Alive 35 World Tour
The Kiss Alive/35 World Tour was a concert tour by Kiss to celebrate Kiss's 35th anniversary. It was the band's first major tour since the Rock the Nation World Tour in 2004. On the tour, Kiss played in New Zealand for the first time since the Alive/Worldwide Tour in 1997, as well as performing in Europe for the first time since the Psycho Circus World Tour in 1998–1999. Kiss wore Destroyer-themed costumes for the tour, and on the European leg the majority of the songs played were on Alive!. The tour was highly successful and proved to be Kiss's biggest tour of Europe. This tour marked the first time Kiss visited Bulgaria, Greece, Latvia, Russia, Luxembourg, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela.
Tour by Kiss | |
Associated album | Sonic Boom (only for dates September 25 – December 13, 2009) |
---|---|
Start date | March 16, 2008 |
End date | December 13, 2009 |
Legs | 5 |
No. of shows | 103, 1 cancelled, 1 postponed |
Kiss concert chronology |
Three legs and 38 shows were announced. Kiss headlined the Download , Graspop Metal Meeting and Arrow Rock festivals in Europe as part of the tour.
The tour began on March 16 at the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit in Melbourne, Australia. The European leg started on May 9 in the König Pilsener Arena in Oberhausen, Germany. The Latin America leg started on April 3 in Chile. The tour ended on December 13, 2009 in Pittsburgh after the December 15, 2009 concert in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario was postponed until summer 2010 due to inclement weather.[1] The tour went on to gross $30,500,000 and play to over 385,000 fans in sold-out arenas from October to December 2009.[2] Gene Simmons stated that part of the tour's success could be attributed to the success of his hit television show, Gene Simmons Family Jewels.
In the tour program for the band's final tour, Stanley reflected on the tour:
Kiss is about believing in yourself and knowing you can succeed and knowing that the people who tell you you can't succeed are the ones who failed. It's also about celebrating life. It's about enjoying life for what it is. Every day is a miracle. Just being here is Christmas every day of the year. Playing live is the ultimate but doing it right is really really hard work. I push it as far as I can. That's always the philosophy as far as playing live.[3]
Setlist
Song | Album | Times |
---|---|---|
List of songs performed on this tour | ||
100,000 Years | Kiss | 102 |
"Black Diamond" | 102 | |
"Deuce" | 102 | |
"Strutter" | 92 | |
"Cold Gin" | 82 | |
"Nothin’ to Lose" | 55 | |
"Firehouse" | 8 | |
"Let Me Go, Rock ‘n’ Roll" | Hotter Than Hell | 100 |
"Hotter Than Hell" | 98 | |
"Parasite" | 95 | |
"Got to Choose" | 65 | |
"Watchin’ You" | 30 | |
"Rock and Roll All Nite" | Dressed to Kill | 102 |
"She" | 74 | |
"C'mon and Love Me" | 66 | |
"Rock Bottom" | 3 | |
"Detroit Rock City" | Destroyer | 102 |
"Shout It Out Loud" | 100 | |
"King of the Night Time World" | 6 | |
"God of Thunder" | 5 | |
"Do You Love Me?" | 2 | |
"Calling Dr. Love" | Rock and Roll Over | 37 |
"Love Gun" | Love Gun | 101 |
"Shock Me" | 37 | |
"I Stole Your Love" | 6 | |
"I Was Made for Lovin’ You" | Dynasty | 52 |
"Shandi" | Unmasked | 4 |
"I Love It Loud" | Creatures of the Night | 101 |
"Lick It Up" | Lick It Up | 102 |
"Forever" | Hot in the Shade | 2 |
"Modern Day Delilah" | Sonic Boom | 47 |
"Say Yeah" | 25 | |
Australia/New Zealand leg setlist
- "Deuce"
- "Shout It Out Loud"
- "C'mon and Love Me"
- "Lick It Up"
- "I Love It Loud"
- "Calling Dr. Love"
- "Shock Me" (Tommy Thayer on lead vocals with guitar solo)
- "Let Me Go, Rock 'n' Roll"
- "Firehouse" (Gene Simmons firebreathing)
- "100,000 Years" (Eric Singer drum solo)
- "God of Thunder" (Gene Simmons bass solo, blood spitting beforehand)
- "Black Diamond" (Eric Singer lead vocals)
- "Love Gun" (Paul Stanley flies out to the audience)
- "Detroit Rock City"
- "Shandi" (solo version, performed only by Paul Stanley.)
