Aside from a few taped segments involving disassembling skeletons, disembodied heads, and exploding planets, mostly this meant that the four original band members got to poke their various instruments into what seemed like about an arm's length from your face at semi-regular intervals for two hours and 10 minutes.

In the meantime, you got the lights, lasers, fireworks, smoke, explosions, sirens, confetti, three giant video screens, three different rising platform bits (everything happens three times), the drum solo, the guitar solo, and all the fire-eating, blood-spitting, unison guitar-wielding routines from when we first saw 'em back in 1975.

Same goes for about a third of the set list, the best of which -- because it's just about the most inspired, nothing but a let's-get-stupid riff in the songbook -- was "Deuce." (The only possible competition is "Strutter," which, unfortunately, they didn't perform this evening.) Oh yeah, they also did "Black Diamond," with drummer Peter Criss doing a capable job of filling in on lead vocals for Paul Stanley, whose voice blew out around the two-hour mark. Made you almost forgive Criss for his seated solo peformance of "Beth," backed by pre-recorded strings and piano, that began the inevitable multiple encores segment.

As for the "Psycho Circus" elements of the show, other than Kiss opening with that particular tune (the title track to their latest album) and lead guitarist Ace Frehley fronting "Into The Void" (also found on the new LP), the carnival acts that preceded the musical segments were just your basic sideshow/dare-devil shtick: maggot-eaters, tightrope walkers, and people who drive multiple motorcycles around a ball-shaped steel cage. Basically, this was really just a giant outdoor costume party with Kiss' greatest hits providing the soundtrack. About half the crowd turned out in costume -- and about half of those were wearing Kiss masks or make-up (bassist Gene Simmons' demonic disguise being far and away the most popular).

The Smashing Pumpkins, meanwhile, came out and pretended to be the Beatles circa 1964, blasting out a John Lennon-inspired cover of Barrett Strong's immortal "Money" that pretty much summed up the real spirit of the evening. Augmented by a drummer and keyboardist, who -- like leader Billy Corgan -- quickly flipped their bowl-cut wigs in favor of their shaved pates, the Gourds O' Grunge played a politely received 60-minute set that oscillated between rockers and ballads new and old. Occasional guitar maelstroms aside, all that "my soul is a penguin in bondage" crapola doesn't make it in a stadium-rock situation where people just wanna rock and roll all night and party everyday. Cue the fireworks. -- Don Waller

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