Testo in Italiano

Day 1 November 21st 2009

Finally I got the time to resemble all memories and photos from last week trip, and what a trip it has been!!! This KISS fan story begins way back in March this year when I receive a message from the KISS camp:” We’ll hope to see you sometime in 2009”. After ups and downs of this way too complicate year I got another cool message, this time from Barbara Caserta one of the most known Italian journalist/ photographer deep in love with KISS, “What about going to see KISS in the States?” Sent out some emails, checking availabilities and here we go. November 21st wake up at 03:00, flight departure time 06:50, and the dream begins.

After 13 hours flight we land in L.A. take the car and drive to Fresno, we get there at 18:00.I still can’t believe I am where I am. We go to the Will Call desk to check in and…looking for an admission ticket I got to have an All Access Laminate!!! WOW!!!! I still can’t believe I am where I am and what I got, Xmas this year came early I must say!!! We enter the venue get the seats, so close to the stage that I can touch it. Thanks Doc, thanks Barbara. Time is approaching; a local band opens for KISS (no Buckcherry this time).

The venue gets packed, the KISS army roar starts filling the hall, a well know shout breaks the walls “You wanted the best, you’ve got the best, the hottest bend in the world KISS!!!!”

Now I have no way then believing I am where I am, and it’s so cool!!!

Side story, before leaving I have contacted Paul from the Axe Bus asking for a possible interview. The answer was “Sure, let’s meet up in Fresno and discuss it”. Unfortunately getting late in Fresno there’s no way to get Paul, meeting postponed to the following day in Oakland. The show is getting to the end I still can’t leave a huge smile from my face. It’s cool to see in the photo pit Ross Halfin (I interviewed him two month ago) shooting the show with an exceptional assistant, Paul’s son Evan!!!

Day 1 (following) and Day 2

The Fresno concert has ended and we walk over to the backstage.
It’s amazing how many people are involved in the production. Fans are still leaving the venue and the stage is already reduced in pieces, loaded and ready to travel to the next city. First person we met is Daniel, the ever present security manager and some of the KISS personal staff. So cool to see how many flight cases are there and see the famous raw KISS logo on them!

After almost an hour Tommy and Eric get out of the dressing rooms and jump on the black van waiting for them parked right next to the dressing room exit, just say hello to the guys and Paul appears with his son Evan, Gene is no were to be found.

I forgot how many hours are passed since I last slept…time to go to the hotel, next day 3 hours drive to Oakland.

Having missed Paul and his Axe Bus in Fresno we decide to meet up early in the afternoon in Oakland, bearing in mind his last e-mail, “I just spoke to Gene, he would be happy to do an interview after we do mine…” We arrive to the Oakland Oracle Arena without any problem and go straight inside just to see the stage already set up and the lights techs testing the lights ring. The Axe bus is not yet arrived.

Finally got to meet to Paul! What a great guy he his!!! We step up on the bus and we start to chat setting the voice recorder for the interview (soon to be posted).
After the interview (and have posed with the Axe bass in my hands) we enter the Arena just in time to see Buckcherry performing. Cool band and great rock’n’roll music, but I’m here for KISS!!!

And KISS takes the stage at nine p.m., the crowd gets wild and the show begins: almost perfect, even better then the night before, its great to see how much fun they have on the stage!!!

The band is tighter then ever, Paul’s voice is back on his roots and the show is simply awesome!!
After the show we go again backstage waiting for the guys and thank them for the awesome night

It’s again morning when we go to sleep and we have to travel for almost 380 miles to get L.A.!!!
Next chapter soon

Day 3: back in L.A.
We walk up early in the morning with still the echoes of the previous night concert in our head, pack the cases and ready in the car, destination L.A.
The 7 hour trip turns out great thanks to the local classic rock radio stations and especially to Barbara who starts telling me about her long KISS life, since the early days of the first journeys following the KISS tours in the late eighties.

Some bittersweet  memories comes while talking about the great Eric Carr and his family (the following day will be his anniversary) but it’s also so cool to listen to someone who lived inside the KISS camp and really got to know my heroes.

Today is a day off for KISS and it’s almost off for us, we finally have a cool dinner, at the Hard Rock Café in L.A. and the next day is dedicated to some shopping before heading to the Honda Center in Anaheim for the third concert of this trip.

We are planning to be there for sound check, but we still don’t know how many close encounters we will have there, Bruce Kulick, Doc McGhee, Spiros, the whole Simmons family and more…

Day 4 to come...

