Album
Monster
Monster is the twentieth and final studio album by Kiss, released on 9 October 2012. It was recorded at Conway Recording Studios in Hollywood and at The Nook in Studio City, California, and it follows 2009's Sonic Boom as the second record in a row produced by Paul Stanley and Greg Collins.
The line-up is Stanley, Gene Simmons on vocals and bass, Eric Singer on drums and vocals, and Tommy Thayer on guitar and vocals. That makes it the second album from this four-piece, and it closes a discography that began with the band's self-titled debut in 1974. If you like your Kiss in straight-ahead hard rock and heavy metal mode, and want to hear where the studio story finished, this is the one to put on.
Monster: tracklist, credits and charts
12 tracks · 43:43Tracklist
- 1Hell or HallelujahPaul Stanley4:07
- 2Wall of SoundSimmons, Stanley, Thayer2:56
- 3FreakPaul Stanley and Tommy Thayer3:35
- 4Back to the Stone AgeSimmons, Singer, Stanley, Thayer3:01
- 5Shout MercyPaul Stanley and Tommy Thayer4:04
- 6Long Way DownPaul Stanley and Tommy Thayer3:51
- 7Eat Your Heart OutGene Simmons4:06
- 8The Devil Is MeSimmons, Stanley, Thayer3:41
- 9Outta This WorldTommy Thayer4:29
- 10All for the Love of Rock & RollPaul Stanley3:22
- 11Take Me Down BelowSimmons, Stanley, Thayer3:25
- 12Last ChancePaul Stanley and Tommy Thayer3:06
- Produced by
- Greg Collins, Paul Stanley, Greg Collins
- Recorded at
- Conway, Hollywood, California, The Nook, Studio City, California
- Recorded
- 13 April 2011 – 6 January 2012
- Mixed by
- Greg Collins
- Engineered by
- Greg Collins
- Label
- UMe
- Length
- 43:43
Line-up
- Gene Simmons · electric bass guitar, lead vocals
- Eric Singer · drums (drum set), background vocals, lead vocals
- Paul Stanley · electric guitar, lead vocals
- Tommy Thayer · electric guitar, background vocals, lead vocals
- Brian Whelan · piano · guest
Singles
- “Hell or Hallelujah” · 3 July 2012
- “Long Way Down” · 23 October 2012
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 · 2012 | 3 |
| UK Albums Chart · 2012 | 21 |
| US Digital · 2012 | 1 |
| US Hard Rock · 2012 | 1 |
| Norwegian Albums · 2012 | 2 |
| US Top Rock Albums · 2012 | 2 |
| Canadian Albums (Billboard) · 2012 | 3 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums · 2012 | 3 |
| Swedish Albums · 2012 | 4 |
| US Tastemaker · 2012 | 4 |
All 27 charts
| Austrian Albums · 2012 | 6 |
| German Albums · 2012 | 6 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 2012 | 7 |
| Dutch Albums · 2012 | 7 |
| Finnish Albums · 2012 | 8 |
| Swiss Albums · 2012 | 8 |
| Italian Albums · 2012 | 9 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 2012 | 9 |
| Danish Albums · 2012 | 10 |
| Spanish Albums · 2012 | 11 |
| Hungarian Albums · 2012 | 12 |
| Scottish Albums · 2012 | 15 |
| French Albums · 2012 | 26 |
| Mexican Albums · 2012 | 26 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2012 | 36 |
| Belgian Albums (Flanders) · 2012 | 37 |
| Ireland 2 · 2012 | 87 |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
65.3
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
630
ListenBrainz listeners
66k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
13k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Released the same week
Also released on 9 October
Every year →
More from KISS
Full discography →
KISS
1974
Hotter Than Hell
1974
Dressed to Kill
1975
Alive!
1975
Destroyer
1976
Special KISS Tour Album
1976
Rock and Roll Over
1976
Love Gun
1977
Alive II
1977
Double Platinum
1978
2000 Man
1979
Dynasty
1979
Unmasked
1980
Music From “The Elder”
1981
Killers
1982
Creatures of the Night
1982
Lick It Up
1983
Animalize
1984
Asylum
1985
Crazy Nights
1987
Crazy Crazy Nights
1988
Let’s Put the X in Sex
1988
Tears Are Falling
1988
Turn On the Night
1988
Chikara
1988
Smashes, Thrashes & Hits
1988
Hot in the Shade
1989
Revenge
1992
Alive III
1993
MTV Unplugged
1996
You Wanted the Best, You Got the Best!!
1996
Greatest KISS
1997
Carnival of Souls: The Final Sessions
1997
Psycho Circus
1998
Box Set
2001
The Very Best of KISS
2002
KISS Symphony: Alive IV
2003
20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best of KISS
2003
20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best of KISS, Volume 2
2004
KISS Gold
2004
20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best of KISS, Volume 3
2006
KISS Alive! 1975–2000
2006
地獄烈伝〜ニュー・レコーディング・ベスト〜
2008
Ikons
2008
Sonic Boom
2009
KISS 40 Years: Decades of Decibels
2014
KISS Rocks Vegas
2016
The best of 2012
All of 2012 →
Living Things
Linkin Park · 2012
Koi no Yokan
Deftones · 2012
¡Uno!
Green Day · 2012
¡Dos!
Green Day · 2012
¡Tré!
Green Day · 2012
Days Go By
The Offspring · 2012
Living Things: Acapellas and Instrumentals
Linkin Park · 2012
Clockwork Angels
Rush · 2012
Push and Shove
No Doubt · 2012
Oceania
The Smashing Pumpkins · 2012
King Animal
Soundgarden · 2012
La futura
ZZ Top · 2012
More on UMe
The label →
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia 2012-10-09; musicbrainz + wikidata 2012-10-05 (4 days apart, likely another territory)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 5 October 2012 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 9 October 2012 | |
| Wikidata | 5 October 2012 | |
| Deezer | 5 October 2012 | |
| US release | 8 October 2012 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 5 October 2012 | earliest UK or European date |
21 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 2012 | US | UMe | 602537160990 | other |
| 5 October 2012 | DE | UMe | original | |
| 5 October 2012 | XE | UMe | 602537112050 | original |
| 5 October 2012 | XE | KISS Records | 602537150205 | original |
| 8 October 2012 | US | KISS Records | 602537150205 | other |
| 8 October 2012 | XE | UMe | 0602537180363 | other |
| 8 October 2012 | DE | KISS Records | 602537178360 | other |
| 8 October 2012 | US | KISS Records | 602537150205 | other |
| 8 October 2012 | XE | KISS Records | 602537178360 | other |
| 9 October 2012 | AL | UMe | 00602537112050 | other |
| 9 October 2012 | AO | UMe | 602537132720 | other |
| 9 October 2012 | US | UMe | 602537112050 | other |
| 9 October 2012 | US | UMe | 602537159819 | other |
| 9 October 2012 | DE | UMe | 602537146512 | other |
| 9 October 2012 | US | UMe | 602537170906 | deluxe |
| 9 October 2012 | US | UMe | 602537144006 | other |
| 10 October 2012 | JP | UMe | 4988005738806 | other |
| 10 October 2012 | JP | UMe | 4988005730756 | other |
| 16 October 2012 | US | UMe | 602537144006 | other |
| 12 June 2013 | XE | UMe | 602537409662 | other |
| 16 October 2013 | JP | UMe | 4988005793829 | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · native: native 1500x1500
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1500×1500 | native: native 1500x1500 |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |