In retrospective reviews, Matthew Wilkening of Ultimate Classic Rock described Animalize as "Kiss' most aggressive album ever" with some tracks "bordering on metal territory with their heavily distorted, uptempo attack."
Sales
In a continuation of Kiss' commercial resurgence which had begun with 1983's Lick It Up, Animalize was certified Platinum by the RIAA on December 12, 1984. It was the biggest-selling Kiss album since 1979's Dynasty.
"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.
Tour
St. John was forced to temporarily leave Kiss before the subsequent tour after being diagnosed with reactive arthritis. The group again turned to Bruce Kulick as a temporary replacement for St. John for the first two months of the tour in Europe. However, it quickly became apparent that Kulick gelled with the band's personalities and playing styles better than St. John; by December 1984, St. John had been officially fired and replaced on a permanent basis by Kulick, making him the third lead guitarist to exit the group in only two years.
Track listing
All credits adapted from the original release.
Personnel
Kiss
- Paul Stanley – vocals, rhythm guitar; bass on "I've Had Enough (Into the Fire)", producer, back cover photo concept
- Gene Simmons – vocals, bass on tracks 2, 3, 5, 8 & 9, associate producer
- Eric Carr – drums, percussion, backing vocals
- Mark St. John – lead guitar, backing vocals
Additional musicians
- Bruce Kulick – guitar solo on "Lonely Is the Hunter" and opening guitar in "Murder in High-Heels"
- Jean Beauvoir – bass on "Get All You Can Take", "Under the Gun" and "Thrills in the Night"
- Desmond Child − backing vocals
- Allan Schwartzberg – drum overdubs on "I've Had Enough", "Heaven's on Fire", "Thrills in the Night".
- Mitch Weissman − additional guitar on "Get All You Can Take", "While the City Sleeps" and "Murder in High-Heels"
Production
- Chris Minto – engineer
- Timothy Crich – assistant engineer
- Dave Wittman – additional recording, mixing
- Michael James Jackson – drum recording producer
- George Marino – mastering at Sterling Sound, New York
- Bernard Vidal – back cover photography
- Howard Marks Advertising – design
Charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
! scope="col"| Chart (1984–1985)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
! scope="row"| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)
| align="center"| 40
|-
|-
|-
|-
! scope="row"| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts)
| align="center"| 4
|-
|-
!scope="row"|Icelandic Albums Chart
| align = "center"|7
|-
!scope="row"|Italian Albums (Musica e Dischi)
| align="center"| 25
|-
!scope="row"!|Japanese Albums (Oricon)
| align="center"| 23
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
|}
Certifications
See also
- Animalize Live Uncensored