Today we bought the new Eric Carr Unfinished Business Picture Disc vinyl in our local record store!
This edition includes a KISS make up cover and comic book style poster in new colors.
The tracklist is the same as the Eric Carr Unfinished Business RSD Release from last april: Eric Speaks to the Fans, Just Can't Wait, Troubles Inside You, No One's Messin' With You, Eric Talks About His Music, Carr Jam 1981, Eric Talks About His Audition, Shandi, All Hell's Breakin' Loose, Dial L For Love, Elephant Man, Eric Talks About Mark St. John, Midnite Stranger, Eyes of Love, Bill Aucoin Talks About Eric, Through the Years (Live) I Cry At Night, Eric Joking At Rehearsals. Bonus tracks: I Found You (The One I Adore) Down By The River, Get Down (Studio Version), Black Magic Woman & Listen To The Music. This release a great addition to our KISS collection...
It's exactly 40 years ago today when I saw KISS Live In Zwolle The Netherlands, on november 4th 1984! It was my first KISS show ever! I remember this day so well, on that sunday I went with the train to Zwolle, after have checked into my hotel I headed over to the IJsselhal. In the afternoon there was also a KISS expo that was held in the same venue. I remember that I bought the KISS Creatures Of The Night Promo Cube there and I still have it in our collection. You also could win KISS prices with a lottery and that the KISS members would hand out the prizes! I remember the moment when Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Eric Carr & Bruce Kulick came on the expo stage to say hi to the fans and hand out the prizes, it was my first time that I saw them in real life, lol. When the expo had ended it was time to wait till the doors of the IJsselhal went open and as soon as they were I run inside and got the best spot possible. First Bon Jovi was up as special guest and they were great (bought their record a few weeks back). I got more and more excited for KISS and when I heard the famous announcement: You Wanted The Best, You Got The Best…KISS! I think I went nuts and couldn’t believe I saw KISS live! I sang every song with them, jumped, clapped and enjoyed every minute of the show! It was my very first KISS show and I had a blast. This was the setlist: Detroit Rock City, Cold Gin, Strutter, Fits Like A Glove, Heaven’s On Fire, Guitar Solo,Under The Gun, Warmachine, Eric Carr Drum Solo, Young And Wasted, Creatures Of The Night, Gene Simmons Bass Solo, I Love It Loud, I Still Love You, I’ve Had Enough (Into The Fire) Love Gun & Rock And Roll All Night. Encores: La Bamba, Lick It Up, Oh Susanna & Black Diamond.
I never could imagine since that show what the future holds for me, with many KISS shows world wide, KISS Kruises, personal meetings and interactions with band members and collecting their merchandise! But the most amazing moment was meeting my wife through KISS! I knew I was KISS fan for life and tonight I celebrate my first show with listening to the Dressed To Kill & Jungle Fever vinyls blasting out my speakers...
We added this great KISS Starchild Poptater to our collection today! This collectors edition is 6" high in size. Earlier in februari 2023 we got the KISS Demon Poptater in.
The Demon Poptater figure aswell the Starchild one comes with 12 interchangeable parts, including one original Potato Head piece.
Both Poptaters come in a cilinder window package...
We added the Gene Simmons Band Live In Utrecht DVD & CD to our collection! We went to this show in Utrecht last august and just watched the DVD from this awesome evening. Bringing back good memories!
The CD edition is a 2-CD set and sounds great too...
Today we added the KISS Kruise IX - Rock N' Roll Legacy DVD to our collection! It's recorded live on november 1th 2019, the first indoor show on the Norwegian Pearl. The KISS Kruise IX was our last Kruise and we were at the first indoor show, so this release bring back some great memories to us...
Today we added this new KISS Funko Color Spotlight 4-Pack set to our collection! This exclusive 4-pack features the Spaceman, the Demon, the Starchild, & the Catman in a dazzling array of colors.
Each member is tinted with their unique color; blue for the Spaceman & red for the Demon. Purple for the Starchild & green for the Catman...
Today we got these great KISS End Of The Road Guitar Picks in!
These picks are from the last KISS show on december 2th 2023, but never used!
A big thank you to Keith Leroux, we're glad we could help...
