Those dastardly masked marauders from hell return.This time unleashing a beast, nay...a “Monster”.Thus, the title of their newest platter of big booted, glam stomping, blood spewing, fire-breathing madness, that in my humble summation cleans the clock of “Sonic Boom”. wasting no time on filler the album starts in grand fashion with "Hell Or Hallelujah" a four on the floor rocker that insidiously recalls the incendiary opening riff of "I Stole Your Love".Whether or not they plagiarized their own past is a mote point because, after all, no one ever told AC/DC the news.Regardless of minor implications this barnstormer kills. A great selection as a sturdy, muscled beginner.

"Wall Of Sound" sees KISS revisiting familiar terrain, notably those old “Lick It Up” stomping grounds, with emphasis on a heavier more riff oriented structure that I quite enjoy.Definitely one to pump your fists to, or pummel your cat to- if your into that.Next is "Freak".OK, this one is admittedly cliché, arrangement wise, lyric wise, ya da, ya da, ya da....But, it works. I can personally relate because the perspective is my life story and the author who penned it as well.Plus, it gets in your head like an earwig, burrowing and eating its way through your brain like so much mincemeat.Remember that episode of "Night Gallery"? Sheeesh!

Onward to oblivion we stride finding "Shout Mercy".Containing a hook sharper than a Shonen knife and very interesting interplay between rhythm, lead and drums, harking back to “Creatures of The Night” in feel interspersed with smatterings of “Rock And Roll Over”(must be Tommy's sparse lead inflictions) it is (thus far) contender for albums best. Kiss Army please forgive me, I am forgoing "Back To The Stoneage" (because it’s still growing on me and as the band stated is essentially a bad MC5ripoff) to segue -albeit rather sprightly- to "The Devil Is Me".This my dearest demon acolytes is prime Gene, bad megalomaniac attitude, tongue and all.Hearken ye back to ancient times and who's to blame for all the world's bestial atrocity? Not 'ol scratch but man himself and ChaimWitz is a prime proponent of sin, therefore the devil is him. Heavy as a ton of bricks falling from the empire state building, it would fit snugly amongst the well-worn vinyl grooves of Animalize.