From: Al Baby
All right you guys. Let me start off by saying that you have to go and see them. KISS is the best band you will ever see in concert. I have seen them many, many times and I think that gives me the right to say the things that I am about to say.

If I had to give them a grade for this paricular show it would be a C+. Now here is why:

Paul: Everyone knows that nobody can sing as well as Paul Stanley. He can do things with his voice that others only dream about. But this can actually be a bad thing, too. Paul was very shrill, piercing and whiny on this night. It almost sounded at times like he was auditioning for the next Memorex commercial to try to shatter a glass with his voice! There were even times when the p.a. broke up because of the things he was doing with his voice. 100,000 Years was barely even recognizeable because he was straying so far from the melody. And let me also say this: Paul seemed at times frustrated with the audience for not being loud enough. This came off as unprofessional and very un-KISSlike.

Gene: I guess I have to be the one to say this because nobody else has. "Gene, you're singing Heaven's on Fire wrong!!!" The first time I heard him sing on the VH-1 opening night I cringed and thought, "Well that's o.k., they haven't done that song in a while. I'm sure Paul will have a word with him and set him straight." I have seen 2 Farewell Tour shows and he sang it wrong at both shows. If any of you are not sure what I'm talking about, it's the harmony part in the chorus and the bridge. Listen to the album, and also listen to the version on Animalize Live and Uncensored. That's the way it's supposed to be! I hope there are others out there who agree with me on this.

Ace: What can I say? Ace is Ace and Ace will always be Ace. Vocally he sounded better at this show than the previous one I saw. All of his solos don't seem to be up to snuff and that's o.k. because most of the crowd is singing and air guitaring his solos the way we remember them. But if I was a bettin' man I would say that Ace was back on the bottle. That's just the way I see it. I could be way off on this, but it appears that way to me.

Peter: Peter hasn't sounded this well in many years, certainly better than Reunion and P.C. tours. He is kicking ass on the drums, singing backup vocals well and sounds great on Black Diamond and Beth. Definitely the most surprising member of the group.

There. I've said my peace. You will be hard pressed to find someone who loves KISS as much as I, and I think that alone gives me the right to say what I have said. I will be seeing them at least 2 more times on this tour, and I hope them to be memorable ones.

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