09/30/2009
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Kiss News
09/29/2009
STILL MADE FOR LOVIN' YOU
By Sarah Rodman
They've been extolling the virtues of all-night rocking and daily partying for 35 years, and they're not done yet. Next Tuesday, the day after filling the TD Garden with its spectacle, Kiss releases its first album in 11 years, "Sonic Boom." Last week, the makeup-loving quartet learned that, 10 years after their initial eligibility, they made the nomination ballot for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We chatted with amiable Kiss guitarist-vocalist Paul Stanley last week as the band prepared to rock Cobo Center in Detroit, the scene of their first "Alive" album.
Q. Congratulations on the nomination. How are you feeling about it?
A. There's a long way between a nomination and induction. That being said, this is really something that I think is exciting. There is a very vocal segment of Kiss fans and rock fans who have wanted us in. And so for them I'm very, very pleased.
Q. What was the impetus for the new album, since you probably could've carried on successfully as you have until you retired?
A. I think this lineup [with drummer Eric Singer and lead guitarist Tommy Thayer] is so terrific and being in the midst of our most successful, biggest tour ever . . . it was so obvious, not only to me, but to the fans, how great the band is and how quintessentially we are Kiss. For me it was just a matter of one stumbling block, and that would be me producing the album. It really was about, at this point, making sure that I didn't have to make apologies for something that came out.By Sarah Rodman
They've been extolling the virtues of all-night rocking and daily partying for 35 years, and they're not done yet. Next Tuesday, the day after filling the TD Garden with its spectacle, Kiss releases its first album in 11 years, "Sonic Boom." Last week, the makeup-loving quartet learned that, 10 years after their initial eligibility, they made the nomination ballot for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We chatted with amiable Kiss guitarist-vocalist Paul Stanley last week as the band prepared to rock Cobo Center in Detroit, the scene of their first "Alive" album.
Q. Congratulations on the nomination. How are you feeling about it?
A. There's a long way between a nomination and induction. That being said, this is really something that I think is exciting. There is a very vocal segment of Kiss fans and rock fans who have wanted us in. And so for them I'm very, very pleased.
Q. What was the impetus for the new album, since you probably could've carried on successfully as you have until you retired?
A. I think this lineup [with drummer Eric Singer and lead guitarist Tommy Thayer] is so terrific and being in the midst of our most successful, biggest tour ever . . . it was so obvious, not only to me, but to the fans, how great the band is and how quintessentially we are Kiss. For me it was just a matter of one stumbling block, and that would be me producing the album. It really was about, at this point, making sure that I didn't have to make apologies for something that came out.
Q. Why have Eric and Tommy wear Ace and Peter's makeup? Were the characters they came up with just really lame, like sunflower man or something?
A. We've built those characters over 35 years and the idea that anybody owns those is ridiculous. We were there when they were created and we've worked our butts off for 35 years, so the idea that we should have "snail man" in the band is ridiculous. We did that at one point and realized that it really was a disservice to the fans because the fans know those four iconic figures. That's Kiss to everybody, and whether someday somebody wears my makeup, I'd consider it an honor quite honestly. It would mean that the band is continuing with the same philosophy and thriving without me.
Q. Say you're an aging Kiss fan who now only wants to rock 'n' roll part of the night and party every other day. Could you still be considered fit for duty in the Kiss army?
A. It's all about your attitude, right? It's not about quantity, it's about quality. So if it's every other day, it's allowed. Just make sure it's something worth remembering.
They've been extolling the virtues of all-night rocking and daily partying for 35 years, and they're not done yet. Next Tuesday, the day after filling the TD Garden with its spectacle, Kiss releases its first album in 11 years, "Sonic Boom." Last week, the makeup-loving quartet learned that, 10 years after their initial eligibility, they made the nomination ballot for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We chatted with amiable Kiss guitarist-vocalist Paul Stanley last week as the band prepared to rock Cobo Center in Detroit, the scene of their first "Alive" album.
Q. Congratulations on the nomination. How are you feeling about it?
A. There's a long way between a nomination and induction. That being said, this is really something that I think is exciting. There is a very vocal segment of Kiss fans and rock fans who have wanted us in. And so for them I'm very, very pleased.
Q. What was the impetus for the new album, since you probably could've carried on successfully as you have until you retired?
A. I think this lineup [with drummer Eric Singer and lead guitarist Tommy Thayer] is so terrific and being in the midst of our most successful, biggest tour ever . . . it was so obvious, not only to me, but to the fans, how great the band is and how quintessentially we are Kiss. For me it was just a matter of one stumbling block, and that would be me producing the album. It really was about, at this point, making sure that I didn't have to make apologies for something that came out.By Sarah Rodman
They've been extolling the virtues of all-night rocking and daily partying for 35 years, and they're not done yet. Next Tuesday, the day after filling the TD Garden with its spectacle, Kiss releases its first album in 11 years, "Sonic Boom." Last week, the makeup-loving quartet learned that, 10 years after their initial eligibility, they made the nomination ballot for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We chatted with amiable Kiss guitarist-vocalist Paul Stanley last week as the band prepared to rock Cobo Center in Detroit, the scene of their first "Alive" album.
Q. Congratulations on the nomination. How are you feeling about it?
A. There's a long way between a nomination and induction. That being said, this is really something that I think is exciting. There is a very vocal segment of Kiss fans and rock fans who have wanted us in. And so for them I'm very, very pleased.
Q. What was the impetus for the new album, since you probably could've carried on successfully as you have until you retired?
A. I think this lineup [with drummer Eric Singer and lead guitarist Tommy Thayer] is so terrific and being in the midst of our most successful, biggest tour ever . . . it was so obvious, not only to me, but to the fans, how great the band is and how quintessentially we are Kiss. For me it was just a matter of one stumbling block, and that would be me producing the album. It really was about, at this point, making sure that I didn't have to make apologies for something that came out.
Q. Why have Eric and Tommy wear Ace and Peter's makeup? Were the characters they came up with just really lame, like sunflower man or something?
A. We've built those characters over 35 years and the idea that anybody owns those is ridiculous. We were there when they were created and we've worked our butts off for 35 years, so the idea that we should have "snail man" in the band is ridiculous. We did that at one point and realized that it really was a disservice to the fans because the fans know those four iconic figures. That's Kiss to everybody, and whether someday somebody wears my makeup, I'd consider it an honor quite honestly. It would mean that the band is continuing with the same philosophy and thriving without me.
Q. Say you're an aging Kiss fan who now only wants to rock 'n' roll part of the night and party every other day. Could you still be considered fit for duty in the Kiss army?
A. It's all about your attitude, right? It's not about quantity, it's about quality. So if it's every other day, it's allowed. Just make sure it's something worth remembering.
09/29/2009
KISS TO ROCK SOLD OUT LABATT CENTRE TONIGHT
By JAMES REANEY
For KISS, it has been London, Rock City for more than 35 years.
The U.S. rock legends' KISS Alive 35 tour reaches the John Labatt Centre on Tuesday night, as they return to the city where they have action-painted dressing rooms with mayo and mustard, fished in Fanshawe Lake ... and had fans ready to sign up with the KISS Army since 1974.
When KISS first rocked London in the summer of 1974, the New York band was one of many glam rock pretenders. Even then, KISS had figured out how to shout it out loud in a colourful array, which included David Bowie and the New York Dolls.
"It was this big secretive thing about not seeing them without their makeup," says Ingersoll-area music promoter and media relations businessperson Nick Panaseiko. "They were the first one to incorporate dry ice in huge barrels ... they had Peter Criss's drum kit raised up by a fork lift."By JAMES REANEY
For KISS, it has been London, Rock City for more than 35 years.
The U.S. rock legends' KISS Alive 35 tour reaches the John Labatt Centre on Tuesday night, as they return to the city where they have action-painted dressing rooms with mayo and mustard, fished in Fanshawe Lake ... and had fans ready to sign up with the KISS Army since 1974.
When KISS first rocked London in the summer of 1974, the New York band was one of many glam rock pretenders. Even then, KISS had figured out how to shout it out loud in a colourful array, which included David Bowie and the New York Dolls.
"It was this big secretive thing about not seeing them without their makeup," says Ingersoll-area music promoter and media relations businessperson Nick Panaseiko. "They were the first one to incorporate dry ice in huge barrels ... they had Peter Criss's drum kit raised up by a fork lift."
KISS bassist Gene Simmons told Billboard.com that fans can expect to see "new outfits, a brand new stage and millions more (dollars) put into it" on the tour to promote Sonic Boom, the band's first new album in 11 years.
"That's just the history of KISS," Simmons told Billboard.com. "Simply put, any band you go to see for the same ticket price, you know KISS is going to give you tenfold more."
Celebrating 35 years of rocking the world in makeup and crazed costumes, KISS is expected to visit its megamillion-selling classics including Rock and Roll All Nite, I Was Made for Lovin' You and Detroit Rock City plus new ones from Sonic Boom on Tuesday.
In 2009, long-gone former lead guitarist Ace Frehley and drummer Criss have been replaced in the Sonic Boom studio by touring KISS members Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer. Simmons and longtime partner Paul (Starchild) Stanley are in place as always.
KISS cost Panaseiko, who had seen the band in Detroit, about $1,000 and pulled 900 fans to Centennial Hall for the band's first London gig on July 25, 1974. Future Canadian superstars Rush were on that bill and would soon become fixtures with the costumed headliners as KISS liked what the Toronto rockers brought to the show.
A Windsor FM radio station where Panaseiko worked had begun pushing KISS, helping bring the band to London. One of its personnel acted as MC that summer night in London.
"KISS was another outrageous band (like the New York Dolls) and we chose to have KISS on the air," Panaseiko says.
KISS was back before Christmas for another gig. This one was at the old London Arena on Bathurst St.
Panaseiko came up with a "Merry KISS-mas" concept to promote that Dec. 22, 1974 show. He also sent out some KISS impostors in faux Cat, Starchild, etc. makeup to build buzz.
The faux KISS visited record stores in a limo. It worked. KISS fans braved a huge snowstorm to see their heroes on a Sunday.
A real KISS-off was the way the storm delayed tour trucks for hours. KISS arrived late and demanded the arena be cleared for a sound check, Panaseiko recalls.
That request was rejected and the show went on. With their parents arriving to give them a ride home, many fans left before KISS started to rock. A Free Press reviewer was on hand. It appears the July show had been overlooked by The Free Press in favour of a choir from the Netherlands and a mystic called something like Dijon.
"Their style, though somewhat outdated, is unique," a reviewer wrote of KISS in time for Christmas, calling that style "thunder rock."
KISS kept coming back, jamming the old London Gardens again and again in the 1970s.
Once, when KISS came back that decade, they had an extra day here. Panaseiko says Simmons went down to play ball at Thames Park. KISS members also fished at Fanshawe Lake. They created a stir. Without their stage makeup but still wearing huge red leather boots, the KISS guys waded right into the water.
KISS stirred things up again at a much later London show.
That time, KISS decorated the dressing room at the old Gardens ... with mustard and mayo.
Legendary London concert promoter Don Jones discussed the paint-in with "one or two of the boys."
A new paint job was required.
"I'm sure they've grown up since then," Jones says.
On Tuesday, we'll see how much KISS has matured over the 35 years the band has been playing London.
The Free Press didn't think KISS would last, you know.
"KISS has something to offer musically but the glitter and whiteface is on its way out and if the group is to remain alive, it must change and face the future that one of its members (apparently Stanley, the Starchild) is supposed to represent," the reviewer said of that December, 1974 show in the snow.
It would seem the band has been able to KISS that off.
James Reaney is a Free Press columnist covering arts & entertainment.
For KISS, it has been London, Rock City for more than 35 years.
The U.S. rock legends' KISS Alive 35 tour reaches the John Labatt Centre on Tuesday night, as they return to the city where they have action-painted dressing rooms with mayo and mustard, fished in Fanshawe Lake ... and had fans ready to sign up with the KISS Army since 1974.
When KISS first rocked London in the summer of 1974, the New York band was one of many glam rock pretenders. Even then, KISS had figured out how to shout it out loud in a colourful array, which included David Bowie and the New York Dolls.
"It was this big secretive thing about not seeing them without their makeup," says Ingersoll-area music promoter and media relations businessperson Nick Panaseiko. "They were the first one to incorporate dry ice in huge barrels ... they had Peter Criss's drum kit raised up by a fork lift."By JAMES REANEY
For KISS, it has been London, Rock City for more than 35 years.
The U.S. rock legends' KISS Alive 35 tour reaches the John Labatt Centre on Tuesday night, as they return to the city where they have action-painted dressing rooms with mayo and mustard, fished in Fanshawe Lake ... and had fans ready to sign up with the KISS Army since 1974.
When KISS first rocked London in the summer of 1974, the New York band was one of many glam rock pretenders. Even then, KISS had figured out how to shout it out loud in a colourful array, which included David Bowie and the New York Dolls.
"It was this big secretive thing about not seeing them without their makeup," says Ingersoll-area music promoter and media relations businessperson Nick Panaseiko. "They were the first one to incorporate dry ice in huge barrels ... they had Peter Criss's drum kit raised up by a fork lift."
KISS bassist Gene Simmons told Billboard.com that fans can expect to see "new outfits, a brand new stage and millions more (dollars) put into it" on the tour to promote Sonic Boom, the band's first new album in 11 years.
"That's just the history of KISS," Simmons told Billboard.com. "Simply put, any band you go to see for the same ticket price, you know KISS is going to give you tenfold more."
Celebrating 35 years of rocking the world in makeup and crazed costumes, KISS is expected to visit its megamillion-selling classics including Rock and Roll All Nite, I Was Made for Lovin' You and Detroit Rock City plus new ones from Sonic Boom on Tuesday.
In 2009, long-gone former lead guitarist Ace Frehley and drummer Criss have been replaced in the Sonic Boom studio by touring KISS members Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer. Simmons and longtime partner Paul (Starchild) Stanley are in place as always.
KISS cost Panaseiko, who had seen the band in Detroit, about $1,000 and pulled 900 fans to Centennial Hall for the band's first London gig on July 25, 1974. Future Canadian superstars Rush were on that bill and would soon become fixtures with the costumed headliners as KISS liked what the Toronto rockers brought to the show.
A Windsor FM radio station where Panaseiko worked had begun pushing KISS, helping bring the band to London. One of its personnel acted as MC that summer night in London.
"KISS was another outrageous band (like the New York Dolls) and we chose to have KISS on the air," Panaseiko says.
KISS was back before Christmas for another gig. This one was at the old London Arena on Bathurst St.
Panaseiko came up with a "Merry KISS-mas" concept to promote that Dec. 22, 1974 show. He also sent out some KISS impostors in faux Cat, Starchild, etc. makeup to build buzz.
The faux KISS visited record stores in a limo. It worked. KISS fans braved a huge snowstorm to see their heroes on a Sunday.
A real KISS-off was the way the storm delayed tour trucks for hours. KISS arrived late and demanded the arena be cleared for a sound check, Panaseiko recalls.
That request was rejected and the show went on. With their parents arriving to give them a ride home, many fans left before KISS started to rock. A Free Press reviewer was on hand. It appears the July show had been overlooked by The Free Press in favour of a choir from the Netherlands and a mystic called something like Dijon.
"Their style, though somewhat outdated, is unique," a reviewer wrote of KISS in time for Christmas, calling that style "thunder rock."
KISS kept coming back, jamming the old London Gardens again and again in the 1970s.
Once, when KISS came back that decade, they had an extra day here. Panaseiko says Simmons went down to play ball at Thames Park. KISS members also fished at Fanshawe Lake. They created a stir. Without their stage makeup but still wearing huge red leather boots, the KISS guys waded right into the water.
KISS stirred things up again at a much later London show.
That time, KISS decorated the dressing room at the old Gardens ... with mustard and mayo.
Legendary London concert promoter Don Jones discussed the paint-in with "one or two of the boys."
A new paint job was required.
"I'm sure they've grown up since then," Jones says.
On Tuesday, we'll see how much KISS has matured over the 35 years the band has been playing London.
The Free Press didn't think KISS would last, you know.
"KISS has something to offer musically but the glitter and whiteface is on its way out and if the group is to remain alive, it must change and face the future that one of its members (apparently Stanley, the Starchild) is supposed to represent," the reviewer said of that December, 1974 show in the snow.
It would seem the band has been able to KISS that off.
James Reaney is a Free Press columnist covering arts & entertainment.
09/29/2009
KISS PHOTOS FROM DETROIT ROCK CITY!