On august 6th we had our Gene Simmons Backstage Experience in Oberhausen!!! It was right after his show in the hot Turbinenhalle in Oberhausen, Germany. When Gene saw us he gave us a big hug and he was so funny with taking photo's with us, he pulls at your cheek or sticks his finger in your ear and off all the photo's the ones above are our most favorite! He took all the time for us, we talked about all kind of things, makes jokes and is so funny as you can see in the video (thanks to F. Sonnewald)
We had such amazing time with Gene, he's a sweetheart and is always a real pleasure to meet! We'll never forget this night! And a special big thank you for our friend who made this possible for us...
Our roadtrip to see the Gene Simmons Band during their European tour began on august 4th in Utrecht, The Netherlands!
Before the doors went open at the Tivoli, we picked up our reserved GSB poster.
When they opened we got our spots, right in the middle of the venue with a very good view on the stage. They had 2 big screens hanging on each side of the stage with the GSB logo on it. Around 9 PM the show started with the intro of Radio Active and Gene walked on the stage under a huge applause from the fans. Deuce followed and the place went nuts. Warmachine was up next and followed by Are You Ready. Then he asked what the fans would like to hear, suggestions of songs were shouted all over the place. We heard parts of Almost Human:
And I Was Made For Lovin' you:
Also parts of Goin' Blind & She were performed! After Shout It Out Loud he asked again what we want to hear. They played All The Way & Love Her All I Can, but onty partial. We would love to hear those songs complete. Charisma was up next:
Followed by 1 of our favorites Weapons Of Mass Destruction was played, we don't understand why a lot of fans hate that song? Here's our video:
Gene has so much fun on stage, making jokes, speaking Dutch; godverdomme, gereedsschapskist, dank je wel and so on, lol. After the cover La Bamba (more covers where played as House Of Pain, Ace Of Spades) we got a third medley of songs, but this time covers Rader Love, Twilight Zone, Down On The Corner & Sunshine Of Your Love. Gene sounded great aswell the band.
Also more of our favorites were played Parasite & Watching You and with Rock & Roll All Night it all came to a end. We had such a great time tonight and we couldn't wait to see him again in Oberhausen. Setlist: Deuce, War Machine, Are You Ready, Almost Human, I Was Made for Lovin' You, Goin' Blind, She, Shout It Out Loud, All the Way, Love Her All I Can, Charisma, House of Pain (Van Halen cover) I Love It Loud, Weapons of Mass Destruction, Ace Of Spades (Motörhead cover) Christine Sixteen, La Bamba (Ritchie Valens cover) Radar Love & Twilight Zone (Golden Earring cover) Down On The Corner (Creedence Clearwater Revival cover) Sunshine Of Your love (Cream cover) Cold Gin, Parasite, Watchin' You & Rock & Roll All Nite.
On august 6th we drove to Oberhausen (Germany) for show #2 of the Gene Simmons Band! Again we got a good spot at the right side of the stage. It was hot in the Turbinenhalle, as it was when the Gene Simmons Band played the same venue in 2018! At 9:10 PM we heard the intro and we knew it's time to have a rock & roll party. The show started with Deuce and the crowd was into the show from that moment on. Gene wanted his bassguitar louder, much louder. And from that moment it was louder, lol. It was Hotter Than Hell here in the venue. One of our favorites of the Gene Simmons Vault; Are You Ready was up next:
This time Goin' Blind was played complete, Watchin' You was replaced by: Nothin' To Lose and for the rest the setlist was the same (minus the medley's) as in Utrecht 2 nights ago. Despite the heat in the venue Gene had such a fun on stage and the band was great, but we think, because of the heat they only played 14 songs tonight. Before we knew it the show was over, but not for us! We knew we would meet Gene tonight right after the show! And we had a blast with him backstage!
