In all of my years of being a KISS fan, I supported the band just like I did with any of the bands I was passionate about. The only difference is that, unlike many fans of a band, I refuse to accept everything they do as perfect! I am a huge Iron Maiden fan and I am not afraid to call them out for things that I thought were missteps. I’m a huge fan of Alice Cooper and the same goes for him. KISS has had many missteps in their career and while I may have not liked it, I always loved their unapologetic attitude such as when Paul Stanley would say, “Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time.” This is what made me love KISS so much but now we have a whole other issue on hand: lipsynching.
We KISS fans know that KISS has never been a perfect band but they are fucking amazing at what they do. They’re raw as fuck, full of passion and full of fire when performing live. KISS always promised to deliver nothing less than the absolute best to their fans. In 2015, Gene Simmons even went on to say this:
“I have a problem when you charge $100 to see a live show and the artist is using backtracks. It’s like the ingredients in food. If the first ingredient on the label is sugar, that’s at least honest. It should be on every ticket – you’re paying $100, 30 to 60 percent of the show is on backing tracks and they’ll sing sometimes, sometimes they’ll lip synch. At least be honest. It’s not about backing tracks. It’s about dishonesty.” – Gene Simmons (2015)
Sometime around 2008 or so it was becoming very obvious that Paul’s voice was starting to go but he was still sounding amazing. When I saw them in 2010, Paul’s voice was sounding pretty fucking amazing and the band was playing with some serious energy and passion. It was a reminder of why I loved KISS so much and I was so glad I had the opportunity to share this with my best friend. In 2011, Paul underwent vocal chord surgery and since that surgery, Paul’s voice never seemed to recover.
As a fan, I hoped that KISS would bow out gracefully knowing that they wouldn’t be able to deliver 100% like they’d been able to do so in the past. I wanted to tell Paul, “It’s ok, Paul. You have given us decades of amazing performances. Go out now with some dignity and your head held high.” I know a lot of fans felt this was as well but it wasn’t something that was meant to be. Instead, KISS would continue on for another eight grueling years.
In 2017, KISS was still touring hard and Paul’s voice started to get worse and worse to the point to where it was painful to hear. To hear one of my heroes up there struggling to push those notes out broke my heart. I let them go after seeing them once after Paul’s surgery and it was not good. I looked around and I saw all the people cheering, having a great time, and enjoying themselves. I get that this is pretty much KISS philosophy but wasn’t their philosophy “You wanted the best and you got it?” Well at this point, I wanted the best and got about 70%. I knew it was time for me to say good-bye.
In 2019, KISS launched their “End of the Road Tour” which people jokingly refer to as their 5th farewell tour or something like that. When footage started to surface from the tour, there was all of the sudden a lot of controversy because Paul’s voice seemed to magically be healed and he sounded outstanding. This could mean only one of two things: There is a God and miracles do happen or the dreaded “singing to tapes.” It’s pretty safe to say that, ladies and gents, Paul Stanley is lip-synching on their final tour.
Here’s a clip of Paul singing “Love Gun” in 2017 and then one from the 2019 “End of the Road” Tour.
Hesinkin (2017)
California (Whiskey a Go Go 2019)
Finally, here’s footage of KISS doing “Detroit Rock City” from two different shows in Vancouver and Portland. This fan combined the footage so that he could synch them up:
Night 1 Vancouver – left side and left speaker
Night 2 Portland – right side and right speaker
Watching this, there is no denying that the vocal tracks are identical. Paul is definitely lipped synching. Call it a conspiracy theory, call it being a hater, or call it a band just trying to give the fans a quality good-bye. Honestly, if they would’ve just gone out when they did their first farewell tour, they would’ve gone out on top, sounding amazing, and closing the book on a legacy that gave us decades of great music and amazing performances. Instead, we have KISS going out with depleted energy, one of their lamest stage productions to date, and Paul Stanley lip-synching.
I’ve heard many of the KISS Army defending Paul’s voice on the fact that he’s just older and can’t hit the notes. Even Paul himself said in an interview that singers like David Coverdale and Roger Daltrey have the same issues. Hm, Rob Halford seems to be doing just fine, Bruce Dickinson sounds amazing, and even Glenn Hughes, at 67 years old, has a voice as strong if not stronger than back in his Deep Purple heyday. I’m sure it’s hard to admit defeat but this would have all just been so much easier for Paul to say, “My voice just isn’t up to par to do any more tours and if I can’t give the fans my best, it’s time for me to bow out.” Again, he didn’t. KISS pushed on and replaced one of the greatest rock n’ roll singers with a tape!
With tickets ranging from over $800 to $75 for nosebleed seats, KISS’ End of the Road tour seems to not be having any problems selling. Why is this? I wish I had the answer. The only thing I can say is why I wouldn’t pay to see this myself. Because I saw KISS in their prime. I saw KISS when they sounded and performed their best to ½ full arenas and amphitheaters. I saw KISS on their reunion tour, and I saw them on their farewell tour. I even saw them two or three times after that. I’ve seen and heard all I need to see. They have nothing to prove to me but to the fans, if you are happy paying these ridiculous prices to watch what was one greatest live bands of all time look tired, with two hired guns, and singing to tapes, more power to you.
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