By: William Clark
In many ways, Destroyer can easily be called “the definitive Kiss album”. It features all of the great qualities that fans have learned to expect from their fire breathing icons: some hard and heavy rock and roll staples, some just-as-great radio friendly tunes, and at least one Gene Simmons-led battle anthem.
Destroyer is also hailed for the many timeless hits it produced, such as “Detroit Rock City”, “Shout It Out Loud”, and Beth”.
Everything from it’s fantastic music to the unrivaled talent and the explosive comic book cover attracted rock fans all across the globe and quickly brought Destroyer to it’s “classic” status.36 years later, this album has been given new life with Destroyer: Resurrected.
The entire Destroyer album has been remixed, as well as given a few choice additions from the original demo tapes, by producer Bob Ezrin.
Mr. Ezrin definitely has some experience with bringing classic albums back to life, as he has most recently worked with the King of Shock Rock, Alice Cooper, on his latest album, Welcome 2 My Nightmare; the long awaited sequel to Alice’s original classic rock staple.
When you read the word “remixed” alongside a classic song such as “Do You Love Me?”, normally thoughts of fear, panic and dread immediately rush to mind. “Oh, no! Why couldn’t they just leave Kiss alone?”
Within the few minutes of listening to the Resurrected version of “Detroit Rock City”, all those negative worries quickly vanished. And a lot of that credit goes to Bob Ezrin’s studio magic. The remixes for these seemingly already perfect tunes honestly sound better than their original counterparts.
Each track sounds crisper, clearer and louder, which are always welcome qualities when you’re listening to a classic album of the likes of Destroyer.
You can hear further into the song than ever before, such as more apparent acoustic guitar playing on “Beth”, thundering drum beats on “Do You Love Me?.” and enhanced vocals all throughout.
Another add to this Resurrected edition is the original version of “Sweet Pain”, which boasts a fantastic, never-before-heard guitar solo.
Diehard fans should also find the included booklet to be both insightive and invaluable.
The unique original artwork for the album, as well as images of the band from the Destroyer time period are included alongside a factual foreword by Bob Ezrin, who also just happened to have produced the original album. Having Ezrin produce and remix the latest edition keeps the spirited intent of the original intact, while breathing new fire into the new. From the tremendous revitalizing of this timeless record to the extensive special additions overall makes Destroyer: Resurrected a brilliantly solid release.
Tracks:
1) Detroit Rock City (2012 Remix)
2) King Of The Night Time World (2012 Remix)
3) God of Thunder (2012 Remix)
4) Great Expectations (2012 Remix)
5) Flaming Youth (2012 Remix)
6) Sweet Pain (2012 Remix)
7) Shout It Out Loud (2012 Remix)
8) Beth (2012 Remix)
9) Do You Love Me? (2012 Remix)
10) Rock N Roll Party (2012 Remix)
11) Sweet Pain (Original Guitar Solo)
