Psycho Circus
| Psycho Circus | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
||||
| Studio album by Kiss | ||||
| Released | September 22, 1998 | |||
| Recorded | January – April 1998, A&M Studios, Hollywood, California, One on One Studios, New York | |||
| Genre | Hard rock, heavy metal[1] | |||
| Length | 47:03 | |||
| Label | Mercury | |||
| Producer | Bruce Fairbairn | |||
| Kiss chronology | ||||
|
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Psycho Circus is the 18th studio album by American rock band Kiss. The album features the original four members back together and in full make-up. Some pressings featured a lenticular cover that alternates between a black Kiss logo and the album title with pictures of a clown and the band members, while the Japan initial first pressing featured a pop-up cover which had 3 foam spring-loaded panels of a clown face and 2 others with band members faces that popped out when the doors were opened. The track "You Wanted the Best" is the only Kiss song in which lead vocals are shared by the entire lineup.
Contents |
[edit] Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Metal Nightfall | [2] |
| Sputnikmusic |  [3] |
| Rolling Stone | [4] |
| Entertainment Weekly | (A-)[5] |
 This table needs to be expanded using prose. See the guideline for more information. |
|
Following the highly successful 1996-1997 reunion tour, Psycho Circus was marketed as the first studio album by the band's original lineup since 1979's Dynasty (as Peter Criss did not participate on 1980's Unmasked). As with Dynasty and Unmasked, however, many of the songs were recorded by uncredited players. Guitarist Ace Frehley and drummer Peter Criss were used sparingly, with Criss only playing drums on "Into the Void." Frehley played on two songs from the album (not including vocals).
In a radio interview with Eddie Trunk following his departure Criss stated that only "Into the Void" featured instrumental contributions from all four members. Regarding the lack of cohesion in the group at the time of recording, Stanley stated "We tried to do a Kiss album, and it was an ill-fated attempt because there was no real band,"[6] and continued by adding "For a band to make a great album, it has to share a common purpose, and we didn’t have it."[6]
Psycho Circus debuted at #3 on the Billboard 200, selling 110,000 copies in its first week of release, and was certified Gold by the RIAA on October 22, 1998.[7][8] Rolling Stone (11/12/98, p.119) said about the album, "Psycho Circus is an album of platform-stomping rhythms, roller-coaster guitar riffs and sing-along choruses - is far more respectable than any of the awkward flops from the no-makeup years." Entertainment Weekly (9/25/98, p.106) said, "This is rock with a capital R, captured in all its cheesy glory... This new effort proves that in the circus of hard-rock dinosaurs, Kiss remains its Barnum & Bailey."[9]
[edit] Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Psycho Circus" | Paul Stanley, Curtis Cuomo | Stanley | 5:30 |
| 2. | "Within" | Gene Simmons | Simmons | 5:10 |
| 3. | "I Pledge Allegiance to the State of Rock & Roll" | Stanley, Cuomo, Holly Knight | Stanley | 3:32 |
| 4. | "Into the Void" | Ace Frehley, Karl Cochran | Frehley | 4:24 |
| 5. | "We Are One" | Simmons | Simmons | 4:41 |
| 6. | "You Wanted the Best" | Simmons | Simmons, Stanley, Criss, Frehley | 4:15 |
| 7. | "Raise Your Glasses" | Stanley, Knight | Stanley | 4:14 |
| 8. | "I Finally Found My Way" | Stanley, Bob Ezrin | Criss | 3:40 |
| 9. | "Dreamin'" | Stanley, Bruce Kulick | Stanley | 4:12 |
| 10. | "Journey of 1,000 Years" | Simmons | Simmons | 4:49 |
| 11. | "In Your Face" (Limited Edition and Japan Only) | Simmons | Frehley | 3:40 |
| Limited edition bonus disc | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length | |||||
| 1. | "Psycho Circus" (Live) | Stanley, Cuomo | Stanley | 5:34 | |||||
| 2. | "Let Me Go, Rock 'n' Roll" (Live) | Stanley, Simmons | Simmons | 5:33 | |||||
| 3. | "Into the Void" (Live) | Frehley, Karl Cochran | Frehley | 9:10 | |||||
| 4. | "Within" (Live) | Simmons | Simmons | 7:57 | |||||
| 5. | "100,000 Years" (Live) | Stanley, Simmons | Stanley | 5:17 | |||||
| 6. | "Black Diamond" (Live) | Stanley | Criss, intro by Stanley | 6:12 | |||||
A limited edition was released in Brazil after Kiss concerts in the country, adding the second disc with live tracks, like the Japanese release, but without the bonus track "In Your Face" on the first disc. In Europe this expanded-release was tied-in with the tour, retaining the prismatic jewel-case of the original CD-release but adding a new sticker to the front and amended tray-insert.
