Kiss Returns To Huntington, WV: Thirty Seven Year Anniversary Show - by Scott Carr

KISS Returns to Huntington, WV

September 10th, 2016 marked the 37th anniversary of Kiss making a stop in my hometown of Huntington, WV on their 1979 "The Return Of Kiss" tour.  In a weird coincidence, the final stop  of their current "Freedom to Rock" tour brought them back to Huntington to perform on that very same date and on the same stage once known as the Huntington Civic Center, now the Big Sandy Super Arena.

Before I get into my review of Kiss' most recent stop in Huntington, I want to travel back in time to 1979:

In May of 1979 Kiss released their seventh studio album Dynasty and launched a tour that was dubbed "The Return of Kiss." Kiss had ended their Alive II tour in April of 1978 and took time off to do the Kiss Solo Albums and released their TV movie Kiss Meets The Phantom of the Park. By the time they started the Dynasty tour Kiss had been off the road for over a year and excitement was high for their return to the concert stage.

When it was announced that Kiss would be making a stop in Huntington my dad quickly picked up tickets for the whole family. Going to see Kiss back in those days was a family affair because my parents were Kiss fanatics just like me and my two older brothers. I was so excited that Kiss was coming to My town and that we had tickets. Kiss had played Huntington a couple times before but the excitement for this show seemed bigger than anything prior. Counting down the days until the concert was kind of like waiting on Christmas, it seemed like the day would never arrive. One of my most vivid memories I have of the 1979 show was waiting for the band to take the stage. I was physically shaking with excitement to see my heroes and my dad had his hand on my shoulder and he could feel me shaking and he asked me if I was gonna be alright. I'm pretty sure I wasn't even able to reply to his question. I don't think I've ever been that excited for any other show in my life. The specifics of the show are kind of a blur thirty seven years later but I do remember it being very loud and flashy and everything my 10-year old self expected it would be. One highlight that I do remember clearly is the band performing a couple songs from the Kiss Solo Albums. They did "Move On" from Paul's record and "New York Groove" from Ace's. Earlier in the tour they had been doing one from each record but by the time they made it to Huntington, they had dropped the songs from Gene and Peter's records. 

There were almost ten thousand crazed Kiss fans in attendance that night, which was a bit smaller crowd than when Kiss had played Huntington in 1978, but rumor is the previous year's show had been way oversold. The band did not stay at the local Holiday Inn just down the block because the hotel chain was requiring the band to put down a $5,000 deposit, due to some damage that had been done on the band's previous trip to town. It has also been reported that Kiss manager Bill Aucoin was in Huntington for this show. Bill did not always attend concerts, if Bill was there it was considered to be a special occasion or important show.

Another memory that I have from this show is my mom buying a shirt from a bootlegger outside the venue as we were leaving the show. She only had enough money for one shirt, so she got it in a size large and said I had to share it with my brothers. I eventually grew into the shirt and I still have it. When I heard Kiss was returning to Huntington on September 10th 2016, I knew immediately what shirt I would be wearing.

Fast forward thirty seven years and I find myself heading back to my hometown to see Kiss once again. During those thirty seven years I have remained an avid Kiss fan and have probably seen them at least 20 more times. I didn't take the time to count them all, but that's definitely in the ball park. I've seen them in just about every configuration you can think of. I saw them four times during the original make-up years, several times once they unmasked and then numerous times when they decided to put the facepaint back on. Kiss have only returned to Huntington one other time during this thirty seven year span, that show being January of 1988 during the Crazy Nights tour. I actually got backstage at that show and met my heroes, maybe I'll write about that in a future Pencil Storm entry.

Going to concerts today is so much different than it was all those years ago. When you went to a show back then you really had no idea what to expect and I think that played into the excitement I felt when I saw Kiss in 1979. Now with YouTube and setlistfm, you don't even need to go to shows anymore because you know everything in advance.  Times change and that's just the way it is now. 

Kiss definitely gave the nearly sold-out crowd in Huntington its money's worth on the "Freedom To Rock" tour. I could sit here and complain that Paul didn't sound pitch perfect or that it's just not the same without Ace and Peter - which it's not - but in the end Kiss is still the biggest rock & roll spectacle out there and they do it better than anyone. The set list was kind of predictable but they did throw the die-hard fans a bone when they played "Flaming Youth," which they rarely do. Other highlights included "Psycho Circus" and "War Machine." It was weird seeing Eric Singer sing Peter Criss' signature song "Beth" and Tommy Thayer doing Ace's "Shock Me," but when I looked around no one seemed to care, everyone was singing along and having a blast. I guess in the end that's what really matters. The music still gets people excited. Gene Simmons was in great form, breathing fire, spitting blood and sounding strong vocally. Gene takes a lot of flak but he is a great showman, no question. The biggest thing that struck me while watching the band perform was realizing that in 1979 Paul Stanley was just twenty seven years old and at what I would consider the top of his game and Gene was thirty. Now they are in their mid-sixties and they are still doing what they love. That's pretty cool. 

I will admit that over the last decade or so it has been harder to be a Kiss fan but for me they will always be my band. Kiss gave me the spirit of rock and roll and that's something I will never turn my back on.  

I thought I would have mixed emotions about going to this anniversary show but I'm glad I went. I'm glad I was surrounded by Kiss fans old and new. I'm glad that my 76-year old mother attended this show with me like she had so many others in the past.  It wasn't quite the magical experience that I had in 1979 and my hands weren't shaking with excitement prior to them hitting the stage but I came away from it feeling like I had just seen a kick-ass rock show. So, I say job well done Kiss.

Below you will see then and now pics and videos from the Huntington concerts. As you will notice, I tend to save everything!

Scott Carr is a guitarist who plays in the Columbus, OH  bands Radio Tramps andReturning April.  Scott is also an avid collector of vinyl records and works at Lost Weekend Records. So...if you are looking for Scott....you'll either find him in a dimly lit bar playing his guitar or in a record store digging for the holy grail.

 

1979 newspaper ad.

1979 newspaper ad.

2016 Freedom To Rock ad

2016 Freedom To Rock ad

Me 1979 with my bootleg concert tee

Me 1979 with my bootleg concert tee

Hey, it still fits in 2016!

Hey, it still fits in 2016!

1979 ticket stub

1979 ticket stub

2016 ticket stub

2016 ticket stub

Gene Simmons and Ace Frehley Huntington Civic Center September 10, 1979

Gene Simmons and Ace Frehley Huntington Civic Center September 10, 1979

Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley Big Sandy Super Arena September 10, 2016

Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley Big Sandy Super Arena September 10, 2016

The Return of Kiss set list September 10, 1979

The Return of Kiss set list September 10, 1979

The Freedom To Rock Tour set list September 10, 2016

The Freedom To Rock Tour set list September 10, 2016

Classic 8mm Dynasty Footage!

This is KISS performing Detroit Rock City live at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena in Huntington, WV on 9/10/16 on their Freedom To Rock Tour. This was the highest grossing show in the history of the venue (KISS's first time in Huntington since 1988) as well as the final stop on the tour.

KISS performing "Flaming Youth" at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena, in Huntington, West Virginia.

KISS breaks record for the gross amount earned during their Freedom to Rock Tour, and the record for gross amount at Big Sandy Arena in Huntington, WV on the last night of their tour!** ------------------------ **KISS donates $150,000 to veterans, honors a wounded, Purple Heart veteran on stage, and plays the National Anthem** ------------------------ Mayor declares September 10th Freedom to Rock Day in Huntington, WV!

Space Ace at the Motor City Food Fest - by Jeremy Porter

Concert Review: 
Ace Frehley - Motor City Food and Music Fest
Farmington Hills, Michigan
Sunday August 28, 2016
By Jeremy Porter

On a warm & humid Sunday night in the Detroit suburb of Farmington Hills, Michigan, the Spaceman himself - original KISS guitarist Ace Frehley - landed with his band to close out the first Motor City Food and Music Festival. The setting was the parking lot of an old Sam’s Club that has now been converted into the shiny, slick, enormous Motor City Harley Davidson store, and the festival served as the grand opening celebration. Those driven to purchase VIP seating enjoyed rows of folding chairs in a fenced-in area in front of the stage, while those of us less-convinced it would be necessary stood behind, about 25 yards back. It didn’t seem to matter much - the vantage point proved adequate and our sightlines were fine. The 4-year old blonde kid with a mohawk and full Spaceman face paint, however, was glad to be up front with his dad, both clearly loving every moment.    

