08/26/2012
BROTHERS CELEBRATE KISS & CRUE!
State Fair: It's KISS. It's Motley Crue. For these brothers, it's destiny.
By Ross Raihala
Tim Meyer was "blindsided" by the news.
"I was completely shocked," he said. "I had goosebumps. Within seconds, I called my brother."
What was the fuss? Two of rock music's most flamboyant bands -- Kiss and Motley Crue -- had just announced a joint summer tour, with a show booked at the Minnesota State Fair Grandstand on Wednesday, Aug. 29.
"It felt like nothing else mattered now," said the 36-year-old welder from Plymouth. "There's nothing that can top this concert."
For Tim Meyer and his older brother Brian, it won't be just another night of music under the stars. Instead, it's a rare convergence of the men's near-lifelong passions. Brian, 41, fell for Kiss as a second-grader growing up in Faribault. A few years later, Tim discovered Motley Crue.
"We shared a bedroom and I put up my Kiss posters on one side, and he put his Motley Crue pictures on the other side," Brian said. "We wanted to cover all the walls, and when we did, our mom said, 'OK, pick one and the rest go down.' "
But that wasn't the end of the Meyer brothers' obsessions. If anything, it was just the beginning.
Brian now lives in Owatonna with his wife and 18-year-old son. Not only did he hold on to all the Kiss memorabilia from his youth, he continued to add to the collection. He bought his current house in 2001, specifically because it had room for him to create a Kiss museum in the basement.State Fair: It's KISS. It's Motley Crue. For these brothers, it's destiny.
By Ross Raihala
Tim Meyer was "blindsided" by the news.
"I was completely shocked," he said. "I had goosebumps. Within seconds, I called my brother."
What was the fuss? Two of rock music's most flamboyant bands -- Kiss and Motley Crue -- had just announced a joint summer tour, with a show booked at the Minnesota State Fair Grandstand on Wednesday, Aug. 29.
"It felt like nothing else mattered now," said the 36-year-old welder from Plymouth. "There's nothing that can top this concert."
For Tim Meyer and his older brother Brian, it won't be just another night of music under the stars. Instead, it's a rare convergence of the men's near-lifelong passions. Brian, 41, fell for Kiss as a second-grader growing up in Faribault. A few years later, Tim discovered Motley Crue.
"We shared a bedroom and I put up my Kiss posters on one side, and he put his Motley Crue pictures on the other side," Brian said. "We wanted to cover all the walls, and when we did, our mom said, 'OK, pick one and the rest go down.' "
But that wasn't the end of the Meyer brothers' obsessions. If anything, it was just the beginning.
Brian now lives in Owatonna with his wife and 18-year-old son. Not only did he hold on to all the Kiss memorabilia from his youth, he continued to add to the collection. He bought his current house in 2001, specifically because it had room for him to create a Kiss museum in the basement.
"My collection was getting so huge, there was nowhere to put it all," said Brian, who works in a glass-fabrication plant. "I'd put up a poster, and my wife would say: 'I don't want this. Not in our bedroom.' So I said, 'OK, let's buy a bigger house.' "
Over the past decade, Brian not only has continued to add to his Kiss stockpile, he has hunted down retail display cases and spinning magazine racks to properly exhibit his booty. "The stuff in the cases is what I cherish the most," he said. "The dolls, the puzzles, the Halloween costumes, the original lunchbox, the Kiss Army newsletters. All that great stuff."
Kiss posters cover the walls and Kiss throw rugs decorate the floor. A clothing rack displays Brian's various Kiss T-shirts, each of which comes with its own story. His Kiss telephone doesn't ring -- it plays "Rock and Roll All Nite." The nearby bathroom is even decked out in Kiss swag, with each of the four walls devoted to a specific band member. Items range from valuable rarities (a 1975 high school newspaper published after Kiss played a homecoming concert in Cadillac, Mich.) to common keepsakes (confetti he collected from various Kiss concerts he has attended).
Tim had a similar room devoted to Motley Crue but was forced to dismantle it after he lost his house. Now, his collection lives partially in storage, but it's no less impressive.
"One of my absolute favorite items is Tommy Lee's snare drum," Tim said. "He only had one drum set from 1981 to 1983, and that's the snare drum I have. I've also got Vince Neil's left-handed black leather glove that says 'Crue' on the black Velcro strap. It was used and abused from 1981 to 1984, from videos to concerts to photo shoots. You can only imagine the things it has seen."
The Meyer brothers never thought of themselves as rivals and have continued to share their musical passions as well as other mutual pursuits, such as the Minnesota Vikings.
"We've always been buddies," Tim said. "When I discovered Motley Crue, it was like, 'This is my Kiss.' That's exactly how I felt. He's gone to concerts with me, and I've gone to concerts with him. We've always been bonded together."
Come Wednesday night, the Meyers will have yet another mutual milestone to celebrate.
"It's a once-in-a-lifetime thing, something that will probably never happen again," Tim said. "We'll still be talking about this in 10 years. We'll still be talking about it until the day we die."
