Happy Halloween!

I hope y'all have a sweet and scary Halloween! Here's a playlist that you can keep on in the background for your party or what have you. Press Play, turn it up and click on the full screen tab. Enjoy!

The Shockedelic Radio Show EP 5:06 - "Lady Killer"

Prepare yourself for the best in International Pop Music. It's the NEW Shockedelic Radio Show! This is Episode 5, Season 6; "Lady Killer". Can you figure out the reason for the title? It's in this episode. Give it a listen.


Listen to it streaming above or download it below:

SRS EP5:06

Legal stuff:

It's a very litigious society, so please understand that this MP3 Podcast is presented as a radio show promoting new and lesser well known artists. All of the music here is copyrighted and the copyright proprietors retain ownership of the material presented here. No rights are given to the downloader or listener or are implied as such. In short, listen to the show and enjoy it, but don't go dissecting the program. If you hear something you like, track it down and purchase it. Supporting the artist is crucial. Make sure you do your duty.

KISS "Sonic Boom" Review

The new KISS album, SONIC BOOM, arrives on Tuesday only at Wal-Mart stores, but I've been listening to it for about 2 weeks now (damn this Internet). Of course, I'll be buying the 3 disc (2 CD + 1 DVD) package on Tuesday, but I really felt the need to hear what I was getting into in advance.

Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer have been stating that this album of all new material is All Killer No Filler. Gene Simmons even went as far as saying it was the best thing KISS has done since DESTROYER in 1976. As a longtime KISS fan (I grew up in the 1970's, so it was required), I staunchly disagree with that statement. Even when I gave up on KISS after UNMASKED in 1980, I still considered their makeup-less 80's output as pretty damn good, even though it wasn't my KISS. After the PSYCHO CIRCUS album, which I bought and listened to once, I was absolutely skeptical that these boastful... well, boasts were just that.

I'm thrilled to report that it is a very good KISS album. It's not a great, end all, be all, KISS album, but it's probably the most consistently listenable KISS album since probably 1991's REVENGE. What confounds here is that the album is a winner despite being quite schizophrenic. The Paul Stanley sung material sounds like CRAZY NIGHTS / ANIMALIZE KISS while the Gene Simmons sung material sounds like ROCK AND ROLL OVER / LOVE GUN KISS.

The album opens with the first "single", MODERN DAY DELILAH. It's a Paul song that, I admit, sounded a bit generic and limp on the first listen. It has grown on me since. A Gene song follows,entitled RUSSIAN ROULETTE, that evokes REVENGE era KISS, but the chorus definitely hearkens back to late 70's KISS. NEVER ENOUGH follows and, being a PAUL tune, reeks of CRAZY NIGHTS era KISS.

At this point, I wasn't impressed, but I wasn't quite ready to dismiss the album. YES I KNOW (NOBODY'S PERFECT) was the turning point for me. A Gene song, this song is so very 70's party rock KISS that I got a little emotional. The sound is reminiscent of a ROCK AND ROLL OVER / GENE SIMMONS (SOLO) outtake with it's instantly recognizable guitar work and the trademark chanting of "I Know" (if you're a KISS fan, you could make a drinking game out of how many times the phrase "I Know" is uttered on a KISS album). Gene's vocals and Bass work is the best I've heard from him in literal decades.

The album gets a bit confused with the song STAND. It's great because Simmons and Stanley trade vocals on the verses. KISS was always the best when there was vocal interplay, for my money. The Four Tops/(REACH OUT) I'LL BE THERE style vocal interjections by Paul lift the song up considerably. However, the choruses (Reeking of I from 1980's MUSIC FROM THE ELDER album and the shifting musical styles within the song are a bit ill fitting. HOT AND COLD, which follows, is a standard Simmons 70's throwaway. No great shakes, but infinitely better than anything off of PSYCHO CIRCUS.

Eric Singer does lead vocal duties on ALL FOR THE GLORY, a particularly 80's KISS sounding track. His vocals are nice and raspy a-la Peter Criss and it's a pleasing song overall. DANGER US is Paul at his punniest. Another great 80's sound.

Gene pipes in next with the heaviest song on the disc, I'M AN ANIMAL. It's a song in the I LOVE IT LOUD / WAR MACHINE mold and it really showcases the commitment Gene had to the project. It's a fist pumper.

Tommy Thayer also gets a chance to shine vocally with WHEN LIGHTNING STRIKES. His vocals are good, but his style is a lot like Gene's and it took a little bit for me to figure out who was singing at first.

The album closes with SAY YEAH. This is a great classic KISS song and the true anthem of the album. I mean, what's a KISS album without an anthem? It closes the album on a nice 80's vibe.

Paul Stanley's production works well simply because he understands KISS better than any current producer could. Another producer would have most likely tried an Everything Louder Than Everything Else approach and that would've killed it. The album also cheekily pays homage to 60's British Invasion and Motown Pop in refreshing and unexpected ways. In addition to the aforementioned Four Tops references, HOT AND COLD and SAY YEAH have sly Beatle winks in them and STAND shifts musically like a Metal GOOD VIBRATIONS.

Tommy Thayer, it should be noted, is the true star of the album. His guitar style is quite adaptable to each song and he plays Ace Frehley riffs better than anyone, including Ace. That is to say, Tommy balances the lead guitar work in a way that it sounds like KISS should sound without him losing his musical identity.

It's a highly recommended album. KISS fans are the intended target, of course, but anyone who misses Metal Pop should take a stab at this one.

