From: Marten L.
Well, the KISS machine rolled into the Pond Saturday night, and for all intensive purposes it was a good show--but not great. First of all, this had to have been the most "polite" audience I've ever seen. Most of the crowd, it seemed, were part of the original batch of fans who lined thier bedroom walls with all things KISS as youngsters in the rip-roaring 70s. Life was simpler then, a time when rock-n-roll really meant something. Skid Row opened things up. Out of the songs they played, Piece Of Me was probably the best. The sound in the Pond is awful. Everything just turns into a muddy mess.

Ted Nugent,a true American original, rocked the crowd with reckless abandon. There's nothing better than good ol' fashioned guitar rock, and the Motor City Madman provided plenty of that. Straddling a beautiful old Gibson, Nugent reminded me of why I spent so many lonely nights in my bedroom learning how to play guitar. A perfect example of "a class act," thanks Ted.

And then it was time for the behemoths of shlock-rock, the four legends that helped raise me. The first thing I noticed is how Gene is looking a little plumper than usual, life's evidently been rather good for the Demon. DRC rocked--plain and simple. There's nothing more exciting than the first couple of minutes of a KISS show. Being only 15 rows back on the floor, I was able to really notice how much fun the guys were having, especially Ace and Gene. Paul was as always, the prancing rock star. At times, his shtick gets a little pretentious, but I guess he can get away with it. Peter was solid behind his skins all night, I don't know why he catches so much flack. I won't go into a blow-by-blow, because the other reviews do that nicely. I have a couple of thoughts that really stand out, so here we go. For me, KISS has always been about Ace Frehley, and that hasn't changed. The spaced one really delivered, there's nothing bad I can say about him. 2000 Man was truly wonderful, for a few minutes I was transported back in time to the little bedroom in Boston where I used to play along to the record on my tennis racket. Funny how that happens. Anyway, the technical glitches really put a damper on the show. When Paul got stuck on the rig, I was close enough to see the look on his face--not too happy. And then Gene's fiasco, which was actually kind of funny, bad Demon, hehe. Shortly thereafter, the mirrorball failed to do anything except sparkle. Paul stood there like a statue for a few seconds waiting for something to happen...it never did. Oh well, on with the show. After the regular set-closer Black Diamond, a happy fan ran up on stage while the boys were basking in the crowd's adulation. It seemed all he wanted to do was bow to his heroes, but a smack from Ace and a few friendly security guards stopped that idea pretty quick. On to the encore. Peter came out with his stool and handy-dandy towel for Beth. Although he sang well enough, the backing track sounded brutal, ouch. And then , of course, the worst KISS song in history closed the show. If I never hear Rock and Roll All Night again in my life, I'll be really happy. It's just such a campy track, I can't figure out why it's so popular. Strutter or something more definitive of the band would be so much better. Anyway, it was fun watching the confetti blowing around the arena. After that, they just split. Why? If this is really the farewell tour, would'nt it seem appropriate that they really say goodbye? It was kind of a letdown, the show ending like that. Maybe they'll come back for one more So Cal show, I hope so. Once they figure out all the technical bugs, I can see how this tour could really pack a wallop. The Anaheim show just seemed anti-climactic. Except for the robust merchandising campaign--it was just another show. I love you Ace--you'll always live inside of me.

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