Working as a New York City taxi driver in the early 1970s, Paul Stanley vividly remembers one cab ride transporting a couple to see Elvis Presley perform at Madison Square Garden (MSG). “They thought I was crazy because I said ‘One of these days people are gonna come here and see me and my band,'” said Stanley on stage at The Garden Saturday (December 2). “And here we are.”
Stanley’s early premonition was already realized decades earlier when KISS played their first concert at MSG on February 18, 1977. Following their breakthrough album Alive in 1974 and a row of successful releases in the mid to late ’70s through Love Gun and their second live album Alive II, by ’77 the Starchild, the Demon, the Spaceman, and the Catman finally made it to The Garden.
That year, KISS also performed in Japan for the first time, just four years after releasing their eponymous debut, then returned to MSG later in 1977 for a three-night run in December. They went back in 1979, 1985, 1990, 1996, and again in 1998 after the release of Psycho Circus, which featured the original lineup again with guitarist Ace Frehley and drummer Peter Criss, but the band’s successive tours didn’t bring them back to the venue until 2023 when KISS decided to leave one last mark on their career, and their hometown.
Ending 50 years of touring, it’s been a while since KISS’ first show at the Popcorn Pub in Sunnyside, Queens, New York on January 30, 1973. Ending on a more mammoth scale, the band—founding members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley and longtime guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer—performed one last time with their final two concerts in the city on their End of the Road farewell tour at MSG on December 1 and 2.
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For the final show, fans of multiple generations wrapped around the entirety of MSG, from 7th to 8th Avenues, to see KISS live one last time. The air was electric around MSG, and bittersweet since everyone knew it was “goodbye” to a massive era of New York City and rock history.
“It’s one of the most iconic bands in one of the most iconic cities at one of the most iconic venues,” said longtime KISS fan Troy Fleckenstein, who traveled to New York City from Michigan for KISS’ final show with his wife Galla. “We love New York and visit regularly, and it just made sense for us to be here tonight.”
His face painted like the Demon, Jesus wasn’t shy to pose with passersby, placing his hand on their throat in true Simmons fashion. Originally from Mexico, the longtime fan said “KISS is everything for us, for all of my life, history—everything. I grew up with all this.”
At 8 p.m., the live pay-per-view broadcast of the concert started after a half-hour performance by the Los Angeles-based Amber Wild, who served as the only opening act of the night. Formed in January 2023 by Stanley’s son Evan, who also fronts the four-piece, the band kicked off the evening with a sleaze-rock set of six songs pulled from their debut Breakout // Silver.
In the hour before KISS took the stage, TV personality and global head of rock at Spotify, Allison Hagendorf, sat down on the B-stage for one-on-one interviews with the band’s longtime friend magician Criss Angel, songwriter Desmond Child, who co-wrote several songs with Stanley, including KISS’ 1979 hit “I Was Made for Lovin’ You,” “Heaven’s on Fire,” and more, along with several of the band member’s children, including Evan Stanley, Simmons’ son Nick and daughter Amber, and Thayer’s daughter Sierra.
“It’s because of him [Stanley] that I’m sitting here at Madison Square Garden talking to you,” said Child, who went on to write hits for Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, Joan Jett, and dozens of other artists after working with KISS. Stanley also wrote the introduction for Child’s 2023 memoir Livin’ on a Prayer: Big Songs Big Life. “He taught me everything,” added Child. “He taught what it means to get the last row, the last person to feel it and know that they’re being sung to, directly. … There would be no Desmond Child without Paul Stanley. I assure you of that.”
Once Led Zeppelin‘s “Rock and Roll” finished blasting through the loudspeaker, KISS emerged with an over-the-top entrance. Raised on three platforms, Simmons, Stanley, and Thayer burst into “Detroit Rock City” with Singer hammering behind. Next, the band landed on stage for “Shout It Out Loud.” Spanning the band’s five decades in 21 songs, they moved into Creatures of the Night track “War Machine.”
