Hard to believe the KISS reunion tour is almost twenty years old. The personnel has changed several times since then but now seems to have stabilised around Gene Simmons (duh) and Paul Stanley (double duh) and in the roles of Ace Frehley and Peter Criss the more reliable Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer.
I've read articles and comments making fun of KISS for being old men in tights, singing sophomoric songs, being all style no substance... And?
Fuck dignity, fuck integrity. This is show business. People want to see KISS blow shit up and play Deuce, so KISS blows shit up and plays Deuce. The equation is simple.
The show is awesome, the setlist is great, the musicianship is more than competent... However there is on big issue that has to be addressed: Paul Stanley just can't sing anymore. His voice is toast. I can only imagine how heartbroken die-hard KISS Army lifers must be when they hear their hero's croak on Love Gun.
Apart from that, it's a KISS show. It's loud, it's stupid, it's fun... It's the lowest form of entertainment, the ultimate guilty pleasure. American rock at its most basic, a venal, shallow, sensationalist, populist, pandering circus act. The hottest brand in the world.
