Ultimate Classic Rock

Kiss manager Doc McGhee revealed that every surviving former member of the band has been approached about potentially taking part in the group’s last show.

The show is set to take place on July 17, 2021, in New York City, as the finale of the three-year End of the Road world tour, with 75 shows recently announced for next year.

The band’s surviving former members include founding lead guitarist Ace Frehley, original drummer Peter Criss, ’80s and ’90s lead guitarist Bruce Kulick and the band’s second lead guitarist, Vinnie Vincent. Deceased former members include Eric Carr, who drummed for the band between 1980 until his death in 1991, and Mark St. John, who played on 1984’s Animalize album.

“Ace and Peter will be and have been invited to come and play with us at anytime,” McGhee said during a question-and-answer session on the ninth Kiss Kruise. “Like I always say, people in New York would love to see Joe Namath still play football for the Jets. Unfortunately, he can’t. We want to include everybody that played with Kiss to celebrate the 45 years of Kiss.”

Name-checking Frehley, Criss and Vincent, he noted that “we’re still looking at what we’re going to do on the final show of Kiss … and, yes, they’ve all been talked to about it, so I can see us doing something. It’s very difficult, though, when people say, ‘Oh, you should bring Ace and Peter up.’ I mean, how do you do that when you have two Catmen and two Spacemen?’ So you say, ‘Okay, you don’t wear makeup, and you wear makeup.’ And then they go, ‘Well, that was my makeup.’ I don’t know.”

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Blabbermouth

Former KISS guitarist Vinnie Vincent says that he is open to the possibility of making an appearance during the band’s “End Of The Road” tour.

Vinnie joined KISS in 1982, replacing Ace Frehley. As the “Ankh Warrior,” he toured with the group in support of “Creatures Of The Night”, on which he played lead guitar on six songs prior to becoming an official member of the band.

Asked in a new interview with “Rock And Roll Experience With Mike Brunn” what he would say if he was approached to get up on stage with KISS during the band’s farewell tour, Vinnie said (hear audio below): “Well, it’s not something I’ve thought about lately. I think there was something that my lawyer had been in contact with them about a year ago. As far as I know, nothing came of it. And it wasn’t something I thought about — after that moment had passed, it wasn’t anything I thought about anymore.

“I don’t know what they’re doing. I don’t wanna assume anything — it’s not for me to second guess. It seems like they’ve got the band that they’re doing this with. I don’t know if they’re having past members play — I don’t know.”

After host Mike Brunn interjected that KISS has not yet played with any former members during the “End Of The Road” trek, Vinnie continued: “Well, that’s as far as my thoughts go with it. If this is something that they want to approach, all they’ve gotta do is give me a call, and we’ll take it from there.”

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Michael Brandvold

The Desk Chicken

Matt Porter

The Onion

SEATTLE (UPI)—A hot recording by what listeners describe as a hip new alternative band was discovered yesterday by the staff of a local radio station, exciting numerous area music listeners.

The recording in question, Double Platinum, by an unknown group identified only by the one-word, monosyllabic name KISS, was rushed to a nearby stereo where it underwent intense listening and scru-tiny by knowledgeable disc jockeys, many of whom have subscriptions to hip, al-ternative music magazines like Alternative Press, Spin, Op-tion and Rolling Stone.

The recording was found by DJ Josh Negler while rummaging through K-ALT’s vast library of recordings for his “Alternative A.M.” radio show. Negler, 27, has been an intense fan and expert on alternative rock for over 18 months.

“The CD player was down, so I had to find some vinyl,” Negler says. “I never thought I’d uncover such an unknown treasure, which I knew was alternative right away, as soon as I saw the silvery reflective packaging.”

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KISSmuseum.com

We have listed over 100 new KISS Compact Discs to our site this week. Some amazing stuff from A to Z – from the rare to not-so-rare. Mostly singles so grab them while you can…

KISS CDs at KISSmuseum.com

Michael Brandvold

U Discover Music

KISSmuseum.com

We have listed over 200 new KISS Guitar Picks to our site this week. Some amazing stuff from A to Z – from the rare to not-so-rare, we have it all…

KISS Guitar Picks at KISSmuseum.com

Ultimate Classic Rock

Previously unseen stage-design sketches for a Kiss Music From ‘The Elder’ tour that never happened highlight a new 1,200-item rock-memorabilia sale from Backstage Auctions.

The band can be seen clustered around a glowing orb and performing in front of a lighthouse and wishing well in the below sketches. They were drawn by Mark Ravitz, who created the first-ever Kiss stage logo as well as the stage for their tour in support of 1976’s Destroyer. He has also worked with David Bowie, Frank Sinatra and the Who.

In a new interview with Three Sides of the Coin, Ravitz explained that he was approached by the band in early 1982 to come up with ideas for a new stage show. Even though he said he was unaware that Kiss had released their first-ever concept album the previous November, several of his sketches match up with the medieval setting and myth-based lyrics of The Elder.

“I had no relationship to that album at all,” he said. “I created the first-generation Kiss tour. And now I [was] creating the generation that I wanted to see. There was no music involved. I didn’t hear about any album or anything like that.”

Unfortunately, nobody else really heard about Music From ‘The Elder’ either. The album was a spectacular flop. In 2004’s Kiss: Behind the Mask, singer Paul Stanley said the LP was “probably the biggest misstep of our whole musical career.”

