The pressure was on
Kiss
for their fifth release, and the band knew it. Their breakthrough,
Alive!
, was going to be hard to top, so instead of trying to re-create a concert setting in the studio, they went the opposite route.
Destroyer
is one of
' most experimental studio albums, but also one of their strongest and most interesting.
Alice Cooper
/
Pink Floyd
producer
Bob Ezrin
was on hand, and he strongly encouraged the band to experiment -- there's extensive use of sound effects (the album's untitled closing track), the appearance of a boy's choir ("Great Expectations"), and an orchestra-laden, heartfelt ballad ("Beth"). But there's plenty of
' heavy thunder rock to go around, such as the demonic "God of Thunder" and the singalong anthems "Flaming Youth," "Shout It Out Loud," "King of the Night Time World," and "Detroit Rock City" (the latter a tale of a doomed concert-goer, complete with violent car-crash sound effects). However, it was the aforementioned
Peter Criss
ballad, "Beth," that made
such a success; the song was a surprise Top Ten hit (it was originally released as a B-side to "Detroit Rock City"). Also included is a song that
Nirvana
would later cover ("Do You Love Me?"), as well as an ode to the pleasures of S&M, "Sweet Pain."
also marked the first time that a comic-book illustration of the group appeared on the cover, confirming that the band were transforming from hard rockers to superheroes. [This 45th Anniversary Edition combs the archives to include dozens of alternate mixes, unreleased demos, and live recordings from the time surrounding the album. Highlights include early sketches of key tracks like "Detroit Rock City," a tender acoustic version of "Beth," and songs that didn't make the final cut like
Gene Simmons
' characteristically sleazy "Rock N' Rolls Royce."] ~ Greg Prato