From: Brian

Mixing vintage rock staples with their newest material, Kiss exploded onto the stage at the Continental Airlines Arena in New Jersey last Sunday night. The reunited 40-something quartet played a somewhat eclectic mix of music from their vast catalog. Dishing out some tried and true music (Rock & Roll All Night, Dr. Love, Detroit Rock City, etc.), along with a few less than popular songs (I Was Made For Loving You), Kiss gave an energetic and entertaining, if not spectacular show.

Front man Paul Stanley was his usual high-energy self , poking and prodding the crowd while Gene Simmons continued his roll as the band's most popular figure, the blood spiting, fire breathing bass playing demon. Ace Frehley was solid, though sometimes he seemed to flub a lick or two and Peter Criss was dependable and at times outstanding on drums.

The more than 2 hour show featured the standard Kiss effects and some new visuals as well. The Psycho Circus show, billed as a 3-D extravaganza did not disappoint. The 3-D effects were fun to watch and the (less than sell out) crowd seemed to enjoy it. Also, Paul Stanley has joined Gene Simmons in the 'hey look, I can fly club', as he is sent dangling above the crowd, only to land on a smaller stage in the back of the arena during the song 'Love Gun'.

Musically, Kiss was average. Their sound system left a lot to be desired, as midrange tones were drowned out by the bass and lead guitar. It also seemed that some of their songs were garbled and played much too quickly. There were some dead spots in the show as well. Ace Frehley's cliched guitar solo sent some of the crowd to the restrooms while Peter Criss' drum solo, seemed a little dated for the late 1990's. Some of the new material sounded tight, though 'Within' was a bit sloppy.

The crowd its self was also a bit inconsistant. At times loud and boisterious, and at other moments unintrested. I was wondering if perhaps Kiss lacked the same impact as it did during their reunion shows of 2 years ago.

Though this show was fun to watch and these guys work as hard, and in many cases harder, than bands half their age, it might be that some of the seems in their live music may be splitting. It also must be mentioned that this is a very early show in this tour and it may very well be that in a month or two, some of these bugs will be worked out. In any case, Kiss continues to deliver to it's die hard fans what it always has: grinding rock, great fun and a show like no other. So if your already a Kiss fan or if you were wondering what the fuss was all about, this would be a good time to see rock's greatest show.

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