09/29/2009
STILL ROCKIN' IN DETROIT
Our pal and photographer John Davisson is a huge Kiss fan. So much so that he flew from his home in Florida to Detroit last week, joining fellow Pollstar photog Scott Legato to witness the band launch their Alive 35 tour. Since none of us could get the time off from our six jobs to be there, we asked him to give us (and you) a fan's-eye view of things.
I grew up with Kiss in the late '70s. I got my cerebral rock from Rush, my bluesy roots rock from Aerosmith, my operatic rock from Queen and my aggression from Ted Nugent. But it was Kiss when I wanted to "rock and roll all night and party every day." Like a lot of teenagers, I had posters of my favorite bands plastered all over my walls. Kiss dominated them all. Partly because they had the best posters (and the most). Their Alive II tour was one of my first concerts.
I used to read the magazines about Kiss to learn my Kisstory and today I still know their real names, their vices and motivators. On the Dynasty tour, I was able to sneak in a camera (anybody remember 110 Instamatic cameras, the camera-phone of the day?). That lead to a passion for photographing concerts which grew from that Instamatic to 35mm and eventually to digital photography. Now I'm a respected senior music photographer with photos published in many outlets. Thanks guys!Our pal and photographer John Davisson is a huge Kiss fan. So much so that he flew from his home in Florida to Detroit last week, joining fellow Pollstar photog Scott Legato to witness the band launch their Alive 35 tour. Since none of us could get the time off from our six jobs to be there, we asked him to give us (and you) a fan's-eye view of things.
I grew up with Kiss in the late '70s. I got my cerebral rock from Rush, my bluesy roots rock from Aerosmith, my operatic rock from Queen and my aggression from Ted Nugent. But it was Kiss when I wanted to "rock and roll all night and party every day." Like a lot of teenagers, I had posters of my favorite bands plastered all over my walls. Kiss dominated them all. Partly because they had the best posters (and the most). Their Alive II tour was one of my first concerts.
I used to read the magazines about Kiss to learn my Kisstory and today I still know their real names, their vices and motivators. On the Dynasty tour, I was able to sneak in a camera (anybody remember 110 Instamatic cameras, the camera-phone of the day?). That lead to a passion for photographing concerts which grew from that Instamatic to 35mm and eventually to digital photography. Now I'm a respected senior music photographer with photos published in many outlets. Thanks guys!
So it was with great zeal that I headed to Detroit to see Kiss open their US tour with a two-night stand at Cobo Arena, the venue that helped propel them into the arena rock realm after they recorded the first Alive album there in the 70's. Cobo Arena, now one of the older arenas in the country, is about to be retired so the band felt it best to pay their last respects to the place that was so much a part of the Kiss success story.
The guys invited some fans to the venue the night before the first show for a meet and greet, a brief dress rehearsal, to watch the recording of a few songs for "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and to watch them film some scenes for "Modern Day Delilah," the first video from their upcoming album Sonic Boom (out Oct. 6).
Kiss' Alive 35 tour is a celebration of three-and-a-half decades of Kisstory and a tribute to Alive. So the band kicked off the first night by playing the album, almost in its entirety and pretty close to the original running order. For some reason, they dropped "Firehouse" and "Rock Bottom."
Ace Frehley and Peter Criss are no longer touring with Kiss, replaced by Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer respectively. Hearing classics like "She," "Deuce," "Strutter," "Got to Choose," and "Parasite" was still a real treat though. Gene Simmons breathed fire during "Hotter Than Hell" and there was some nice pyro throughout, especially during "100,000 Years" and "Rock and Roll All Nite." Tommy Thayer had a guitar solo that featured fireworks shooting from his guitar, just like Ace's used to. Eric Singer's drum kit elevated and revolved during his drum solo.
The show ended with a long encore that brought the Kisstory into the present with "Shout It Out Loud," "Lick It Up," "I Love It Loud" (during which Gene spit blood and flew up to the lighting rig) and "Modern Day Delilah." Then Paul Stanley stepped onto a winch that carried him over the audience to a revolving second stage at the back of the hall for "Love Gun." The final song of the night was a final thank you to the city � a pyro-heavy "Detroit Rock City."
The stage and costumes might have been a little different but it was still the spectacle I know and love from Kiss, with enough confetti to completely cover the floor by the end of the show. Kiss is still very much alive 35 years after they started. And that makes this fan, and the legion of fans that make up the Kiss Army, very happy.
- John Davisson
I grew up with Kiss in the late '70s. I got my cerebral rock from Rush, my bluesy roots rock from Aerosmith, my operatic rock from Queen and my aggression from Ted Nugent. But it was Kiss when I wanted to "rock and roll all night and party every day." Like a lot of teenagers, I had posters of my favorite bands plastered all over my walls. Kiss dominated them all. Partly because they had the best posters (and the most). Their Alive II tour was one of my first concerts.
I used to read the magazines about Kiss to learn my Kisstory and today I still know their real names, their vices and motivators. On the Dynasty tour, I was able to sneak in a camera (anybody remember 110 Instamatic cameras, the camera-phone of the day?). That lead to a passion for photographing concerts which grew from that Instamatic to 35mm and eventually to digital photography. Now I'm a respected senior music photographer with photos published in many outlets. Thanks guys!Our pal and photographer John Davisson is a huge Kiss fan. So much so that he flew from his home in Florida to Detroit last week, joining fellow Pollstar photog Scott Legato to witness the band launch their Alive 35 tour. Since none of us could get the time off from our six jobs to be there, we asked him to give us (and you) a fan's-eye view of things.
I grew up with Kiss in the late '70s. I got my cerebral rock from Rush, my bluesy roots rock from Aerosmith, my operatic rock from Queen and my aggression from Ted Nugent. But it was Kiss when I wanted to "rock and roll all night and party every day." Like a lot of teenagers, I had posters of my favorite bands plastered all over my walls. Kiss dominated them all. Partly because they had the best posters (and the most). Their Alive II tour was one of my first concerts.
I used to read the magazines about Kiss to learn my Kisstory and today I still know their real names, their vices and motivators. On the Dynasty tour, I was able to sneak in a camera (anybody remember 110 Instamatic cameras, the camera-phone of the day?). That lead to a passion for photographing concerts which grew from that Instamatic to 35mm and eventually to digital photography. Now I'm a respected senior music photographer with photos published in many outlets. Thanks guys!
So it was with great zeal that I headed to Detroit to see Kiss open their US tour with a two-night stand at Cobo Arena, the venue that helped propel them into the arena rock realm after they recorded the first Alive album there in the 70's. Cobo Arena, now one of the older arenas in the country, is about to be retired so the band felt it best to pay their last respects to the place that was so much a part of the Kiss success story.
The guys invited some fans to the venue the night before the first show for a meet and greet, a brief dress rehearsal, to watch the recording of a few songs for "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and to watch them film some scenes for "Modern Day Delilah," the first video from their upcoming album Sonic Boom (out Oct. 6).
Kiss' Alive 35 tour is a celebration of three-and-a-half decades of Kisstory and a tribute to Alive. So the band kicked off the first night by playing the album, almost in its entirety and pretty close to the original running order. For some reason, they dropped "Firehouse" and "Rock Bottom."
Ace Frehley and Peter Criss are no longer touring with Kiss, replaced by Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer respectively. Hearing classics like "She," "Deuce," "Strutter," "Got to Choose," and "Parasite" was still a real treat though. Gene Simmons breathed fire during "Hotter Than Hell" and there was some nice pyro throughout, especially during "100,000 Years" and "Rock and Roll All Nite." Tommy Thayer had a guitar solo that featured fireworks shooting from his guitar, just like Ace's used to. Eric Singer's drum kit elevated and revolved during his drum solo.
The show ended with a long encore that brought the Kisstory into the present with "Shout It Out Loud," "Lick It Up," "I Love It Loud" (during which Gene spit blood and flew up to the lighting rig) and "Modern Day Delilah." Then Paul Stanley stepped onto a winch that carried him over the audience to a revolving second stage at the back of the hall for "Love Gun." The final song of the night was a final thank you to the city � a pyro-heavy "Detroit Rock City."
The stage and costumes might have been a little different but it was still the spectacle I know and love from Kiss, with enough confetti to completely cover the floor by the end of the show. Kiss is still very much alive 35 years after they started. And that makes this fan, and the legion of fans that make up the Kiss Army, very happy.