- "I Was Made for Lovin' You"
- "Rock and Roll All Nite"
European/North American/South American setlist
- "Deuce"
- "Strutter"
- "Got to Choose"
- "Hotter Than Hell"
- "Nothin' to Lose"
- "C'mon and Love Me"
- "Parasite"
- "She" (Tommy Thayer guitar solo)
- "100,000 Years" (Eric Singer drum solo)
- "Cold Gin"
- "Let Me Go, Rock 'n' Roll"
- "Black Diamond"
- "Rock and Roll All Nite"
Encore
- "Shout It Out Loud"
- "Lick It Up"
- "I Love It Loud" (Gene Simmons bass solo)
- "I Was Made for Lovin' You"
- "Love Gun" (Paul Stanley flies out to audience)
- "Detroit Rock City"
- "Firehouse" and "Rock Bottom" only played in Oberhausen (at the first show, May 9), Munich and Vienna
- "Watchin' You" only played in Oberhausen (at the first show, May 9), Munich, Vienna and South American shows
- "Cold Gin" not played in Konocti Harbor
- I Was Made For Lovin' You" not played at Konocti Harbor and Paso Robles
- I Love It Loud" replaced by "God of Thunder" (with Gene Simmons solo) in Athens
- "Forever" only played in Colombia
- "Love Gun" not played in Rio de Janeiro
Sonic Boom Tour setlist
Buckcherry was the opening act.
- "Deuce"
- "Strutter"
- "Let Me Go, Rock n' Roll"
- "Got To Choose"
- "Modern Day Delilah"
- "Hotter Than Hell" (Gene Simmons fire breathing)
- "Nothing To Lose"
- "Calling Dr. Love" (played from 10/17 onward)
- "Shock Me" (played from 10/17 onward)
- "C'mon & Love Me"
- "Parasite"
- "She"
- Tommy Thayer guitar solo
- "100,000 Years"
- Eric Singer drum solo
- "100,000 Years" (cont.)
- Gene Simmons bass solo
- "I Love It Loud"
- Paul Stanley guitar solo
- "Black Diamond"
- "Rock and Roll All Nite"
Encore
- "Shout It Out Loud"
- "Lick It Up"/"Won't Get Fooled Again"
- "Cold Gin"
- "Love Gun" (Paul Stanley flies out to audience)
- "Detroit Rock City"
European tour notes
- During Tommy Thayer's solo after "She", rockets shot from his guitar neck as Ace Frehley had done previously.
- Kiss agreed to play double dates in Helsinki after the first show sold out the venue (13000 tickets) in under seven minutes. The extra show was scheduled for the previous day.
- For several German shows, the Kiss logo on the tour program was censored due to the SS at the end of the word Kiss looking too similar to the Nazi symbol for the Schutzstaffel, which was also two angular S's. The S's were made to look more traditional and less angular.
- In Bergen and Athens, Paul Stanley didn't fly out over the audience during "Love Gun".
- In Athens, Gene Simmons performed "God of Thunder" instead of "I Love It Loud" after his solo.
- In Verona, Kiss received from Music Empire Awards a 35 platinum Award for their career of 35 years.
North American tour notes
- "Cold Gin", "I Was Made for Lovin' You", and Gene Simmons' bass solo in "I Love It Loud" were not performed at the Konocti Harbor show on August 31 due to wind conditions.
- In Milwaukee on June 27, 2009, and in Paso Robles, California on July 28, 2009 Paul Stanley talked about Kiss' new album after "Hotter Than Hell" and he didn't fly over the audience during "Love Gun".
- In Sarnia on July 10, 2009 on Kiss sets a Bayfest attendance record of over 22,000.
- At the Bluesfest on July 15, 2009 in Ottawa, Kiss played to over 42,000.