2 days later on august 8th we arrived by train in Luxembourg for show #3 of the Gene Simmons Band! During our trip we couldn't stop thinking about meeting Gene in Oberhausen, 2 days ago. I beth we had big smiles on our faces all the day. After checkin in our hotel and some sightseeing we arrived at 6:30 PM at the Atelier. We had some great spots, right in the middle of the stage. It was a small venue, with a small stage, so small that it couldn't not fit all the speakers of the band. But this setting would also very special with Gene so close to the fans. Doesn't matter where you sit or stand, you've a great view to the stage. At 9:10 the intro the show started with the intro of Radio Active followed by Deuce:
It was great to see Gene really enjoy himself and loves what he does. Not only tonight, but every show we went to! Here's our video of I Love It Loud:
The setlist was almost the same as in Oberhausen but with a few suprises like Christeen Sixteen replaced Weapons Of Mass Destruction (not happy with it, because it's 1 of our favorites Gene solo songs) Here's Christeen Sixteen with a small part of Almost Human:
This time we also got a bandmembers introduction accomponied by guitar and drumsolo's. Also Parasite was replaced by Calling Dr. Love The fans had such a great time and responded with a lot of cheers and singing along to these songs. Here's Watchin' You:
We had a great time again and Gene sounds awesome live and enjoyed his show as much we do! After having some drinks with fans after the show it was time to go to our hotel, we had to catch a train early next morning...
On august 9th we drove to Lierop (NL) for show #4, only 80km from our home, to see our last Gene Simmons Band show for 2024! We arrived around 8:30 PM in a kind of middle of nowhere little village. Never heard of this Nirwane Tuinfeest festival, but here we are. To our suprise there were a lot of people there. When the time came closer when the show would begin, you see more and more KISS fans came to the stage. Around 11 PM we heard the intro of Radio Active and the Demon came on stage and a huge cheer was to hear.This time they started with Warmachine:
We sang along with every song that was played this night. And of course, we all know how funny Gene is and at one moment during the show there was a box of choclate thrown on stage, he stopped the show, said; fuck the concert, I'm going to eat choclate and hand out some to the bandmembers before throwing it back to the audience, lol. This time there was less talking and more playing. They dropped Nothin'To Lose & Watching You but Parasite was back:
Gene was supposed to play for 1 hour, but when it was 12 AM the band was still playing. At the moment he said; they want us to stop, but we want to play and they went on with Goin' Blind. Then Gene said; they want us to stop, they want to give me a ticket, fuck it - I'm rich - bitch, lol and they played Charisma and closed the show with Rock & Roll All Night. End time 12:25 AM. But everything has to come to a end, we saw 4 awesome shows and had a blast meeting Gene! We never thought we saw him back solo so fast after KISS ended and Gene, who is almost 75 years in age, was in top shape on stage and his voice is still great! Also the band was great, especially Brain Titchy, who was amazing on the drums. We're happy that we had the chance to see Gene perform in a small club and bigger venues. We hope he will return to Europe to do some more shows in the future.
*(c) 2024. All personal photo’s/slideshows/filmed footage may only be used by others if is reference/linked to this site or me and ask me first!
Today we take a moment to remember Eric Carr who would have celebrate his 74th birthday.
Over the 11 years Eric spent with KISS, he played over 800 concerts and I was lucky enough to see him kick the drums at 3 shows, in 1984 and 2 in 1988.
Eric played the drums like thunder, especially on Creatures Of The Night!
For me he was the best drummer KISS ever had!
Today we added the KISS Kruise IX - Rock N' Roll Legacy Vinyl to our collection! It's recorded live on november 1th 2019, the first indoor show on the Norwegian Pearl. The KISS Kruise IX was our last Kruise and we were at the first indoor show, so this release bring back some great memories to us. This unofficial release comes in a gatefold sleeve.
This 2 LP set limited (to 100) edition is on yellow vinyl. KISS Kruise IX Miami To Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas & Falmouth, Jamaica, Oct. 30 Through Nov. 4 2019. Tracklist Side A: Say Yeah, Larger Than Life, Strutter, Watchin' You, Got To Choose. Side B: Do You Love Me, Christine Sixteen, Heaven's On Fire, Cold Gin. Side C: I Was Made For Lovin' You, Crazy Crazy Nights, It's My Life. Side D: God Gave Rock And Roll To You, Detroit Rock City, Rock And Roll All Nite.
