With their makeup and outfits, Kiss have always been a theatrical rock band. When they began in the early 1970s, they were something new and bold. They were leading the way for heavier rock, setting themselves apart from the classic rock and roll crowd. But as time went on, and as is always the case for pioneers, the rest of the world caught up, and soon, the band had regrets.

Regret is a harsh word, though. For a band like Kiss, you’d hope that they don’t have many, given the scale of success they’ve hit. They were a group that levelled everything up, daring other acts to be bolder, be more maximalist and be more out there, both in terms of their live shows and staging.

But a pioneer can’t be a pioneer for long. As is always the case for artists forging a new path, others will soon start walking it, and people will soon walk steps ahead. Kiss definitely felt that, not so much in terms of their unrivalled showmanship but simply in the fact that while they opened the door to heavier rock, more modern acts absolutely kicked it down.

All of this comes back to one song, and one of the band’s biggest hits – ‘I Was Made For Lovin’ You’. Gene Simmons can still recall the exact moment when Paul Stanley first brought the track to the band, so much so that he gave Howard Stern a playback of the exact conversation.

“So he walks in, ‘got an idea for you’, ‘what’s it called?’, ‘I Was Made For Loving You’, ‘Ah that’s great’”, Simmons remembered. For the next part, for a truly immersive effect, let’s lay this out like a script as the bassist gave a line-by-line rundown of the moment the track was introduced.

“‘What’s the first line?’” Simmons began, and the rest went like this:

“‘Tonight’
‘What’s the second line?’
‘I wanna give it all to you.’
‘Yeah, I know what it is, that’s cool.’
‘In the darkness.’
‘In the darkness? Yeah, that rocks’
‘Something I wanna do’
‘That’s really cool! What’s my part?’”

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1984 and 1985 must have been an utter whirlwind for Bruce Kulick. From getting an invite to provide some “ghost guitar” on Kiss‘ “Animalize” album, to being asked to temporarily fill in for Mark St. John, and ultimately being invited to join the band full-time, is the stuff fairy tales are made of. But perhaps most memorable of all was his first full album recording experience with the band, which resulted in 1985’s “Asylum”.

During an interview with Chaoszine, Kulick looked back on this memorable time in his and Kiss’ careers and recalls the excitement he experienced, both professionally and personally.

“‘Asylum’, I thought I won the lottery when I was a temporary member,” Kulick admitted (transcribed by Ultimate Guitar). “So now, I’m a full-time member. And obviously starting an actual record from the ground up, meaning songwriting and recording, not coming in as a ghost guitar player was obviously very exciting.”

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Very hard to find Reunion Tour Standup featuring original KISS lineup. Standup is six feet tall when setup. These are close to mint condition. Comes folded into thirds like they originally came in 1999.

Order now at KISSArmyWarehouse.com!

Ohio Northern University isn’t exactly known for loud, raucous mayhem—but on May 9, 1975, things were different.

On that night, the now legendary rock band KISS performed for a packed, frenzied crowd in the newly-opened King Horn Sports Center. KISS debuted what would be become their anthem—“Rock ’n Roll All Nite”—and their pyrotechnics scorched the ceiling.

It was wild. It was unforgettable. And for Dr. Jimmy Wilson, associate professor of management & geographic information systems—and a lifelong rock ’n roll devotee—it became a passion project.

“KISS has this huge following and there’s a mystique that surrounds the band,” he said. “To think they played on campus for $5 a ticket right before they gained worldwide fame— it’s just incredible to consider.”

For more than a decade, Wilson has conducted research, gathered first-hand accounts, and worked on a video documentary about this sensational night in ONU history. Travis Yammine, BSBA ’19, a KISS fan since middle school, assisted Wilson when he was an ONU student. The two co-authored a paper on the concert that Wilson recently presented at the annual meeting of the American Association of Geographers in Detroit.

“Some may wonder why undertake a whole project surrounding a single concert—what’s the point?” said Yammine. “But it’s actually a very interesting story to tell, and this little pocket of Midwest rock ’n roll culture that would otherwise get lost if it wasn’t for someone like Dr. J. keeping it alive.”

How did KISS end up in Ada?

It’s the question Wilson hears a lot: How did a band like KISS land in the quiet village of Ada?

Wilson explains that Ada, though rural, sits near what was known in the ‘70s as the “Iron Triangle”—a circuit between Detroit, Cleveland, and Toledo, where up and coming bands toured. The ONU students charged with bringing entertainment to campus likely had access to the circuit booking agents, and in KISS’s case, may have caught a lucky break.

“Believe it or not, the Midwest was rock ’n roll central in that decade,” said Wilson. “It was the place where many bands got their start.”

ONU administrators likely had no idea who KISS was at the time—and likely regretted it later.

“After the show, ONU President Samuel Meyer openly vowed something like this would never happen again,” Wilson laughs.

