KISS'S Ending It

KISS started in New York City in January of 1973. To put that in perspective, I was not quite a year old. Started by Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, and Peter Criss they were probably most rememberable because of their face paint and stage outfits. The guys became prominent, earning themselves a spot in Rock and Roll history in the mid-late 1970s by putting on some of the most shocking live performances.

With stage theatrics that included fire breathing, blood-spitting, smoking guitars, shooting rockets, levitating drum kits, and insane pyrotechnics, the group found their way to superstardom and has held the imaginations and hearts of its' loyal fans, the KISS ARMY, ever since. Nearly three generations of fans have enjoyed the crazy antics of KISS through their several lineup changes. Throughout them, Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley were the only ones to be featured in every lineup.

With the wild make-up and costumes, the band members each held personaes of a comic book-style being. Paul Stanley was the Starchild. Gene Simmons was the Demon, The Space Man was Ace Frehley and the Catman was Peter Criss.

In 1983 Kiss stepped out of the makeup and costumes, marking the dawn of a new era for the band. That era saw the band enjoy a resurgence, even though Criss and Frehley were having creative differences and had left the band.

During the mid-90s, due to an uptake in KISS nostalgia the original band members reunited and went on tour. The makeup and stage costumes returned. The reunion tour grossed over $140 million, making it their most successful tour to date.

Peter Criss and Ace Frehley would leave the band yet again, opening up their spots for Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer. The band stayed together with it's original gimmicks, Singer and Thayer using the Catman and Spaceman makeup, respectively.

In September of 2018, the guys announced that they were hitting the road for one final tour. After 45 years and more than one retirement tour, this would have been an ongoing final tour, aptly named the End of the Road World Tour. The Tour started in January of 2019 and was originally scheduled to conclude in 2022. The end of the road for one of the hottest bands in the world, and possibly the best, is set to happen on February 5th, in Las Vegas at the Zappos Theater at the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino.

Kiss is, and always will be, regarded by fans and historians as one of the most influential rock bands of all time. They've sold more than 75 million records around the world, including 21 million RIAA-certified albums. They'll go down in history for holding the title of America's number 1 Gold Record award-winning band in history, having racked up an impressive 30 Gold Albums. Kiss has had 14 platinum and 3 multi-platinum albums.

In 2014 KISS was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame. They were ranked by MTV as the 9th "Greatest Metal Band Of All Time".

After 45 years of Kiss being on tour, making records, videos, and holding an unbelievable amount of records in the music industry, it's hard to believe that it is about to come to an end. I've seen the band play twice. Once in Peoria Illinois and once at the Mark of the Quad Cities in Moline Illinois. The band has been as much a part of my music experience, growing up and as an adult, as any other influence in the arts. Like Peter Criss, I was a drummer (nowhere as good as him), and enjoyed the good times listening to the Demon, Starchild, Spaceman, and Catman over the years. Movies, television, music, theater, opera, and everything in between, Kiss had an influence on it all. Even Scooby-Doo...