Kiss |
 |
|
Mon. April 28.2003 12:00 AM EDT |
||
Aerosmith and KISS: Back in the SaddleTwo veteran bands promise to tear things up on stage this summer. by Dana Richie-Feher and Jeff Baumgardner |
||||
|
||||
 |
KISS/Aerosmith (Publicity) |
|
||
Its like the last 20 years never happened! This summer, two of Americas greatest rock bands are teaming up in the most unholy of touring marriages. On the one hand, we have the cartoon stomp rock of KISS, a band who know no shame when it comes to
So what can we expect when these two rock worlds collide? Starting August 2 in Hartford, theres bound to be plenty of walking this way and shouting it out loud. Both groups told VH1 about how KISS ambushed Aerosmith with their no-holds-barred show the first time they met, why there will be a no-fly zone above the stage, and what the future holds. VH1: So the rumors are true: KISS are touring with Aerosmith. Paul Stanley: Its a rock n roll carnivores dream, because it is two prime cuts of meat playing all the best songs, sharing a stage and doing what we do best testifying to the power of rock n roll. VH1: Whose idea was it? Paul Stanley: This tour was such a natural, that it was only a matter of time before it happened. It took years to put together, but its going to be worth the wait. Between the two of us, we pretty much wrote the book, and you get to live it. VH1: When did you guys first meet? Joe Perry: Before we had a record contract, we played this place called Maxs Kansas City in New York. Ace Frehley was a friend of a friend and he was hanging around us. This was before he was even called Ace. We ended up getting really wiped out. Ace passed out in my room and I had to have the crew come and get him. Then we were headlining a show in Maryland and KISS walked in without their make-up. I saw Ace and thought, Where do I know that guy from? We still had no idea what KISS were about. We were in the dressing room and they were playing out on stage. Somebody from the crew said, Youd better take a look at this. They were there with the drum riser going up and the fog & it was unbelievable. They caught us with our pants down! So a rivalry began back then. Its going to be the same thing this time. VH1: Theres still a rivalry between you two? Stanley: The great thing about rock n roll is you realize the top of the mountain is big enough for more than one band. Aerosmith have stood the test of time. We do something different than they do, but we both go out there to give 100 percent. People dont leave an Aerosmith show disappointed and certainly no one leaves a KISS show disappointed. This way you get real bang for the buck. And we mean bang. Were bringing the full arsenal - all the fireworks, all the torches, all the flamethrowers. We will declare it a no-fly zone straight above the stage, because we mean business. This is rock n roll at its best. Simmons: People who come there should expect to see more firepower on that stage than most Third World countries. You had better surrender once you walk in. VH1: How do you choose who headlines? Steven Tyler: Theres not much difference between sex and good rock n roll. Aerosmiths always been a very sexual band and theres nothing better than starting the night off with a well-placed KISS. Its the foreplay of it all. VH1: Who will actually be in KISS this time out? Stanley: KISS has been the same for a while now. KISS is myself, Gene, myself, Peter Criss and Tommy Thayer. Ace decided he wanted to pursue other things. We love him and we wish him well. Life goes on. We just finished doing the KISS Symphony in Melbourne, Australia, with a 70-piece orchestra in full KISS make-up, doing every song you can imagine from Detroit Rock City to God of Thunder. VH1: Have KISS been back in the studio? Simmons: Right now the band are gearing up physically. Unlike other bands, we dont just use our fingers to strum little guitars back and forth. We have to get in practice to walk around in these. [Lifts platformed boot.] If you work out on a Stairmaster, try walking around a stage for two hours in these. Its a very physical work-out, and if youre not in shape, we dont do our best. So part of our rehearsals is not just the music, but also rehearsing the road crew with all the fireworks and getting into a physical regimen. Stanley: Were so excited about the KISS/Aerosmith tour that Gene forgot that we were actually in the studio last night mixing the KISS Symphony. It will be a DVD, a live album and a pay-per-view special here in America. We are like Star Trek, because we go where no man has gone before. Here we are, in our 30th year, with the KISS symphony and the band full-throttle and the hottest tour of the summer. VH1: While there are no symphonies in your future, Aerosmiths next record is going to be a blues album. Tyler: Aerosmith has always been a blues-based band. Weve got a huge love for the devils music and weve been out there touring for so long, we figured wed pull in, and check our roots out. Perry: Were learning the old blues songs that our heroes in English bands like Led Zeppelin and the Yardbirds learned from. Were digging into these recordings from the 30s and 40s, and trying to hear exactly what theyre playing and how they did it. The recordings arent very good, so its hard to get exactly what was there. But were trying to capture it and play it like them, fully understanding that because its us and its a different era, the music will blow up into something else. Tyler: These are the songs we cut our teeth on. Were going back to songs that inspired us to be in this band. If you stay in a band long enough, you start polishing turds and all of a sudden youve got to have a hit single. Then you go back and think, Wait a minute. Wheres the music that came from yodeling or from feeling sexy or experiencing pain, where it comes out of the soul? Weve got these years behind us and so many years in front of us to rock, but where did that all come from? This is our little tip of the hat to what its all about. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
  |
 |
Eminem Declares 'I'm Back!' With Roaring Epicenter Concert |
|
Ronnie James Dio Remembered At Pearl Jam, Kiss Concerts |
|
Michael Buble Dominates Kiss On Billboard Chart |
|
Red Hot Chili Peppers, LL Cool J, ABBA Lead 2010 Rock Hall Of Fame Nominees List |
 |
 |
 |
|
Receive Free Music News Daily Via Email |
|
Receive Free Artist Updates Via Email for Kiss |
|
All news for Kiss |
|
Breaking Music News |
 |
Add VH1 News to My Yahoo |
|
