WELCOME TO DREAM WORLD!
By: Jon Law Hastings

Hello KISS ARMY! My name is Jon Law Hastings and I wanna SOUND OFF!! In this article, I will be quoting directly from the previous piece contibuted by Bill Francavilla and will then express my opinions below it. Enjoy, and WELCOME TO THE SHOW!!

BF: I just read the latest article of "Diamonds In the Rough" and it was sooo true. Just the other day I was in Spencers and saw a pack of KISS trading cards for 15 dollars. I thought it was preposterous. Then when I saw that it was already marked down from 20 dollars that didn't really sit well with me.

I agree. Walking into Spencers these days is at times depressing for me. The only items that I have a remote interest in are the 24 inch dolls. However, at $149.99 apiece they are out of many fans' price range for a whole set. I say the whole set because who just wants 1 out of the 4? KISS is KISS. Not Gene, Ace, Peter or Paul by themselves. The cards, the cars, the lenticular poster, etc. are not what fans want. Especially at the prices that they are marked to sell at!

BF: Dale Sherman's idea about the ONCE AND FUTURE TOUR is pure genius. The two main words that KISS needs to learn are, "Why not?" Why can't they play "Under the Gun," "Move on," or let Peter sing "Out Of Control?" However, as far as an opening band I don't agree with him fully. Maybe ESP or UNION can open. Why not a band with Bruce, Eric, Mark and Vinnie (even though that would be a whole other thing to worry about as far as attitudes go, specifically with Vinnie)? Maybe they can jam on one of the encores with KISS, say on "Let me go Rock and Roll" or another good song to jam on with everyone trading off on solos. They did it on Unplugged, why not now?

Why not? Well, let's see... KISS has made a ton of music since 1974. If you listen to any bootleg recordings of the KISS Conventions KISS can play only a handful of "obscure" music to any respectable length. Songs like Under the Gun, Mainline, Burn Bitch Burn and Charisma, while all good songs, do not make KISS go in a rehearsal and relearn them. Also, KISS likes to play songs that keep the crowd on their feet and moving the whole show. Under the Gun is NOT a crowd sing-a-long song. Burn Bitch Burn is NOT a crown sing-a-long song. The majority of the 80's stuff can not translate well to a live setting. I was listning to San Bernadino '84 the other day and the song Fits Like a glove was so annoying live! Sorry to say it, but a vast majority of KISS songs do not go over well live.

As far as a KISS related band opening for KISS, this is not a bad idea. I saw UNION live last year and thought that they should open for KISS on the "PSYCHO CIRCUS" tour. However, to say that all the ex-members of KISS should join up and jam, while nice in theory, would force every fan in attendance to be screaming for KISS to come out and play with them. This in turn would piss off Vinnie and make Eric Singer attack Gene! Too much ego to be on one stage - for a full tour.

BF: Intermission with the big screen should have a tribute to Eric Carr, that's a given. How about clips from Peter on the Phil Donahue show, or the clip when they took the makeup off on MTV? Maybe even Letterman's Top Ten list, "Why KISS put the makeup back on." I remember seeing OZZfest one year and before Ozzy went on they played movie clips with Ozzy incorporated into them. It was ingenius and funny and it was almost the best part of the concert (but keep in mind, Ozzy isn't KISS so they wouldn't have to worry about the screen upstaging them).

INTERMISSION?? If anything, they should show any kind of video package prior to KISS coming on stage. Example (WELCOME TO DREAMWORLD):

7:45 to 8:30p.m.
UNION comes out and plays. Their setlist is as follows:

1.Old Man Wise
2.Jungle
3.Man In The Moon
4.Love (I Don't Need It Anymore)
5.Heavy D
6.I Walk Alone
7.Tangerine
8.Surrender

8:30 to 9:05 p.m.
A tribute package to Eric Carr amongst other KISS related fan and peer tributes. Have a montage of KISS music playing in the background of the video and at the end have a PSA asking for donations to the Eric Carr Fund.

9:05 to 11:30 p.m.
KISS takes the stage and launches into a very cool setlist:

1.Deuce - Gene
2.You Wanted The Best - Gene/Ace/Paul/Peter
3.Jungle - Paul
4.Shock Me - Ace
5.Heaven's on Fire - Paul
6.Strange Ways - Peter
7.Unholy - Gene
8.Hard Luck Woman - Peter
9.Psycho Circus - Paul
10.Christine Sixteen - Gene
11.2,000 Man - Ace (solo)

Along with the smoke, Ace now goes out on a riser about 25 rows back over the crowd, where he can turn to any corner of the arena and shoot a designated target with a rocket that comes out of the guitar.

Peter's Drum Kit Rises up out and over then DOWN to a spot in the crowd and he plays surrounded by the fans.

A ring of fire starts at center stage. You hear Gene's base solo but you do not see Gene. At the point where he begins to spit blood he is raised via a platform up through the flames and is drooling the blood. After he is done spitting blood and accepting crowd props, he then hits the base to signify his rise into the rafters. Behind his lift wires is a single wire that can ignite As he is going up, a column of flames is following up with him. He plays the whole song up there and starts to come down at the end with the flames following him down. He then is placed back in the ring of fire, his arms folded in satisfaction and cockiness, and is lowered below the stage as the song ends.

Paul now flies to the upper back section of the arena and plays there amongst the fans. At the end of the song, while back on stage, he shoots a "laser" out of his star eye at various lighting points causing them to "exlode".

A Full orchestra is already in place in the pit area under the stage and play Beth live!

All of KISS goes up on Peter's drum riser and salute the crowd.

All former members of KISS come out to play. There are three drum kits set up. The one in the middle is in honor of Eric Carr, his Creatures of the Night kit. Peter on the right and Eric Singer on the left. Bruce Kulick, Mark St. John and Vinnie Vincent all come out to a big ovation. As the song begins the KISS video screen shows highlights of Eric Carr and also shows various clips of KISS through the years. During the extended solo part, as each guitarist plays a highlight package of each guy is shown on the screen (with these shots interchanged with live stage shots). At the end of the song a video face morph is played, with all the members of KISS past and present being shown.

They all bow together, exchange hugs on stage and walk off into immortality!

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