The credibility of Gene Simmons.

[bassguitarthund]

I was made for lovin you sounds 10x better live. Preferably from the Phycho Circus tour.

I was not a big fan of that song but thought the drum part when performed live with Eric S. was cool.

 

[Gecko 5]

Kiss got me interested in music when I was in the 7th grade.
33 years ago. Yes...I'm an old fart
I just downloaded Alive I last week from Itunes.
I understand much of that album was overdubbed/cleaned-up.
But yeah....I love his playing.

And.... Listen to Unplugged. Damn

 

[bassguitarthund]

Kiss got me interested in music when I was in the 7th grade.
33 years ago. Yes...I'm an old fart
I just downloaded Alive I last week from Itunes.
I understand much of that album was overdubbed/cleaned-up.
But yeah....I love his playing.

And.... Listen to Unplugged. Damn

I thought Alive II had a bit of over dubbing and not Alive I? Either way both great albums I loved the MTV Unplugged KISS cd and vid.

 

[fingerbun]

like for example you don't listen to a Van Halen record and decide that you want to be a bass player. You listen to an RHCP album and you hear this new and different sound (Flea is probably one of the few slappers that exist in a mainstream band)
it is a prominent sound you are hearing. I love both bands and am no way hating on one and I don't want to drift the conversation into RHCP vs. Van Halen but I am just supporting my statement by saying that a lot of older music has less prominent bass

Actually I think Michael Anthony is another great bass player, as is Flea. And Anthony does more than you might think do. And we could list others. Allan Lancaster of Status Quo, JPJ ijn Zep, Glover in Purple. Heck, go back and listen to the Beatles first single (I Saw Her Standing There) and hear how clean and tight the sound is.

I'm an old fart. When I was a teenager in the 70's the fate of a rock bassist was usually to lay down the groove behind some wanky guitar-hero wanna-be who thought the band was all about them. You either found artistic worth in that or you went elsewhere (different styles or different instruments).

If you want to do something different, great. If you want to feature in the show, great. Those things don't matter to me artistically. I can find joy in playing one note in a song, if it's the right note at the right time played with the right feel and shape. Maybe that's why we see it all differently.

As for Kiss....well from where I sit at least two of their biggest hits ("Rock n Roll all Nite" and "I Was Made For Loving You") are still staple fare. I don't believe you can do that on marketing alone, it takes a great song well executed. When you are older you will be aware of many songs that were huge based on hype, then disappeared.

Going back to your original criticism...try this. Take some of their songs, pick a specific passage, and say what you would change. And then ask yourself whether the original is wrong, or if your suggested changes are just personal taste.

For all that someone like Geddy Lee is a superior technician, I would rather listen to Kiss than Rush any day and for me it ain't the makeup...in the sense of communicating and striking a chord at least, Simmons is arguably a superior artist. Some of the great technicians play in such a way that you may as well listen to somebody practicing their scales.

All IMO, YMMV, etc

 

[Thrust Meatnozl]

I saw Kiss last night & Gene's playing was rock solid which, at the end of the day, is exactly the job of a bass player. Is he my favorite bass player? No. Does he suck? Of course not.

Hell of a show btw, those guys really know how it's done.