And We Thought They Knew How To Rock In Papa New Guinea!

KISS "Shandi"

KISS "She's So European"

By 1980's Unmasked, KISS had lost all sense of danger. Perhaps losing Peter Criss was part of that, but it was probably more in part due to Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley's increasing stranglehold on the direction of the group. Unmasked showed a new side of KISS, the kind you might hear playing in an 80s teen sex romp instead of a stoner's basement with black light posters covering every inch of the drywall. Gone was the mystery, and KISS was now accepted as wholesome, All American rock whose concerts you could bring yr kids to. They've been like this ever since.



Bringing drummer Anton Fig (of early Paul Schaffer and the World's Most Dangerous Band fame) in the studio to fill in on drums, Unmasked was KISS' first album since 1975's Dressed To Kill not to achieve Platinum status. Since the record was such a failure in America they decided to give it a go in Australia. They conquered Australia with a 1980-81 tour that went over like the second coming of the Beatles. The Aussies ate it up, including Unmasked's only hit single "Shandi". To this day, 1 out of every 14 Australians owns at least one KISS record.