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After battering through “I Love It Loud,” Simmons gave his first of two spectacles during the night, breathing fire onto the flaming staff in his hand.
Throughout the set, KISS returned to the first album with “Deuce,” and an eruptive “Cold Gin” finished off by a guitar solo intermission by Thayer. Simmons’ took the mic for “Calling Doctor Love” and the band shared one more Rock and Roll Over track, “Makin’ Love,” before Thayer and Stanley shared a dueling guitar solo. Singer also had his solo break following a revisit to the band’s 1998 song “Psycho Circus,” which went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
Simmons was the last to have his moment, pounding through a dirtied, distorted bass solo as blood spewed from his mouth before segueing back to Destroyer with “God of Thunder.”
“As much as it feels awesome to be up here tonight, I wanna come out there and be with you,” wailed Stanley before asking the crowd to “invite” him out. Once welcomed with chants of “Paul,” Stanley ziplined over the audience to the B stage and jumped right into the band’s 1977 hit “Love Gun” and “I Was Made for Lovin’ You.” He glided back to the main stage for the end of the band’s set, and went back to where it all began, with KISS, and its closing track “Black Diamond.”
It wasn’t long before the band returned for an encore, stepping off for just a few minutes before Singer reappeared. Sat at a piano center stage, he moved into their 1976 ballad “Beth.” The remaining encore was filled in with “Do You Love Me” from Destroyer and an explosive—literally—close of “Rock and Roll All Nite” with the grandest pyro displays of the night.
In between the on-stage fire shows and other pyrotechnics, Stanley served as the most garrulous frontman throughout the evening, introducing songs and sharing stories during the band’s final two hours onstage together. And at the core of all the explosions, blood spurting, and other pomp was real heartfelt emotion, which was evident when the four visibly moved members stepped around the front stage to take final bows after “Beth.”
“The first time we played Madison Square Garden was in 1977,” said Stanley towards the end of the night. “That memory is so incredible. I can remember looking up there and seeing my mom and my dad. I can remember looking over there and seeing Gene’s mom. Doesn’t matter whether you’re up here [or] down there. All you ever want is your parents’ approval. You want them to love what you’re doing. Our parents did that for us. Tonight you’re doing it for us.”
Physically, KISS was finished performing, but it was not the end of more shows for the band. After stepping off stage, they revealed their second coming, a music video featuring all four band members in avatar form playing to their 1991 hit, KISS’ Argent cover of “God Gave Rock and Roll to You.”
In partnership with the Swedish entertainment company behind ABBA‘s virtual Voyage concerts in London in 2022, Pophouse Entertainment Group, and George Lucas’ visual effects company, Industrial Light & Magic, KISS will live on in avatar form.
“The end of the road is the beginning of another road,” said Stanley, teasing what was to come with the next generation of the band. “We’re not going anywhere. You’ll see us in all different things all the time. We’ll see you in your dreams. We love you. Goodnight.”
KISS End of the Road Setlist (Madison Square Garden, December 2, 2023):
1. “Detroit Rock City”
2. “Shout It Out Loud”
3. “Deuce”
4. “War Machine”
5. “Heaven’s on Fire”
6. “I Love It Loud”
7. “Say Yeah”
8. “Cold Gin”
Guitar Solo (Tommy Thayer)
9. “Lick It Up”
10. “Calling Dr. Love”
11. “Makin’ Love”
12. “Psycho Circus”
Drum Solo (Eric Singer)
13. “100,000 Years”
Bass Solo (Gene Simmons)
14. “God of Thunder”
15. “Love Gun”
16. “I Was Made for Lovin’ You”
17. “Black Diamond”
_____Encore
1. “Beth”
2. “Do You Love Me”
3. “Rock and Roll All Nite”
4. “God Gave Rock and Roll to You II” (*video with KISS as holograms)
Photos: Kevin Mazur / Getty / Courtesy of Full Coverage Media
