Animalize

Animalize is the twelfth studio album by American rock band Kiss. It was released in 1984 on Mercury Records. The album marked the only appearance by lead guitarist Mark St. John, who replaced Vinnie Vincent in April 1984.

Animalize
Studio album by
Kiss
ReleasedSeptember 13, 1984[1]
RecordedMay–July 1984
StudioRight Track Studios, New York
GenreGlam metal[2][3]
Length35:42
LabelMercury
Vertigo (Europe)
Casablanca (Japan)
ProducerPaul Stanley
Kiss chronology
Lick It Up
(1983)		 Animalize
(1984)		 Asylum
(1985)
Singles from Animalize
  1. "Heaven's on Fire"
    Released: September 19, 1984
  2. "Thrills in the Night"
    Released: January 13, 1985
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Metal Nightfall[4]
Vista Records[5]
AllMusic[2]
Rolling Stone[6]

Background

At the time of the record's release, Gene Simmons was pursuing a career in acting. Paul Stanley was thus primarily in charge of the album's production and direction.[7]

New guitarist Mark St. John stated that when recording the record, he had utilized his Rockman gear, and that heavy equalization was used to take the "Boston" sound out of the recording.

St. John was forced to leave Kiss during the subsequent tour after being diagnosed with reactive arthritis. By November 1984, he was out of the band, the third lead guitarist to exit the group in two years. When asked what 'Animalize' meant, Stanley said that people were starting to become more like computers and that "making music by pressing buttons" was no fun.

Critical reception

In a continuation of Kiss' commercial resurgence which had begun with Lick It Up, Animalize was certified platinum by the RIAA. It was the biggest-selling Kiss album since 1979's Dynasty.

Critics and longtime fans, however, criticized the band's continued move towards a glam metal style on Animalize. Simmons fell into increasing conflict with his bandmates during this period for a variety of reasons, most of which revolved around his perceived lack of commitment to the band and preoccupation with numerous outside projects, including producing and managing other rock groups such as Black 'n Blue (whom Tommy Thayer was a member of at the time), bit parts in films like Trick or Treat (as a radio DJ), a co-starring role in Runaway, and an assortment of business ventures.

"Heaven's on Fire" became the biggest hit from the album (as well as one of the only songs to survive on the band's live setlist after the '80s), and its music video received heavy MTV rotation. It is also the only music video appearance of Mark St. John.

Guitar World magazine placed the album on their list of "New Sensations: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1984".[8]

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."I've Had Enough (Into the Fire)"Paul Stanley, Desmond ChildStanley3:52
2."Heaven's on Fire"Stanley, ChildStanley3:21
3."Burn Bitch Burn"Gene SimmonsSimmons4:42
4."Get All You Can Take"Stanley, Mitch WeissmanStanley3:44
5."Lonely Is the Hunter"SimmonsSimmons4:28
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
6."Under the Gun"Stanley, Eric Carr, ChildStanley4:01
7."Thrills in the Night"Stanley, Jean BeauvoirStanley4:21
8."While the City Sleeps"Simmons, WeissmanSimmons3:41
9."Murder in High-Heels"Simmons, WeissmanSimmons3:52

Personnel

Kiss

Additional musicians

Charts

Album
Chart (1984) Peak position
Australian Albums Chart[9] 40
Austrian Albums Chart[10] 14
Canadian Albums Chart[11] 41
Dutch Albums Chart[10] 17
Finnish Albums Chart[12] 4
German Albums Chart[10] 25
Icelandic Albums Chart[13] 7
Japanese Albums Chart[14] 23
Norwegian Albums Chart[10] 14
Swedish Albums Chart[10] 8
Swiss Albums Chart[10] 9
UK Albums Chart[15] 11
US Billboard 200[16] 19

Singles
Year Nation Chart Single Position
1984 United States Billboard Mainstream Rock "Heaven's on Fire" 11[17]
Billboard Hot 100 49[17]
Austria Pop Singles 62
Canada RPM 100 Singles 46[18]
Netherlands MegaCharts 34[19]
Sweden Topplistan 19[19]

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[20] Platinum 100,000^
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[21] Gold 25,000[21]
United States (RIAA)[22] Platinum 1,000,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

References
  1. "Billboard Discography – Kiss Animalize". Retrieved February 9, 2009.
  2. Animalize at AllMusic
  3. Westhoff, Ben (December 6, 2011). "Chuck Klosterman's Favorite Hair Metal Albums". L.A. Weekly. Retrieved May 15, 2019.
  4. "KISS : ANIMALIZE (1984)" (in French). Metal.nightfall.fr. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-06.
  5. "VISTA RECORDS – KISS – Animalize (1984)". Vistarecords.proboards.com. 2010-03-08. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-06.
  6. "Kiss: Album Guide | Rolling Stone Music". Rollingstone.com. Retrieved 2011-08-06.
  7. Kiss – Animalize CD Album
  8. https://web.archive.org/web/20140720062416/http://www.guitarworld.com/new-sensations-50-iconic-albums-defined-1984#slide-2
  9. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  10. "Albums chart history-Kiss albums". Retrieved December 16, 2009.
  11. "Search – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 9 August 2011.
  12. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 263. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  13. "Tonlist Top 40". DV. Retrieved 2017-05-29.
  14. Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  15. "Official Charts Companyhistory-Kiss albums". Retrieved December 16, 2009.
  16. "AllMusic Billboard albums". Retrieved February 9, 2009.
  17. "Billboard artist chart history – Kiss". Retrieved February 10, 2009.
  18. "RPM Magazine 100 Singles, Vol 41, No 15, Dec 16, 1984". Retrieved April 5, 2010.
  19. "Lescharts.com". Retrieved 2010-05-20.
  20. "Canadian album certifications – Kiss – Animalize". Music Canada.
  21. "Kiss" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.
  22. "American album certifications – Kiss – Animalize". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
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