Love Gun

Japanese-only SHM-CD (Super High Material CD) paper sleeve pressing of this classic album from the Glam Hard Rockers, originally released in 1977. SHM-CDs can be played on any audio player and delivers unbelievably high-quality sound. You won't believe it's the same CD! Universal. 2008.

The last album with the original lineup (unless you count the 1998 reunion Psycho Circus), Love Gun contains a few missteps (such as the reworking of the classic "Then He Kissed Me") but is mostly packed to the gills with the good, fun, trashy rock & roll that made Kiss legendary. One frequently overlooked high point is the song "Almost Human," which strikes a positively creepy note. Then there's Ace Frehley's first stint on lead vocals with "Shock Me," the un-PC but affectionate "Plaster Caster," and the well-known title track. True, there's no equivalent to "Rock & Roll All Night" (the obvious attempt falls flat), but that doesn't stop this from being not only classic Kiss, but classic 1970s rock. -- Genevieve Williams