| Kiss is an American rock group which received huge popularity in the 1970-1980s playing in the genres of glam shock and hard-rock, and known for its stage make-up and concerts-shows, accompanied by various pyrotechnic effects. The rock group “Kiss” was formed in New York in January, 1973.
Most popular songs – “Strutter” (1974), “Rock and Roll All Nite” (1975), “Detroit Rock City” (1976), “I Was Made For Lovin ' You” (1979), “Lick It Up” (1983), “Forever” (1989) and “Psycho circus” (1998). By 2007 the rock group “Kiss” made more than forty five gold and platinum albums and more than 150 million records were sold.
The make-up of Kiss:
The idea of using make-up was conceived by Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons. The idea was received positively and using theatrical make-up, each participant thought up unique make-up for themselves. Their liking of comics, horror films etc had an obvious influence on the makeup. Gene Simmons painted himself as “The Demon”, Peter Criss as “The Catman”, Ace Frehley as “The Spaceman” (Space Ace) and Paul Stanley first became a “Star Child” but changed is at once to the “Bandit” but almost immediately returned back to the initial variant of “The Star Child”.
Making of Kiss:
Though the albums of Kiss were not sold in large numbers, the group quickly gained a status as a most spectacular band. The concerts of Kiss included sets of different tricks for example: Gene Simmons spat blood (actually it was a mixture of yoghurt, juices and food colorants which he ate) or “fire breathing” (when Gene Simmons collected kerosene in his mouth and spat it at a torch); fireworks from the guitar of Ace Frehley during solo performances (fireworks, illumination and smoke bombs placed inside the guitar); an elevator drum riser with Peter Criss, rising to a great height and emitting sparks; Paul Stanley smashing his guitar in the style of Pete Townshend and many pyrotechnics throughout the show.
Achieving popularity and success (1975-1978)
Kiss wanted to express the delight which was felt during their concerts and the enthusiasm which unfortunately the studio albums could not bring them with their first concert album. "Alive!" released on the 10th of September, 1975 achieved a Gold status and spawned the first release of Kiss into the top-40 singles with the concert version of “Rock And Roll All Nite”. This was the first version of the song “Rock and Roll All Nite” with the solo guitar and this record successfully presented the final version of song, eclipsing and superseding the studio original. In recent years, the group stated that additional crowd noise has been added to the album, not with an aim to mislead the fans but to bring more “excitement and realism” to the show.
Double Platinum - the first of numerous collections of Kiss' Greatest Hits was released on April 2, 1978. This double album includes many remixed versions of their hits such as “Strutter ' 78”, the rerecorded version of one of the group’s typical songs. As per the request of Neil Bogart, the song was played in the disco music style which was popular at that time.
Throughout this period the sale of Kiss merchandise became an essential source of income for the group. Some of the released products included:
1. A pair of comic books, published by Marvel (blood, which was specially given by group members, was used along with ink to paint red in the first of the books).
2. Pinball machine
3. Kiss dolls;
4. Cosmetic collection “Kiss Your Face Makeup”;
5. Halloween masks;
6. Toy medicines of singers;
7. Table games;
8. Toys
and many other memorable items. The fan organization Kiss Army was formed. Between 1977 and 1979 sales around the world (in shops and on tours) touched the huge figure of $100 million.
Concerts:
The “Kiss” band was also known for its rousing concerts, where effects such as bright fireworks, exploding / smoke emitting guitars (smoke/powder bombs were kept inside the guitar and then were kindled), splashes of blood (blood usually was made from food colorants or yoghurt), “breathing fire” (Gene Simmons, collected kerosene in his mouth & spit fire) and the lifting of drummer or guitarists up to a height using hydraulic lifts. It is necessary to note that the concert albums and the concert video releases always tasted huge success; for example, the roaring success of the album Alive! (Which was voted “Platinum” four times) rescued the band and the label from bankruptcy.
The “Kiss” band is one of the most attended and successful concert groups of the world.
An audience of 247 000 attended the concert of KISS in Rio–de-Janeiro in June, 1983. |
This Tuesday is the 60th birthday of Gene Simmons - the blood-spitting, fire-breathing, and tongue-wagging frontman of the hard rock band Kiss. Simmons co-founded Kiss in the early 1970s, and invented the band's face makeup and stage outfits, which became the band's trademark and made Kiss one of the most recognizable bands of all times.
