Kiss – ‘Lick It Up’ (2023) – 40th Anniversary Picture Disc Box Set (The Kiss Review Series)

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The ‘Lick it Up’ album, which came out on September 23, 1983, garnered way more attention than it’s predecessor ‘Creatures of the Night’ for one main reason. The band finally took off the make-up which is something they had been talking about doing since at least the ‘Music from the Elder’ era. They finally did it and the big reveal was on MTV during primetime. I remember this vividly as this was event TV for me as I was a lifelong Kiss fan at the time (and still am today). I remember seeing each member in make-up and then without and I remember thinking, “PUT IT BACK ON!!! OOOOH THE HORROR!!!” No, it really wasn’t that bad. It was actually pretty cool. And just like that Kiss was back in the public eye and they had some songs that could back it up.

Now, 40 years later, Kiss was rumored to be releasing another Box Set like say ‘Creatures’ or ‘Destroyer’, but those plans were squashed probably due to the fact the other box sets didn’t sell out…but who knows why. Instead they released a new Japanese Edition with a lot of little extras (but no extra discs or music) and a Picture Disc box set for ‘Lick It Up’ that included two 12″ Singles that were picture discs as well. They were limited to 3,000 copies and my copy is 1,729. This was way better than what happened to the Japanese edition which instead of #’s, a lot of them just showed XXXX…man, that would piss me off. The box is a heavy duty cardboard box embossed in silver rather than the white of the original album. It is quite nice.

I have already reviewed ‘Lick It Up’ in great detail which you can click here and read…Kiss – Lick It Up (1983). For this post, we are only going to show off the new picture discs and packaging for the box set. I hope you enjoy.

‘LICK IT UP’ – THE ALBUM

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The Collection – Episode 1: Needtobreathe – What’s In The Box?

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Welcome to Episode 1 of The Collection. This first episode kicks us off with a big purchase I made of someone’s Needtobreathe collection and I only bought it for 1 CD included. What CD was it?? You will see. The rest of the collection is a giant bonus! You’ll see CDs, Vinyl, hats, T-shirts, posters and more…

I hope you enjoy this episode which goes “live” Tuesday, February 20th at 7:00 PM E.S.T. Please do leave some comments and I promise I’ll address them as soon as I can!

Bon Jovi – “Borderline” (1986) – 12″ Single (Japanese Edition) – (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)

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While I was in New York City a little while back for the Final Kiss Show at Madison Square Garden, my brother and I did hit some shops and I found, not one, but two Japanese Singles from Bon Jovi. These were released back in the 80’s in Japan only and they are in such beautiful shape. I had to have them so I bought them. First up was “Burning for Love” and now we get in to the 2nd Single I found with “Borderline”.

I am not sure the reason behind this Japanese Only release. We are during the ‘Slippery When Wet’ era of the band and they release a 12″ Single for “Borderline” which wasn’t even on the album, only a studio outtake. It doesn’t make quite much sense. The opening track is “Livin’ On A Prayer” from the Slippery album, but why label it as “Borderline”??? Very confusing to me, but I don’t care, it is still a cool piece for the collection. The Japanese audience was always treated with special releases from Bon Jovi and better covers.

Included in the release was a lyric sheet for the songs in both English and Japanese…

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My Sunday Song – “The Age of Darkness” by The Darkness

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For My Sunday Song #400, we end Mike’s Choices with The Darkness’ “The Age of Darkness”. The song is from the 2021 album ‘Motorheart’ and the song is a Japanese Edition Only track as all of Mike’s picks have been. And a great run of tracks they were. This one is different. I will leave it at that and explain more as we go.

The song is not the typical Darkness song. The themes of the lyrics is a cross between Assassin’s Creed, Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings and King Arthur and any other song about Knights, dragons, castles and the like. The lyrics are full of humor and it is all done in good fun and for a good laugh, but at the same time, it is really great in it’s own sweet way.

The vocals are not Justin as you’d expect…nope. This is Dan Hawkins, his brother and rhythm guitarist. His vocals aren’t falsetto like his brother, he has a much deeper, grittier tone. He almost speaks the lyrics…okay, he does speak the vocals. And yet, he does them perfectly. The music is dark, ominous and pure metal with a Tenacious D vibe as well as Sabbath so it is to be taken seriously and not at the same time. If you like Medieval Times, then this song will be right up your alley.

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Friday New Releases – February 16, 2024

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Welcome to Friday New Releases and today we have a ton of new music for your listening pleasure. There are four that I really want to check out and they are Honeymoon Suite, Durbin, Crazy Lixx and Blackberry Smoke. But there is one that tops them all and that is the new Jeff Scott Soto album as he joins the band Art of Anarchy!! That one has been bought and I’m ready to crank it up. Jennifer Lopez has a new one too if you are interested (i’m really not, but you might be) or maybe Idles or Chromeo, who knows. Take a look and let me know what you want to hear this week or what we may have missed. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

  •  The Art of Anarchy – Let There Be Anarchy – (Pavement Music)
  •  Honeymoon Suite – Alive – (Frontiers Records)
  •  Durbin – Screaming Steel – (Frontiers Records)
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Def Leppard – ‘Animal Instinct: The Def Leppard Story’ – Book Review (The Def Leppard Collection Series)

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I remember August 3, 1987 really well. I ran to the store and bought the Vinyl, CD and cassette of Hysteria and on the way home, I opened the cassette and put it in the car stereo and cranked it. And the rest is history. Def Leppard was my favorite band in 1987 and after waiting four years since ‘Pyromania’, I couldn’t wait for the new album. When I got home, I opened the rest and inside the Vinyl, I remember an order form for the Def Leppard book called ‘Animal Instinct’ written by David Fricke who was Rolling Stone magazine’s senior editor and the photos were by Ross Halfin. I remember filling that in and sending a check and several weeks later the book arrived.