- John Davisson
09/29/2009
SPARKS FLY AND BLOOD SPEWS
By D.X. Ferris
Photograph by Matt Mitchell
Halloween arrived early last night, when the Kiss Army invaded downtown Cleveland, Ohio, for a concert at Quicken Loans Arena. The show was the second stop of the Kiss Alive 35 tour, following a sold-out two-night stand in Detroit Rock City. The trek celebrates the 35th anniversary of Alive!, the band's first landmark live album - one of RS' Greatest Albums of All Time - which helped elevate the group from a New York makeup act to international rock icons.
With some luck, Kiss will return to the city in a few months: Last week, after a decade of eligibility, the popular favorite received a nomination to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which is headquartered blocks away from Q.
The arena was dotted with convention-worthy costumes and fans in pedestrian fatigues and face-paint. Couples wore black-and-white Gene-and-Paul designs, dads and sons sported matching makeup, and an elementary schoolgirl looked so comfortable painted as Starchild you'd think she was at a Dora the Explorer Live! show.
As frontman Paul Stanley proclaimed early in the set, "Tonight is all about celebrating the history of the band and the relationship with the Kiss Army."By D.X. Ferris
Photograph by Matt Mitchell
Halloween arrived early last night, when the Kiss Army invaded downtown Cleveland, Ohio, for a concert at Quicken Loans Arena. The show was the second stop of the Kiss Alive 35 tour, following a sold-out two-night stand in Detroit Rock City. The trek celebrates the 35th anniversary of Alive!, the band's first landmark live album - one of RS' Greatest Albums of All Time - which helped elevate the group from a New York makeup act to international rock icons.
With some luck, Kiss will return to the city in a few months: Last week, after a decade of eligibility, the popular favorite received a nomination to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which is headquartered blocks away from Q.
The arena was dotted with convention-worthy costumes and fans in pedestrian fatigues and face-paint. Couples wore black-and-white Gene-and-Paul designs, dads and sons sported matching makeup, and an elementary schoolgirl looked so comfortable painted as Starchild you'd think she was at a Dora the Explorer Live! show.
As frontman Paul Stanley proclaimed early in the set, "Tonight is all about celebrating the history of the band and the relationship with the Kiss Army."
In the years that followed Alive!, detractors have had a lot to say about Kiss, through its concept albums, solo indulgences, collectible dolls, unmasking, remasking, and forays into reality TV. But few have ever accused the band of putting on a bad show. And they still can't, regardless of what you think about their hard-chugging music and lyrics about rock, gin, loose women, liberated women, unwilling women and coerced women.
Some historical maritime skirmishes on nearby Lake Erie didn't use as much pyro and explosives as the group brought. Flame, fog, and fireworks surrounded rotating high-rise platforms. And the band looked like they have since bringing back the makeup in 1996. This stage set featured a trademark lit-up KISS logo under a tall large drum riser, and a video screen as wide as the stage was flanked by two smaller displays.
With under-arm wings and a wagging tongue you can see from the cheap seats, Gene Simmons is still a convincing, deep-voiced demon. He spat blood and flew to the top of the lighting rig, where he sang "I Love It Loud." As the band launched into "Love Gun," Stanley the Starchild zipped on a wire from the stage to a platform in the back of the arena. Over the set, he ran through his repertoire of reliable moves - disco strut, head-scratch, butt-shake, and stripper-style hip-wiggle. His voice was a hit - his pipes, after all, were strong enough to score him a starring role in a production of Phantom of the Opera.
Guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer were also on point. Wearing Spaceman and Catman makeup designs, the two recent additions expertly improved upon their predecessors. During a spotlight solo, Thayer wielded a guitar that spewed sparks, and gunned down a chunk of the lighting rig.
The set was an expanded staging of Alive!, with extra - in the words of Stanley - "classic classics" from the 1976's Destroyer, plus "Modern Day Delilah," the promising new single from the imminent throwback-style LP, Sonic Boom. The group made just two brief nods to its unmasked, no-makeup period of the '80s and '90s: "Lick It Up" and, as the crowd exited, "God Gave Rock N Roll To You II" played over the P.A. system like rolling-credits music from a big-budget movie.
The Kiss Army left the arena and spilled the street, chanting the "hey-yeah" refrain from "I Love It Loud." Fan Greg Krol grew up with the classic records and first saw the band on 1984's Animalize tour. He gave it a thumbs-up: "Best Kiss set ever."
Set List:
Deuce
Strutter
Got to Choose
Let Me Go, Rock N Roll
Modern Day Delilah
Hotter Than Hell
Nothing to Lose
C'Mon and Love Me
Parasite
She
Guitar solo
Watchin' You
100,000 Years
Drum solo
(Paul teases crowd with the first bar of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven")
Black Diamond
Rock and Roll All Nite
Encore:
Shout It Out Loud
Lick It Up (with a brief instrumental interpolation of the Who's Baba O'Riley)
Bass solo
I Love It Loud
Cold Gin
Love Gun
Detroit Rock City
Photograph by Matt Mitchell
Halloween arrived early last night, when the Kiss Army invaded downtown Cleveland, Ohio, for a concert at Quicken Loans Arena. The show was the second stop of the Kiss Alive 35 tour, following a sold-out two-night stand in Detroit Rock City. The trek celebrates the 35th anniversary of Alive!, the band's first landmark live album - one of RS' Greatest Albums of All Time - which helped elevate the group from a New York makeup act to international rock icons.
With some luck, Kiss will return to the city in a few months: Last week, after a decade of eligibility, the popular favorite received a nomination to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which is headquartered blocks away from Q.
The arena was dotted with convention-worthy costumes and fans in pedestrian fatigues and face-paint. Couples wore black-and-white Gene-and-Paul designs, dads and sons sported matching makeup, and an elementary schoolgirl looked so comfortable painted as Starchild you'd think she was at a Dora the Explorer Live! show.
As frontman Paul Stanley proclaimed early in the set, "Tonight is all about celebrating the history of the band and the relationship with the Kiss Army."By D.X. Ferris
Photograph by Matt Mitchell
Halloween arrived early last night, when the Kiss Army invaded downtown Cleveland, Ohio, for a concert at Quicken Loans Arena. The show was the second stop of the Kiss Alive 35 tour, following a sold-out two-night stand in Detroit Rock City. The trek celebrates the 35th anniversary of Alive!, the band's first landmark live album - one of RS' Greatest Albums of All Time - which helped elevate the group from a New York makeup act to international rock icons.
With some luck, Kiss will return to the city in a few months: Last week, after a decade of eligibility, the popular favorite received a nomination to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which is headquartered blocks away from Q.
The arena was dotted with convention-worthy costumes and fans in pedestrian fatigues and face-paint. Couples wore black-and-white Gene-and-Paul designs, dads and sons sported matching makeup, and an elementary schoolgirl looked so comfortable painted as Starchild you'd think she was at a Dora the Explorer Live! show.
As frontman Paul Stanley proclaimed early in the set, "Tonight is all about celebrating the history of the band and the relationship with the Kiss Army."
In the years that followed Alive!, detractors have had a lot to say about Kiss, through its concept albums, solo indulgences, collectible dolls, unmasking, remasking, and forays into reality TV. But few have ever accused the band of putting on a bad show. And they still can't, regardless of what you think about their hard-chugging music and lyrics about rock, gin, loose women, liberated women, unwilling women and coerced women.
Some historical maritime skirmishes on nearby Lake Erie didn't use as much pyro and explosives as the group brought. Flame, fog, and fireworks surrounded rotating high-rise platforms. And the band looked like they have since bringing back the makeup in 1996. This stage set featured a trademark lit-up KISS logo under a tall large drum riser, and a video screen as wide as the stage was flanked by two smaller displays.
With under-arm wings and a wagging tongue you can see from the cheap seats, Gene Simmons is still a convincing, deep-voiced demon. He spat blood and flew to the top of the lighting rig, where he sang "I Love It Loud." As the band launched into "Love Gun," Stanley the Starchild zipped on a wire from the stage to a platform in the back of the arena. Over the set, he ran through his repertoire of reliable moves - disco strut, head-scratch, butt-shake, and stripper-style hip-wiggle. His voice was a hit - his pipes, after all, were strong enough to score him a starring role in a production of Phantom of the Opera.
Guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer were also on point. Wearing Spaceman and Catman makeup designs, the two recent additions expertly improved upon their predecessors. During a spotlight solo, Thayer wielded a guitar that spewed sparks, and gunned down a chunk of the lighting rig.
The set was an expanded staging of Alive!, with extra - in the words of Stanley - "classic classics" from the 1976's Destroyer, plus "Modern Day Delilah," the promising new single from the imminent throwback-style LP, Sonic Boom. The group made just two brief nods to its unmasked, no-makeup period of the '80s and '90s: "Lick It Up" and, as the crowd exited, "God Gave Rock N Roll To You II" played over the P.A. system like rolling-credits music from a big-budget movie.
The Kiss Army left the arena and spilled the street, chanting the "hey-yeah" refrain from "I Love It Loud." Fan Greg Krol grew up with the classic records and first saw the band on 1984's Animalize tour. He gave it a thumbs-up: "Best Kiss set ever."
Set List:
Deuce
Strutter
Got to Choose
Let Me Go, Rock N Roll
Modern Day Delilah
Hotter Than Hell
Nothing to Lose
C'Mon and Love Me
Parasite
She
Guitar solo
Watchin' You
100,000 Years
Drum solo
(Paul teases crowd with the first bar of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven")
Black Diamond
Rock and Roll All Nite
Encore:
Shout It Out Loud
Lick It Up (with a brief instrumental interpolation of the Who's Baba O'Riley)
Bass solo
I Love It Loud
Cold Gin
Love Gun
Detroit Rock City
09/28/2009
KISS KEEPS COBO HALL ALIVE
By Dan Caffrey and Andy Keil
Detroit's legendary Cobo Center (formerly Cobo Hall) may be closing its doors for a much lamented expansion in just a few days, but KISS couldn't resist stopping by for a two night set to remind the Motor City that they truly don't make concert venues like this anymore.
"The hottest band in the land" recorded their breakthrough album Alive! behind the Cobo Center's walls 35 years ago, and not much has changed since then. It still has the feel of an oversized high school gym from the '70s and that's part of its charm; its manila stucco, cinder block walls, and fold out chairs keep things scrappy, locking the smaller than average arena in a perpetual junky time capsule (complete with water damage, too), the perfect setting for the band, who played Alive! in its (almost) entirety last night.
Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, the group's only two original members--still perform with a ferocity and penchant for spectacle unseen from many of their peers. Stanley's whimsical rock 'n' roll preacher stage banter was still a hoot, whether it was promoting their upcoming album or reminding Detroit that we were all "one big family."
Detroit's legendary Cobo Center (formerly Cobo Hall) may be closing its doors for a much lamented expansion in just a few days, but KISS couldn't resist stopping by for a two night set to remind the Motor City that they truly don't make concert venues like this anymore.
"The hottest band in the land" recorded their breakthrough album Alive! behind the Cobo Center's walls 35 years ago, and not much has changed since then. It still has the feel of an oversized high school gym from the '70s and that's part of its charm; its manila stucco, cinder block walls, and fold out chairs keep things scrappy, locking the smaller than average arena in a perpetual junky time capsule (complete with water damage, too), the perfect setting for the band, who played Alive! in its (almost) entirety last night.
Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, the group's only two original members--still perform with a ferocity and penchant for spectacle unseen from many of their peers. Stanley's whimsical rock 'n' roll preacher stage banter was still a hoot, whether it was promoting their upcoming album or reminding Detroit that we were all "one big family."
Simmons, on the other hand, still knows how to keep things charismatically creepy (e.g. strings of sweat and fake blood that oozed from him throughout the show. And who could forget about the good old fashioned pyrotechnics and marquee lighting? All part of a true nostalgia trip that reminded everyone how some florescent fire and thunderclaps could elevate a rock show from a performance to an event. Expected, of course, but then again, KISS knows exactly what they are, and they perform their hard rock pop, which oozes of good times, goofy evil, and even goofier sex puns, with unabashed strut and glam rock melodrama.
Leave the musicianship to Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer though. While no one can ever really take the place of Ace Frehley and Peter Criss, they're explosive in their playing, adding their own thundering flair to Space Ace and The Catman's already established drum and guitar solos. The most thrilling moment of the night came with Thayer's solo at the end of "She" as his guitar launched rockets above the audience with each biting lick. Other staple moments of showmanship were the blinding snowstorm of confetti during "Rock And Roll All Nite" and Simmons' obligatory fire-spitting during "Hotter Than Hell".
The show ended with the one two punch of "Love Gun" and finally, "Detroit Rock City", sadly for the last time on that fabled stage. As the lights rose, throngs of grease-painted fans left the hall with black smiles on their faces, knowing that while Cobo Hall may be done, KISS is far from finished.
Detroit's legendary Cobo Center (formerly Cobo Hall) may be closing its doors for a much lamented expansion in just a few days, but KISS couldn't resist stopping by for a two night set to remind the Motor City that they truly don't make concert venues like this anymore.
"The hottest band in the land" recorded their breakthrough album Alive! behind the Cobo Center's walls 35 years ago, and not much has changed since then. It still has the feel of an oversized high school gym from the '70s and that's part of its charm; its manila stucco, cinder block walls, and fold out chairs keep things scrappy, locking the smaller than average arena in a perpetual junky time capsule (complete with water damage, too), the perfect setting for the band, who played Alive! in its (almost) entirety last night.
Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, the group's only two original members--still perform with a ferocity and penchant for spectacle unseen from many of their peers. Stanley's whimsical rock 'n' roll preacher stage banter was still a hoot, whether it was promoting their upcoming album or reminding Detroit that we were all "one big family."
Detroit's legendary Cobo Center (formerly Cobo Hall) may be closing its doors for a much lamented expansion in just a few days, but KISS couldn't resist stopping by for a two night set to remind the Motor City that they truly don't make concert venues like this anymore.
"The hottest band in the land" recorded their breakthrough album Alive! behind the Cobo Center's walls 35 years ago, and not much has changed since then. It still has the feel of an oversized high school gym from the '70s and that's part of its charm; its manila stucco, cinder block walls, and fold out chairs keep things scrappy, locking the smaller than average arena in a perpetual junky time capsule (complete with water damage, too), the perfect setting for the band, who played Alive! in its (almost) entirety last night.
Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, the group's only two original members--still perform with a ferocity and penchant for spectacle unseen from many of their peers. Stanley's whimsical rock 'n' roll preacher stage banter was still a hoot, whether it was promoting their upcoming album or reminding Detroit that we were all "one big family."
Simmons, on the other hand, still knows how to keep things charismatically creepy (e.g. strings of sweat and fake blood that oozed from him throughout the show. And who could forget about the good old fashioned pyrotechnics and marquee lighting? All part of a true nostalgia trip that reminded everyone how some florescent fire and thunderclaps could elevate a rock show from a performance to an event. Expected, of course, but then again, KISS knows exactly what they are, and they perform their hard rock pop, which oozes of good times, goofy evil, and even goofier sex puns, with unabashed strut and glam rock melodrama.
Leave the musicianship to Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer though. While no one can ever really take the place of Ace Frehley and Peter Criss, they're explosive in their playing, adding their own thundering flair to Space Ace and The Catman's already established drum and guitar solos. The most thrilling moment of the night came with Thayer's solo at the end of "She" as his guitar launched rockets above the audience with each biting lick. Other staple moments of showmanship were the blinding snowstorm of confetti during "Rock And Roll All Nite" and Simmons' obligatory fire-spitting during "Hotter Than Hell".
The show ended with the one two punch of "Love Gun" and finally, "Detroit Rock City", sadly for the last time on that fabled stage. As the lights rose, throngs of grease-painted fans left the hall with black smiles on their faces, knowing that while Cobo Hall may be done, KISS is far from finished.
09/28/2009
KISS KICK OFF ALIVE 35 IN DETROIT
Photo by Gene Schilling
Story by Gary Graff
Kiss opened the U.S. portion of its Kiss Alive 35 tour by recreating its breakthrough "Alive!" album in the place it was made -- Cobo Arena in Detroit Rock City.
