BAM Magazine Psycho Circus Review

BAM Magazine(California's Music Magazine) October 6 issue. You can reach them via e-mail: editorial@bammedia.com KISS
Psycho Circus/Mercury
**(out of 5)

After all the hype, it would be admittedly hard for this, the 1st studio effort in nearly 2 decades by the original KISS lineup, to completely live up to expectations. Still, no KISS fan in his or her right mind could have expected anything this half-assed. Psycho Circus sounds as if Paul Stanley and (especially) Gene Simmons were too busy plotting their forthcoming marketing blitz to bother working up some decent material. The album's best track, by far is "Into The Void", a balls-out Ace Frehley rocker that truly swaggers and staggers like classic KISS. (Not coincidentally, it's the only track on Psycho Circus that actually seems to feature Peter Criss on drums). Paul gets off a couple hilariously anthemic rockers in "I Pledge Allegiance to the State of Rock & Roll" and the title cut (pronounced, in time-honored Paul fashion, "Thyco Thircuth"), but everything else sounds like it's being played and sung by the KISS of the 80's; you can practically hear the bad hair-weaves and zebra-striped pants in the steroid-inflated choruses of "We Are One", "You Wanted the Best", "Raise Your Glasses". "I Finally Found My Way" is a blatant(and woefully unsuccessful) attempt to write another "Beth" for Peter, but it's the presence of Gene's "Within" that really reveals the cynicism behind the entire project. A plodding hunk of melody-free grunge. "Within" is actually an outtake from Carnival of Souls, the last album Gene and Paul recorded before reuniting with Ace and Peter. If it wasnt' good enough for what is almost universally considered to be KISS' worst album why recycle in onto Psych Circus? Because, KISS fans, your heroes know that you'll still snap up the concert tickets, toys and all the other merch, whether you dig the album or not.. You want quintessential KISS? Go buy the remastered CD or Rock n Roll Over, and wait until Psycho Circus starts floating up in the "used" bins. Believe me, it will

Dan Epstein

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