It seems extraordinarily crass that the cover of this CD should depict Pretty Boy Floyd in their late-1980s Hollywood sleaze-metal heyday. Bassist Vinnie Chas – he of the crimped blond hair and mirror shades – died from heart failure in 2010. Yet here he is, surrounded by flames, his noggin hovering ominously above the words Kiss Of Death. Ouch.
This fire-the-art-director faux pas aside, the 15 cover versions herein aren’t half bad. Long-time PBF stalwart Kristy Majors plays all the instruments and his wide-eyed fanboy love of the originals is palpable.
There’s a handful of unexpected choices – Room Service from Kiss’s third album, Dressed To Kill, being one – but otherwise it’s the familiar route to Detroit Rock City. Even vocalist Steve Summers rises to the occasion, mollifying his usually irritating whine and sounding altogether, well, less irritating.
The world might not need another Kiss tribute album but even Whitfield Crane might enjoy this one./o:p
