The pressure was on
Kiss for their fifth release, and the band knew it. Their breakthrough,
Alive!, was going to be hard to top, so instead of trying to re-create a concert setting in the studio, they went the opposite route.
Destroyer is one of
Kiss' most experimental studio albums, but also one of their strongest and most interesting.
Alice Cooper/
Pink Floyd producer Bob Ezrin was on hand, and he strongly encouraged the band to experiment -- there's extensive use of sound effects (the album's untitled closing track), the appearance of a boy's choir ("Great Expectations"), and an orchestra-laden, heartfelt ballad ("Beth"). But there's plenty of
Kiss' heavy thunder rock to go around, such as the demonic "God of Thunder" and the singalong anthems "Flaming Youth," "Shout It Out Loud," "King of the Night Time World," and "Detroit Rock City" (the latter a tale of a doomed concertgoer, complete with violent car-crash sound effects). But it was the aforementioned
Peter Criss ballad, "Beth," that made
Destroyer such a success; the song was a surprise Top Ten hit (it was originally released as a B-side to "Detroit Rock City"). Also included is a song that
Nirvana would later cover ("Do You Love Me?"), as well as an ode to the pleasures of S&M, "Sweet Pain."
Destroyer also marked the first time that a comic-book illustration of the band appeared on the cover, confirming that
Kiss were transforming from hard rockers to superheroes. [In 2012, Universal issued a Resurrected edition featuring a new mix by original producer Bob Ezrin. The in-album version of "Beth" is extended, featuring a verse not heard on the original release, while a version of "Sweet Pain" with an alternate guitar solo is added as a bonus track.] ~ Greg Prato