- In Quebec City on July 16, 2009, Kiss played to a crowd of over 90,000.
- In Paso Robles on July 28, 2009 and in Montreal on October 1, 2009 Paul Stanley didn't fly over the audience.
- In Toronto on October 2, 2009, during the opening song "King of the Night Time World" the power went out in the Air Canada Centre, although they did finish the show.
- In Greenville, South Carolina on October 17, "Shock Me" and "Calling Dr. Love" were played for the first time on the American leg of the tour.
- In Philadelphia, on October 12, during Gene's bass solo, he spat blood AFTER he flew up onto the platform above. He also brought back the clock bell and the white light that hadn't been used since the Creatures of the Night Tour which adds a more frightening effect to his performance.
- In Atlanta, on October 26, Kiss performed "Say Yeah" off the Sonic Boom album for the first time ever live.
- In Winnipeg on November 9, a concussion bomb (explosive) caught fire after "Black Diamond" and continued to burn for several minutes. To kill time, Kiss improvised and Simmons began to play the bassline for "Firehouse": the other members eventually joined in. The song was sung by drummer Eric Singer as the others could not access their mics while the crew dropped down the row of lights to extinguish the flame.
- On November 25, 2009, the show at the Staples Center was aired online live. The show got over 200,000 viewers.
- On November 28, 2009 in Las Vegas, Paul Stanley did not fly over the audience during "Love Gun".
- On December 4, 2009 in Austin, Texas, Kiss did not play "Shout It Out Loud" being the only date they didn't play it.
Regulars of the Alive 35 tour:
- During the Reunion Tour in 96, Ace Frehley fired rockets into the light truss during his solo. When the rocket reached the lights, there would be an explosion and a piece of the light rigging would fall. It's all part of the act. On this 2009 tour Tommy Thayer has adopted the same effect during his guitar solo.
- Paul Stanley teasing the crowd with "Stairway to Heaven" became a regular in the Alive 35 Shows.
- Tommy Thayer's Gibson Explorer was used in all encores of the Alive 35 tour, stating "I've been playing this guitar during our encores as a change of pace from my workhorse Les Pauls".
- During "Lick It Up" the band broke out "Won't Get Fooled Again" by The Who with Paul Stanley doing Roger Daltrey's yell.
- Songs such as "King of the Night time World", "Shock Me", "Cold Gin", "I Stole Your Love", "Strutter", "Calling Dr. Love" and "Nothin' to Lose" were songs that varied throughout the tour.
South American tour notes
- Paul Stanley teased Buenos Aires', Lima's, Bogotá's and Caracas' audience with fragments of "Guantanamera" and "Cucurrucucú Paloma" (both sung in Spanish) before playing "Rock and Roll All Nite".
- "Love Gun" was not played at the Rio de Janeiro show due to rain conditions.
- Paul Stanley salutes the audience with "Yo no hablo muy bien español, pero conozco tus sentimientos y mi corazón es suyo" (I don't speak much Spanish, but I know your feelings and my heart is yours). He used the same phrase in their 1994 and 1997 visits.
- A day before the performance in Peru, the band were seen sightseeing and learning about the Peruvian culture.
- In Buenos Aires, Argentina the cable that was rising Simmons failed. Simmons said shortly after, "We put our lives on the line on a nightly basis all for you!", which was met with cheers from the crowd. Simmons also saluted the audience saying "Santiago" instead of "Buenos Aires". You can notice this on the Sonic Boom Bonus DVD.
- In Bogota, Colombia, the band plays Forever for the first time in more than 5 years.
Tour dates
- Top 50 Worldwide Tours 2009: KISS, #33[4]
- Total Gross: US $36 million
- Total Attendance: 564,617
- No. of shows: 59
References
- Online, KISS. "KISS Online :: Welcome To The Official KISS Website". KISS Online. Retrieved April 18, 2018.
- "Pollstar – News". www.pollstar.com. Archived from the original on February 23, 2012. Retrieved April 18, 2018.
- (2019). End of the Road World Tour Program, pg. 37.
- "Top 50 Worldwide Tours 2009" (PDF). Internet Movie Database. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 15, 2010. Retrieved March 23, 2013.