“You wanted the best, you’ve got the best …” comes the voice over the Rod Laver Arena PA system. Back in the day Junior Smalling, a member of the band’s road crew, made the announcement to herald KISS’s appearance on stage. These days some KISS fans believe it’s Gene Simmmons’ demonic mellifluous tones that fill the stadium; but with KISS, reality, imitation and myth are just shades of grey.
A lot of people still like KISS; just as many reckon the band’s always been overrated, and its continuing concert presence is a perverse triumph of hyperbole and hubris over rock’n’roll authenticity and artistic credibility. But 42 years after KISS first took to the stage in New York City – in the band’s first year of existence they actually supported Iggy and the Stooges, a fascinating pairing if ever there was one – the band is still going, make-up, boots, wigs and all.
Paul Stanley is 62 and has had endured a couple of hip operations yet still skips nimbly on his seven inch leather heels with the dexterity of a callow youth. Gene Simmons is more dirty old man than demonic figure; in his signature track, God of Thunder, Simmons casts his leering gaze across the crowd before being whisked to the top of the stage rig. Tommy Thayer goes by the grace of Ace Frehley’s original scrappy style; Tommy’s a better guitarist than Ace, but he’ll never have Ace’s charisma. Eric Singer could pass for Peter Criss, but never gets to drape the towel around his neck and sing Beth.
It’s a setlist littered with the classics: Detroit Rock City, Deuce, Calling Dr Love, Cold Gin. Do You Love Me is accompanied by a montage of KISS footage over the years, from Wicked Lester to the new romantic glam outfits and LA metal hair styles of the 1980s to KISS’s triumphant and self-indulgent return to make-up. There’s a brief dip into lesser known KISS: Creatures of the Night from the difficult-Ace-not-really there-but-still featured-on-original-album-cover of the same name, I Love it Loud and War Time from the somewhat embarrassing late 1980s and Hell or Hallelujah from the not-as-bad-as-you’d-expect 2012 album, Monster. If you ever need to know why KISS went on the nose, check out the video clip to Lick It Up; tonight Paul Stanley and Tommy Thayer segue mid-way through the song into The Who’s Won’t Get Fooled Again, a rare surprise (and a definite highlight) in the consistent and predictable KISS live script.
There’s fire breathing, blood dripping and plenty of Paul’s camp vaudeville rock’n’roll banter before the Star Man sails across the crowd to sing Love Gun and the opening strains to Black Diamond. The riffs come thick and fast, the anthems rousing and emphatic: Shout It Out Loud, I Was Made for Loving You and Rock’n’Roll All Nite. The crowd is showered with confetti and there is much rejoicing. We exit the arena and procure a bootleg t-shirt to commemorate the event. Is it the last time KISS will grace our shores? Probably not, but who really cares.
BY PATRICK EMERY
Photo by Ian Laidlaw
Loved: The segue into Won’t Get Fooled Again.
Hated: seeing part of the Lick It Up film clip.
Drank: a couple of Coopers’ en route, and Boags Draught at the venue.