I should also write that I've had the other re-recorded Greatest His disc for a while now already as a Japanese Import. You simply can't go wrong with that one, either. The redone songs are hard, raw and plain fantastic. This is how KISS sounds now and they sound better than ever. Unfortunately, the DVD isn't a complete concert, but a selection of 6 tracks from the Buenos Aires show this past year.All in all, though, for $12.00, you can't beat it. KISS Loves You. This proves it.

KISS M&Ms are going to be available at Wal-Mart, too. Awesome.

The New Kimura Kaela Concert DVD

Damn this recession! I've had the new Kimura Kaela Concert DVD, "Go! 5! Kaeland", ordered for over a month now and then I get this notice of a Premium box set version:

http://columbia.jp/kaela/

Yep, it's in Japanese, but a peruse over to CDJapan.com reveals the Box Set includes the following:

• Deluxe DVD box set release from Kaera Kimura featuring her Jury 11, 2009 "Go! 5! Kaeland" performance at Yokohama Red Brick Park. Set includes USB memory stick, memorial photo book, stickers, and mini-poster. Comes housed in an original can box.

...and it retails for $109.64 US (more than double the price of the DVD only version). Now, you know I want this. I'd kill for this. Sadly, I can't afford this. Oh, maybe someday into the future, but not now.

This doesn't mean YOU can't get it, though. Below, please find links to the Premium Box, the DVD version and the BLU-RAY version of the Go! 5! Kaeland Concert video.

Go! 5! Kaeland Premium Box (Title subject to change) [Limited Pressing]

Kaera Kimura

GO!5!KAELAND

Kaera Kimura

GO!5!KAELAND [Blu-ray]

Kaera Kimura

Video from the show to whet your appetite:

The Shockedelic Radio Show EP 5:05 - "It's..."

Prepare yourself for the best in International Pop Music. It's the NEW Shockedelic Radio Show! This is Episode 5, Season 5; "It's...". Can you figure out the reason for the title? It's in this episode. Give it a listen.



Listen to it streaming above or download it below:

SRS EP5:05

Legal stuff:

It's a very litigious society, so please understand that this MP3 Podcast is presented as a radio show promoting new and lesser well known artists. All of the music here is copyrighted and the copyright proprietors retain ownership of the material presented here. No rights are given to the downloader or listener or are implied as such. In short, listen to the show and enjoy it, but don't go dissecting the program. If you hear something you like, track it down and purchase it. Supporting the artist is crucial. Make sure you do your duty.

KISS' Sonic Boom!

KISS announced today that they will be releasing their new album, "Sonic Boom" on October 6th exclusively at Wal-Mart stores. As enticing (yawn) as an album of new material is, the real excitement will be the other two discs in the 3 disc set. KISS will be releasing a DVD of their "Alive! 35" Buenos Aries concert as well as (for me, the real reason to buy the set) the official domestic release of the Re-recorded Greatest Hits collection that was previously only available in Japan. The price for the set (in a digipak with 20 page color booklet) will be in the ballpark of $11 - $12.

I already have an MP3 of that greatest hits set, entitled "JIGOKU RETSUDEN ~re-recording anthology~" and I can attest that it's a solid offering. Well, you may ask, why would I want a disc of recently re-recorded material from KISS? Simply, this is what KISS sounds like now with Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer. Purists be damned, it's a fine sounding disc. It sounds grittier than the originals, yet the harmonies and musicianship is actually better than the originals. Should it replace the original recordings? Hell, no. Still, I've been listening to that disc more lately than the originals. I can also say, after seeing a bootleg of the Buenos Aries show, that it's pretty solid and will be great fun to watch.

I may sound like a bit of a hypocrite here, since I've been saying for years that KISS merchandising has given us everything us fans have ever wanted over the years except for what they should be giving us: A new studio album. So why am I so blase about the new material disc? Blame it on the Gene Simmons marketing beast. If you go to kissonline.com right now, you'll be bombarded with the lead off track from "Sonic Boom", "Modern Day Delilah" ("Is That You?" from "Unmasked" was a better lead off track) and a flash presentation featuring testimonials of how great the album is from... Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer. I really think I need more reliable testimonials than that. Also, Genie is spouting off about how this album is 'the best thing they've done since "Destroyer"' and it's '"Rock And Roll Over" meets "Love Gun"'. The album cover is already evoking "Rock And Roll Over" and "Psycho Circus". Really want to get me excited, Genie? Tell me it feels like the first three albums. That's really what I want. I would like to hear the Glitter rock of "KISS" with the experimental Grunginess of "Hotter Than Hell" brought together with the anthemic rock of "Dressed To Kill". I'd kill for that album.

You all know I'll buy it, though. ...If just to put Sophie through college.

The Shockedelic Radio Show 5:04 - "Shockedelic Soul Punch"

(Sorry, no mix tape design this time. "Says-it"'s generator is down. Here's a cool Shockedelic Cafe logo instead.)

Prepare yourself for the best in International Pop Music. It's the NEW Shockedelic Radio Show! This is Episode 4, Season 5; "Shockedelic Soul Punch". Can you figure out the reason for the title? It's in this episode. Give it a listen.



Listen to it streaming above or download it below:

SRS EP5:04

Legal stuff:

It's a very litigious society, so please understand that this MP3 Podcast is presented as a radio show promoting new and lesser well known artists. All of the music here is copyrighted and the copyright proprietors retain ownership of the material presented here. No rights are given to the downloader or listener or are implied as such. In short, listen to the show and enjoy it, but don't go dissecting the program. If you hear something you like, track it down and purchase it. Supporting the artist is crucial. Make sure you do your duty.