In the early 80s, KISS was in trouble. After a string of classic hard-rocking albums, the band started to change direction and follow a disco path with Dynasty and Unmasked (the former being excellent and the latter not being up-to-par). Their troubles were confounded by tensions with drummer Peter Criss and he did not play on either album (although he is credited). Criss was soon replaced by the very talented Eric Carr. KISS next tried its hand in making a concept album with 1981s "Music From The Elder." Although this album was interesting and adventurous, it didn't click with the fans and was an almighty flop. "Killers," a greatest hits album was released the following year with four new rockers, in an attempt by the band and its label to regain some credibility and popularity.

1982s "Creatures of the Night" was going the be the bands make-it-or-break-it album. Although Ace Frehley is depicted on the cover, he neither wrote for, nor played on the album. This album actually has a few people stepping in for Ace Frehley--Steve Ferris, Bob Kullick, and most importantly Vinnie Vincent.

This album was a true return to form for the band. After a lack of focus, they came back with their finest album since "Love Gun" (1977). The band sounds superb. Simmons and Stanley sound committed, as if they wanted to prove that they still had it in them to rock. Although a few different guitar players stepped in for Ace, the band sounds very cohesive. Eric Carr really shines and his drumming is intense. His playing was more proficient and superior to Criss. His drumming gives the album a real shot of adrenaline. And although Ace Frehley was a huge part of the band, surprisingly, his presence is not really missed. The guitar playing by Steve Ferris, Bob Kullick and Vinnie Vincent is superb. Vincent soon became Ace Frehley's permanent replacement.

The songs on this album are all excellent. This is probably the most heavy KISS album in their catalogue. All rockers, with only one balled, the beautiful "I Still Love You." It was Simmons and Stanley's best work in years. Vinnie Vincent also co-wrote three of the songs and proved to be a good writing partner. There are no filler songs here. Every song is a winner. The album opens with the classic title song. It has a killer riff and awesome solo by Ferris. The album never looses momentum, it has one killer song after another. Other standouts include "Rock and Roll Hell," "I Love it Loud" "I Still Love You," and "War Machine."

KISS attempted to regain focus, credibility, and popularity with this album. Although the album was not a huge hit at the time of its release, they mostly succeeded in achieving their goals. The band was reborn with this album and used it as a springboard to regain popularity with a sting of platinum albums in the 1980s. This album was also the end of an era, as it was the last KISS album to feature the band in makeup.

This is probably the best post Criss/Freley KISS album. If you are starting to build a KISS collection--this is one of the first albums to buy--along with ALIVE, KISS, Destroyer, and Love Gun.

Time has been kind to 1982's "Creatures of the Night." After the commercial failure that was "The Elder," the band decided to take a back-to-basics approach, and apply a heavier sound. This would set the stage for the band's rebirth w/o makeup for their comeback album, "Lick it Up."

When the album originally came out in 1982, Ace Frehley had left the band and Vincent Cusano (Vinnie Vincent) took over on lead guitar. Yeah, Ace is on the cover, but no, he's not on the album. Nevertheless, it's still my favorite Kiss album cover. While "I Love it Loud" got airplay, it only peaked at #102 in the US. The album peaked at #45, then dropped of the charts with nary a whimper.

It seems that fans redicovered how good this album was after Kiss started gaining a foothold again in the music industry in the mid-80's. After "Lick it Up," "Animalize," and "Asylum," new fans began looking back for more and latched onto "Creatures" again.

It ranks in the top five of my Kiss favorites ("Destroyer," "The Elder," "Dynasty," "Rock & Roll Over," "Creatures"). Much of that has to do with Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons having something to prove at the time. They were hungry again and had the desire to reestablish Kiss as a force in the music industry. It has since become a fan favorite as well as a favorite of the band's.

Considered by many (including myself) to be KISS' heaviest album, "Creatures of the Night" rips open with the title track and surges on through eight more rockers. While I have personally labeled a few single tracks on other KISS albums as "blistering," "Creatures" features almost nothing but "blistering" tracks. Even the pop-tinged "Keep Me Comin'" and "Danger" have a brutal tone to them. The lone ballad, "I Still Love You," holds its own as well.

Standout tracks include the title track, the banging "Killer," the anthemic "I Love It Loud," and gritty "War Machine."

As many have already stated, "War Machine" gives the listener a taste of the old Demon persona that put Gene Simmons on the map. Paul Stanley works all of his tunes with perfection, proving to listeners that despite the absence of Peter Criss and Ace Frehley and the lackluster reception of a few earlier albums, KISS was alive and well in the early 80's. While Frehley might be on the cover, he's nowhere on the album. Instead, his shoes are filled by a number of players, most notably Vinnie Vincent and Bruce Kulick.