KISS was relatively unknown in May 1975. According to Wilson, most people came to the concert expecting to see Rush (a no-show, replaced last minute by The Flock) or The James Gang, a popular garage band.

It wasn’t until a few months after their ONU performance that KISS exploded onto the international music scene.

“I am not really a fan of their music,” Wilson admits, “but you can’t talk about rock ’n roll in America without talking about KISS. There’s no denying that what they did was innovative and very, very lucrative.”

KISS wasn’t just known for their music—they became famous for their over-the-top stage presence: face paint, pyrotechnics, and blood-spitting theatrics.

“They appealed to a specific demographic—young men, usually rebellious,” said Wilson.

Campus Legends

KISS’s appearance on ONU’s campus, not surprisingly, caused quite a stir at the time.

In his research, Wilson uncovered some legendary stories.

Band members, dressed down in street clothes before the concert, were mistaken for broke students and handed free meal tickets by a faculty member. They stayed in a dorm room—because the student budget didn’t cover hotel accommodations. (Peter Criss shared this in his memoir, “Makeup to Breakup: My Life In and Out of KISS”).

And, according to Wilson’s research, strong evidence suggests this was the band’s first public performance ever of the now-iconic chorus: “I wanna rock and roll all night, and party every day.”

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@akadlj

@KISS @GeneSimmons on his solo tour surpised the @The Wellmont Theater crowd with a rendition of “Mony Mony” by the original singer/writer @tommyjamesofficial #kiss #genesimmons #monymony #tommyjames #concerts #livemusic #musictok

♬ original sound – LouisAtAShow

“This is more of a fan gathering,” Simmons says of the Kiss Army Storms Vegas event, which takes place between 14-16 November this year.

Fans heading to Kiss’s upcoming Vegas event would do well to know that it “ain’t a concert,” according to Gene Simmons, who recently admitted that he isn’t even sure if the full band will be there.

Speaking to Rob Rush of New York’s 94.3 The Shark radio station, the bassist – who recently postponed 17 dates of his upcoming solo tour – discusses the three-day Kiss Army Storms Vegas event set to take over Virgin Hotels Las Vegas from 14 to 16 November.

While the name may conjure images of pyrotechnics, platform boots, and makeup-clad rock theatrics, Simmons says this event is something entirely different.

This is much more a fan gathering,” he explains [via Blabbermouth]. “The Kiss Army… are taking over the Virgin Hotel and we will show up, but I don’t even know if the entire band’s gonna be there.”

“I know Paul [Stanley] and I are gonna be there, and Tommy [Thayer]. [Former Kiss guitarist] Bruce Kulick probably will show up, and we’ll jam, answer questions and stuff. It ain’t a concert – we’re gonna do none of that stuff.”

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Professor Of Rock has released the video below, along with the following introduction…

“Coming up, it’s the ultimate countdown of classic crushes, heartbreaks, and unforgettable anthems. Some of these songs were written about real people, while others just needed the perfect name to make them timeless. It’s our Girl In The Song countdown, including Prince’s naughty song ‘Darling Nikki’ that offended every politician’s wife in Washington DC. And ‘Angie’, a song that Mick Jagger allegedly wrote to make peace when his buddy’s wife found them in bed together. Plus ‘Brandy (You’re A Fine Girl)’, which made an obscure girl’s name one of the most popular of the 70s. And another song, ‘Beth’, that KISS hated so much, most of the key members didn’t even show up to record it, and then it became their biggest hit. Interviews and stories are next on Professor Of Rock.”

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Gene Simmons and his solo band kicked off their 2025 tour with gigs in Georgia and Kentucky, albeit the first was cut short due to weather.

Simmons and company only made it through six songs at the tour kickoff show on Friday (May 2nd) at the Frederick Brown Jr. Amphitheater in Peachtree City, Georgia. The setlist opened with two KISS classics, “Duece” and “Shout It Out Loud,” and Gene later ran through a cover of Van Halen’s “House of Pain” before the gig was called off due to heavy rain.

The following night (Saturday, May 3rd) went better, with Simmons’ band running through the full setlist at the Beaver Dam Amphitheater in Kentucky. The first six songs remained the same, with Simmons also throwing in covers of Motörhead (“Ace of Spades”), Thin Lizzy (“Bad Reputation”), and The Beatles (“And Your Bird Can Sing”). The rest of set was filled out by Gene’s own solo songs and material he penned for KISS and even some he didn’t (i.e. Ace Frehley’s “Cold Gin”).

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KISS frontman Paul Stanley expressed his enthusiasm for David Lee Roth’s return performance at the M3 Festival on X (formerly Twitter). His comments highlighted a milestone moment following Roth’s extended break from live performances.

“I watched Diamond Dave’s return at M3 Festival and LOVED IT!” Stanley wrote. “Looks Great. Great staging. Great band. Great vibe. The whole thing was cool. Back-up posse too. Check it all out on YouTube. Welcome Back Dave!!”

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