From: David Picolo

I've got to say that I was thoroughly impressed with Kiss last night at the MCI Center in Washington DC. I consider myself one of the lucky ones because not too many people can say that they have seen all members of Kiss including Mark St John. Last night was amazing. Considering the spectacle of a show like this, I was expecting the guys to take it easy and let the effects do most of the work and entertaining. They seem to play with more energy than on the Reunion tour. Lots of moving around and band interaction. Gene and Ace actually did a small square dance between songs towards the end. They truly seem to be enjoying themselves and it's hard to fake it with giant monitors capturing everything. Paul even made a Clinton/Lewinsky reference we he said that DC was known for its fine cigars. The set list was strong but Within and Into the Void were spots where the crowd calmed down. Makin Love was a bonus for the die-hard fans but also was a slow point along with Let Me Go, Rock and Roll. Sonically, the vocals were strong and crystal clear and Ace's guitar solos were very prominent in the mix. Peter's drums didn't seem to be miked very well though. During most of his drum solo, you could see his hands moving but only hear the kick drum. Though he seemed to miss the beginning of a few songs, he was very solid with keeping time from what I could tell. All in all, he was not the disappointment that I was expecting. In fact, "you deserve to give yourself a round of applause, let's go" (that was my Alive reference for the day). The 3-D effects were fair. It's seems to me that the sky's the limit with something like that but how many times can you poke your guitar at the audience before it gets old. The other animation used was excellent and should be increased. Like they say on ESPN, "I'm old school" and would have liked Rock and Roll all Nite to be the last song. I've never seen so much confetti in my life. And how come Peter didn't throw out any roses during Beth? Paul played Love gun from the platform by the soundboard, Gene did God Of Thunder from the lighting truss and Ace had his smoking guitar for his solo. All normal Kiss activities but still great. It's too bad that Kiss ruins it for everyone else. How am I supposed to enjoy other concerts where the guys in the band look like they slept in their clothes after I've seem this. Actually my last 3 concerts have been Kiss, Kiss and Kiss. Looks like my concert going days are almost over.

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