Brett Weiss

I spent two years between ages 12 and 14 listening to KISS virtually every day. Alive II was on a constant cycle among me and my friends - so much so that we could speak and sing every word that was uttered on that album. It wasn’t the only one, but it was definitely part of the soundtrack of our lives.

It took some time for me to receive this book and it was worth the wait. So much so that I read it in one sitting! This is not your average encyclopedia. This is a very detailed; very cross show more referenced volume of information that is perfect for super fans and average fans alike.

Organized alphabetically, each entry covers any aspect of KISS that you can think of: personnel, events, music, songs, individual projects, related bands, former bands, venues, producers, merchandising etc.

Not only are these areas covered, they are cross referenced. Some entries are substantial. This is true in particular about the members of the group – original and replacements. Each is covered in equal depth.

What I loved the most about this book is that it is not filtered through the Gene Simmons/Paul Stanley prism. Equal weight is given to Peter Criss and Ace Frehely as there is to Eric Carr, Tommy Thayer and others. Too many times in “official” KISStory, the story cuts out the original members who we grew up loving.

This is such a fun read. I literally could not put it down and stayed up way too late absorbed in all the details. After I finished, I dug out Alive II and flashed back to my teen years – black light posters, incense and KISS! It rocked! show less

This book really should be a three or four star one, but some iffy decisions and outright errors hold it back from its potential.

First, the good. While hardly the "titanic tome" author Brett Weiss calls it (probably being deliberately hyperbolic) in the preface, it does contain probably more information about the band and (sometimes very vaguely) related subjects than most people would care about. There is an entry for every past and present band member, KISS album (including the 1978 solo show more albums), KISS song, band that contained a past, present, or future band member, KISS tour, and album by a band with one of the original four members, along with ones about significant non-band personnel, record labels, merchandise, and more. Also, the length means that it can be read cover-to-cover in a reasonably short time if one wants to, so the vaguely-related entries aren't going to be missed by anyone except those who happen to notice them while looking for something else. (Who'd think to look for, say, "Popeye" (yes, the cartoon sailor) in a book about KISS?) Some of the entries are very short and don't really say anything beyond the basics about their subject, but these are usually ones about subjects that have only loose connections to the band. (For example, the Popeye entry contains only a couple of quotes by Gene Simmons where he quotes Popeye in relation to his life philosophy and a sentence about who created the character, when they did, and in what comic.)

Now for the problems. While a lot of the short entries are about only vaguely related subjects and (probably) contain all the KISS-relevant information about them, there are obvious exceptions. Some tribute album entries say little more than that the album exists and has however-many tracks by artists of whatever type, while most have complete track lists. Similarly, almost every podcast entry simply says that the podcast can be found at such-and-such a web address. More seriously, at least one topic is cut short in two separate places, namely the controversy over Nick Simmons allegedly copying art from Bleach in his comic Incarnate (both the entries for Nick Simmons and the Simmons Comic Group give Simmons's claim of 'homage' as the last word (although the latter entry does note that the title's publisher cancelled a planned reprint); actual side-by-side panel comparisons were available that suggest there may have been more to it than that, even if it was accidental). Some entries are also missing information that similar entries include (The Asylum entry, unlike other albums, doesn't mention the year of release, and some song entries don't mention which album they're from). There are also odd omissions, such as there being an entry for Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock which mentions the KISS song in the game and the ones available for download but not the Gene Simmons narration of the quest mode, but no entries for other rhythm games with KISS songs (eight that I know of, although some use covers of the songs in question).

Finally, there are the actual errors. While I only caught a handful beyond the omissions I mentioned above, they make the information on subjects I'm not familiar with look less reliable. Some are obvious and easy to correct mentally (figuring out that "Destroyer Rock City" should be "Detroit Rock City" should be easy for even the casual fan, even if the correct song name weren't in the same entry not long before the error, for example). Others aren't so clear on what the correct information is, even though the fact there's a mistake is clear (the entry for Badlands says the band formed in 1998, released its first album in 1989, and broke up in 1993, for example. While the first date is clearly wrong, there's no way to tell whether it should be 1988 (if the wrong key was hit) or 1989 (if digits were transposed), although the correct date (1988) is in a different entry). Some, however, won't be clear that there's even a mistake to some readers (for example, Dimebag Darrell's entry says he was a founder of Anthrax, who he only did some guest solos for on their seventh album, while failing to mention Pantera at all). If these and similar errors are fixed between the ARC and the print edition, my rating would go up to 3.5 stars. show less

As an avid KISS fan since 1984, I found this encyclopedia to be quite robust and all-encompassing. There was little to nothing that wasn't covered and a lot that was new to me. The band member bios were succinct, and every album and song was mentioned. (Although I disagreed with some of his assessments of the songs/albums.)

The included pictures are in black and white, but I liked that many of them showcased merchandise that was rare.

If you're a KISS fan, I think you'll find this to be a show more valuable edition to your library! show less

To the best of this reviewer’s knowledge, there is no science called “KISSology,” but if there were, this 227 page volume would be its standard reference work. And yes, there is an entry in this A-Z compendium bearing that headword – three entries, as a matter of fact – but in these cases, KISSology refers not to a field of study, but to the titles of record albums.
Essentially, this is a collection of trivia regarding the kabuki-clad rock quartet of Ace Frehley, Gene Simmons, Paul show more Stanley, and Peter Criss, known as much for their on stage pyrotechnics as for their music. From the prosaic (band member biographies, reviews of songs/albums) to the bizarre (“Caskets” informs the reader that this logo emblazoned waterproof coffin doubles as a cooler for beer and soft drinks), if it’s related in any way, directly or otherwise, to the core group, chances are that it will be found within these pages. Unfortunately, far too often what is related to the band concerns merchandise: articles on “Action Figures,” board games, pinball machines, and so on. While there are some substantial articles about books (both by and about the founding band members), films they have appeared in, production background of various songs, etc., all too often this book reads like a catalog of trinkets. It brings to mind the observation of H. L. Mencken that “Nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public.”
Weiss has previously written three volumes of Classic Home Video Games, all published by McFarland. His qualifications for writing this book appear to be limited to the fact that he is one of the group’s more ardent fans. Individuals that the author consulted in writing this volume are listed in an “Acknowledgements” page. While there are no cross references, there is a bibliography and index. Additionally, “A Brief History” gives an overview of the band’s collective career.
I was randomly chosen through a LibraryThing giveaway to receive this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” show less