KISS might’ve called time on live touring, but they’re clearly not done squeezing the brand for everything it’s worth.
Now, KISS’s long teased digital avatar shows are officially locked in, with Las Vegas set to host the spectacle from 2028, and yes, somehow, there’s new music involved (Per Metal Sucks).
KISS avatars heading to Las Vegas
Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley confirmed the plans in a recent Pollstar interview, outlining a future where KISS exists without the actual band onstage, instead fans will get towering, hyper real avatars ripping through the catalogue.
“It’s going to be the iconic face personas, The Demon, the Starchild, and so on. Who you want to place into that lineup is up to you.”
Stanley added that the show will lean heavily on nostalgia but hinted at more.
“You’re gonna get all that stuff, and also new songs.”
That’s right, new KISS tracks, arriving via digital avatars in 202, make of that what you will.
Bigger, louder, and completely untethered from reality
If you caught the final New York show (below), you already saw the early version of this., the avatars weren’t just stand ins, they were larger than life, literally. Floating, fire breathing, lightning shooting versions of the band, dialled up beyond anything a human could pull off.
According to Pophouse CEO Jessica Koravos, that was just a rough draft.
“What the crowd got to see at MSG was an early prototype of the KISS avatar concept. A lot has evolved since then — both in terms of creative concept for the show and avatar technology. We are now deep in development with a top-flight creative team headed by Thierry Coup — the team was on set last week testing out pyro effects against a new generation of LED screens to make sure we max out the KISS signature flame throwing. The show concept is a crazy 4D roller coaster ride through the hits, the comic book worlds and personas of KISS.”
The business behind the spectacle
This isn’t just a gimmick, it’s big money. Pophouse Entertainment, the same company behind ABBA’s wildly successful ‘Voyage’ show, is backing the project after striking a reported $300 million deal for KISS’ catalogue, likeness, and rights.
The difference is, where ABBA aimed for realism, KISS seems ready to go full comic book.
For fans, it raises a fair question. Is this the next evolution of live music, or just another step away from what made it matter in the first place?
Either way, KISS aren’t fading quietly, they’ve just swapped the stage for something stranger.
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‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source bluntmag.com.au ’
