KISS FAQ

Posted on by Nils Brekke Svensson

Kiss Faq but not from the Kiss Faq…

Kiss Faq is a new book from the author of the Black Diamond books Dale Sherman. The first one was a good book back in the days when there was not many Kiss books around. And I also enjoyed the updated version that came out a couple of years ago. Not the most objective Kiss book in the world but still quite good. The second Black Diamond book is maybe not that great. But still a Kiss book that a Kiss book nerd like me have to have.

So I was really curious what Dale would come up with the this time. It’s supposedly part of a series. That’s why It’s have a little confusing name. An name I find a little uncool because everything in the “Kiss world” related to the name “Kiss Faq” is related to Julian Gills www.kissfaq.com. And naming the book Kiss Faq after Julian have released a lot of great books are just wrong in my opinion.

But lets not butcher a book because It has the wrong name. The book is actually quite good. Not among the best Kiss books I have read. But a lot more objective than i found Black Diamond to be. The book is very fact orientated and It’s very obvious that the author doesn’t have any inside information on the band. And there is not much new stuff that haven’t been covered in other Kiss books. So I really would say It’s more a book for a “Kiss novice” than a long time fan that has read a lot about Kiss. But the author should have kudos for having small chapters on Bill Aucoin, Sean Delaney etc.

What I do find confusing about the book is how the content is divided in the book. It’s really isn’t chronological and jumps all over the place. I understand that the author wanted to do It a little bit different. But I’m not really sure how good It works. But the quality content makes It readable anyway.

Would I recommend buying the book? Not really sure. For Kiss book nerds It’s a must. But for someone just interested reading about the history of the band I would really pick up Julian Gill’s Kiss Album Focus book or even the second edition of Dale Sherman’s Black Diamond book.

Verdict: 6/10

 

 

Makeup to Breakup: My Life In and Out of Kiss

Posted on by Nils Brekke Svensson

The catmans version of the truth

After quite disappointing books from both Gene and Ace I really felt that Peter probably would be the one that would deliver a book that I would enjoy reading. Even if I have always seen Peter as “the Brooklyn Moaner” It at least should be good entertainment. I brought the signed book with me on the Kiss Kruise, but were not able to read It before I came home.

I really don’t know why. But I really don’t care much for the childhood tales from any of the Kiss members. Peter’s book is no exception. It’s fine to read but not that entertaining. But from when he joins Kiss in the book the really grows. And yes he does do a lot of moaning. But at least he seems sincere and It’s nice to get his version of the story from his point of view. It makes the book a really enjoyable read. Even if It doesn’t really change my view of Peter Criss as a Kiss member much. Peter is really a moaner. And in one way the book is a deep dive into his personality. A guy who is really insecure and feels the world is really against him. But for the most the bad things that happen to him is his own fault even if the feels he has to put the blame on other people.

His description of Gene and Paul is more or less how I would expect It to be. And my appreciation of the guys are really higher than before I read the book. From what I can read from in-between the lines they really threaded Peter more than fair. Peters portrayal of Ace is a lot less flattering than I would expect It to be. He seems to feel that he has been more or less betrayed by the guy in the band that really should have covered his back.

The coverage of the history of Kiss is much better than in any of the other two Kiss biographies. And even if there are a couple of factual faults they are not as common as in the other Kiss biographies. So as a Kiss biography I really love this book. Even if It doesn’t do Peter any favors.

So I must applaud Peter for his sincerity in the book. I only wish he had dived even deeper into a lot of stuff in Kisstory. But good stuff always leaves you wanting more… Buy the damn book!

Verdict: 8/10

 

 

Kiss Army Spain – Cronicas De Una Decada 1973 – 1983

Posted on by Nils Brekke Svensson

Kiss Army Spain membership package

Just got back from 12 days in sunny Spain last week. So what is more appropriate than reviewing the new Kiss Army Spain membership package that came in the post at more or less the same time I came home. The package includes both a 113 page book in colour and a DVD from when Kiss played in Madrid 14 October 1983.

I don’t speak Spanish. So my review of the book is more or less just based on the visuals, just as I do with Japanese books. And what a great book It is to look at. The book is crammed with great pictures. Most of them really great photos that have surfaced on the web over the last 4-5 years. And It is really great to have them collected in a great book like this. It really saved me money because I was planning of making a iPhoto book of most of these pictures myself anyway.