The lack of sales and fan interest torpedoed any chances of Kiss mounting a successful tour, so the band instead quickly regrouped to record four new straight-ahead rock songs for the face-saving 1982 compilation Killers.

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KISS ARMY – meet meet us for the October issue of THE KISS ROOM! Bryce Lypz, drummer from Australia’s SISTERS DOLL, calls in to talk about the band, his own KISStory, and what it was like to work with Bruce Kulick and Peter Criss! The PodFather Ken Mills calls in to talk KISS with us and share some info about the latest release from Eric Carr, KISS talk and MORE! We premiere a new, Halloween themed track from IRON FIST! Joe D’Angelo calls in with a Kruise Fest update! And of course THE KISS ROOM HOUSE BAND rocks an amazing live set of KISS classics that you will only hear in THE KISS ROOM! It’s a Kruise pre-game, it’s the Halloween kick-off, it’s a party and everyone is invited! Originally broadcast live via Montco Radio on Friday, October 11, 2019.

Michael Brandvold

Lunar Moth

Icon Coins has announced plans to release an officially licensed Eric Carr Commemorative Collectors Coin.  Eric Carr, KISS drummer from 1980 until his untimely passing in 1991,  contributed his talent to the bands many gold and platinum albums during his tenure, and can be heard on the bands many hit songs from the 1980s including Lick It Up, Heaven’s on Fire, Crazy Nights, Tears are Falling, and Forever, to name a few.  In addition to his musical contributions, Eric Carr was equally known for his inviting personality and genuine love for the fans. From the time he joined the band to this very day, Eric Carr remains one of the most beloved members of the KISS family.

Each Eric Carr Commemorative Collectors Coin in die struck in heavy solid brass  with an antique silver finish. The front design features a beautiful sketch portrait of Eric Carr while the back design features his name, birth and passing years, Fox and Chikara icons representing his musical personas, over a shattered glass background reminiscent of the Crazy Nights album cover.

Each coin will also include an EXCLUSIVE backstage pass style laminate that will act as the coins Certificate of Authenticity featuring design elements from the coins themselves as well as an Eric Carr mini-bio.

This addition to the Icon Coins family is limited to 100 coins minted.

Each Collector Will Receive:

• 1.75″ Die Struck Eric Carr Coin w/Antique Silver Finish
• Velvet Coin Pouch
• Exclusive Laminate/C.O.A.

These coins will begin shipping in early/mid November and are currently available for pre-order at
http://www.IconCoins.com

Icon Coins is a division of Lunar Moth Entertainment dedicated to bringing you high quality collectible
coins celebrating the icons of pop culture. Previous releases include coins honoring the 40th anniversary of
JAWS, Bigfoot, Eddie Munster, and more.

Blabbermouth

KISS guitarist Tommy Thayer recently spoke with Australia’s Heavy magazine. The full conversation can be streamed below. A few excerpts follow (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On the band’s ongoing “End Of The Road” farewell tour:

Tommy: “We feel good. I’m still getting used to this being the last tour. In North America and Europe, we’ve done 95 shows this year already, with about 20 more to go. I’m still loving being out there. Most all shows are sold-out. We’ve been packing them in, and the response has been incredible… It’s something else. It’s over the top. It’s definitely the biggest show we’ve done, and I know that sounds very cliché — you’ve heard it before — but literally, it’s the biggest and best show we’ve ever done. There’s no doubt about it.”

Tommy: “It is emotional. Every night, we go out there and see the smiles, and actually the tears in a lot of people’s eyes. It kind of surprises me sometimes, because I’m not ready for that. You see people with tears, but also tears of joy, loving this band for as long as it’s been around. It means a lot to us, and to be on stage each night is just phenomenal. Seeing the response, we just couldn’t feel better about it.”

On the band’s wide demographic:

Tommy: “The multi-generational thing, it’s very bizarre, actually. Sometimes I ask kids, ‘How did you get into KISS nowadays, and what makes you want to come see this band?’ A lot of times, it’s because their parents were into it, and they kind of pass the torch. Maybe it’s just because the world’s a smaller place, interconnected with the Internet. People have been seeing the show on YouTube and online, and I think that’s really helped us, even though a lot of times in the YouTube era, bands don’t like that because they feel like it gives away the surprise or the secret about what we’re doing. It’s really spread the word. I think we do a lot of things outside the box. We did a KISS/‘Scooby-Doo!’ movie a couple years ago. I know a lot of kids got turned on to KISS seeing that movie. There’s a lot of things like that. It’s a strange phenomenon, but it blows me away.”
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The Onion

Jody Havenot

The Onion

DETROIT ROCK CITY—The Kiss Army, long respected for its traditions of disobedience, insubordination and guitar-fueled mayhem, is the subject of a federal investigation following recent allegations of widespread propriety among its ranks.

The investigation, which implicates a number of high-level Kiss Army members, cites numerous reports of “highly inappropriate behavior among Kiss Army members, including marriage, steady employment and child-rearing,” said Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-MN), chair of the Kiss Armed Services Committee.

The Senate called for hearings after securing testimony from an unnamed Kiss Army insider stating that Kiss Army Commander Doug Haines—best known as the screaming concertgoer in the 1978 made-for-TV movie Kiss Meets The Phantom who wears a mesh shirt and holds up a “God of Thunder” sign—is now a 41-year-old, San Diego-area certified public accountant and father of three.

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KISSmuseum.com

See the New KISS Collectible Additions at KISSmuseum.com