. Your right to have your opinion though. But you were just to far off from my tastes. Not saying you don't have right to your options.
the two worst for me are the two last ones , they sound uninteresting with the exception of a couple tunes. It sounds like they are trying to recapture the old style but with no luck. after that animalize and lick it up are the next bad albums for me.then crazy nights but that has some cool tunes on it mostly genes which is not normally the case.
Awesome list. Very unique insights. I have Dynasty as #1. Just subscribed.
Thanks and welcome!
My list:
20. Carnival of souls - Jungle
19. Monster - Hell or Halleluja
18. Sonic boom - Say yeah!
17. Psycho circus - Psycho Circus
16. Hot in the shade - Forever
15. Music from 'the elder' - The oath
14. Crazy nights - Crazy crazy nights
13. Animalize - I’ve had enough
12. Dynasty - I was made for loving you
11. Unmasked - Talk to me
10. dressed to kill - Room Service
9. Asylum - King of the mountain
8. hotter than hell - Parasite
7. Destroyer - Detroit rock city
6. Rock and roll over - Calling Dr. Love
5. Creatures of the night - I still love you
4. Revenge - Unholy
3. Love gun - Love gun
2. Kiss - Deuce
1. Lick it up - A Million to one
Live/Hit albums ranked:
7. Smashes, thrashes and hits: (You make me) Rock hard
6. Alive |||: Creatures of the night
5. Alive VI: Shandi
4. Killers: Nowhere to run (my favourite KISS song)
3. Alive ||: Shock me
2. MTV Unplugged: Every time I look at you
1. Alive!: Rock and roll all nite
Dig the review, but I wish you were not reading! I think you would do so much better if ya give it a more natural feel! Just my 2 cents, 🤪🤘🏼!
try music for adult people like santana 3 and niemen enigmatic
Try not being a KAREN, and telling adults what to listen to. Or simply try keeping your mouth shut. That's why this virus keeps spreading, to many mouth breathers.
Ranked from Bad to Worst.
Bad as in good? - Joe
you totally lost me when you ranked Revenge as the 3rd worst Kiss album. Please.
Interesting ranking - I applaud you putting Dressed to Kill at #1. That album doesn't get the respect it deserves. Dynasty is a guilty pleasure album for me. I play it loud at home, but if someone comes over, i turn it off immediately. Its total cheese..
Try as i may - I cant get into the Elder. Bob Ezrin needs to be kept far away from KISS and Alice Cooper at this point.
WOW-Somebody finally gets it right! Crazy Nights rules and is grossly underrated, while Revenge is grossly overrated and I personally hate it! Last night I was thinking that Dynasty and Dressed to kill would be #1 & #2 for me (even before I saw your flawless list), but I didn’t have the balls to submit that, fearing ridicule. Additionally, some of my top choices are similar to yours, e.g, The Elder, Unmasked, Hotter Than Hell. Love you man!,
Dude. I'm all for differing opinions. But Crazy Nights is atrocious!!!!!
It's in a dead heat with Hot in the Shade for the worst slop they ever created. Those are straight up glossy pop songs. Wow. Hey, to each his own, right.
I like your vids though.
And I do like Elder too.
Hot In The Shade over Revenge??? There’s only 4 maybe 5 worthy tracks to listen to on Shade
There’s maybe 1 on Revenge
Gonna disagree on three points: 1. Sonic Boom, for me, is an excellent album and Monster is pretty darn good,too. 2. I hate to admit it, but Crazy Nights is pretty weak and I think Lick It Up, Animalize, and Asylum are all much better. 3. I will NEVER side with the Kiss haters. Not liking Kiss is their loss.
I'm with you in the defense of "The Elder" and "Dynasty" (wich I consider the best)
Totally opinionated
10:25 Anton Fig