The most important piece of this particular KISS album, however, is drummer Eric Carr. While he was featured on "Music From The Elder" and the new tracks released on "Killers," Carr shines on "Creatures." It's the first full-length album to showcase Carr's rocking drums. From the opening track to the end, Carr's superior drumming drives this album.

This particular version of "Creatures" features the band (including Frehley) on the cover in makeup with modified graphics and has been remastered. There are a two other covers available to KISS collectors, the original and an "unmasked" cover featuring Bruce Kulick. As with the original release, it is dedicated to Neil Bogart, the founder of Casablanca records. The liner notes featured behind the disc on the remastered version are excellent, primarily for the fact that a failed tour, personnel issues, and the removal of the legendary KISS makeup are bluntly (albeit briefly) addressed.

Along with "Revenge," I believe that "Creatures of the Night" is one of the best non-original lineup KISS albums. I think that it will satisfy even the staunchest Frehley/Criss fans and defenders. It's in my top five KISS list, and I highly recommend it to anyone wanting a taste of the best KISS from the 80's.

FINALLY! After the bland Elder,Dynasty and Unmasked albums, KISS crashed back to reallity and knew they had to regain the fan base that made them stars in the first place. Without ACE and without Peter, KISS went into the studio with a single mission, TO ROCK! This is probably the heaviest album they ever did. I Love it Loud, War MAchine, Rock and Roll Hell are the staples here. Vinnie Vincient was the guitarist on this album even though ACE was on the cover. I don't know why they had re-released this album in the eighties with an 'Unmasked' photo featuring Bruce Kulick. Anyway I'm glad they went back to the original one. This album rocks hard and it's great to drive to. The only part I usually skip is I Still Love You. It's another Paul ballad that Vinnie actually co-wrote. I really don't like it. It just seems to last forever with Paul screaming the song title. The only good part of the tune is Eric's cannon-like drumming. His drumming style is felt all through the album. KIS had finally let him loose and the album sounds good because of it. Unfortunately, KISS fans at this point was so sick of 'pop' disappointments, that they didn't even give this record a chance. In fact the 10th year anniversary was cut short and cancelled while touring behind this album. Thank goodness this classic has been rediscovered.

First, I usually don't pick favorites in bands, but, for me, it's hard not to favor Ace Frehley. Peter Criss is probably my second favorite although most people despise him for his solo effort; I feel that he is one of the best jazz drummers to be in a rock band, but having studied with Gene Krupa probably helps. The truth about Ace and Peter is that the two of them care most about the music, while Gene and Paul seem to care most about the audience (and maybe also the money).

Peter Criss was voted out of KISS after Unmasked, which he didn't do any recording on, and before that, he only played on one track from the album before that, Dynasty. Criss was replaced by Paul Caravello, who became known as Eric Carr. They recorded Music from "The Elder," which was their first and only album for the critics. Those three albums had been moving them away from the rock and roll style that KISS were so famous for. Right before recording what would become Creatures of the Night, Ace Frehley decided to leave.

The other members of KISS, hoping that Ace might change his mind, had Steve Farris, Adam Mitchell, Bob Kulick (who almost was the lead guitarist before Ace joined), and the legendary Robben Ford filling his shoes for tracks. When they realized that Ace wouldn't change his mind, they found Vincent Cusano, who would soon become known as Vinnie Vincent, take his place for the rest of the recording process.

This album is actually my favorite KISS album. As a line-up, I prefer the original line-up. However, with their six studio albums as a band, and two live albums, they had more than enough TOTAL AWESOMENESS. It's not that much better than Love Gun and Alive!, probably my two favorite original line-up albums.

Vinnie Vincent didn't get much of a chance to express himself in his way, like he did with the Vinnie Vincent Invasion, but the guitar solo he did for "War Machine" is truly Vinnie. I think that the members of KISS wanted to try to hide the fact that Ace was gone, so they had these other guitarists try to imitate him. However, they failed to bring in that Ace Frehley style, but what they brought in, I feel, works much better for the songs.

Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley have their heaviest songs written on this album. Even the power-ballad, "I Still Love You" is heavy. This album also, I feel, tops the energy of Alive!, Alive II, and even their new live albums. Every single track is incredible, which is what makes this album so great. This review should really just be one sentence...

THIS ALBUM IS A HARD ROCKIN' ALBUM THAT IS SURE TO BLAST YOUR SPEAKERS!!!