The layout of the book reminds me very much of Kiss Army Swedens Destroyer Magazine. Nothing wrong with that. If you have made a book that has a layout that is close to what is probably best Kiss Magazine ever made (both official and not) for a whole book you have done something right. So I must just say that I’m really impressed with the quality of the book, and I got a much better product than I expected. If there is one thing I could put my finger on It’s probably the cover itself. It’s OK, but quite boring compared to the rest of the book. It really doesn’t do such a great book justice.

And then there is the DVD. Most of us DVD collector were really excited when the new clips for Madrid showed up a while ago on YouTube. Most of the clips just looked amazing. But then most stuff that’s not really bad do in lower resolution on YouTube. So my expectations concerning the quality of the disc was probably a little to high. Especially since the tour is really important for me since It was the first tour I saw myself. What I didn’t expect was that some of the stuff seem to be YouTube sourced. So the quality of that stuff is far from great. But the other stuff is just amazing. And thank God that is most of the content of on the disc. It’s taken from a source that probably have seen It’s best days. But the quality is more than OK anyway. I’m just really thankful that this stuff is out. So I must say overall I really enjoyed the DVD also.

So the package over all is great. If you have been thinking of ordering It. Just do It.

Verdict. Book: 9/10 – DVD: 7/10

Gene Simmons: A Rock ‘N Roll Journey in the Shadow of the Holocaust

Posted on by Nils Brekke Svensson

Gene & Flora in Ross Bergs eyes

One of the real characters in the “Kiss web world” is Ross Berg. He has always been very vocal online about his interest and admiration for Gene and Floras (Genes mother) life, and how the Holocaust and their life in Israel after the second world war has formed them as humans, when It comes to Flora to a degree I really didn’t totally understand myself. When Ross told us all that he would be publishing a book on his own I was really interested in how the result would come out. And maybe It would help me understanding his fascination for Flora. So how did It all turn out?

Ross Berg’s “A Rock ‘N Roll Journey in the Shadow of the Holocaust” is probably the strangest Kiss related book I have ever read. And I have read It three times now, and still are not sure what I think of the book. First of all. I like what Ross has tried to do with this book. The narrative way he writes the book could bring characters more to life. But It takes a really strong author to do something like that. I just don’t know how well I feel he has succeeded. Some parts of the book works really well but other parts doesn’t. More than one time the characters thoughts become to much fiction and a little to dramatic for my taste.

Another problem I have with the book is that I’m not really sure If Ross was the right person to write a book like this with his background. It is written with a very “Jewish American” point of view. And for me who has a very different point of view when It comes both religion and the state of Israel some of his conclusions in the book are a little hard difficult to agree with when Ross seems to write from a slightly religious perspective. I’m sure that Ross and Gene may have some of the same views, but It becomes a little to subjective for my taste. And Gene seems very little like a religious person.  So the characters probably become a little more what Ross want them to be than who they really are. Even if his facts are good and interesting to read.

If you really don’t know much about the Holocaust and how hard life were in Israel after the war, you will probably find those parts of the book quite interesting, and people who know a lot about the same period will probably not. There are a lot of books that tells the stories of Holocaust survivors much more vivid and in a better historical light. But as an historical background to who Gene is today It more or less works well.

What is really cool are the background stuff from Gene’s childhood that Ross has dug out that haven’t been written about before. That Ross managed to find this obscure stuff I had not heard about before I find impressive. But there is also a lot of stuff that have been covered before.

So what is the final verdict on the book? I would say interesting and different. And as always I  love Kiss books written by fans. If your very interested about Gene as a person It is a good book, if you manage to have in mind that this is the ‘Ross Berg perspective’ on Gene. So if your a ‘Kissbookaholic’ like me. And especially if you like the first parts of Genes biography, then buy the book. It’s worth reading.

If your just looking for a Kiss book, then buy some other book.

Verdict: 6/10

Bob Gruen – Rock Seen

Posted on by Nils Brekke Svensson

Incredible Photography

This is really not a review but a little note about a photo book all classic rock fans should have. The book is really not a Kiss book, even if It’s a Kiss related. But I just have to mention the book since It is absolutely awesome.

