Carnival of Souls (180 Gram Vinyl)

Kiss: Paul Stanley, Bruce Kulick (vocals, guitar); Gene Simmons (vocals, bass); Eric Singer (drums). Producers: Toby Wright, Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley. Recorded at Music Grinder Studios, Hollywood, California. CARNIVAL OF SOULS is the last studio recording with Bruce Kulick and Eric Singer before the return of original members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss. Despite a 1996 press conference on the U.S.S. Intrepid that announced Bruce Kulick and Eric Singer were on a "paid temporary vacation," the two were dismissed months later after a reunion tour of the original make-up clad members proved wildly successful. As the sub-heading states, CARNIVAL OF SOULS is the last recorded efforts of Kulick and Singer with Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley. Drawing on music trends started as far back as the lean times of the '80s, CARNIVAL finds Kiss putting together a sound that draws from the dirge of Alice In Chains and the crunch of old-school Metallica. Much more somber than prior Kiss albums, nihilism runs rampant on songs such as "Hate" and "I Walk Alone." The mid-paced tempos of "Childhood's End" and "I Will Be There" inject some variety into a mix that includes Middle Eastern guitar phrasing in "Seduction Of The Innocent." In addition to Kulick flexing his instrumental muscles, two songs he co-wrote, "In The Mirror" and "I Walk Alone," feature lead vocals by him for the first and what turned out to be the last time on a Kiss album.