From: Daniel Menestres
The KISS concert last night was just amazing. I saw them twice on the Reunion tour and I thought those concerts were great, but Sunday night in Knoxville topped them both. The band was on fire from the beginning to the end and I enjoyed every minute of it. Needless to say, it had been three years since I saw them last on April 4 in Chapel Hill. This was way too long to wait for the band.

Skid Row was not a bad opening band, although Sebastian wasn't singing. However, it was good to hear the old songs again, especially "Monkey Business", "18 And Life", "I Remember You" and "Youth Gone Wild". They were loud and used every inch of that stage to their advantage. I knew I was in for it when they hit the stage and they were firing on all cylinders.

Ted Nugent, aka the "Motor City Jackass" came out and rocked very hard. At least he got all of his insults out quickly so I didn't have to listen to him between every song. Still, he and his band played very tight. Seeing Tommy Aldridge on drums was great. Nugent is without a doubt the most obnoxious person to ever pick up a guitar. I may not agree with what he says but at least he states what he believes.

While both opening bands provided a great show, nothing could top KISS, especially tonight. The descent from the riser to the stage was great, having started "Detroit Rock City" while the curtain was still up and when they hit the stage they went right into it. The band thanked the fans several times and I really appreciated that.

I'm not going to get into the setlist, as much as I would like to, but from "Detrioit Rock City" until "Rock N' Roll All Night" the show was fantastic. The stage setup was amazing as were the pyro and lights and the band's performance. The 3 songs from the 1980s went over very well with the audience, and they were all singing along with them just as much as the other songs.

I thought that Ace Frehley was the best part of the show tonight, although all four of them were giving 110% on stage. Hearing "2000 Man" was definitely a highlight of the show, as was his solo. His work in "100,000 Years" absolutely knocked me out.

Peter's solo was very good, he was definitely hitting those drums tonight. He really impressed me and hearing him thank the audience was really a nice moment.

The best part of the show was how they changed things around from the Reunion tour. Gene was spitting blood before singing "God of Thunder", Ace doing his solo after "2000 Man", not "Shock Me", etc. The one song I would have liked to hear would have been "C'mon and Love Me", but I can't complain about this show.

Thanks to KISS for putting on such a great show, and I consider myself to be very lucky to have been able to see them in concert. This was the third time I've seen the show and I can't wait to see the band again in June.

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