Killers (European Edition)

by

KISS

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Back in the day, Killers was one of the prizes of a KISS fan's record collection. It was a greatest hits album that was released in 1982 after Music From the Elder and before Creatures of the Night. It was released only in Europe, Australia, and Japan. The Killers released in Germany has the backward Zs instead of the lightning bolts in the KISS logo. The lightning bolts resembled the Nazi SS (Stormtroopers) insignia which is banned in Germany. It is an official great hits album (like Double Platinum) that is listed in KISS' official discography. Way back when I considered it among KISS' other albums and the most rare because it was not released in the United States. What makes Killers so desirable is that it offers four tracks not available on any other KISS album (I'm not sure if they were released on any recent box sets). There is some differences in information in the reviews here about the origin of these previously unreleased tracks. My Kisstory book states that the songs were made in a quick recording session especially for Killers. The period between The Elder and Creatures of the Night was a challenging time for KISS. The Elder (although brilliant) was not received well by critics or fans. Ace was disgruntled and did not write or play on the new Killers tracks.

Of the old tracks, this is one of the few greatest hits packages that does not focus on the first album. Usually KISS greatest hits compilations will have Deuce, Firehouse, Strutter, and maybe Black Diamond. Killers only offers Cold Gin. The other tracks are from Destroyer (Shout It Out Loud, Detroit Rock City, God of Thunder, thankfully, NO Beth), Love Gun (title track), Dynasty (Sure Know Something, I Was Made for Loving You), and a live version of Rock & Roll All Night. It is nice to have the Dynasty singles on here as I really like that unappreciated album. It had such a fresh KISS sound.

If you do not have the four extra tracks and are wondering if they are worth purchasing this CD, I believe they definitely are. The Kisstory book does not mention from which album writing session they originated (it seems to imply they were written especially for Killers but that is not clearly stated). They do not rock hard enough to sound like Creature of the Night era (Vinnie Cusano was a writer for the Creature sessions, and he did not pen any of the Killers tracks) and they are not sophisticated enough to make me think of Elder. They sound closer to Dynasty/Unmasked era. "I'm a Legend Tonight" has that glam feel. It definitely would have fit well on Dynasty. It is an awesome track; very catchy. "Down on Your Knees" is the new track I like the least. It is not particularly bad, it is just that the other three are so stellar and this one is just a straight-forward, AC/DC style rocker . The best of the new tracks is "Nowhere to Run." By itself, it is worth the CD purchase. It has an Unmasked sound and, in fact, would be the best song on Unmasked. It reminds me of "Shandi" but a "Shandi" that rocks harder. It has beautiful guitar work and Paul shows his vocal versatility by singing some beautiful soft verses. "Partners in Crime" is another excellent track. Like the others, it is very catchy. I really like the melody leading up to the chorus. This one is a more "manly" rocker than Legend and Nowhere. Other versions of this album include the additional tracks "Shandi" and "Talk to Me" from Unmasked (Australian edition) and "Shandi" and "Escape From the Island," the latter of which is an instrumental from Elder (Japanese edition). Killers is a definite must-have for the KISS fans who do not have the four new tracks, especially fans of the Dynasty/Unmasked era.

THE BAND: Paul Stanley (vocals, guitars), Gene Simmons (vocals, bass), Ace Frehley (guitars), Peter Criss (drums). And, Bob Kulick (guitars) and Eric Carr (drums) on the 4 unreleased tracks.

THE DISC: (1982) 12 tracks clocking in at approximately 46 minutes. Included with the disc is a 6-page booklet containing song titles and lyrics only. Originally released in Europe/Australia/Asia only. Two other versions of "Killers" also available with 2-3 bonus tracks (featuring songs "Shandi", "Escape From The Island" and Frehley's "Talk To Me"). Label - Mercury / Polygram Records.

ALBUM REPRESENTATION: Kiss (1 song), Alive! (1), Destroyer (3), Love Gun (1), Dynasty (2), Unreleased (4).

COMMENTS: "Killers" is/was the band's 2nd compilation in the line of many to come (trailing only "Double Platinum" from 1978). I deem this album necessary just because it's an oddity. Cheesy cover - bad haircuts, and head bands... taken somewhere between their "Dynasty" and "Elder" tours; way too much pink; and the letter "S" in the word KISS is different (not the typical lightning bolts per say). The album is also odd in that the song selections are totally random. "Killers" was released after three albums that produced declining record sales - the disco era "Dynasty" (1978), the pop failure "Unmasked" (1980) and the concept album "Music From The Elder" (1981). Kiss clearly needed to go back to their rock and roll roots. To give the fans a taste of something in-between albums, the band released "Killers" - with some old classic material, as well as 4 new songs (all written or co-written, and sung by Paul Stanley). Is it worth it for the classic material... probably not (since fans probably own them all ready). Is "Killers" worth it for the 4 unreleased tracks... probably. Of the 4 new songs here - "I'm A Legend Tonight", "Down On Your Knees", Nowhere To Run", and "Partners In Crime" - none of them charted and no singles were released. Highlights are "I'm A Legend Tonight" and "Nowhere To Run" - both cool melodies sung with conviction. Lowlights - nothing from early studio albums "Hotter Than Hell", "Dressed To Kill" or "Rock And Roll Over. And, the album contains edited versions of "Detroit Rock City" and "Shout It Out Loud". *If you want to hear Kiss get back to their roots - you must check out "Creatures Of The Night" (released just after "Killers" in the same year) - despite mixed reviews, this is an incredibly heavy rock album. If you're a diehard Kiss fan, you probably own most of their releases... and you'll probably want this one as well for the 4 unreleased tracks. For the casual Kiss fan, this album is probably skippable (3 stars).