[edit] Personnel
- Paul Stanley - lead vocals, rhythm guitar
- Gene Simmons - lead vocals, bass guitar
- Ace Frehley - lead guitar, vocals (only on "Into the Void" and "You Wanted the Best")
- Peter Criss - drums (only on "Into the Void"), vocals (only on "You Wanted the Best" and "I Finally Found My Way")
[edit] Uncredited
- Tommy Thayer - lead guitar on all tracks except 4 and 6
- Kevin Valentine - drums on all tracks except 4
[edit] Charts
- Album
| Chart (1998) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[10] | 3 |
| Canada Billboard Top Canadian Albums[11] | 2 |
| Australia ARIA Album Chart[12] | 1 |
| UK Albums Chart[13] | 47 |
| Sweden Albums Top 60[14] | 1 |
| Norway VG-lista[14] | 4 |
| Finland Albums Top 50[14] | 5 |
| Austrian Albums Chart[14] | 25 |
| France SNEP[14] | 71 |
| Switzerland Albums Top 100[14] | 30 |
| Netherlands Mega Album Top 100[14] | 51 |
- Singles
| Single | Chart (1998) | Peak position |
|---|---|---|
| "Psycho Circus" | Netherland Dutch Top 40[15] | 98 |
| Sweden Singles Top 60[15] | 4 | |
| Norway VG-lista[15] | 8 | |
| US Mainstream Rock Tracks[16] | 1 | |
| Australia ARIA Singles Chart[17] | 22 | |
| "We Are One" | 40 | |
| Norway VG-lista[18] | 18 | |
| Sweden Albums Top 60[18] | 31 | |
| "You Wanted the Best" | US Mainstream Rock Tracks[16] | 22 |
[edit] Certifications
| Region | Certification | Sales/shipments |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada)[19] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[8] | Gold | 500,000^ |
|
^shipments figures based on certification alone |
||
[edit] References
- ^ a b Psycho Circus at Allmusic
- ^ "KISS : PSYCHO CIRCUS (1998)" (in (French)). Metal.nightfall.fr. http://metal.nightfall.fr/index_430_-psycho-circus.html. Retrieved 2011-08-22.
- ^ "KISS - Psycho Circus (album review)". Sputnikmusic. 2007-09-27. http://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/13655/KISS-Psycho-Circus/. Retrieved 2011-08-22.
- ^ By Lorraine Ali (1998-11-12). "Psycho Circus by Kiss | Rolling Stone Music | Music Reviews". Rollingstone.com. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/psycho-circus-19981112. Retrieved 2011-08-22.
- ^ Reviewed by Matt Diehl (1998-09-25). "Psycho Circus Review | News Reviews and News". EW.com. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,284987,00.html. Retrieved 2011-08-22.
- ^ a b Appleford, Steve. "Kiss “Born Again” With Walmart’s “Sonic Boom”: Band Talks New LP". Rolling Stone. August 17, 2009
- ^ Caulfield, Keith. "Kiss, Buble Battle For No. 1 on Billboard 200". billboard.com. October 8, 2009.
- ^ a b "American album certifications – Kiss – Psycho Circus". Recording Industry Association of America. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?artist=%22Psycho+Circus%22. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
- ^ http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=1246535
- ^ "Billboard chart history-Kiss albums". http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/retrieve_chart_history.do?model.chartFormatGroupName=Albums&model.vnuArtistId=5004&model.vnuAlbumId=66345. Retrieved February 12, 2009.
- ^ "AllMusic Billboard albums". http://www.allmusic.com/album/r373577. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
- ^ "ARIA album chart history-Kiss". http://www.australian-charts.com/search.asp?cat=a&artist=Kiss&artist_search=starts&title=&title_search=starts. Retrieved February 12, 2009.
- ^ Chart Stats - Psycho Circus
- ^ a b c d e f g "International album chart history-Kiss-Psycho Circus". http://swedishcharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=KISS&titel=Psycho+Circus&cat=a. Retrieved May 29, 2011.
- ^ a b c "International singles chart history-Kiss-Psycho Circus". http://swedishcharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=KISS&titel=Psycho+Circus&cat=s. Retrieved May 29, 2011.
- ^ a b "Billboard chart history-Kiss singles". http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/retrieve_chart_history.do?model.chartFormatGroupName=Singles&model.vnuArtistId=5004&model.vnuAlbumId=66345. Retrieved February 12, 2009.
- ^ "ARIA singles chart history database". http://www.australian-charts.com/search.asp?cat=s&artist=Kiss&artist_search=starts&title=&title_search=starts. Retrieved February 13, 2009.
- ^ a b "International singles chart history-Kiss-We Are One". http://swedishcharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=KISS&titel=We+Are+One&cat=s. Retrieved May 29, 2011.
- ^ "Canadian album certifications – Kiss – Psycho Circus". Music Canada. http://www.musiccanada.com/GPSearchResult.aspx?st=Psycho+Circus&sa=Kiss&smt=0.
| Preceded by Mechanical Animals by Marilyn Manson |
Australian ARIA Albums Chart number-one album October 4–10, 1998 |
Succeeded by Songs from Ally McBeal by Vonda Shepard |
| Preceded by This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours by Manic Street Preachers |
Swedish Albums Top 60 number-one album October 1–7, 1998 |
Succeeded by The Singles 86–98 by Depeche Mode |
