From: HARVBANGER@aol.com

I have been a Kiss fan since I first Rock n Roll All Nite on the radio, circa January, 1976. My first Kiss concert was the Rock n Roll Over tour, 21 years ago in NYC at Madison Square Garden. For me personally, nothing will ever top that. How could it? Your first time...you don't know what to expect (especially then, before the influx of internet reviews!). And then you see them. The guys in the ghoulish greasepaint, they're Larger than life. I equate that first Kiss show to losing your virginity. The first time you experience the total and ultimate bombardment of the senses...well, nothing can compare to that. Let's give that a "10" on a scale of 1 to 10.

My second Kiss show was the Creatures of the Night tour. I saw that one in my old stomping grounds, Rochester, New York. I remember being very disappointed. That concert didn't have nearly the same electricity as the first one. Also, not seeing the original members together was a letdown. And only half of the Rochester War Memorial was filled...and a curtain dividid the concert hall in half. I'd give that show a "3."

Two years ago I had the privilege of seeing Kiss perform their reunion tour in Pittsburgh. That was fantastic. My wife did not want me to see that show. We were expecting a baby any day. I ended up going to the show with my pager...just in case an emergency arose. Good thing my son was born 5 days after the concert. That reunion show was terrific. A solid "9" in my judgement.

Tonight I witnessed my fourth (and hopefully, not my last) Kiss show at the Pittsburgh Civic Arena. Here's my take on tonight's show:

The official starting time of the concert was 7:30pm. But since I arrived late, about 8:15pm, I missed the entire opening performance by Econline Crush. No big deal. My seats were in peanut heaven. I work at the ABC affiliate TV station in Pittsburgh. One of the perks we sometimes get is to obtain complimentary tickets to various events...in the TV station's luxury box. It might sound cool, but it is definitely a drawback for concerts. The box is located so high (stage left), you're up in the rafters. You feel as if you are observing the entertainment...rather than being a part of the action. Next time I'll forego the free tickets, and plunk down the bucks to buy good seats much closer to the stage.

At approximately 8:35pm ( I thought that was very early for a Friday night!) the lights went out, and the crowd went nuts with anticipation. With a big grin on my mug, and the 3-D glasses clutched in my hands, I (and 16,000 other fanatics) was ready for the superstars to begin the show. Then, BOOM! There they were. Live, for all to see.......KISS!!! Of course, "Psycho Circus" began the show. The set list remained the same as many of the previous shows. The complete sequence of songs:

1) Psycho Circus
2) Shout it out loud
3) Deuce
4) Do You Love Me (the first time you get to use the 3-D glasses)
5) Firehouse
6) Shock Me
7) Let me go rock n roll
8) Calling Dr. Love
9) Into The Void + Ace's guitar solo
10) King of the night time world
11) God of Thunder
12) Within
13) Cold Gin
14) Love Gun (lot of fun seeing Paul fly to the other part of the crowd)
15) 100,000 Years
16) Rock n Roll All Nite

Encore #1 Beth
Encore #2 Detroit Rock City
Encore #3 Black Diamond

Similar to other recent performances, there was no "Makin' Love" and "I was Made for Loving You." I've been a bit surprised that "You Wanted The Best" has not been added to the list, being that it's the 2nd single off of Psycho Circus.

I have mixed emotions about the 3-D effects. Sometimes it was cool. Other times it became a nuisance and a distraciton. If I was running the show (I know, I know...I'm not. But this is MY review), I would incorporate no more than 3 songs for the 3-D glasses. And that's all. My preference would have been to use the giant video screens for more close-ups, rather than overdoing the special effects.

Toward the end of King of the night time world, two of the Pyros kept going off...accidentally. It's always neat to see something that wasn't planned. Paul said; 'That's what's so cool about rock n roll. You never know what's going to happen next!' Other than that little mishap (but it was a Fun diversion), the band looked, played and sounded clean and tight. These guys have this thing down to a science. They put on a real professional show.

My favorite songs of the night: Psycho Circus, Deuce, Love Gun and Rock n Roll All Nite. A special treat was seeing Gene Simmons doing his blood bit during God of Thunder. I have to mention that this was the first (and last) time my wife accompanied me to a Kiss show. Her musical tastes are vastly different from mine. While I love Kiss, she loves Luther Vandross and Bryan Adams.

When Gene went soaring high for God of Thunder...and began his dracula act, my wife shuddered. She was completely grossed out by all the blood. She got spooked, and was afraid she would have nightmares and hyperventilate in her sleep. Then she asked me how many more songs Kiss would play. You gotta love it. That made the show that much more fun for me. I'm not saying I'm sadistic, but I did get a kick out of seeing Gene terrify my wife.

All in all, a great show. Ace and Peter looked like they were having a ball. Paul is the consummate showman. He's the leader out there. The director. And Gene looks as menacing as ever. The songs sounded great. Since I'm a big fan of the new album/cd...I would have liked hearing even more new material. But I'll take what I can get. A little more diversity from the reunion song list would have made this show even better. From my "luxury" box rafter seats, this Kiss concert scored an "8". I imagine for the other 16,000 Kiss fans who were a lot closer to the show, they would have given it a "9" or a "10." Cool beans!

KISS ASYLUM -- KISS Museum News Archive Features Tour Dates Photos