Kiss - Animalize

On September 13, 1984, "Kiss" released "Animalize", its twelfth studio album.

Just one year after "Lick It Up", the album on which "Kiss" revealed the faces behind the makeup and got back on track, "Animalize" arrived to prove that the comeback was not a passing moment. It is a short, fast, glossy and more aggressive album that pushes the band deep into the sound of the mid-1980s, while also documenting a lineup that was once again in constant motion.

The road to it began with another lineup change. After the tensions surrounding "Lick It Up", guitarist Vinnie Vincent left, and in April 1984 Mark St. John replaced him. St. John was an exceptionally technical and fast guitarist, exactly what the metal scene of the period demanded, and "Animalize" became the only "Kiss" studio album on which he appeared as an official member.

Production was led by Paul Stanley, with Gene Simmons credited as co-producer and Michael James Jackson handling the drum production. Recording took place at "Right Track" studios in New York between May and July 1984. Behind the credits, however, the division of labor was far less balanced. Simmons was devoting much of his time and energy to his acting career and the film "Runaway", leaving Stanley to carry much of the album's day-to-day work.

Stanley later described it sharply: "I felt abandoned when it came time to do Animalize." According to him, Simmons told him without warning or prior discussion that he would not be around to work on the album, came into the studio, quickly recorded a few demos and then left to shoot the film. In practice, Stanley became the unofficial leader of "Kiss" during that period and carried the main responsibility for managing the writing, production and musical direction. In that sense, "Animalize" is very much the album on which Stanley was almost single-handedly holding the band's steering wheel.

Even in the studio, the lineup was less fixed than the photo on the back cover might suggest. Jean Beauvoir played bass on several tracks, Bruce Kulick guested on guitar before becoming an official member of the band, Mitch Weissman added guitars and Desmond Child returned as a songwriting collaborator. The result is an album that belongs to "Kiss", but was built with quite a few additional hands.

Musically, "Animalize" keeps its foot on the gas. If "Creatures of the Night" was heavy and menacing and "Lick It Up" restored the band's confidence, here "Kiss" sounds as if it is trying to keep pace with a new generation of guitarists and metal bands. Eric Carr's drums are huge and powerful, St. John's solos race at dizzying speed, and Stanley's production keeps the songs short and direct.

"I've Had Enough (Into the Fire)" opens the album without any introduction. Stanley sings high and almost on the edge, the pace races forward and St. John's guitar immediately sends a clear message: "Kiss" in 1984 has no intention of sounding like the band of 1977. It is one of the most aggressive opening tracks of this era, and the collaboration with Desmond Child gives the chorus exactly the melodic hook it needs to balance the speed.

"Heaven's on Fire" is the moment when all the ingredients come together into a perfect hit. The riff is simple, the chorus sticks from the first listen and the production leaves enough room for Stanley's voice to lead the song. It reached No. 49 on the U.S. singles chart and No. 11 on the rock chart, quickly becoming the song most closely identified with the album and one of the few tracks from the band's no-makeup era to remain a regular part of its repertoire.

"Burn Bitch Burn" returns the microphone to Simmons and brings "Kiss" back to its dirty, provocative side. There is a heavier, slower riff, lower vocals and a threatening atmosphere, but also lyrics that have aged far less gracefully than the music. This is Simmons without filters, for better or worse, and on such a fast album its heavier pace actually provides a welcome change.

"Get All You Can Take" is one of the less discussed tracks on the album, which is a shame. Stanley wrote it with Mitch Weissman, and Jean Beauvoir plays bass on the track. Its big chorus sits right between American hard rock and the glam metal that was increasingly taking over the era. It is not trying to reinvent anything, but it captures the band sounding aggressive, confident and precise.

"Lonely Is the Hunter" is one of Simmons' darker moments on the album. The pace is less frantic, the bass and riff work together with more weight, and over them comes a solo by Bruce Kulick. In hindsight, it is hard not to hear this as a kind of preview of the future. Kulick was not yet a member of "Kiss", but within a few months he would become one of the most stable figures in its constantly changing lineup.

"Under the Gun", written by Stanley, Eric Carr and Desmond Child, may be the heaviest and fastest moment on the album. Carr drives the pace relentlessly forward, the guitars almost seem to compete with each other, and the chorus is thrown out like a battle cry. If you are looking for the point where "Kiss" connects most clearly with mid-1980s heavy metal, this is one of the most obvious places to find it.

"Thrills in the Night" eases the speed slightly and raises the melodic level. Stanley wrote it with Jean Beauvoir, and its nocturnal, dramatic atmosphere gives the album a depth that some of the other tracks lack. It was chosen as the second single, and although it did not repeat the success of "Heaven's on Fire", it remains one of the most mature and complete songs on the album.

"While the City Sleeps" brings Simmons back to center stage with a heavier groove and a slightly darker feel. He wrote it with Mitch Weissman, and its strength lies less in a huge chorus than in its atmosphere. On an album that repeatedly aims for speed and peaks, this is a track that prefers to crawl and apply pressure.

"Murder in High-Heels" closes the album with everything Simmons loved at the time: a dirty riff, lyrics full of innuendo and a rhythm that connects hard rock with glam. Bruce Kulick appears here on guitar as well, another hint of the man who would enter the picture permanently immediately afterward. It is not the strongest ending of the band's career, but it fits the hedonistic, colorful world of "Animalize" very well.

The cover also became one of the most recognizable symbols of the era. Instead of a band photo on the front, "Animalize" presents a mix of zebra, leopard and other animal fur patterns, with the "Kiss" logo and the album title in red. It says almost nothing about the lineup, but everything about the instinct, color and flamboyance the album wanted to project.

Commercially, the gamble worked. "Animalize" reached No. 19 on the U.S. album chart and No. 11 in the UK. By December 1984 it had already been certified Gold in the United States, and in 1990 it was officially certified Platinum. The success of the album, and especially of "Heaven's on Fire", proved that the no-makeup era was not merely an exercise in survival, but a genuine commercial chapter in the career of "Kiss".

But the man who was supposed to become the new face of the guitar position did not get to enjoy that success for long. During rehearsals and the tour, Mark St. John began suffering from a medical condition that affected his hands and made it difficult for him to play. He managed to take part in only a limited number of shows, while Bruce Kulick gradually stepped in as his replacement and became an official member in December 1984. The Detroit performance from that period was later documented on the video "Kiss: Animalize Live Uncensored", becoming an excellent document of the new lineup in action.

"Animalize" is not the most balanced album in the "Kiss" catalog, nor is it the band's heaviest. Stanley's side feels more focused and powerful, while some of Simmons' material is less consistent. But that imbalance also tells the story of the band at that point in time remarkably well: a veteran group forced to reinvent itself, embrace the rules of 1984 and somehow sound hungry again. When it hits, especially with the trio "I've Had Enough (Into the Fire)", "Heaven's on Fire" and "Under the Gun", it reminds us just how well "Kiss" knew how to turn change and chaos into fuel.

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