Gene Simmons and his bandmates surprise their fans by introducing the 3-D version of themselves at Madison Square Garden before wrapping up their last jaunt.
- Dec 5, 2023
AceShowbiz - KISS want to stay "forever young" using avatars following their retirement from the road. The veteran rockers have quit touring after performing a final concert at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday night, December 2 but they surprised fans at the end of the gig by debuting digital versions of themselves created by the teams behind the lucrative "ABBA Voyage' hologram show.
In a video posted online, they declared the avatars signal the start of a "new era" after their final concert. The clip was titled, "KISS: A new era begins," and bassist Gene Simmons declared, "We can be forever young and forever iconic by taking us to places we've never dreamt of before."
"The technology is going to make Paul [Stanley] jump higher than he's ever done before ... If you think you are going to get rid of us then that's not going to happen."
The band has yet to confirm their exact plans for the avatars, but Paul said it's a very exciting project. He explained, "I think owe've transcended over the years being human beings and here we are becoming immortal and it's very exciting for us ... We can't maintain this [band] indefinitely but you [avatar-makers] can."
The KISS avatars were made by George Lucas' special effects company Industrial Light and Magic (ILM) and financed by Swedish conglomerate Pophouse Entertainment - the organisations which put together ABBA's digital stage show.
Grady Cofer, visual effects supervisor at ILM, insisted debuting the KISS avatars at their final show is just a glimpse of exciting things to come. He told Fast Company, "This is the sneak peek as the band [KISS] crosses over from the physical world to the digital."
Pophouse CEO Per Sundin added, "Is it a KISS concert in the future? Is it a rock opera? Is it a musical? A story, an adventure? These four individuals already have superpowers. We want to be as open as possible."
