Kiss

Japanese-only SHM-CD (Super High Material CD) paper sleeve pressing of this classic album from the Glam Hard Rockers, originally released in 1974. 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.

Kiss's self-titled debut manages to simultaneously represent what rock & roll in the 1970s was all about, and stand up as a classic recording without sounding dated. That's a rare trick, even for Kiss (whose efforts after, oh, 1977 didn't do much more than tread water), and one that should be appreciated even as listening to the album brings back misty-eyed visions of high school. (It doesn't matter if you were in high school in the '70s, something about this album just screams late adolescence.) Kiss is, of course, crammed full of songs that would become concert favorites (most of this album appears on Alive!) and classics--who hasn't heard "Strutter" or "Deuce"? It's a slab of pure, unadulterated rock & roll. While this isn't especially thought-provoking stuff, it's arguable that rock ever should be. --Genevieve Williams