KISS' Freedom To Rock Tour continues this week in Iowa, Wyoming and North Dakota.
July 27 - Tyson Events Center - Sioux City, IA
July 29 - Cheyenne Frontier Days - Cheyenne, WY
July 30 - North Dakota State Fair - Minot, ND
By Travis Heying / THE wICHITA eAGLE
In one month, Gene Simmons will turn 67. His KISS bandmate Paul Stanley isn�t far behind at 64. In other words, it isn�t 1977 anymore.
But 39 years after they played a show at Henry Levitt Arena that people still talk about, there they were, on stage at Intrust Bank Arena, spitting blood and jumping around in platform boots with the same youthful enthusiasm that made them famous.
Maybe it�s the makeup.
The patriotism-fueled �Freedom to Rock� tour stopped in Wichita on Monday night and played for a crowd of 8,000.
�You wanted the best and you got the best! The hottest band in the world� KISS!� Those lines have been repeated before their shows for 40 years and the band that invented the gargantuan rock show made an entrance like only they can. Behind a falling black curtain, three band members, Simmons, Stanley and guitarist Tommy Thayer, stood on a riser shrouded in fog. The letters K-I-S-S flashed behind them. The opening notes of �Detroit Rock City,� arguably their biggest hit, pulsed straight into a pyrotechnics blast that would have only surprised a first-time KISS concert attendee.
During the second number, the appropriately titled �Deuce,� Stanley sat down on the edge of the stage, nearly knocking a photographer in the head with his platform boots, but once positioned, hammed it up for the assembled photographers like an excited kid.
And speaking of kids, during �I Love it Loud� Stanley pulled a young girl up on stage and tucked her between himself and his guitar while she helped him play the song. In the sea of assembled fans, kids as young as seven were wearing makeup mimicking the different band members.
One might think the formula would be stale by now. Watch a YouTube video of KISS in 1977 and you�ll notice that not much has changed about their show. There are two different band members, but with the makeup, even that difference is negligible. Gene Simmons still spits blood and breathes fire. There�s still one pyrotechnic blast after another and it was ear-splitting loud. But the band delivered hit after hit with an enthusiasm that made it feel fresh and fun.
Every band member took a turn at lead vocals, and every song and harmony was spot-on. �Shout it Out Loud,� �Lick it Up� and �Cold Gin,� songs that spanned the entirety of the band�s four-decade career were performed. The crowd, even those on the sides of the arena, stood the entire show.
There are few spectacles in music like KISS, and every bro-country act that passes through Wichita these days, Luke Bryan, Eric Church and Jason Aldean to name a few, put on shows that are molded from the blueprint that KISS created.
But those acts don�t have an anthem to close a concert with like �Rock and Roll All Nite.�
But before getting to that, the band paid tribute to military veterans and offered up a $150,000 check to the charity �Hiring our Heroes.� Even Vice Mayor Lavonta Williams joined the band on stage for the Pledge of Allegiance.
After a �Star-Spangled Banner� segue, the arena was filled with confetti, explosions and 8000 people pumping their fists in the air singing �Rock and roll all night and party every day.� Paul Stanley shattered a guitar on stage and a fireworks display fit for the Fourth of July lit up. It doesn�t get any more Rock and Roll, or American, than that.
On August 26, 2016, Eagle Rock Entertainment will unleash KISS Rocks Vegas on DVD+CD ($21.98), Blu-ray+CD ($26.98), DVD+2LP ($39.98), and Deluxe Edition DVD+Blu-ray+2CD ($79.98).
Captured in the midst of their 40th Anniversary World Tour, the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers sonically shook Vegas during their residency at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in November 2014. This Sin City set sizzles with KISS classics from across their 44 album legacy: �Rock And Roll All Night,� �Detroit Rock City,� �Shout It Out Loud,� �Love Gun,� and more. As a bonus feature, Kiss Rocks Vegas includes a seven-song acoustic set. Punctuated with pyrotechnics galore, the film presents the fire, electricity, and one-of-a-kind rock experience that earned KISS over 100 million sales globally.
The Deluxe Edition of KISS Rocks Vegas is presented as a hardcover package with a 12X12 book, boasting photos from the show and an exclusive CD.
