Nothing But Icing Will Make You Sick.
By: Michael Papaleonardos

I'll start by saying that I became a KISS fan in 1975. I desperatley still want to remain a KISS fan, but it is becoming extremely difficult with the path the band has taken. What is so special about KISS to me is that they are/were the BEST at combining theatrics with GREAT music. Having seen Peter Gabriel's last tour and U2's last three tours, I was angry at critics for lauding the theatrical aspects of those shows yet not giving credit to KISS for the same thing a decade or 2 earlier. When I saw the first Reunion tour, it all "clicked" for me when Gene was vomitting blood. I was waiting in anticipation with 20,000 other fans screaming my head off. At the first sign of blood, everyone went into a frenzy. I was laughing at myself at how worked up I had gotten. THAT was great theater. That was a great show. I had only experienced KISS in my mind as I was too young to see the original lineup.

The cracks in the band seemed to haved surfaced when Psycho Circus came out and was met with mixed reactions from fans... later amplified by rumors of session players. KISS was playing it safe, trying to cover all the bases it seemed and using session players which stripped the magic from some of the songs. I'm a huge Ace fan and his guitar is the KISS sound..... period. What KISS did was akin to Led Zepplin re-uniting and having someone else playing Jimi Page's guitar parts..... insane.

Think about all the interviews, snippets, etc that you have read over the years where some guitarist or artist talks about KISS having a huge influence on them. I was so excited in anticipation of their new album. Couldn't wait to hear Ace and Peter play again. The four of them being KISS once again. We were robbed of that. I was imagining what kind of guitar interplay would be between Paul and Ace (none) . I kept on thinking, where are the solos? The solos for the most part are Ace retreads played by Paul Stanley. I was expecting solos like what we got on Rock and Roll Over. Wicked, crunchy, in your face. Instead we got the type of solos found on Unmasked. Safe. Not an ounce of techincal proficiency needed to pull them off.

People have said it before, and I'll say it again: THE MAGIC OF KISS IS ALL FOUR OF THEM PLAYING TOGETHER. Whose bright idea was it to cut off Ace's balls on this record?? Ace has his own style. He is one of the greats, standing alongside Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix, Angus Young, Eddie Van Halen. When you hear any of these guitarists, you know instantly it's them. They have their own identifiable sound. Ace has influenced a generation or two of guitarists. It's a crime against KISS fans for KISS to peddle off the album as a band effort. Once the cat was out of the bag about session players, you could tell they were wincing when they addressed this issue and tried to brush it off as "everybody does it" and "it's not a big deal." Peter and Ace didn't want to rock the boat, but if you could read between the lines you could sense they werent happy about it either.

The Psycho Circus tour only made things worse. The 3D was a complete bomb. What it effectively did was transform the audience into zombies, putting the glasses on and off. People were confused as to when to put them on or off. The audience was so distracted by the 3D glasses that they forgot to watch the band and get into the show like they did on the Reunion tour. It didn't help that they played the same songs and the 3D effects were BORING. What a waste. They could have done SOOOOO much more. The letdown I'm sure was compounded (for me at least) by Gene saying this was going to be the best show, the effects were going to knock you out, blah blah blah ad naseum. When you continually pump stuff and then don't deliver, it leaves a sour taste in your mouth.

Gene always talk about giving the fans what they want. They have lost touch with whom they think their fans are. Gene has been confronted with a few interviewers who press him about what "fans" want. For example, fans want a change in the setlist. Gene's response has always been that those fans are not representative of the majority, and you can't please everyone. Gene likens KISS to being like a Broadway show (and I understand why - they say the same thing night after night, same moves show after show, same songs year after year after year). He feels the need to play it safe musically onstage, despite his wild demonic persona, spitting blood and fire and all, talking trash to interviewers etc.

That goes for Paul too. He defends the band playing the same old tired songs year after year after year. The masses demand it, they say. Well, fans seem to be running away in droves. And when hardcore fans start dropping away too, something needs to change. Something is wrong. You can see it in their faces, in their perfomances of late. They look tired. Bored. Stiff. They are currently in a spot where they have always said they never ever wanted to be.... not having fun. If we can see that they are not having fun, that translates into us not having any fun.

KISS needs to get back to the music. Music is the meat and potatoes of this band. The makeup, the show, the theatrics, the merchandising is the icing on the cake. And you know what happens when you are fed nothing but dessert... you get sick. You can only take so much of it. The recent WCW event didn't help either. Just how low can KISS sink to? That move effectively chopped off the legs of most hardcore fans in our zeal to defend the band. It was a body slam. For years we have stood our ground, defending our favorite band. But now......... it's tough.

So is it to late for KISS? Maybe. If they tour anytime soon, they need to play some DIFFERENT songs. Change it up. Open up with Rock and Roll all night, get it out of the way. Get the band off of the familiar ground that they are accustomed to. Shake up the audience. KISS also needs to go back into the studio, just the four of them. Give us a classic KISS album like Paul Stanley promised that PC was going to be. Drums, Guitar, Bass. A true rock and roll record in the classic KISS tradition. This is the ONLY way that KISS will gain back my lost respect for them. Put out a real KISS album that we can remember them by, and then maybe all will be forgiven. Put the music first fellas.

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