N.American Monster #23 - Uncasville, 8/10/13

[Ren5150]

Hey, Ren... these are the kinds of photographs that dazzled me and made my imagination go nuts as a kid, like the Viewmaster 1979 ones.

They rock.

Well thank you sir!

[Necro Mustis]

Casuals there for pyro. And I see some empty seats and lots of people sitting.

Look how angry they are that they do not know Eric Singer's name

[metallian]

Great show. The band was tight. This lineup has the best harmony vocals going. Paul was raspy in parts, but sounded good. Definitely the most pyro
I've seen at any concert. Very good light show. The production was great, particularly on "War Machine", "RARAN", and "Psycho Circus".

[SaintN'Sinner83]

Well, this marked my 76th Kiss show. Having seen every tour in the US since 78' excluding The Creatures tour, I thought I would take time to share an honest and objective review of my take on last night for anyone on the fence. I saw it front row as I've seen them all. It was good night for Kiss, they were in good spirits but one thing that's become clearly evident more so than ever is "the band's performance has become second to the show". It now, more than ever, a True Rock and Roll circus.

Attendance The arena was packed aside from a few empties noticeably scattered on the upper rear balconies . But I can confirm that every ticket available to both Ticketmaster and the box office here were sold. There were a multitude of complimentary tickets put aside for players through reservations who never made the show that sadly went to waste but the crowd itself were into it as they always are up here. Getting a solid attendance figure for this one will be interesting.

The Stage: I have to say the entire production truly was impressive. The video screen really punched through more so now without all the other video monitors they've used on all their past tours. To me, they distracted more than anything and just really cluttered the stage. The spider lighting rig was actually pretty cool I mean the head even bows down, it's very impressive when you see it right in front of you. The lighting and colored beams were spectacular as well.

The Show: This is about the loudest most aggressive pyro they have ever used and it's now it's continuous throughout the show. I don't think they could fit another column of fire if they tried. And when there isn't an effect going off, just the lighting alone is visually exciting. Personally, it's a bit much in my opinion. It almost loses value when pyro is going off continuously.

The band: Well starting with Paul, the spectacle really shifts focus off his vocal issues. It's not they're not apparent live but I will say they would be much less noticeable if he dropped all the ridiculous stage raps between songs. Physically he had some good moments like in War machine where he cut loose a bit and was a little more mobile than other times. Vocal issues or not, he still can entertain without question, I thought it was a nice touch placing the mirror ball in the back and doing the doing the "Black Diamond" intro from the rear platform. He should of always done that. It really adds a nice ambiance.

Gene: His bass playing is there as always and his vocals were right there. But he's certainly not the Gene Simmons I once knew. He's completely lost the demonic persona , one second he's sticking out his tongue the next he's being a goof... dancing, making retarded faces and acting like a mongoloid amusing himself, as well as all of us in the front rows. It just makes it hard to take him seriously when he takes center stage and starts spitting blood. But realistically, at 64, you can't expect him to be that menacing character that broke out back in 74', that would be awkward as well. So it's basically a 'lighter' Gene Simmons. (although physically heavier)

Thayer: Not a fan of Tommy's but his playing was solid throughout the night. He interacted well with Paul exchanging some laughs during Outta This World trading screams into the mic with Paul. Paul also introduced him as "Mr. X". Won't comment on solo or bazooka other than it would of been great to hear 3 more songs in place of 'the jam'.

Singer: One thing I've noticed in recent tours are the drums are so flat. As a drummer I thought his snare was buried in the mix. He's still solid but I noticed his hitting is inconsistent . One second he's hitting hard the next he's not. On his solo breaks the drums sounded alright but after the solo the snare was buried again. The toms just don't cut through the way they should. I'm not saying he should use the amount of reverb Eric Carr did, but a little more sure wouldn't hurt.( I personally think Peter had a better drum sound on the reunion tours and definitely a better snare. (Just talking tones)

Overall it was a good show, but aside from the production, nothing new here at all. But still a great night out in terms of entertainment. The front row experience is always fun . Your watching every detail, interacting with them and always waiting for a member to step in front of you. I would of probably passed without seeing it from there.

But you can't just single Kiss out , everything in life gets repetitious, not just the Kiss show. Its amazing in 2013 this act/stage show has survived. As long as there is somebody willing to pay, they will play.

Rock On

Great review. Honest, detailed, fair and great read.

[anomoly2]

Well, this marked my 76th Kiss show. Having seen every tour in the US since 78' excluding The Creatures tour, I thought I would take time to share an honest and objective review of my take on last night for anyone on the fence. I saw it front row as I've seen them all. It was good night for Kiss, they were in good spirits but one thing that's become clearly evident more so than ever is "the band's performance has become second to the show". It now, more than ever, a True Rock and Roll circus.

