Review Summary: KISS go back to their rawer records before Alive! and make another anthem filled delight with some new tricks in the bag.
Since their inception and début in 1974 it has to be acknowledged that KISS were very productive.
Rock And Roll Over is the bands fifth studio album (and sixth release in two years since their début), so they have to be commended for the work rate, even if much of this was mostly due to loyalty to Casablanca records and financial lulls in both parties.
Their fourth release, the mighty
Destroyer achieved some chart success once again, then began to slip until radio stations latched on to the superb ballad 'Beth' securing them a major hit and
Destroyer reaching the platinum sales mark. Once again then KISS quickly found themselves in the studio to record the follow up.
Whilst
Destroyer saw a better production and experimentation, resulting in the most unique and different sounding KISS record at this stage, with
Rock And Roll Over KISS decided not to do the same and instead employed Eddie Kramer for knob twiddling duties, taking this back to the rawer sound of the likes of
Hotter Than Hell and
Dressed To Kill. The problem with reviewing this album then is that this shows little difference to those first three albums stylistically other than small nuggets they have picked up along the way. Much like
Hotter Than Hell also, this is a very fine record.
Opening song, 'I Want You' hints that this could be more ballad based after the huge success of 'Beth' with an acoustic and slow guitar lick coupled with Paul Stanley's serenading vocals, before the familiar KISS sounding riff kicks in, at which time there is no doubt about how this is going to sound. This is in the raw camp of the first three albums and is going to be hard rocking throughout.
Once again [i]Rock And Roll Over[i/] is bursting with brilliant hard rocking songs that will get any party going, and highlights are hard to choose from. 'Take Me' sees Paul on fine fettle on vocal duties and should keep KISS fans with a massive grin from ear to ear, 'Calling Dr Love' is a pure KISS anthem and an ever present in the live set list to this day, 'Mr Speed' shows quite a bluesy sounding riff (although Paul appears to be singing about premature ejaculation; "That's why they call me Mr Speed"...that's how I saw it at least) whilst 'See You In Your Dreams' is in my opinion one of the most criminally underrated KISS songs of all time. This album is packed with pumping anthems.
There is some evidence of the experimentation from
Destroyer however. 'See You In Your Dreams' sees female vocals in its mighty chorus, whilst 'Hard Luck Woman' is a 'Beth' style ballad (well they were going to include one weren't they); originally written for Rod Stewart, instead it allows Peter Criss to show that contrary to belief sometimes he is a mighty singer (sometimes). Otherwise this is a KISS record much of the pre-
Alive! variety.
There is nothing new here unlike
Destroyer trying lots of concoctions in the cauldron. Instead this is KISS using what they have learnt to make what they do best; a mighty, hard rocking beast full of classic tunes.
Recommended: I Want You, See You In Your Dreams, Hard Luck Woman