By Ross Raihala
Tim Meyer was "blindsided" by the news.
"I was completely shocked," he said. "I had goosebumps. Within seconds, I called my brother."
What was the fuss? Two of rock music's most flamboyant bands -- Kiss and Motley Crue -- had just announced a joint summer tour, with a show booked at the Minnesota State Fair Grandstand on Wednesday, Aug. 29.
"It felt like nothing else mattered now," said the 36-year-old welder from Plymouth. "There's nothing that can top this concert."
For Tim Meyer and his older brother Brian, it won't be just another night of music under the stars. Instead, it's a rare convergence of the men's near-lifelong passions. Brian, 41, fell for Kiss as a second-grader growing up in Faribault. A few years later, Tim discovered Motley Crue.
"We shared a bedroom and I put up my Kiss posters on one side, and he put his Motley Crue pictures on the other side," Brian said. "We wanted to cover all the walls, and when we did, our mom said, 'OK, pick one and the rest go down.' "
But that wasn't the end of the Meyer brothers' obsessions. If anything, it was just the beginning.
Brian now lives in Owatonna with his wife and 18-year-old son. Not only did he hold on to all the Kiss memorabilia from his youth, he continued to add to the collection. He bought his current house in 2001, specifically because it had room for him to create a Kiss museum in the basement.State Fair: It's KISS. It's Motley Crue. For these brothers, it's destiny.
By Ross Raihala
Tim Meyer was "blindsided" by the news.
"I was completely shocked," he said. "I had goosebumps. Within seconds, I called my brother."
What was the fuss? Two of rock music's most flamboyant bands -- Kiss and Motley Crue -- had just announced a joint summer tour, with a show booked at the Minnesota State Fair Grandstand on Wednesday, Aug. 29.
"It felt like nothing else mattered now," said the 36-year-old welder from Plymouth. "There's nothing that can top this concert."
For Tim Meyer and his older brother Brian, it won't be just another night of music under the stars. Instead, it's a rare convergence of the men's near-lifelong passions. Brian, 41, fell for Kiss as a second-grader growing up in Faribault. A few years later, Tim discovered Motley Crue.
"We shared a bedroom and I put up my Kiss posters on one side, and he put his Motley Crue pictures on the other side," Brian said. "We wanted to cover all the walls, and when we did, our mom said, 'OK, pick one and the rest go down.' "
But that wasn't the end of the Meyer brothers' obsessions. If anything, it was just the beginning.
Brian now lives in Owatonna with his wife and 18-year-old son. Not only did he hold on to all the Kiss memorabilia from his youth, he continued to add to the collection. He bought his current house in 2001, specifically because it had room for him to create a Kiss museum in the basement.
"My collection was getting so huge, there was nowhere to put it all," said Brian, who works in a glass-fabrication plant. "I'd put up a poster, and my wife would say: 'I don't want this. Not in our bedroom.' So I said, 'OK, let's buy a bigger house.' "
Over the past decade, Brian not only has continued to add to his Kiss stockpile, he has hunted down retail display cases and spinning magazine racks to properly exhibit his booty. "The stuff in the cases is what I cherish the most," he said. "The dolls, the puzzles, the Halloween costumes, the original lunchbox, the Kiss Army newsletters. All that great stuff."
Kiss posters cover the walls and Kiss throw rugs decorate the floor. A clothing rack displays Brian's various Kiss T-shirts, each of which comes with its own story. His Kiss telephone doesn't ring -- it plays "Rock and Roll All Nite." The nearby bathroom is even decked out in Kiss swag, with each of the four walls devoted to a specific band member. Items range from valuable rarities (a 1975 high school newspaper published after Kiss played a homecoming concert in Cadillac, Mich.) to common keepsakes (confetti he collected from various Kiss concerts he has attended).
Tim had a similar room devoted to Motley Crue but was forced to dismantle it after he lost his house. Now, his collection lives partially in storage, but it's no less impressive.
"One of my absolute favorite items is Tommy Lee's snare drum," Tim said. "He only had one drum set from 1981 to 1983, and that's the snare drum I have. I've also got Vince Neil's left-handed black leather glove that says 'Crue' on the black Velcro strap. It was used and abused from 1981 to 1984, from videos to concerts to photo shoots. You can only imagine the things it has seen."
The Meyer brothers never thought of themselves as rivals and have continued to share their musical passions as well as other mutual pursuits, such as the Minnesota Vikings.
"We've always been buddies," Tim said. "When I discovered Motley Crue, it was like, 'This is my Kiss.' That's exactly how I felt. He's gone to concerts with me, and I've gone to concerts with him. We've always been bonded together."
Come Wednesday night, the Meyers will have yet another mutual milestone to celebrate.
"It's a once-in-a-lifetime thing, something that will probably never happen again," Tim said. "We'll still be talking about this in 10 years. We'll still be talking about it until the day we die."