As its done throughout the year, the group dedicated its main set on Friday to 1975's gold "Alive!," playing all but two of the set's 16 songs ("Firehouse" and "Rock Bottom" were excerpted) and altering the running order slightly to close with "Rock and Roll All Nite." "Deuce" started the two-hour and 20-minute show amidst booming pyrotechnics, and the set list treated members of the Kiss Army, who packed Cobo to the roof for opening night, to deep cuts such as "Got to Choose," "Nothin' to Lose," "Parasite" and "Watchin' You," as well as drum and guitar solos by Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer, respectively, and an extended version of "100,000 Years" that culminated in a call-and-response between Paul Stanley and the crowd.Photo by Gene Schilling
Kiss opened the U.S. portion of its Kiss Alive 35 tour by recreating its breakthrough "Alive!" album in the place it was made -- Cobo Arena in Detroit Rock City.
As its done throughout the year, the group dedicated its main set on Friday to 1975's gold "Alive!," playing all but two of the set's 16 songs ("Firehouse" and "Rock Bottom" were excerpted) and altering the running order slightly to close with "Rock and Roll All Nite." "Deuce" started the two-hour and 20-minute show amidst booming pyrotechnics, and the set list treated members of the Kiss Army, who packed Cobo to the roof for opening night, to deep cuts such as "Got to Choose," "Nothin' to Lose," "Parasite" and "Watchin' You," as well as drum and guitar solos by Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer, respectively, and an extended version of "100,000 Years" that culminated in a call-and-response between Paul Stanley and the crowd.
Sans "Firehouse," meanwhile, Gene Simmons did his usual fire-breathing act during "Hotter Than Hell."
The Detroit show also unveiled Kiss' new stage -- which Stanley told Billboard.com is "the widest, biggest stage we've had," featuring a massive HD screen above it, three levels of lighted cubes at the rear and two video screens and huge Kiss Army banners flanking it. Hydraulic lifts brought the band members up from below the stage level at the beginning of the show and lofted them above the crowd while confetti swirled and more pyrotechnics exploded at the end of "Rock and Roll All Nite."
The encore dipped into post-"Alive!" Kiss favorites such as "Shout It Out Loud," a rendition of "Lick it Up" that included a bit of the Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again" and "I Love it Loud" with a blood-spewing Simmons hoisted above the lighting rig. Kiss delivered the first public performance of "Modern Day Delilah," the first single from the new "Sonic Boom" album that comes out Oct. 6 (the group shot a video for the song on Thursday at Cobo) before Stanley "flew" over the crowd to sing "Love Gun" on a satellite stage by the sound board and came back to finish with, appropriately, "Detroit Rock City," with Kid Rock looking on and acknowledged by Stanley.
A full camera crew documented the opening night concert as well as a second Cobo show on Saturday for what Simmons said would be an eventual concert DVD.
The Kiss Alive 35 show has stayed largely the same throughout the year, but Stanley said some changes may occur once "Sonic Boom" -- a Wal-Mart exclusive that includes a second disc of re-recorded Kiss hits and a DVD -- is available. "It's been basically a celebration of the 35th anniversary of (Kiss' first album), but it's going to morph into 'Sonic Boom' quite quickly as the album comes out," he explained.
Kiss, with opening act Buckcherry, will be on the road through Dec. 6, including more dates in Canada, where the group also toured during the summer, and a Halloween night show at the Voodoo Experience festival in New Orleans. The A&E network will begin airing "Kissteria," a documentary from the group's Australia and New Zealand leg of the tour, later this fall.
Story by Gary Graff
Kiss opened the U.S. portion of its Kiss Alive 35 tour by recreating its breakthrough "Alive!" album in the place it was made -- Cobo Arena in Detroit Rock City.
As its done throughout the year, the group dedicated its main set on Friday to 1975's gold "Alive!," playing all but two of the set's 16 songs ("Firehouse" and "Rock Bottom" were excerpted) and altering the running order slightly to close with "Rock and Roll All Nite." "Deuce" started the two-hour and 20-minute show amidst booming pyrotechnics, and the set list treated members of the Kiss Army, who packed Cobo to the roof for opening night, to deep cuts such as "Got to Choose," "Nothin' to Lose," "Parasite" and "Watchin' You," as well as drum and guitar solos by Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer, respectively, and an extended version of "100,000 Years" that culminated in a call-and-response between Paul Stanley and the crowd.Photo by Gene Schilling
Kiss opened the U.S. portion of its Kiss Alive 35 tour by recreating its breakthrough "Alive!" album in the place it was made -- Cobo Arena in Detroit Rock City.
As its done throughout the year, the group dedicated its main set on Friday to 1975's gold "Alive!," playing all but two of the set's 16 songs ("Firehouse" and "Rock Bottom" were excerpted) and altering the running order slightly to close with "Rock and Roll All Nite." "Deuce" started the two-hour and 20-minute show amidst booming pyrotechnics, and the set list treated members of the Kiss Army, who packed Cobo to the roof for opening night, to deep cuts such as "Got to Choose," "Nothin' to Lose," "Parasite" and "Watchin' You," as well as drum and guitar solos by Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer, respectively, and an extended version of "100,000 Years" that culminated in a call-and-response between Paul Stanley and the crowd.
Sans "Firehouse," meanwhile, Gene Simmons did his usual fire-breathing act during "Hotter Than Hell."
The Detroit show also unveiled Kiss' new stage -- which Stanley told Billboard.com is "the widest, biggest stage we've had," featuring a massive HD screen above it, three levels of lighted cubes at the rear and two video screens and huge Kiss Army banners flanking it. Hydraulic lifts brought the band members up from below the stage level at the beginning of the show and lofted them above the crowd while confetti swirled and more pyrotechnics exploded at the end of "Rock and Roll All Nite."
The encore dipped into post-"Alive!" Kiss favorites such as "Shout It Out Loud," a rendition of "Lick it Up" that included a bit of the Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again" and "I Love it Loud" with a blood-spewing Simmons hoisted above the lighting rig. Kiss delivered the first public performance of "Modern Day Delilah," the first single from the new "Sonic Boom" album that comes out Oct. 6 (the group shot a video for the song on Thursday at Cobo) before Stanley "flew" over the crowd to sing "Love Gun" on a satellite stage by the sound board and came back to finish with, appropriately, "Detroit Rock City," with Kid Rock looking on and acknowledged by Stanley.
A full camera crew documented the opening night concert as well as a second Cobo show on Saturday for what Simmons said would be an eventual concert DVD.
The Kiss Alive 35 show has stayed largely the same throughout the year, but Stanley said some changes may occur once "Sonic Boom" -- a Wal-Mart exclusive that includes a second disc of re-recorded Kiss hits and a DVD -- is available. "It's been basically a celebration of the 35th anniversary of (Kiss' first album), but it's going to morph into 'Sonic Boom' quite quickly as the album comes out," he explained.
Kiss, with opening act Buckcherry, will be on the road through Dec. 6, including more dates in Canada, where the group also toured during the summer, and a Halloween night show at the Voodoo Experience festival in New Orleans. The A&E network will begin airing "Kissteria," a documentary from the group's Australia and New Zealand leg of the tour, later this fall.
09/27/2009
KISS PLANTS FINAL SMOOCH
BY James R. Chesna - ABC 12 NEWS
Kiss took a shot at traveling back in time Friday and Saturday night in Detroit, and legendary co-founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons --receiving marching orders from the loyal ranks of faithful fans enlisted in the Kiss Army -- enjoyed a successful tour of duty.
The iconic grease-painted and platform-shoed 1970s glam rockers were in Motown this weekend to celebrate a very special anniversary, and couldn't think of better followers to invite to the festivities than some of the folks who made the band's storied career possible way back in 1975 when the Demon, Starchild, Cat and Spaceman recorded their landmark multi-platinum best-seller "Alive!"
Using as a backdrop the Motor City's Cobo Hall -- the hallowed venue that started it all, now facing an uncertain future -- the band kicked off its 2009 "Alive!/35" tour in typical bombastic fashion.
Kiss had history going for them in shaking loose Cobo's dust and cobwebs. And it certainly didn't hurt that this truly felt like an event for the ages, possibly the beginning of what could be one of the band's final treks.BY James R. Chesna - ABC 12 NEWS
Kiss took a shot at traveling back in time Friday and Saturday night in Detroit, and legendary co-founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons --receiving marching orders from the loyal ranks of faithful fans enlisted in the Kiss Army -- enjoyed a successful tour of duty.
The iconic grease-painted and platform-shoed 1970s glam rockers were in Motown this weekend to celebrate a very special anniversary, and couldn't think of better followers to invite to the festivities than some of the folks who made the band's storied career possible way back in 1975 when the Demon, Starchild, Cat and Spaceman recorded their landmark multi-platinum best-seller "Alive!"
