Kiss – Hotter Than Hell – 1974
Hotter than Hell is not as solid an album as the debut! The entire production is poorer, and the songs haven’t been crafted with the same precision. Nothing really stands out from the rest of the songs except possibly the title track – Hotter Than Hell. Unfortunately, as a big fan of the movie Kiss Meets The Phantom of the Park (which the band apparently hates). I find it difficult to embrace the lyrics after diligently listening to the alternative lyrics in the film, where they renamed the song Rip and Destroy. Of course, I stretch the truth a little bit here. I am a fan of the movie but I don’t have a problem with misunderstanding the lyrics.
The vocal roles appear much like on the debut, with Gene Simmons taking the most space, followed by Paul Stanley, and lastly, Peter Criss, who only sings one song. Ace Frehley doesn’t sing at all, but he is once again the mastermind behind the album’s strongest track – Parasite! Anyway, this turned out to be a disappointment but is still considered significant for Kiss’s ongoing development. They made a new album six months after the debut, and with that furious pace, almost no one can maintain the song quality needed to create a really good album again and again. I’m not surprised that Hotter than Hell doesn’t top the first album and turned out to be a little disappointing.
