I generally like Rubin - keeps it simple, instruments sound like actually sound, more of less, and he has a resume that runs from Slayer's Reign of Blood through RHCP's Blood Sugar Sex Magic to his work with Johnny Cash, is all pretty cool. So compared to a lot of his competitors, I think his hand is not so heavy! Rubin is a huge AC/DC fan (second only to the Beatles in his eyes), and you do hear that in his approach and in Electric in particular. But, yes, when Bob Rock takes over for Sonic Temple then the Cult suddenly have a much more expansive and epic sonic quality - and it was to Bob Rock they kept going back {albeit I feel he started overproducing them in latter albums}.
I meant heavy-handed in ruthlessly removing anything of interest from the arrangements. If he could find a way of taking out the melodies, vocals and instruments, I think he'd be truly happy. I'm not a fan of any of the performers you mention so his work with them may well be genius. Haven't heard the albums to know either way.
It's a compliment ... I think ... Good point re: Aerosmith - Permanent Vacation and Pump are the original band very effectively rebooted for modernity. But Get A Grip was execrable - songs were either wholly cartoonish or wholly mawkish, with little in between. Aerosmith doubled down on the twin success of comedy rock like Love in an Elevator as well as adding extra syrup to their bed-wetting ballads. It made them even more money, but it was sickly for me (personally, IMHO and so forth). A real shame, given what cool rockers they were in the 70s, and how moving their ballads could actually be back then ... On Sonic Boom and Monster - this is glass half full / half empty stuff. Both are better albums than I had expected to get from KISS this late in the game, albeit you name two of my less preferred songs from them - Gene and Paul at their hammy worsts, respectively, I mean "Danger me, Danger you, Danger us"? Cringe every time!
Well if you'd grown up in the UK, you're also half waiting for it go to "Danger Mouse", the UK cartoon about a mouse detective with a pirate eye patch.
That's true. But if KISS was on a hard schedule.....Which I have no doubt they were. Then Nevison, who you are correct, they actually WAITED for.....Nevison SHOULD have kept tabs on the material available for the project. In fact, I think he should have either turned KISS down, or pulled an Ezrin and said: "We're starting from scratch, I'm going to oversee all composition, and I'm bringing in someone from the outside to make sure this thing is up to standard. Ezrin brought in Kim Fowley on "Destroyer" He brought in Lou Reed on "The Elder"....For Hanoi Rocks, he brought in Ian Hunter.......Ezrin ALWAYS made sure there were extra "big guns" in the material generation department. He made sure there was MORE talent than usual who were contributing to the project. That was the "Ezrin insurance policy." against ending up with a record that lacked "class A" material. I just don't really get the feeling Nevison gave his best to that record.....which again......makes me feel that on "Crazy Nights" he was a glorified engineer. More Eddie Kramer than Bob Ezrin.
Great guitarist, drummers, and vocalist from this genre. I love hair bands cheese and all. But I cant think of any great great bass players. I am sure they exist but I am drawing a blank
I agree with most of what you say.......but I just don't think the quality control was there, when it came to the material they recorded. There were songs allowed on that record that had no business being there......(And I remember you converted me with "Bang Bang you"....but I just don't think Gene's songs in particular were up to standard.)
Bass was all of IRRELEVANT during that era. It wasn't until "Appetite" that anyone could even HEAR the bass!
The lyrics are worth NOT discussing for sure but musically this tune friggin' rocks!!! That opening solid riff!!! I got this tune in my head now but when I first heard it fall 1984 I fell in love with it. Oh' those walkman memories spinning those cassettes.
White Lion's James Lomenzo, Dokken's Jeff Pilson & Kip Winger immediately spring to mind as having lovely bass lines. A bunch more were better than merely competent too, I reckon.
james lomenzo, billy sheehan, jeff pilson, kip winger, mark mendoza. those may the best but watch someone pull an obvious one out of their hat i missed
I'm sorry, I know the narrative states that this is one of the worst songs ever.....but in truth, it has that "Devo New Wave swing" and a chorus that NOBODY forgets. I think this song is AWESOME!
Really? You don't like "Electric"? How about the Danzig stuff? Well....I can't tell you to like something you don't like.
Spot on. After Appetite you had some album where the bass stood out....Rachel Bolan from Skid Row and Dana Strum with Slaughter (and VVI) usually played some cool parts. Dana live is tough to take though. He solos through the entire song every time.
Great record! I wish Poison had continued on the Sex Pistols meets Cheap Trick sound they started out with. Their first record was a classic......after that......not so much.
And what's up with the cover to their second record? A Demon?............Hmmmmm.......Not feeling it. Nor do I see it's relevance.
Must say - hadn’t heard the Sex Pistols comparison before. Second album cover is basically a half feline woman with a very exaggerated tongue length - it’s meant to imply that the album title Open Up And Say … Aah is double entendre, referencing a pre-fellatio instruction, rather than what you may hear in a doctor’s surgery. At least, that’s presumably why it was censored.
I like Electric well enough. Some fine songs but as with some KISS records, I would have preferred it with someone else in the producer's chair. I can forgive a record a lot if the songs are strong. Never heard any Danzig.
It was reported at the time that KISS had to wait for Nevison, but I don't believe the material suffered for it. I think Paul was looking to write pop hits. Here are a few tidbits I remember: At first they were planning on doing a heavy album...like Metallica heavy. At what point during the break between the Asylum tour and actually entering the studio to record that they switched gears I don't know. Paul didn't realize until after the album was out that Gene recycled Thief In The Night (from the Wendy O. Williams album) and was pissed; I guess Ron didn't know or care and neither Bruce or Eric mentioned it during recording either. Nevison has since said that at the time he recorded them, he really didn't know the band and wishes he could remix it.