A lot of musicians break away from their bands and release their own singles. Paul Stanley, the songwriter for Kiss, decided to follow the trend by releasing Live to Win Oct. 24.

This is not the first time Stanley has made a solo album, as he recorded Slashes, Thrashes & Thrills in 1989.

The CD, which sounds like a mix of Aerosmith, Bon Jovi and Boston, encompasses a wide variety of styles, although many songs lack creativity and spontaneity.

Even while holding onto Kiss’s metal style in some songs, Stanley breaks away and experiments with more mellow compositions. Stanley is also more focused on his vocals than when he was with Kiss. This can be seen in songs like “Everytime I See You,” a song that is similar to the stylings of bands such as Boston and The Rolling Stones, where he focuses solely on his vocal effects.

The songs “Lift” and “Wake Up Screaming,” however, sound like “Cold Gin” by Kiss. Stanley constantly switches back and forth between the two styles, which can get annoying after a few tracks because you don’t know where he stands in respect to his music. The complete randomness of some of his songs is more jarring than entertaining.

Yet, a remarkable aspect of Stanley is that he does not hold back any of his talents. He is incredibly open to the audience and uses his unfaltering voice to convey his emotions. When looking at the lyrics in this CD, there isn’t a variety. It is easy to see his frustration with lyrics such as “No more shots to take me down/ You make me bullet proof/ I feel invisible when I am next to you.”

“Live to Win” will please any Kiss fan and is not a waste of $10. However, if you lean toward artists like Norah

Jones or Black Eyed Peas, you might want to skip over it at the record store.