1 year ago today: our last KISS! Today we look back to that historic day in our KISStory! It's hard to imagine that it's 1 year ago for us since we saw our favorite band live for the last time! Here's our review of that day: On july 2th we saw KISS live in Cologne, it was their last final tour show in Germany ever. We arrived at the Lanxess Arena around 7 pm, we had super seats, first row at Gene’s side. Around 9 pm the lights went out and on the screens there’s a video showing that the band is walking to the stage. Here’s the video of it:
Moments later we heard the famous announcement: You Wanted The Best, You Got The Best, The Hottest Band In The World: KISS! As soon as the curtains came down, with Detroit Rock City, we were cheering, jumping, singing along with every song they played this evening. This show was special to us in many ways, one of them was that this was my lovely wife's 54th and my 75th KISS show! The venue was packed with 17.000 fans and sold out. Everyone on the balconies was standing and the party was on.
The band was in top form, Paul is still jumping, dancing and moves like he’s a young boy, Gene is still the lord of the wastelands, sticking out his tongue, drooling, spitting fire. Tommy ‘s guitar solos are out of this world and Eric pounds the drums like a warrior.
During Calling Dr. LoveGene noticed us and kept pointing to us. Such a great moment! The inflatable figures were back at each side of the stage (they weren’t there in Brussels) but the screens at the sides and in front of Eric’s drumkit were not there this time. Some changes in the setlist compared to the Amsterdam & Brussels shows we attended, Do You Love Me was dropped and I Was Made For Lovin' You was moved to the encores. Gene is now spitting fire during I Love It Loud. Also the guitar duel between Paul & Tommy was now on the risers at the ends of the stage.
There were some funny moments in the show, Gene let the crowd knew he can spell Köln (Cologne) with an Umlaut. He also spit water on some fans, pretending it was raining, Paul beated on Gene’s armor, pretending it hurted,lol.
Of course all the well-known show highlights passed by, Tommy shooting off rockets during his guitar solo and letting some ufo pods exploding, Eric’s drum solo, with towel and his drumkit rising up.
Gene spitting fire and his bloody bass solo, followed by his flight to the platform high above the stage during God Of Thunder (always my favorite moment of the show)
Paul flew over the crowd to the little stage at the back of the venue to perform Love Gun and the beginning of Black Diamond. And we loved everything! With KISS balloons coming down from the ceiling of the venue during I Was Made For Lovin’ You we knew which song was up next. It would be their last ever played song in Germany: Rock And Roll All Night with lots of confetti, garlands, bombs, pyro and smoke. Gene & Tommy going up on the risers at the ends of the stage, Eric going up on his drum riser and of course, the ultimate frontman, Paul smashing his guitar.
Then it was over, with Gene, Paul, Tommy & Eric bow to the fans and Paul saying: We’ll never forget you they all thanked the fans and then they left the stage…(BTW can you spot us on the photo below?)
We were sweaty, hot, covered by confetti, feeling mixed emotions…sad…excited…al at once!
After 44 years and 37 years of obsessed KISS fandom respectively for myself and Marina and after 75 and 54 live performances under our belts, KISS Kruises and a lot of personal meetings and interactions with band members over those decades it all came to this epic finale in Europe!
It hasn’t really sunk in yet that this show in Cologne is probably our last. If this is indeed the last time we’ve see KISS in Europe or worldwide, we want to thank Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Ace Frehley, Peter Criss, Eric Carr, Bruce Kulick, Tommy Thayer & Eric Singer for all shows they give between 1976 & 2023 in Europe! All the awesome, fantastic & fun times we had, all the emotions we experienced, all the excitement we had everytime we saw a show. Thank you KISS, it was a extravanganza, heartbreaking and unforgettable journey!
But the party isn’t over till it’s really over, as Paul said in Brussels during the sound check: there’s more to come for KISS…
This was the setlist: Detroit Rock City, Shout It Out Loud, Deuce, Warmachine, Heaven’s On Fire, I Love It Loud (Gene breathes fire) Say Yeah, Cold Gin (Tommy’s guitar solo) Lick It Up, Makin’ Love, Calling Dr. Love, Psycho Circus (Eric’s drum solo) 100.000 Years (outro only) God Of Thunder (Gene’s bloody bass solo) Love Gun (Paul flies over the crowd) & Black diamond. Encores: Beth (Eric plays piano) I Was Made For Lovin’ You (balloons) & Rock And Roll All Night.
*(c) 2024. All personal photo’s/slideshows/filmed footage may only be used by others if is reference/linked to this site or me and ask me first!
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