�We Rocked and Vegas Rolled ! This was Epic In Your Face KISS ! We got Up close and personal, I think Rock and Roll fans will really enjoy this spectacle that only KISS can deliver.� - Paul Stanley
�KaBOOM! We blew up the Joint at The Hard Rock in Vegas like never before. We are very proud of this and know that you will be blown away as well.� -Gene Simmons
TRACK LISTING:
1. DETROIT ROCK CITY
2. CREATURES OF THE NIGHT
3. PSYCHO CIRCUS
4. PARASITE
5. WAR MACHINE
6. TEARS ARE FALLING
7. DEUCE
8. LICK IT UP
9. I LOVE IT LOUD
10. HELL OR HALLELUJA & TOMMY SOLO
11. GOD OF THUNDER
12. DO YOU LOVE ME
13. LOVE GUN
14. BLACK DIAMOND
15. SHOUT IT OUT LOUD
16. ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT
Acoustic Set:
1. Coming Home
2. Plaster Caster
3. Hard Luck Woman
4. Christine Sixteen
5. Goin' Blind
6. Love Her All I Can
7. Beth
Gene Simmons says KISS will rock Wichita just as hard as it did in �77
Photo by Keith Leroux
Almost 40 years later, Gene Simmons doesn�t remember the iconic Kiss concert at Henry Levitt Arena � the Dec. 6, 1977, show that rocked so hard, people who were there are still talking about it, still comparing notes.
Simmons, who called in advance of the band�s Monday concert at Intrust Bank Arena, does however love to hear that Wichitans remember.
�That�s the highest compliment,� he said. �I would imagine there are some concerts you can�t remember. Or concerts where you can say, �I was born on the night my mother saw Kiss.� Or better yet, �I was conceived on the night my mother and dad saw Kiss.� �
Simmons, now 66, is the outspoken, often controversial bassist for Kiss, the iconic rock band that formed in 1973 and also includes lead singer Paul Stanley, guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer. The group has accumulated more gold records than any other American band.
Simmons is the one with the extra-long tongue, the extra-frank mouth and the reality show stardom. His life was documented in �Gene Simmons Family Jewels,� which featured his wife, son and daughter and aired on A&E from 2006 to 2012.
He and his band have just launched their �Freedom to Rock� tour, which will stop in more than 35 cities over the summer, ending in Huntington, W.Va. on Sept. 10. The band is making a point to visit markets it hasn�t been to in the past 10 years � or ever. Known for hits such as �Rock and Roll All Night� and �Beth,� Kiss last performed in Wichita in 2000, when it drew 7,200 fans to its Farewell Tour at the Kansas Coliseum.
Simmons said Wichita audiences can expect a show just as energetic and mind-blowing as the band brought in 2000 and in 1977. The band members have all gotten older, he said, but they can still rock.
�When we introduce ourselves, we say, �You wanted the best, you got the best, the greatest band in the world: Kiss,� � he said. �And we aim to prove it when you see us that the legend is true. We have a lot to live up to.
�Kiss is the hardest working band in show business, period.�
Part of that work, especially pre-tour, includes exercise, said Simmons, who talked about a five-mile hike his wife, Shannon Tweed, had recently dragged him along on. It was hot and not fun, he said, but he has to stay in shape for the road. Performing in platform heels while wearing 50 pounds of armor requires physical stamina.
�When we get off stage after we�ve played two hours without backing tracks or lip syncing or disco boys on poles � it�s all meat and potatoes, what you see is what you get � we are exhausted. It�s good for us that there�s still a work ethic when we get up on stage. It should be electric church.�
On its stops on tour so far, the group has been offering an 18-song set list that includes favorite hits plus a few of Simmons� standard onstage antics (include the spitting of everything from fire to blood).
No one should attend the show expecting to spend much time seated.
�If you�re expecting to go see the band and sit in your seat, you�re going to be surprised to see someone�s butt staring at you,� he said. �In fact, the rest of the audience is going to be standing in their seats.�
By John J. Moser / http://www.mcall.com/
There�s a classic rock legend that Gene Simmons, bassist for the band KISS, had a cow�s tongue grafted onto his own to form his trademark appendage.
