Flashback Album Review | Kiss

By the beginning of the 80s, Kiss seemed to have no stability that kept them calm; Peter Criss had already left the band in 1980, being replaced by Eric Carr whose inclusion gave another heavier air to the band. But now the problems became more serious with Ace Frehley, problems that became bigger due to his little interest in the band and his excess in alcohol consumption.

Even with all that background, Kiss ventured to release their second compilation, Killers on June 15, 1982. Although Ace appears on the album cover, he did not play any of the 4 unreleased tracks that the band features on Killers, being replaced by Bob Kulick and Mikel Japp (the latter would play guitar on Down On Your Knees). The unreleased tracks that Killers presents were apparently recorded to give a hint to the Kiss fans that the band planned to return to its roots and put aside the progressive experiments that were heard in The Elder, even on the cover you can see the same costumes that the band used to promote their previous studio album.

The album begins with I'm A Legend Tonight, a song that tries to return to the roots of the band and leave aside the pop rock that had been heard in Unmasked, a catchy riff that already brings the label of the hard rock of the eighties and a very respectable chorus, the guitar solo stands out a lot. We continue with Down On Your Knees, a song where Bryan Adams collaborated in the composition, a song a little lighter than the previous one with more glam dyes.

After the second song begins the compilation journey of the band where we review the first album of Kiss with Cold Gin, Love Gun, Destroyer with Shout It Loud and Dynasty with Sure Know Something. Starting with the B-side, we find the third unreleased track, Nowhere To Run. A hard theme, slightly slower than the first two, and that is accompanied by an extraordinary riff and guitar solo, a melodic theme that is enjoyed from beginning to end. Immediately we find the fourth unreleased song that is Partners In Crime, a theme that leaves the darkness of Nowhere To Run and sounds like some lost theme of Rock and Roll Over or Love Gun, although honestly, I do not find something spectacular to Partners In Crime, a simple filler theme.

To close again begins a journey through a remixed version of Detroit Rock City, God Of Thunder, I Was Made For Loving You and closing the album Rock and Roll All Nite live taken from Alive! It is worth mentioning that there are two editions where other songs were included, such is the case of the Japanese edition where they included the instrumental Escape From The Island and Shandi. For the Australian edition there were the songs Talk To Me and Shandi.

Killers seems to me an interesting compilation that mixes very well unpublished songs with classic songs at that time of the band, a compilation that if you are a Kiss fan, you can not miss in your collection. A decent attempt by the band to make more radical fans forget the progressive and dark side of (Music From) The Elder.