Using as a backdrop the Motor City's Cobo Hall -- the hallowed venue that started it all, now facing an uncertain future -- the band kicked off its 2009 "Alive!/35" tour in typical bombastic fashion.
Kiss had history going for them in shaking loose Cobo's dust and cobwebs. And it certainly didn't hurt that this truly felt like an event for the ages, possibly the beginning of what could be one of the band's final treks.
Tom Ingalls of Commerce Township, a 52 year old who got his mitts on a set of tickets Friday, was part of the throng who bore witness at Cobo when "Alive!" was chronicled for all time.
"Coming here I knew it would take me back a long way, just for the entertainment of it all," he said. "I always say, if you don't see these bands right now, who knows if you'll ever see 'em again?"
Detroit's beaten and battered economy didn't hold back turnout, as Friday's show was sold out and Saturday's stretched the arena's capacity just as efficiently. And the band embraced its mantra of being entertainers first and worrying about serious musical chops at some date yet to be determined.
The show was fun. And to a Kiss fan, that's all that matters.
There was no question who concert-goers came out to see.
Faces on the floor and in the multiple tiers -- some smeared with the mug of their favorite Kiss character -- ranged in age, some parents brought their awestruck and innocent young to their very first rock show.
Enormous Kiss Army banners draped the hall's walls stage left and right, and were complimented by giant closed-circuit monitors that put the group's thick, trademark makeup and black, Spandex-and-chrome-studded costumes smack-dab in front of fans' Cheshire grins.
The lights blanked out just before 9 p.m. and the big screens provided a glimpse of the classic rockers as they progressed from the bowels of the arena to the backstage curtains. The familiar booming bass rumble of the group's intro -- which caused the floor and walls to vibrate as if an airliner had touched down on Cobo's roof -- heralded the band's arrival onstage.
"You wanted the best, you got the best! The hottest band in the world, Kiss!" came the rallying bellow, and fans collectively sprung to their feet and the rock 'n' roll pawty exploded to life -- literally, courtesy of copious amounts of face-melting pyro, thunderclap flash pots and pops of fireworks and confetti.
The front line of Simmons, Stanley and lead guitarist and former road manager Tommy Thayer emerged from billowy clouds of dry ice while drummer Eric Singer -- donning the familiar feline face and costume-- rode his drum kit as it hydraulically climbed out of its nest deep within an LED Kiss logo center stage, which dwarfed the Army's first officers.
A JumboTron-style screen expansive enough to make the band appear as if it was performing for a city populated by Lilliputians hovered directly over Singer and captured every larger-than-life gesture and pose, and a stack of smaller screens were piled on one another, prominently displaying pictures of clown white-adorned fans and computer-generated flames and graphics.
The group roared through the first three tunes on "Alive!" in order of appearance on vinyl more than three decades ago: "Deuce," "Strutter" and "Got to Choose."
"This is night No. 2 in the Holy Land," ringleader and onstage spokesman Stanley quipped. "Tonight may be night No. 2, but it's up to you to make it No. 1. Tonight we're celebrating everything we've done."
But then the band dropped one of several promised surprises, launching into new song and single "Modern Day Delilah," from the upcoming Oct. 6 release of the group's first new album in 11 years, "Sonic Boom."
(Of note: A full camera crew was on hand shooting, so expect a new live DVD to come out of this, boys and girls.)
Sturdy rocker "Delilah" fit fairly seamlessly into the revered Kiss catalogue this night, and though Stanley declared the song and album "classic Kiss," the track shares more common ground with Kiss' '80s output than the tunes from the group's '70s heyday.
From there, the event returned to old-school form for much of the rest of the evening. The band, as foretold, toured the "Alive!" record in its entirety save for two cuts, "Firehouse" and "Rock Bottom," and did so convincingly.
The night proved most joyous when Simmons and Stanley cut loose on cuts like "Hotter than Hell, "C'mon and Love Me" and "Nothin' to Lose," but the energy was kicked up several notches when truly classic tunes like "100,000 Years," "Cold Gin" and "Black Diamond" got their airtime.
"Diamond," as always, was punctuated by Simmons and Thayer being perched on mechanized lifts that drove them high into the lighting rigs while smoke was belched out of hoses underneath. Stanley stood tall on a platform between them, not ascending to his bandmates' dizzying heights, which allowed him to smash and splinter his guitar in half more thoroughly.
Singer pounded the skins for the band in the '90s and Thayer's been a member of the family for decades. Some fans may bemoan Singer and Thayer's involvement, but Kiss is a tighter unit minus Frehley and Criss.
And let's face it, people: Kiss knows where its bread is buttered.
Stanley kept things lively, preening and prancing about rooster-like during the group's national anthem, "Rock 'n' Roll All Nite," while canons situated at every corner of the main floor shot a virtual snowstorm of confetti into the atmosphere and onto a sea of people.
Swatting away at his colorful collection of guitars all night long, the Starchild took great delight in playing his six-string weapons behind his head, through his legs and upside down, and was positively giddy when he sailed over the crowd during "Love Gun."
A trapeze-style harness dropped the singer off on another mechanized platform at the back of the hall, which spun full circle when Stanley belted out the song's chorus, punishing his distinctive voice in reaching for ear-piercing registers.
In a change of pace, "Love Gun" was served up as part of a packaged six-song encore, which allowed the band to dump the traditional applause-meter pattern of walking offstage and reappearing when cheers reach fever pitch.
On "Lick It Up," Stanley and Thayer cleverly morphed the Who staple "Won't Get Fooled Again" into the tune's bridge. Stanley's battle cry when the power chords took their stranglehold would have made Who frontman Roger Daltrey proud.
Kiss Army recruits ate up every trick in the band's considerable collection of show-stopping gags, including Simmons' fire breathing act in "Hotter that Hell" and his blood-spewing schtick in "I Love It Loud." The show was upbeat and breezy until things got a little more serious in the latter half when Stanley took a moment to acknowledge Detroit's beleaguered image and staggering unemployment status.
"We know that in Detroit, unemployment is higher than anywhere in the nation," the singer shouted. "That is a damned sin. But we'll make it through this. We'll see you again. We'll never forget this night. We love you."
The raucous night finally came to its coda with -- what else? -- "Detroit Rock City." The fiery finale was like the Fourth of July in the middle of September, and bombs blew up one after the other.
The crowd raised their arms, lighters and cell phones in tribute, and Kiss took its final bows. And then Cobo fell silent as witnesses to its final concert lined their way out onto the concrete of the concourse, still singing their favorite songs.
It marked the end of an era in Motown, and the gravity wasn't wasted on a few fans who snapped pictures before heading back to the parking garages.
Kiss' relationship with Detroit has come full circle. Simmons and Stanley returned to the venue that rocketed them to stardom, making sure that the hall was paid its proper respects before the lights went out for good.
Kisstory made.
"Just like I remembered," Ingalls said, brushing away a tear. "Awesome."
Kiss "Alive!/35" set list:
"Deuce"
"Strutter"
"Got to Choose"
"Modern Day Delilah"
"Hotter than Hell"
"Nothin' to Lose"
"C'mon and Love Me"
"Parasite"
"She" (w/ Thayer guitar solo)
"Watchin' You"
"100,000 Years" (w/ Singer drum solo)
"Cold Gin"
"Black Diamond"
"Rock 'n' Roll All Nite"
Encore:
"Shout It Out Loud"
"Lick It Up"
"I Love It Loud" (w/ Simmons bass solo)
"Let Me Go Rock 'n' Roll"
"Love Gun"
"Detroit Rock City"
Kiss took a shot at traveling back in time Friday and Saturday night in Detroit, and legendary co-founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons --receiving marching orders from the loyal ranks of faithful fans enlisted in the Kiss Army -- enjoyed a successful tour of duty.
The iconic grease-painted and platform-shoed 1970s glam rockers were in Motown this weekend to celebrate a very special anniversary, and couldn't think of better followers to invite to the festivities than some of the folks who made the band's storied career possible way back in 1975 when the Demon, Starchild, Cat and Spaceman recorded their landmark multi-platinum best-seller "Alive!"
Using as a backdrop the Motor City's Cobo Hall -- the hallowed venue that started it all, now facing an uncertain future -- the band kicked off its 2009 "Alive!/35" tour in typical bombastic fashion.
Kiss had history going for them in shaking loose Cobo's dust and cobwebs. And it certainly didn't hurt that this truly felt like an event for the ages, possibly the beginning of what could be one of the band's final treks.BY James R. Chesna - ABC 12 NEWS
Kiss took a shot at traveling back in time Friday and Saturday night in Detroit, and legendary co-founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons --receiving marching orders from the loyal ranks of faithful fans enlisted in the Kiss Army -- enjoyed a successful tour of duty.
The iconic grease-painted and platform-shoed 1970s glam rockers were in Motown this weekend to celebrate a very special anniversary, and couldn't think of better followers to invite to the festivities than some of the folks who made the band's storied career possible way back in 1975 when the Demon, Starchild, Cat and Spaceman recorded their landmark multi-platinum best-seller "Alive!"
Using as a backdrop the Motor City's Cobo Hall -- the hallowed venue that started it all, now facing an uncertain future -- the band kicked off its 2009 "Alive!/35" tour in typical bombastic fashion.
Kiss had history going for them in shaking loose Cobo's dust and cobwebs. And it certainly didn't hurt that this truly felt like an event for the ages, possibly the beginning of what could be one of the band's final treks.
Tom Ingalls of Commerce Township, a 52 year old who got his mitts on a set of tickets Friday, was part of the throng who bore witness at Cobo when "Alive!" was chronicled for all time.
"Coming here I knew it would take me back a long way, just for the entertainment of it all," he said. "I always say, if you don't see these bands right now, who knows if you'll ever see 'em again?"
Detroit's beaten and battered economy didn't hold back turnout, as Friday's show was sold out and Saturday's stretched the arena's capacity just as efficiently. And the band embraced its mantra of being entertainers first and worrying about serious musical chops at some date yet to be determined.
The show was fun. And to a Kiss fan, that's all that matters.
There was no question who concert-goers came out to see.
Faces on the floor and in the multiple tiers -- some smeared with the mug of their favorite Kiss character -- ranged in age, some parents brought their awestruck and innocent young to their very first rock show.
Enormous Kiss Army banners draped the hall's walls stage left and right, and were complimented by giant closed-circuit monitors that put the group's thick, trademark makeup and black, Spandex-and-chrome-studded costumes smack-dab in front of fans' Cheshire grins.
The lights blanked out just before 9 p.m. and the big screens provided a glimpse of the classic rockers as they progressed from the bowels of the arena to the backstage curtains. The familiar booming bass rumble of the group's intro -- which caused the floor and walls to vibrate as if an airliner had touched down on Cobo's roof -- heralded the band's arrival onstage.
"You wanted the best, you got the best! The hottest band in the world, Kiss!" came the rallying bellow, and fans collectively sprung to their feet and the rock 'n' roll pawty exploded to life -- literally, courtesy of copious amounts of face-melting pyro, thunderclap flash pots and pops of fireworks and confetti.
The front line of Simmons, Stanley and lead guitarist and former road manager Tommy Thayer emerged from billowy clouds of dry ice while drummer Eric Singer -- donning the familiar feline face and costume-- rode his drum kit as it hydraulically climbed out of its nest deep within an LED Kiss logo center stage, which dwarfed the Army's first officers.
A JumboTron-style screen expansive enough to make the band appear as if it was performing for a city populated by Lilliputians hovered directly over Singer and captured every larger-than-life gesture and pose, and a stack of smaller screens were piled on one another, prominently displaying pictures of clown white-adorned fans and computer-generated flames and graphics.
The group roared through the first three tunes on "Alive!" in order of appearance on vinyl more than three decades ago: "Deuce," "Strutter" and "Got to Choose."
"This is night No. 2 in the Holy Land," ringleader and onstage spokesman Stanley quipped. "Tonight may be night No. 2, but it's up to you to make it No. 1. Tonight we're celebrating everything we've done."
But then the band dropped one of several promised surprises, launching into new song and single "Modern Day Delilah," from the upcoming Oct. 6 release of the group's first new album in 11 years, "Sonic Boom."
(Of note: A full camera crew was on hand shooting, so expect a new live DVD to come out of this, boys and girls.)
Sturdy rocker "Delilah" fit fairly seamlessly into the revered Kiss catalogue this night, and though Stanley declared the song and album "classic Kiss," the track shares more common ground with Kiss' '80s output than the tunes from the group's '70s heyday.
From there, the event returned to old-school form for much of the rest of the evening. The band, as foretold, toured the "Alive!" record in its entirety save for two cuts, "Firehouse" and "Rock Bottom," and did so convincingly.
The night proved most joyous when Simmons and Stanley cut loose on cuts like "Hotter than Hell, "C'mon and Love Me" and "Nothin' to Lose," but the energy was kicked up several notches when truly classic tunes like "100,000 Years," "Cold Gin" and "Black Diamond" got their airtime.
"Diamond," as always, was punctuated by Simmons and Thayer being perched on mechanized lifts that drove them high into the lighting rigs while smoke was belched out of hoses underneath. Stanley stood tall on a platform between them, not ascending to his bandmates' dizzying heights, which allowed him to smash and splinter his guitar in half more thoroughly.
Singer pounded the skins for the band in the '90s and Thayer's been a member of the family for decades. Some fans may bemoan Singer and Thayer's involvement, but Kiss is a tighter unit minus Frehley and Criss.
And let's face it, people: Kiss knows where its bread is buttered.
Stanley kept things lively, preening and prancing about rooster-like during the group's national anthem, "Rock 'n' Roll All Nite," while canons situated at every corner of the main floor shot a virtual snowstorm of confetti into the atmosphere and onto a sea of people.
Swatting away at his colorful collection of guitars all night long, the Starchild took great delight in playing his six-string weapons behind his head, through his legs and upside down, and was positively giddy when he sailed over the crowd during "Love Gun."
A trapeze-style harness dropped the singer off on another mechanized platform at the back of the hall, which spun full circle when Stanley belted out the song's chorus, punishing his distinctive voice in reaching for ear-piercing registers.
In a change of pace, "Love Gun" was served up as part of a packaged six-song encore, which allowed the band to dump the traditional applause-meter pattern of walking offstage and reappearing when cheers reach fever pitch.
On "Lick It Up," Stanley and Thayer cleverly morphed the Who staple "Won't Get Fooled Again" into the tune's bridge. Stanley's battle cry when the power chords took their stranglehold would have made Who frontman Roger Daltrey proud.
Kiss Army recruits ate up every trick in the band's considerable collection of show-stopping gags, including Simmons' fire breathing act in "Hotter that Hell" and his blood-spewing schtick in "I Love It Loud." The show was upbeat and breezy until things got a little more serious in the latter half when Stanley took a moment to acknowledge Detroit's beleaguered image and staggering unemployment status.
"We know that in Detroit, unemployment is higher than anywhere in the nation," the singer shouted. "That is a damned sin. But we'll make it through this. We'll see you again. We'll never forget this night. We love you."
The raucous night finally came to its coda with -- what else? -- "Detroit Rock City." The fiery finale was like the Fourth of July in the middle of September, and bombs blew up one after the other.
The crowd raised their arms, lighters and cell phones in tribute, and Kiss took its final bows. And then Cobo fell silent as witnesses to its final concert lined their way out onto the concrete of the concourse, still singing their favorite songs.
It marked the end of an era in Motown, and the gravity wasn't wasted on a few fans who snapped pictures before heading back to the parking garages.
Kiss' relationship with Detroit has come full circle. Simmons and Stanley returned to the venue that rocketed them to stardom, making sure that the hall was paid its proper respects before the lights went out for good.
Kisstory made.
"Just like I remembered," Ingalls said, brushing away a tear. "Awesome."
Kiss "Alive!/35" set list:
"Deuce"
"Strutter"
"Got to Choose"
"Modern Day Delilah"
"Hotter than Hell"
"Nothin' to Lose"
"C'mon and Love Me"
"Parasite"
"She" (w/ Thayer guitar solo)
"Watchin' You"
"100,000 Years" (w/ Singer drum solo)
"Cold Gin"
"Black Diamond"
"Rock 'n' Roll All Nite"
Encore:
"Shout It Out Loud"
"Lick It Up"
"I Love It Loud" (w/ Simmons bass solo)
"Let Me Go Rock 'n' Roll"
"Love Gun"
"Detroit Rock City"
09/27/2009
DETROIT ROCK CITY 2009