Now, a new billboard along Route 145/MacArthur Road in Whitehall Township takes a tongue-in-cheek � or, rather, out of cheek -- twist on the legend to promote Allentown Fair�s Aug. 30-Sept. 5 run and the Sept. 1 concert by KISS.
On the huge sign, a cow representing Allentown Fair (perhaps its mascot Moodonna?) has its face painted to match Simmons� onstage KISS makeup, and has a Simmons-like tongue protruding from its mouth.
And in this case, the tongue definitely has been grafted on: It�s a puffy, pink 3-D appendage.
The sign�s slogan, �Party Every Day,� is from the lyrics of KISS�s song �Rock and Roll All Nite.�
The sign is visible along Route 145 South, on the opposite side of the road between Burger King and Papa John�s Pizza.
In a statement, fair Marketing Director Bonnie Brosious said Adams Outdoor of the Lehigh Valley approached the fair with the idea � �unlike anything seen in our market before. Its intention is to add an eye-catching extra dimension to one of the fair�s roadway messages.�
�During the conference call pitch, when the design was revealed on my computer � let�s just say I flew a bit backward on my office chair wheels,� Brosious said.
�Adams� team tells us they like creating for the fair that doesn�t take itself too seriously. Believe me, this design IS a punch line and I�m pretty sure it will attract attention.�
KISS, which is among the best-selling bands of all time, will take the stage at 7 p.m. Sept. 1. Tickets, at $63-$83, are on sale at the fair box office, www.Ticketmaster.com, Ticketmaster centers and 800-745-3000.
It will be KISS�s first show in the Lehigh Valley in 24 years � and first-ever at Allentown Fair. It also will be KISS�s first Valley show in full makeup in more than 40 years. Its last Valley shows were during tours on which it played without the makeup. It resumed wearing the makeup in 1996.
Incidentally, Snopes says the legend about Simmons' tongue surgery is false (See http://bit.ly/29RWjtS). But Simmons has called it his favorite Kiss rumor.
Tonight's KISS hometown hero #roadiefortheday is SGT Alaxandra Harris!
By: Jake Allen / The Gazette
Sherry Jenkins, a retired Air Force chief master sergeant, got to rock 'n' roll all day and all night with one of her favorite bands Monday.
Jenkins and her husband, Tim, were invited to be KISS roadies for the day during the band's show at The Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado Springs. Sherry said she has been a fan of KISS for about 35 years.
"I grew up listening to them, and you'll see the older you get you stop listening to some of the things you used to listen to," she said. "I'm still a huge fan."
The couple started the day putting together gift bags for VIP fans. Then they watched KISS perform an acoustic set for VIP fans and had their picture taken with the band before enjoying the show.
"My real favorite was the last one that they played, which was 'Rock and Roll All Nite,' " Sherry said.
Before the show was over, the Jenkinses accepted a $150,000 check from KISS onstage on behalf of Hiring Our Heroes. The audience recited the Pledge of Allegiance and shouted "USA, USA," while she and Tim were onstage. Sherry said the show was fun but loved that KISS is giving back to veterans.
"It's more about taking care of fellow veterans and their family members," Sherry said. "That's my passion, that's what I do. This is super exciting because KISS is a big supporter."
Jenkins is an Army Career Skills Program Coordinator at Fort Carson, where she has served since May 2014. She is responsible for identifying opportunities to provide skills for transitioning soldiers to highly skilled, high-demand jobs in the civilian sector.
KISS plans to hire veterans or current members of the National Guard or the reserves to be a roadie for the day at each of the band's more than 30 U.S. concerts, said Hiring Our Heroes, which partnered with the band for the program. KISS also is donating tickets to veterans in each community they perform in.
Dean Snowden, KISS ambassador for 18 years, said the program has been around for about four years and is an opportunity for veterans and everyone involved to learn something.
"It gives everybody perspective," Snowden said. "It gives them perspective maybe on what we do, which is very militaristic-like in the way we have to have everybody communicate and the way we set up the show and tear it down. Then again, nobody's shooting at us, so that makes it a lot easier. For the band, they get to see a veteran and they get to show them a little bit of respect and love."
Thanks Darran Crowther for sharing. We'll see you in November. #KISSNAVY Rocks!
