Album
Psycho Circus
Psycho Circus is the eighteenth studio album by KISS, released in September 1998 on Mercury Records. It was the band's last record for the label, and the first since Dynasty in 1979 to involve all four original members: Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley and Peter Criss. It followed Carnival of Souls: The Final Sessions and sits in the hard rock and glam rock tradition the band built its name on.
The reunion was presented as a band effort, but much of the record was made with session players and KISS associates. Criss drummed only on "Into the Void", a song written by Frehley, while Frehley played on that track and on "You Wanted the Best", plus the bonus track "In Your Face", which Simmons wrote. All four members still took lead vocals, which makes it a curious chapter for fans of the original line-up.
Psycho Circus: tracklist, credits and charts
10 tracks · 44:29Tracklist
- 1Psycho CircusCurt Cuomo and Paul Stanley5:30
- 2WithinGene Simmons5:11
- 3I Pledge Allegiance to the State of Rock & RollCuomo, Knight, Stanley3:33
- 4Into the VoidKarl Cochran and Ace Frehley4:22
- 5We Are OneGene Simmons4:41
- 6You Wanted the BestGene Simmons4:15
- 7Raise Your GlassesHolly Knight and Paul Stanley4:16
- 8I Finally Found My WayBob Ezrin and Paul Stanley3:40
- 9Dreamin’Bruce Kulick and Paul Stanley4:13
- 10Journey of 1,000 YearsGene Simmons4:47
- Produced by
- Bruce Fairbairn
- Recorded at
- One on One (Los Angeles), A&M (Hollywood, California)
- Recorded
- January–April 1998
- Labels
- Mercury Records, Mercury
- Length
- 44:29
Line-up
- Bruce Kulick · bass guitar, electric guitar, guitar
- Tommy Thayer · guitar, bass guitar
- Kevin Valentine · drums (drum set)
- Paul Stanley · lead vocals, vocals
- Gene Simmons · lead vocals, guitar, vocals
- Peter Criss · drums (drum set), vocals, lead vocals
- Ace Frehley · lead vocals, guitar, vocals · guest
- Shelly Berg · piano · guest
- Bob Ezrin · Rhodes piano · guest
Singles
- “Psycho Circus” · August 1998
- “We Are One” · 1998
- “I Finally Found My Way” · 1998
- “You Wanted the Best” · 23 November 1998
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 · 1998 | 3 |
| UK Albums Chart · 1998 | 47 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1998 | 1 |
| Swedish Albums · 1998 | 1 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums · 1998 | 2 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1998 | 3 |
| Norwegian Albums · 1998 | 4 |
| Finnish Albums · 1998 | 5 |
| German Albums · 1998 | 5 |
| European Albums Charts · 1998 | 13 |
All 16 charts
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1998 | 20 |
| Austrian Albums · 1998 | 25 |
| Swiss Albums · 1998 | 30 |
| Dutch Albums · 1998 | 51 |
| Scottish Albums · 1998 | 61 |
| French Albums · 1998 | 71 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Canada · 1998 | Gold |
| Sweden · 1999 | Gold |
| United States · 1998 | Gold |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
71.2
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
1.1k
ListenBrainz listeners
121k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
9.3k
Deezer fans (all editions)
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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
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1978
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1979
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1979
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1980
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1981
Killers
1982
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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
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
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2008
Ikons
2008
Sonic Boom
2009
Monster
2012
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2014
KISS Rocks Vegas
2016
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Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia 1998-09-22 vs 1998-09-20 (musicbrainz)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 20 September 1998 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 22 September 1998 | |
| Wikidata | 1998 | |
| US release | 22 September 1998 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 21 September 1998 | earliest UK or European date |
17 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | CA | Mercury Records | 777495303526 | other |
| 20 September 1998 | JP | Mercury Records | 4988011360206 | original |
| 20 September 1998 | JP | Mercury Records | 4988011361289 | original |
| 21 September 1998 | XE | Mercury Records | 731453813724 | other |
| 22 September 1998 | US | Mercury Records | 731455899221 | other |
| 22 September 1998 | US | Mercury Records | 731455899245 | other |
| 1999 | XE | Mercury Records | 731453893825 | other |
| 22 February 1999 | XE | Mercury Records | 731453895928 | other |
| 9 June 2005 | JP | Mercury Records | 4988005391025 | other |
| 18 October 2006 | JP | Mercury Records | 4988005442932 | other |
| 20 March 2013 | JP | Mercury Records | 4988005749109 | other |
| 2014 | DE | Mercury Records | 0602537807543 | other |
| 19 February 2014 | DE | UMe | 0600753411766 | other |
| 5 May 2014 | XE | Mercury Records | 602537715527 | other |
| 6 May 2014 | US | Mercury Records | 602537715527 | other |
| 27 October 2014 | XW | Mercury Records | 00602547090218 | other |
| 27 October 2014 | XW | Mercury Records | 602547090218 | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1200×1200 | upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25) |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |