If anyone knows how to go out with a bang, it’s Kiss. Performing the fourth-to-last scheduled concert of its career Monday at a jam-packed Allstate Arena, the band left nothing to chance by putting on a blowout extravaganza with enough bombast to make some of its earlier displays seem tame by comparison.
In other words, the 135-minute show offered the faithful practically every thrill they could possibly desire — from fiery infernos and concussion bombs to balloon drops and whiteout storms of confetti. Plus a stage augmented with descending pods, swiveling cranes, cat statues, an elevating drum riser and a smoke-belching serpent. And a setlist loaded with favorites, hits and classics primarily drawn from Kiss’s creative heyday, the 10-year span that preceded the group’s decision to remove its makeup in 1983.
Yet the biggest attractions were the personalities themselves, especially singer-guitarist Paul Stanley and singer-bassist Gene Simmons, the last original members and long-running brain trust who steered the group through the highest of highs and lowest of lows. Though the term “icon” continues to lose significance from overuse, it applies to both musicians.
Onstage, each still comes across as larger than life, even with moves they’ve executed countless times. Adorned in a black vest, black pants and knee-high platform heels bedecked with jewels and chains, Stanley channeled the extroverted temperament of a combination circus ringmaster, overzealous street preacher and enthusiastic instructor. Dressed in his trademark demon garb — body armor, leather bat wings, elongated codpiece, tall platform dragon boots with glaring red eyes — Simmons channeled his admiration for comic-book superheroes and old-school horror-film monsters.
Given the weight of the costume and density of the greasepaint, the 74-year-old Simmons’ ability to tolerate the scorching heat of the recurring flames and move around as much as fellow platform heel-wearing musician Adam Lambert (33 years younger) with Queen at United Center last month stands as a kind of age-defying feat of strength. Occasionally, Simmons’ face dripped with so much sweat, he couldn’t open his eyes. So he can be forgiven for flubbing lyrics to “I Love It Loud.”
A deserved rest, in the form of retirement, is nigh. Culminating its 50th anniversary, Kiss plans on calling it a day next weekend in its hometown of New York City. A two-night stand at Madison Square Garden will complete its marathon End of the Road Tour, which started in January 2019, paused for the pandemic and visited upward of 200 locations.
Akin to other legacy acts that have changed their minds, Kiss has waved goodbye before. Its initial Farewell Tour occurred in 2000-01 and remains the band’s last go-round involving the full original lineup. Stanley later said he viewed that contentious outing as the final chapter with guitarist Ace Frehley and drummer Peter Criss. Following personnel dramas that evoked the farce of the mockumentary “This Is Spinal Tap,” Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer filled those respective roles on a permanent basis by 2004.
Monday’s performance also marked the culmination of a relationship with Chicago that stretches back nearly five decades and involves more than two dozen shows. Kiss made its area debut in DeKalb in April 1974. Less than two weeks later at a multi-act bill reviewed by late Tribune critic Lynn Van Matre, the band appeared at Aragon Ballroom as part of an excursion that seeded the beginnings of an enduring connection with the Midwest. Notably, three of the four concerts recorded for Kiss’s 1975 breakout “Alive!” album took place in the heartland.
Never at a loss for words, Stanley discussed Kiss’s ties to Chicago, going as far as a bizarre mention of the hot-dog stand Wieners Circle. And, of course, he entertained with his signature over-the-top banter — posing vacant questions with obvious answers, repeating claims cited in every city, leaning on reliable cliches — in an effort to give the band needed breathers and sustain interest. Yet for all the expected showmanship, several remarks carried a gravitas free of the usual bluster.
Observing the finality associated with Monday’s event at multiple turns, Stanley focused attention on the audience. He profusely thanked and praised his fans, crediting the Kiss Army for its support and passion. Free of self-promotion, his appeal to the crowd that the evening function as a “time to celebrate all that we’ve done together” resonated with deep sincerity.
Then again, boosting fans’ self-worth, removing them briefly from the drudgery of daily existence, encouraging sexual freedom and creating a feel-good atmosphere have always been Kiss specialties — and the strengths lost on many of the band’s critics. That no-judgment, us-against-everybody else bond between listener and band defined the spectacular fun and imagination of this show as much as, if not more than, Simmons ascending 20 feet on a hydraulic lift and howling “God of Thunder.” Or Stanley zip-lining to an auxiliary platform to strut his stuff and sing the double-entendre anthem “Love Gun.”
Along with Simmons’ blood-spitting and fire-breathing antics, Kiss busted out those tricks at its two prior local stops (on March 2019 and October 2021) on this trek. The band also adhered to a very similar setlist. At Allstate Arena, the most recent tune stemmed from 2009; just four songs dated past 1982. No matter. If anything, a majority of the material — melodic, gritty, deceptively simple, staked to catchy hooks — served as sage reminders of why Kiss’s influence spans indie rock to metal, country to post-punk.
Tough, edgy songs such as the threatening “100,000 Years,” stormy “Cold Gin” and abrasive “Black Diamond” brought history full circle. They conveyed desperation, desolation and decay, the very moods and situations Kiss experienced when emerging from New York in the mid-70s as underdogs who shared little in common with their contemporaries. Triumphant fare like the explosive “Detroit Rock City” and “Shout It Out Loud” depicted the band coming out on the other side of the struggle. The upbeat “Makin’ Love,” commanding “Calling Dr. Love” and persuasive “Lick It Up” gorged on the pleasures of a charmed life.
Though slowed in spots, songs maintained their familiar shapes. Kiss knew the importance of locking into a groove and holding steady. Stanley, whose voice tended to wander off-key during higher passages and strain during screams — and which no longer reaches into stratospheric falsetto realms — conserved his pipes for verses and select choruses. If Simmons’ heavy fare boomed and bellowed, Stanley’s swaggering songs pranced and pouted.
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Wisely, Thayer and Singer lent considerable vocal support to most numbers. The benefit also granted extra room for Stanley to dance in place, vogue with his guitars and flash jazz hands. As for Simmons’ tongue-wagging? That happened whenever he wanted.
Shortly before exiting in a blaze of sulfur, pyrotechnics and shattered guitar pieces, Kiss silently walked around the edges of the stage, basking in the adoration and giving back as much love as it received. Sure, the band might no longer be “the hottest band in the world” as boasted by its famous preshow announcement. But for one more night, Kiss did everything in its power to make everyone a believer. Not a bad way to punctuate an illustrious legacy.
Bob Gendron is a freelance critic.
Setlist from the Allstate Arena Nov. 27:
“Detroit Rock City”
“Shout It Out Loud”
“Deuce”
“War Machine”
“Heaven’s on Fire”
“I Love It Loud”
“Say Yeah”
“Cold Gin”
“Lick It Up”
“Calling Dr. Love”
“Makin’ Love”
“Psycho Circus”
“100,000 Years”
“God of Thunder”
“Love Gun”
“I Was Made for Lovin’ You”
“Black Diamond”
Encore
“Beth”
“Do You Love Me”
“Rock and Roll All Nite”