Review: KISS Astonishes In Their Farewell
By Vicky Sullivan / www.sarasotapost.com
KISS played Curtis Hixon Hall in Tampa on their first tour of the U.S. in 1974! In 45 years things have changed in the music business, technology, and the concert going experience. KISS has not only survived it all but has continued to break records in spite of losing band members, going through changes in modern day record sales and even taking off their makeup in the 80’s.
All said and done, Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer bring one of the most incredible, bombastic rock shows to the masses as they take their final bows in the “End of the Road World Tour”.
The KISS rock and roll circus is an extravaganza of epic proportions! The biggest pyrotechnics, smoke, amazing lights, zip-lines, risers, KISS balloons, confetti, the latest technology in graphics, blood, dragons and more. The KISS Army was out in full force, t-shirts and makeup to honor their rock heroes! There is no mistaking that you are at a KISS show, it is a world of its own. The diehard fans of KISS have stuck through thick and thin and love their band, Demon (Simmons), Starchild (Stanley), Cat (Singer) and Spaceman (Thayer). There were fans all the way to the top of the arena and they said the sound was great! They just wanted to be there for the spectacle of it all!
Making a total KISS entrance with “Detroit Rock City”, the band was lowered from the ceiling of the Amalie Arena, with an epic amount of fire and pyro that put the crowd in a total frenzy. Everyone was on their feet as Paul Stanley yelled to “Shout It Out Loud”. The band honored their albums by introducing songs by the album title they were on. In the world of digital music, KISS still sells an incredible amount of vinyl and there many collectors of their vintage albums. KISS has sold over 100 million records and was named the top American band with 30 gold records, the most in history at this time. Mind-boggling numbers, that doesn’t even cover the massive amounts of memorabilia sold over the years!
