07/03/2014
KISS BRINGS 40 YEARS OF ROCK HISTORY TO THE STAGE
KISS takes its 40th anniversary tour to Irvine on July 5 and the Forum on July 8
BY ALAN SCULLEY
Kiss could have kept the secrecy that came with the makeup and helped create a larger-than-life image for Kiss.
�I think that certainly in all walks of life in terms of public figures, there is a certain mystique that is gone because everything is known,� Stanley said during a mid-June teleconference interview with a group of reporters. �I think mystique is healthy. And I think to glamorize and fantasize is a good thing. I�m not sure that Kiss could have accomplished what we did initially in this time because (in the �70s and �80s) we could make sure that photos weren�t available and the paparazzi didn�t have photos of us out of makeup. We could create this mystique.�
The commercial breakthrough came with the 1975 concert release, the double LP, �Alive.� Featuring the hit �Rock and Roll All Nite,� it opened the door to a string of hit studio albums that continued through 1979�s �Dynasty.� Simmons, in a separate late-June phone interview, said the group could sense that something was happening by the time of �Alive.�KISS takes its 40th anniversary tour to Irvine on July 5 and the Forum on July 8
BY ALAN SCULLEY
Kiss could have kept the secrecy that came with the makeup and helped create a larger-than-life image for Kiss.
�I think that certainly in all walks of life in terms of public figures, there is a certain mystique that is gone because everything is known,� Stanley said during a mid-June teleconference interview with a group of reporters. �I think mystique is healthy. And I think to glamorize and fantasize is a good thing. I�m not sure that Kiss could have accomplished what we did initially in this time because (in the �70s and �80s) we could make sure that photos weren�t available and the paparazzi didn�t have photos of us out of makeup. We could create this mystique.�
The commercial breakthrough came with the 1975 concert release, the double LP, �Alive.� Featuring the hit �Rock and Roll All Nite,� it opened the door to a string of hit studio albums that continued through 1979�s �Dynasty.� Simmons, in a separate late-June phone interview, said the group could sense that something was happening by the time of �Alive.�
�It wasn�t about the albums,� Simmons said. �It was about the crowds getting bigger and bigger. And it was about the fervor, how crazy the fans were getting. So we weren�t looking at the charts or the numbers or anything like that because remember, we�re playing five and six shows a week. ... But we did realize that within a year and a half of our debuting, we were playing Anaheim Stadium, headlining.
�We knew something was up,� he said. �We don�t have any hit singles, and here we are (in Anaheim) headlining over all sorts of bands who have been around for decades.�
So with the Rock Hall induction in the rear-view mirror, Stanley, Simmons, Thayer and Singer are doing what they consider far more important than awards � playing live. This summer�s 40th anniversary tour (with Def Leppard as the opener), Stanley promised, will more than live up to past live extravaganzas.
�I believe that this is the greatest and really the best stage that we�ve ever had,� Stanley said. �The band is firing on all cylinders, so between that and the fact that we�re psyched up for this and we�re celebrating our 40th year, we�re out there to do a victory lap, although the race isn�t over yet. There will be more races. But this is a celebration of everything we�ve done until today.�
BY ALAN SCULLEY
Kiss could have kept the secrecy that came with the makeup and helped create a larger-than-life image for Kiss.
�I think that certainly in all walks of life in terms of public figures, there is a certain mystique that is gone because everything is known,� Stanley said during a mid-June teleconference interview with a group of reporters. �I think mystique is healthy. And I think to glamorize and fantasize is a good thing. I�m not sure that Kiss could have accomplished what we did initially in this time because (in the �70s and �80s) we could make sure that photos weren�t available and the paparazzi didn�t have photos of us out of makeup. We could create this mystique.�
The commercial breakthrough came with the 1975 concert release, the double LP, �Alive.� Featuring the hit �Rock and Roll All Nite,� it opened the door to a string of hit studio albums that continued through 1979�s �Dynasty.� Simmons, in a separate late-June phone interview, said the group could sense that something was happening by the time of �Alive.�KISS takes its 40th anniversary tour to Irvine on July 5 and the Forum on July 8
BY ALAN SCULLEY
Kiss could have kept the secrecy that came with the makeup and helped create a larger-than-life image for Kiss.
�I think that certainly in all walks of life in terms of public figures, there is a certain mystique that is gone because everything is known,� Stanley said during a mid-June teleconference interview with a group of reporters. �I think mystique is healthy. And I think to glamorize and fantasize is a good thing. I�m not sure that Kiss could have accomplished what we did initially in this time because (in the �70s and �80s) we could make sure that photos weren�t available and the paparazzi didn�t have photos of us out of makeup. We could create this mystique.�
The commercial breakthrough came with the 1975 concert release, the double LP, �Alive.� Featuring the hit �Rock and Roll All Nite,� it opened the door to a string of hit studio albums that continued through 1979�s �Dynasty.� Simmons, in a separate late-June phone interview, said the group could sense that something was happening by the time of �Alive.�
�It wasn�t about the albums,� Simmons said. �It was about the crowds getting bigger and bigger. And it was about the fervor, how crazy the fans were getting. So we weren�t looking at the charts or the numbers or anything like that because remember, we�re playing five and six shows a week. ... But we did realize that within a year and a half of our debuting, we were playing Anaheim Stadium, headlining.
�We knew something was up,� he said. �We don�t have any hit singles, and here we are (in Anaheim) headlining over all sorts of bands who have been around for decades.�
So with the Rock Hall induction in the rear-view mirror, Stanley, Simmons, Thayer and Singer are doing what they consider far more important than awards � playing live. This summer�s 40th anniversary tour (with Def Leppard as the opener), Stanley promised, will more than live up to past live extravaganzas.
�I believe that this is the greatest and really the best stage that we�ve ever had,� Stanley said. �The band is firing on all cylinders, so between that and the fact that we�re psyched up for this and we�re celebrating our 40th year, we�re out there to do a victory lap, although the race isn�t over yet. There will be more races. But this is a celebration of everything we�ve done until today.�
