Paul Stanley was ill with the flu nearly the entire week before KISS was due to perform their final show in Indianapolis on November 25th. I can say with almost 100% certainty that all the fans set to attend the show were constantly checking venue notifications and refreshing their browsers in anticipation of receiving more of the same bad news that had been delivered to the three prior tour dates. Downtown was absolutely alive and buzzing with nervous anticipation of the performance, and there were more people queued up outside Gainbridge Fieldhouse than I have EVER seen before, for either performances or sporting events. I waited in a line that wrapped nearly halfway around the outside of the arena (the entrance on the opposite side had a line that was even longer), and it was nearly a 20 minute wait just to make it up to the metal detectors. Getting virtual tickets scanned was another animal entirely, but fortunately there was a very minimal bottleneck by the time I reached that checkpoint.
I cannot say for certain, but I have a strong feeling that Gainbridge did end up selling out. There were certain sections of seats that were kept empty, but it was more a safety precaution than anything as they were directly next to and behind the outlandish pyrotechnic displays.
I Gotta Break Out Before I Break Down
I do not have much to say about Amber Wild—Evan Stanley and his band are all talented musicians, but with this concert being such an iconic event, it almost felt intrusive that there was any opening band at all. If ever there were a time for an “An Evening With…” show, it would be now.
The costume design was by far the highlight of this set! Stanley was decked out in a bedazzled, leopard print moto jacket, black sequined pants, and green velvet creepers. His guitarist, Marshall Via, wore a black duster jacket, which he took off partway through their 6 song set to reveal an updated take on the infamous Seinfeld pirate blouse.
Amber Wild was founded early in 2023 and just released their first single last month; I think that they show promise as an up and coming quirky, indie rock band. It was just very hard not to compare Evan with his father Paul Stanley, one of the most famous and influential rock frontmenof all time.
Gods of Thunder and Rock and Roll
2023. It is the End of the Road World Tour. KISS’s last time together on stage. This was the band’s 27th show in Indianapolis and it was without a doubt the highest value production I have ever seen. Not only were men in their 70s onstage with moving around stage with ease on sky-high, custom made platform boots (Gene Simmons’s dragon booties with the glittery red eyes were the standout favorite for me), but there were multiple props swapped in and out, and an absolutely irresponsible amount of pyro and sparks showers.
The 2-and-a-half-hour set started out with “Detroit Rock City”, and the hits just kept coming. During “I Love it Loud”, Simmons breathed fire from a flaming sword prop; he did this with the ease and skill only someone who has been performing for 50+ years could. Guitarist Tommy Thayer’s solo was early in the set, and had a quirky, futuristic UFO theme to it, featuring him “blasting” hanging UFOs with a laser beam on the end of his guitar (very reminiscent of the arcade game Asteroids). During “Makin’ Love”, frontman Paul Stanley’s finger split open and started bleeding. Although it really seems like he just can’t catch a break recently, he took it in stride and kept up with the high energy and emotionally driven performance. There was a distinct metal influence during Simmons’ bass solo, during which he spit blood; the stage was dark, with only a green floor spot washing the stage in an eerie light.
One of the most impressive feats to me was when Stanley took to the air at the end of the show—this man, despite just being sick, despite being nearly 80 years old. He ziplined to a secondary stage, performing “Love Gun”, “I Was Made for Loving You”, and the intro to “Black Diamond”, before making his way back to the main stage, welcomed back with giant spark shower pinwheels and flare shots popping off like crazy.
The hiatus before the encore was extremely short. Drummer Eric Singer rose back up from the floor, where he played and sang “Beth” on a beautiful glittering grand piano. His bandmates rejoined him for “Do You Love Me”, during which absolutely massive balloons rained down from the ceiling onto the audience. The final song of the performance was “I Wanna Rock and Roll All Nite”, during which confetti cannons continuously blasted the audience with red and white paper, to the point where visibility became limited. The end of the song also featured indoor fireworks and crazy pyrotechnics, as well as purple and silver metallic streamers floating down from the ceiling.
For a lesson in finality, Paul Stanley took back to the stage and was persuaded by the audience to “axe” his guitar, which I’ve never seen in person and was immensely satisfying to witness.
I am so happy and grateful to have been able to experience this concert, especially when we were unsure if the performance was going to happen at all due to illness.
The Good
- You could truly feel the history, but the performance did not feel dated at all.
- Production value was truly amazing.
- Paul Stanley was able to maintain the same level of energy throughout and was not outwardly showing signs of continued illness.
The Not So Good
- I wish that KISS had utilized the “An Evening With…” approach for this and not had an opener, since it is their final tour ever.