Jeff Giles | 103.7 The Loon

Gene Simmons might not seem like he’d have much in common with a veteran adult-contemporary crooner like Englebert Humperdinck, but appearances can be deceiving.

Simmons and Humperdinck are collaborating on a track for the latter’s upcoming duets album, which also includes performances by a number of other surprising artists. Humperdinck broke the news during a recent interview with Noise11, enthusing about the guest list on the record, which is due in October. You can watch the video above.

“Isn’t that something? It is going to be very exciting,” Humperdinck said of the Kiss member’s involvement. “There’sElton [John], there’s Smokey Robinson, there’s Willie Nelson, Kenny Rogers and Neil Sedaka, and it goes on and on and on. It is very exciting names on this particular album. I’m so thrilled that everyone has responded and wanted to work on the album with me, and I think it has been a very exciting project.”

Continue reading →

Jeffrey Thiessen | StarPhoenix

Reviewing a KISS show isn’t the easiest gig in the world. Standard criteria one might use for critiquing a concert doesn’t really apply here, after all.

A KISS show is about the stage theatrics, first and foremost, with the actual music placing a fairly distant second. So, to be serious about trying to analyze a KISS show from an objective level, it’s imperative to become completely immersed in the experience, and view it as a living, (fire) breathing collective organism that all 6,500 fans at Saskatoon’s Credit Union Centre on Sunday got to be a part of for a single night. This ain’t a concert folks. It’s a circus set to music.

So does it all hold up well in 2013? This is the same act KISS has been parading onto the stage since they slapped on the greasepaint in 1973. This became apparent very early into the show, as there didn’t seem to be much, if any, deviation from what we’ve grown used to over the last 40 years. For their part, KISS did what they were paid handsomely to do: they left it all on the stage, both real blood and fake. It’s pretty foolish to expect a high level of musicianship from a band like this, but it was quite surprising how free the concert was of sloppy-joe playing from any member of the group. Granted, it’s not the most difficult music to replicate live, but there were no real noticeable clumsy riffs or missed cues to be found for the entire two hour set. Love Gun was probably the best moment of the night from a strictly musical standpoint, as the band barrelled through the track with a ferocity that seemed to actually catch the audience off guard (in a good way). War Machine also brought the house down.

But it’s not likely that any sonic aspects existed as a true highlight of any fan’s experience at the concert. It’s also safe to say nobody actually used their seat at any point during the

Continue reading →

Podcast Rock City
 

Four friends brought together by the GREATEST ROCK AND ROLL BAND of all time, KISS, sit down and discuss all aspects of the band and pull no punches on the subject. Fans all their lives, the group consists of musician Leigh “the Goddess of Thunder” from Iron Mullet and formerly of the all-female KISS tribute Black Diamond, artist/musician Nickelbag Rik, musician Trey from Bay City Psychos, and musician Joe from Bay City Psychos.
www.podcastrockcity.com