KISS - HOTTER THAN HELL (1974)

HOTTER THAN HELL was the last KISS album I ever purchased, completing my collection.  For whatever reason, I purchased every other album in the collection before adding HOTTER THAN HELL to my roster.  My mistake.  HOTTER THAN HELL, is the perfect basement record.  There is something so cheap and dirty about HOTTER THEN HELL, it oozes rock power.  HOTTER THAN HELL has the perfect sound.  If I were to ever record an album with a band of my own, this is the album I would emulate.  The perfect sounding record from beginning to end.

ROUNDTABLE OF THE ELDERS…

Do you think KISS recording HOTTER THAN HELL in Los Angeles vs. New York had any impact on the songs? 
RH - I definitely think it had an impact on the album, however I don‘t think it was due strictly to recording in Los Angeles.  I feel that life on the road during the first KISS tour had a huge impact on the songs and the direction the band was going to take on their follow up record.  Unlike the first album, the songs on HOTTER THAN HELL had a more ‘party’ feel.  I think at the time of the recording the band was young, living their dream, and having the time of their lives.  The demands and pressure of the business had not yet set in.  Life was a party, and it was reflected on the album, and most definitely reflected on the back cover and photo outtakes.  L.A. life at it’s finest. 

What is your favorite song from HOTTER THAN HELL?
RH - All The Way

KISS (1974)

Not only is KISS, the debut album from the band, it is also the one album that contains more KISS ‘live’ staples than any other album.  When a person discovers KISS, the 1974 debut album is more than likely be the first release to enter their collection.  I know it was that way for myself.  I certainly loved the songs.  They had a groove and a life I had not encountered before in any band I had dove into.  There was something different about these songs.  Little did I know it then, but they would end up being the soundtrack of my life.
Even beyond the music, I remember falling in love with the album cover.  Sure, the band had yet to nail down that polished KISS look we would come to know, but there was magic to that contrast of black, white and silver, not to mention the gleaming glitter studs of the KISS logo on the reverse side.   Early 70’s glory. 
I have always viewed the self titled debut album as KISS’ true classic album.  From the cover design, to the image of the band, to the song lineup, the album is at it’s core a straight ahead ‘classic album’.  “Strutter” alone sells the album.  To this day, if I were asked to define what a rock and roll song should be, my answer would be, “Strutter”.   That song changed me.  It made me idolize Paul Stanley, and helped me fall in love with KISS.

ROUNDTABLE OF THE ELDERS…

Would you consider KISS (1974)  a desert island album?
RH - Without a doubt.  This album is the perfect desert island disc.  It’s basically a KISS Greatest Hits (without being a Greatest Hits).  Quite possibly the most definitive album of the bands catalog. 

What two KISS albums would you use to describe to aliens what KISS is all about?
RH - If I were to show alien life what KISS was all about I would use KISS (1974) AND ROCK AND ROLL OVER.  To me, both of these albums capture KISS at their essence. 

A MILESTONE #1...

This is such a beautiful gem of 70's excess.  One that will definitely be added to the 'want list'...