STYX – Kilroy Was Here [Japanese remaster SHM-CD Limited Edition] **HQ**
Continuing the reuested Japanese cardboard sleeve (mini LP replica) reissue series of STYX classic albums on high quality SHM-CD, here’s 1983’s “Kilroy Was Here“. All these discs were released in a Limited Edition form and are collectibles now.
Styx leader Dennis DeYoung felt the only way for the group to top the No. 1 success of previous album Paradise Theater was to capture the band on film. To that end, he developed an ambitious concept that touched on themes of censorship, totalitarianism and the dangers of increasing technology.
“Kilroy Was Here” would star DeYoung as a rock star named Robert Orin Charles Kilroy (note that the initials spell ‘ROCK’) imprisoned in a future where rock and roll has been banned.
When DeYoung presented his idea to the group, it met with resistance. Concept albums had been commercially viable in the ’70s, but were viewed as passe in the new decade. KISS had only recently experienced an enormous downturn in their career from a concept album titled Music From ‘The Elder‘ and Styx guitarists Tommy Shaw and James “JY” Young both feared another concept album after Paradise Theater would pigeonhole the band.
Despite the mixed reviews, “Kilroy Was Here” was a commercial success, with first single “Mr. Roboto” shooting to No. 3 in…