KISS fans hoping to see a reunion with original members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss during their final shows at Madison Square Garden will be sorely disappointed, according to Gene Simmons.
In an interview with Linea Rock, Simmons reveals he asked them several times if they’d like to show up for an encore, or to just play a song, but they both turned him down. “So, I don’t know what to say about that…But it’s always welcome,” he says.
Simmons insists that only some fans will be disappointed by their absence from the final shows.
“For the fans — the older, older fans — the ones who’ve been around for 50 years, they’re old, and some of them wanna see Ace and Peter,” he says. “The newer fans never saw them, and they don’t know. But the older fans wonder about Ace and Peter.”
Simmons does say there will be surprises during the final concerts, but he also doesn’t think they are needed.
“There are many other big stars, superstars, who wanna jump up onstage and play a song. But we’re not sure about that,” Simmons explains. “Maybe the best thing to do is to end the way we started: four guys with guitars. No keyboards, no synthesizers — nothing. Just playing.”
KISS’ End of the Road tour hits Tuscany, Italy, on June 29. It returns to the U.S. on October 19 in Cincinnati, Ohio, with their final two shows set for December 1 and 2 at New York’s Madison Square Garden. A complete list of dates can be found at kissonline.com.
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