Bob Gruen is the photographer that have more or less photographed most rock stars that deserves a picture. He was part of the rock scene in New York in the 70′s and have documented the scene thoroughly. For us Kiss fans he is mostly known as the photographer that shoot the famous Dressed To Kiss picture. But he was also present from the beginning of 1974 through the 70′s.

For us Kiss fans the book contains the Dressed To Kill picture, DTK outtake, pictures from the Creem cartoon written by Sean Delaney, picture from Nagoya 1977 and live shots from the Love Gun tour. There are also some cool Kiss pictures in photo montages throughout the book.

The book is also filled with incredible pictures from the famous John Lennon “New York City” photo, to pictures of The New York Dolls, The Ramones, The Clash and on and on. Buy It!

Verdict: 10/10

Ace Frehley – No Regrets

Posted on by Nils Brekke Svensson

Lost in the Ozone?

Ace Frehley No RegretsThat Ace Frehley were about to release an autobiography raised many eyebrows when the news first came out. What would the man really remember from the decades of substance abuse before his sobriety was one of questions that were asked when the news was leaked. Would we get the story from the «other part» of the band at last?

Gene and Paul have more or less told their story in Gene’s book, interviews and in the audio commentary for Kissology. And many fans have more or less been pissed on them because they believe especially Gene uses every possible moment to make negative comments about Ace and Peter. Would ‘No Regrets’ be Ace’s chance to prove them wrong. Had all his decisions about Kiss over the years been taken for good reasons that Gene and Paul just didn’t understand?

So as you understand I was really excited about this book. Especially when I heard that Ace were getting help because he didn’t feel that he would remember most of the details good enough because his substance abuse during the years. And I didn’t get less excited when the first parts of the book about his childhood and youth were published online before the book came out.

The first part of the book about his formative years is really good. In one way It reminds me much about Gene’s autobiography. The first period with Kiss I also find quite entertaining also. But as a Kiss fan with some knowledge about the bands history and facts I found that the rest of his «Kisstory» just went downhill from there. The book never goes deep or in details about anything later to his career. It just brushes lightly over the major events during the years and gives Ace’s feelings about what happened. Even those are treated quite lightly. And the closer we get to today the faster the book goes. It almost seems like they have been in a rush to finish the book.

I really miss that someone could have painted a larger picture so could Ace tell his story in a context. When you get other people to work with you on a book, they really should be used to fill out the black wholes. I really miss a lot of details. And It feels that the book is mostly written for the general public and not Kiss fans who are the ones that will be buying the book.

His relationship with his wife is also treated very lightly and what Kiss and his abuse has done with his relationship with his family over the years. An what about humour. If there is one thing Ace is famous for beside being a great guitar player is his humour. I more or less expected It would be all over the book. But there are not many traces of It in the book.

What we do get a lot of and in some detail is stories about his substance abuse and his feelings for Gene and Paul, especially Gene. It seems that It is very important for him to justify his actions, and paint Gene as the person who nobody likes and that has no friends. Something he doesn’t succeed at all with in my opinion. I probably even have more admiration for Gene and how he and Paul held the ship above water during almost 40 years, and less for Ace’s choices. Some of them just seem stupid to me. Like his reason to quit the band again in 2002. You have to be quite paranoid to really believe that he is reason is right (read the book yourself to find out why).

There are also factual faults and a tendency to paint a prettier picture than we know that are reality. Like him being on tour with Eric in Canada and telling that he chose to tour and not record after Trouble Walking. That makes me wonder what other parts are not the actual truth. We all know that Ace never toured with Eric in Canada. And that he was dropped by his label because of substance abuse and could not get a new deal with a major label in the beginning of the 90’s even if he wanted one.

So do I hate the book? No, not at all. It’s entertaining. But It could have been so much more. This is a book that should have been up there with Keith Richards «life» that came out last year. It should have been twice the size and had much more detail. The book ended up very similar to Gene’s “Kiss and Make up”.  Not a great book but a book worth reading and a book all Kiss fans should have read. As with “Kiss and Make up” I will probably reread It more than once.

Verdict: 5/10