Now, years later, I would sell the book on eBay and make a hefty profit. Then years later, I regretted it and bought it again. After re-reading it, I remembered a lot of what I read the first time. The book is fantastic. David did a great job writing the biography of Def Leppard. He covers the whole gamut of the band which at this time wasn’t very old. The book opens with the car crash that took Rick’s arm and the effect that had on everyone, but it quickly moves to the origin story of Def Leppard and how the members came to be members of the band. There are some great pictures including the first photo of the band. That is what is great about this book. Not just the stories but the photos that go along with it.

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Aerosmith – ‘Made in America E.P.’ (1997) – Album Review (The Aerosmith Collection Series)

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I haven’t added anything new to my Aerosmith collection in a long time. The last post was over 19 months ago, but thankfully that bleak emptiness of a streak has come to an end. While I was out looking for music, I found this E.P. from Aerosmith that I did not have in the collection. It is the E.P. ‘Made in America’ which was released by the label on March 18, 1997. Which is the same day as the release of their album ‘Nine Lives’. This E.P. was exclusive to Wal-Marts across the U.S. and Canada and was purposely released to coincide with the new album.

The E.P. contains 6 tracks, 5 of which are basically studio album tracks. The song on here to get is the final track which is “One Way Street” (Live) as it hasn’t ever been released any where else. At least I don’t think it has. So, let us walk our way through the tracks and see what we have.

The album kicks off with the song that kicks off the album ‘Rocks’ and that song is “Back in the Saddle”. The song has a slow build with the drums and guitar and includes a wicked bass line from Mr. Hamilton and then explodes into a heavy rocker. The song includes a whip sound and some clanking spurs that were fastened to Tyler’s boots with the help of New York Dolls frontman David Johansen. If you were expecting the Gene Autry song, “Back in the Saddle Again” you’d be disappointed, but otherwise you love this song that kicks start the album and includes so many double entendres and even a quick yodel. What a way to kick off the album.

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Bon Jovi – “Burning For Love” (1984) – 12″ Single (Japanese Edition) – (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)

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While I was in New York City a little while back for the Final Kiss Show at Madison Square Garden, my brother and I did hit some shops and I found, not one, but two Japanese Singles from Bon Jovi. These were released back in the 80’s in Japan only and they are in such beautiful shape. I had to have them so I bought them. First up is “Burning for Love”…

Bon Jovi was becoming huge in Japan after the release of their debut album. To celebrate that success they did a Japanese only single release for the song “Burning For Love” off their debut, ‘Bon Jovi’ album which came out January 23, 1984. And when I say big, it is a relative term as it was their debut and the album did chart at #38 on the Japanese Charts, but they weren’t putting out massive #1 songs yet. They were trying to capitalize further on charting and trying to make a name for themselves. For the 12″ single that was released, it also included a calendar for the first 3 months of 1985.

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My Sunday Song – “I Am The Best You Can Get” by Hollywood Monsters

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For My Sunday Song #399, we are to a song and band I was completely unfamiliar with. The song is “I Am The Best You Can Get” by the band Hollywood Monsters. The song is the Japanese Bonus Track fro their album ‘Thriving on Chaos’ and was released in 2019. When I saw the lineup of this band, I knew all the players. It was Steph Honde on vocals, Glen Drover from Megadeth on lead guitar and Alexis Von Kraven also of Megadeth on drums. With this line-up you know then this is going to be one heavy ass song. And you’d be right.

I’m not a 100% sure the meaning behind these lyrics, but for me it seems that the person is going insane and the insanity has taken control of this person. The song is from the insanity’s point of view and he keeps telling the person that the insanity is the best you can get it. When it doesn’t it need him anymore, it will let him die I guess. It is a dark song no matter what it really means. This is how I’m looking at it and makes it most interesting for me.

Mike has this to say about the track…“Always a surprise when the Japanese bonus track is one of the highlights.  The heavy, thumping “I Am the Best You Can Get” slays!  “Heavy” is an understatement!  Vocalist Steph Honde goes from scream on the verses, to growl on the chorus.  The droning chorus is the best part!  This one features (Canadian) Glen Drover on lead guitar and Alexis Von Kraven on the relentless drums.  The Japanese CD even comes with a printed interview with Steph Honde – though I cannot read Japanese!” For me another best part is those drums. When Alexis hits those skins, it reverberates throughout your body. You can feel every beat. Mix that drum beat wit Glen’s guitar licks and this is a beast of a song. And kudo’s to Steph for giving every ounce of his voice to this one. His relentless screams convey the darkness of this tune. Great stuff.

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Friday New Releases – February 9, 2024

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Happy Friday!! Well, aren’t all Fridays Happy. Especially when you have new music to hear. This week we have a ton of new albums for you to peruse. And hopefully, you will find something you like. There are a couple I want to hear this week, first and foremost, the new Brittany Howard. What a powerhouse singer she is and her work with Alabama Shakes was nothing short of amazing. The other I’ll check it is the new Revolution Saints. I like Deen Castronovo on vocals so I’ve enjoyed these albums. What do you want to hear this week? What did we miss? Let me know. Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend.

  •  Brittany Howard – What Now – (Island Records / UMG)
  •  Revolution Saints – Against the Winds – (Frontiers Records)
  •  Smoking Snakes – Danger Zone – (Frontiers Records)
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