Attendance The arena was packed aside from a few empties noticeably scattered on the upper rear balconies . But I can confirm that every ticket available to both Ticketmaster and the box office here were sold. There were a multitude of complimentary tickets put aside for players through reservations who never made the show that sadly went to waste but the crowd itself were into it as they always are up here. Getting a solid attendance figure for this one will be interesting.

The Stage: I have to say the entire production truly was impressive. The video screen really punched through more so now without all the other video monitors they've used on all their past tours. To me, they distracted more than anything and just really cluttered the stage. The spider lighting rig was actually pretty cool I mean the head even bows down, it's very impressive when you see it right in front of you. The lighting and colored beams were spectacular as well.

The Show: This is about the loudest most aggressive pyro they have ever used and it's now it's continuous throughout the show. I don't think they could fit another column of fire if they tried. And when there isn't an effect going off, just the lighting alone is visually exciting. Personally, it's a bit much in my opinion. It almost loses value when pyro is going off continuously.

The band: Well starting with Paul, the spectacle really shifts focus off his vocal issues. It's not they're not apparent live but I will say they would be much less noticeable if he dropped all the ridiculous stage raps between songs. Physically he had some good moments like in War machine where he cut loose a bit and was a little more mobile than other times. Vocal issues or not, he still can entertain without question, I thought it was a nice touch placing the mirror ball in the back and doing the doing the "Black Diamond" intro from the rear platform. He should of always done that. It really adds a nice ambiance.

Gene: His bass playing is there as always and his vocals were right there. But he's certainly not the Gene Simmons I once knew. He's completely lost the demonic persona , one second he's sticking out his tongue the next he's being a goof... dancing, making retarded faces and acting like a mongoloid amusing himself, as well as all of us in the front rows. It just makes it hard to take him seriously when he takes center stage and starts spitting blood. But realistically, at 64, you can't expect him to be that menacing character that broke out back in 74', that would be awkward as well. So it's basically a 'lighter' Gene Simmons. (although physically heavier)

Thayer: Not a fan of Tommy's but his playing was solid throughout the night. He interacted well with Paul exchanging some laughs during Outta This World trading screams into the mic with Paul. Paul also introduced him as "Mr. X". Won't comment on solo or bazooka other than it would of been great to hear 3 more songs in place of 'the jam'.

Singer: One thing I've noticed in recent tours are the drums are so flat. As a drummer I thought his snare was buried in the mix. He's still solid but I noticed his hitting is inconsistent . One second he's hitting hard the next he's not. On his solo breaks the drums sounded alright but after the solo the snare was buried again. The toms just don't cut through the way they should. I'm not saying he should use the amount of reverb Eric Carr did, but a little more sure wouldn't hurt.( I personally think Peter had a better drum sound on the reunion tours and definitely a better snare. (Just talking tones)

Overall it was a good show, but aside from the production, nothing new here at all. But still a great night out in terms of entertainment. The front row experience is always fun . Your watching every detail, interacting with them and always waiting for a member to step in front of you. I would of probably passed without seeing it from there.

But you can't just single Kiss out , everything in life gets repetitious, not just the Kiss show. Its amazing in 2013 this act/stage show has survived. As long as there is somebody willing to pay, they will play.

Rock On

Great review. Honest, detailed, fair and great read.

I appreciate that.

Thank You

[anomoly2]

I'm not one to watch a show holding a cell phone but I did vid a bit of the finale and thought I would share it to show and give a perspective of the madness being up front

(Not that's anything wrong with it, but I would rather enjoy the concert. You know there's always someone taping it so I leave it them)

[1000000-2-1]

anomoly2,
your 76th KISS show ?!?

Wow, that's a lot

[cwr18]

Awesome to see the posts of FAQ luminaries and more recent posters who have made an impression on the board.

Really cool for me to see the converging of so many of you guys under the same roof-- the NE is still the heartbeat of Kiss HQ.

Madness indeed in that video clip.

Thank you!

[kissthat]

yvq_rxatRP0

[mrzucker]

Spur of the moment I decided to catch the show at Mohegan Sun on Saturday. Sure glad I did. I have seen each tour since Asylum. I think that this show from start to finish was one of -- if not -- the best and most entertaining that I've ever attended. I would not hesitate to see the show again, or recommend it to anyone. If you are on the fence about seeing KISS live -- because you have read some of the doom and gloom posted here on the KissFaq forum -- and you have the chance to catch a show -- I would do it!

[daltonic1]

i think the general theme of the tour in general, from reading the reviews, is that everyone was entertained and a little surprised at not terrible Paul's vocals were.

i think the clips on YouTube are more accurate than the emotional feeling of being there live, but even then, he does sound a little bit better.

i'm glad i saw these shows. i had a really fun time. their pyro use is fucking insane. i think they appreciate that they have to make up for other weaknesses w/ very strong show and they do that, tenfold. very impressive.