Published on Apr 2, 2001
1975 proved to be the year for Kiss. After two mediocre albums
(including the horrible production work on
Hotter Than Hell), Casablanca Records chief Neil Bogart and
the band decided to take matters into their own hands for the third
attempt. Kiss was known for their live shows, and come hell or high
water, they were going to capture that energy on the third
disc.
Over a quarter of a century later, we can look at
Dressed To Kill and ask ourselves whether they succeeded.
While this record is a major improvement over
Hotter Than Hell, and it contains songs with more substance
than the previous two efforts, it still falls a bit short of the
mark, though not by much. At the time, it was Kiss’s best
effort.
Returning to the “sex equals love” concept that wasn’t as
conspicuous on
Hotter Than Hell, Paul Stanley and crew crank out 10 songs,
many of which have become part of any rock music fan’s vernacular.
Who knew back in 1975 that “Rock And Roll All Nite” would become
the anthem for this Kabuki-faced foursome, and would rank up there
as one of the all-time most popular rock songs? The answer:
somebody had to, otherwise it wouldn’t have made the
cut.
But wait, there’s more. While some of these might not get as
much attention today as they did back then, tracks like “C’mon And
Love Me,” “She” and “Rock Bottom” (complete with acoustic guitar
intro) all served as proof that Kiss was no flash in the pan, and
that they did indeed have their eyes on the big prize. “Rock
Bottom,” while a hit for the band in the ’70s, still ranks in my
book as one of Kiss’s most underrated songs.
Even some of the “filler” is pretty tasty. “Room Service” is a
track that I’m truly surprised didn’t become another one of Kiss’s
anthems, from the catchy chorus to the harmony vocals to the
amazing guitar work. The same goes for tracks like “Two Timer” and
“Ladies In Waiting,” songs which are just lying there, waiting to
be re-discovered.
But, let’s face it, it wouldn’t be a Kiss album if there wasn’t
at least one throwaway song, and
Dressed To Kill, while solid otherwise, has a couple of
these. “Anything For My Baby” just doesn’t rank as one of the best
songs Kiss has ever crafted, while “Love Her All I Can” never is
able to build up listener interest. They might not be the worst
things the band has ever done, I’ll grant you that, but compared to
the stellar material on this disc, these tracks don’t hold their
water.
Dressed To Kill is a record you might know the music from,
but you might not be familiar with the music itself. If someone
wanted to discover what Kiss was all about, this might be the first
record I’d point them towards, if
Alive! was out of stock. The third time indeed proved to be
the charm for Kiss – and it marked the start of a golden period for
the band.