Day 4 close encounters in Anaheim
Some cool shopping in the morning at Amoeba on Sunset Blvd.
If you never went there be sure to check it out next time you’ll be in L.A., CDs, vinyl’s, DVD’s, books, everything that’s music can be found there!!!
Anaheim in the afternoon, we plan to be there 3.30 p.m. to be on time to attend the soundcheck at 4.30pm. The GPS tells us 25’ driving from hotel; it will take us almost one hour!!!

When we get there the stage is already set up and we get a seat waiting…
It’s amazing to see that lots of unknown faces for me are on the contrary important pieces of the KISS machine, and everybody knows who Barbara is!!!
It’s weird to see the smile they deserve for her and then the immediate change of their faces when they look at me (who the hell is that one???). I’m proudly dressing my DeuceNews t-shirt but it seems it doesn’t help that much…Nonetheless I feel like a child in a candy store.

Never ever seen an empty venue already set up for a KISS concert and that’s so new and amazing to me. I go next to the huge soundboard to see what they are doing over there and it’s unbelievable how big the control booth is. When I come back there a person talking with Barbara, he’s the famous Spiro, the 24/24 Gene’s assistant as he calls himself. We met him already in Oakland together with Keith Leroux, the kissonline.com webmaster. Soon after we hear a guitar roar, KISS is on stage!!! The weirdest thing of all is Gene in his  make on but with no costume!!!

The Soundcheck is taped by a TV crew and the guys perform Modern Day Delilah and Say Yeah from Sonic Boom plus a blues tune that lets shine the good feeling among the band members, it’s great to see them joking around while performing!! Gene starts throwing guitar pics at us, soon followed by Paul. Looking for some of them on the floor I turn my head and…WOW I know that one!!! Bruce Kulick is here with his girlfriend and  his buddy Jeremy Rubolino, tomorrow will fly to Europe to promote his forthcoming BK3 CD!!!

Ended the soundcheck I enter the black courtain that drives you to the backstage from the right side of the stage and I hear a voice: Barrrrbara Casertaaaa…what the f.:!!!!
I find Gene and Barbara embraced, I knew they were friends but I could not imagine that close…I feel envious!!! Later on, we enter the private rooms backstage with Paul (the Axe bus man) and we get to meet all the Simmons family followed by the Family Jewels TV crew!!! We are trying to set the interview with Gene, but the time schedule is rather busy in these hours.

While talking to Saul a cool Australian guy who flew over to get his personalised Axe Bass we meet the demon himself, Mr. Gene Simmons, in his towering dragon boots and his new black armour, we chat briefly and then it’s time to get the stage…a new KISS show is ready to start!!!

Day 4 close encounters in Anaheim part II and Day 5: Staples Center

During the concert I go to the mixer control booth to shake hands with the Simmons’ family and Shannon kindness is equal to her beauty, no words!!

The concert is over and once again we’re heading over the back stage. After a while we get to meet Daniel again and when you see him around it’s only a matter of minutes and you will see the guys. Soon after Eric gets out of the dressing room and start chatting with us. He is really in high spirits, (he his at home today and tomorrow and he is proud to have proven once again how much he is giving to KISS nowadays). I take the occasion to present him my new Deucenews t-shirt and a give him one as a gift. I already gave it to Paul and to Gene, Spiro asked me for one; hope someone will wear them, most probably they will be used as rags but… eye doesn’t see, heart doesn’t hurt , we are used to say, and I prefer to believe they will proudly wear them!!! Soon after we see Amber and Tommy Thayer. Amber is really nice to stop by and chat a little, she is surprised to see that a face exists behind an avatar on Twitter!! I ask Tommy to sign me the print of my banner but it seems he is in a hurry...

Here comes Paul…(Gene says) and Paul is really here…what a star and what a personality…He kindly sign my banner a little amazed to see Michael Doret signature and autograph on it.

That’s all for tonight…and what a night!!!

The following day we head off to the Staples Center for the last concert of our One week KISS.

The show will mark the KISS debut on a live streaming concert and we may say: I was there!!!

KISS performance has been seen by hundreds of thousands and it’s once again a killer show!!!

This time no way to meet the guys back stage, to many people and celebrities here in Los Angeles looking for them…time to sleep now..

Next day is Thanksgiving and although Paul (Hayeland) tries to fix the interview with Gene no way to get him, too busy, this time also with his family!!! (Later on Gene will show once again how great he is…)

And this is the end….for this year!!!!! The Sonic Boom Euro Tour is well planned and we are ready to be on the road again!!!