Just after 7:30, Fractured Mirror, the instrumental closing track from Frehley’s 1978 KISS “solo” album (his career high-watermark), faded in over the PA as he & his band gathered behind the stacks and walked out on stage. “How ya’ doin’ Detroit Rock City?” he asked in his trademark New York accent as they broke into Rip It Out, the opening track from the same record. OK, I’ll confess: I had goosebumps. I spent YEARS of my early youth locked in my bedroom listening to that album and the KISS records that preceded and followed it - over & over & over again. Ace was always our favorite - my friends and I. We liked The Demon too, and the Catman and the Starchild a little less, but Ace was the coolest. 

Opening with Rip It Out set the bar pretty high and established a momentum difficult to maintain. The set was a bit of a roller coaster ride - with other peaks like the Alive II-side 4 studio gem Rocket Ride and the unexpected Strange Ways from 1974’s Hotter Than Hell, and a coupla stinkers too, like the terrible song Toys from the 2014 Space Invader record and an unnecessary, extended bass solo integrating bits of God of Thunder, Black Sabbath’s NIB, and the theme from Halloween. I was probably in the minority, rolling my eyes when they went into classic KISS songs like Deuce, Love Gun and Detroit Rock City. All fantastic songs and crowd favorites - but none written by Ace or executed with the tenacity they deserved. All of this fluff was especially disappointing when there are several other options he could have pulled from his own catalog - including the great track Cold Gin, which Gene always sang, but Ace wrote, and other gems from that '78 solo album like What’s On Your Mind or Speeding Back to My Baby. 

I'm not sure that drumhead would have been approved by Sean Delaney. -Colin G.

I'm not sure that drumhead would have been approved by Sean Delaney. -Colin G.

Ace always had the look and the guitar chops, but he never had the vocal pipes of Stanley or Simmons. His voice always worked when called upon, though, thanks to a charm and character that matched his goofy, fucked-up personality. On this night, however, his vocals often came across as weak and tired, almost spoken at times, compared to the more energetic performances we’re familiar with from albums past. Maybe it was exhaustion from the road, or perhaps at 65 he (understandably) just doesn’t have the wind he once did, but it seemed like a little more effort at the microphone would have gone a long way. The drummer sang a few songs and had a more traditional and energetic rock and roll delivery (think Derek St. Holmes meets Paul Stanley), but less historical correlation and therefore less ultimate command of the material than Ace.    

The band was loose, occasionally to a fault, sounding at times a bit unrehearsed and sloppy. At their best they cast a very New York sleaze-rock shadow and came across as a cool, modern version of the groups that defined that city’s punk-glam sound in the '70s. Ace’s 3-pickup Les Paul cut through the mix nicely and he brought out the smoldering, smoking guitar for his extended solo and worked in bits of his Alive II Shock Me solo to the crowd’s delight. For a brief moment, I was myself transported to the upper deck of the Houston Summit in 1977, looking down through the clouds of marijuana smoke at this alien being from outer space ripping an amazing lead from a guitar about to explode in front of 16,000 fans.  

Despite the super-fan dissection of the setlist and the at-times lackluster and sloppy performance, it was a fun set. I mean, who doesn’t get a little nostalgic when their childhood hero is a few feet in front of them for the first time (I never saw KISS with Ace), or nod their head forward and back to the opening chords of New York Groove? Can’t say I’d go too far out of my way to see him again, or pay that $30 to be 15 feet closer, but it was a beautiful Michigan night, the price was right, and those familiar songs and great riffs are just ingrained into my blood.

Setlist:  

Fractured Mirror (Pre-recorded)
Rip It Out
Toys
Rocket Ride
Parasite
Love Gun
Emerald (Thin Lizzy cover)
Rock Soldiers
Bass Solo
Strange Ways
New York Groove
2 Young 2 Die
Shock Me
Ace Frehley Guitar Solo
Detroit Rock City
Deuce


Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos. Follow them on Facebook to read his road-blog chronicling their adventures and see his photo series documenting the disgusting bathrooms in the dives they play. He's a whiskey snob, an unapologetic fan of "good" metal, and couldn't really care less about the UofM - OSU rivalry since he once saw The Stones at the Horseshoe. Still, go blue.     

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