The Kiss Album Focus : Roar of Greasepaint, 1997-2013

Seldom do bands come along that leave such an indelible mark on popular culture. During the 1970s KISS redefined what it meant to 'entertain' people with their bombastic live performances and larger than life personalities. And the merchandising... During the 1980s the band fought for survival as internal strife and external competition forced an attempt to reinvent themselves. The early 1990s had seen KISS make one final gesture to be a relevant musical force, but this did not translate into the demanded success. Instead the band started looking to the past and played their final 'Ace' card. Volume 3, 'Roar of Greasepaint' picks up the history as thee band attempted to record a Reunion studio album, and the disjointed soap-opera that followed and continues. Volume IV of the "KISS Album Focus" series covers the story of KISS, and its associated members, from mid-2006 (the cut-off point for Volume III) through the middle of 2013. This period includes the massively successful "KISSology" series of DVDs, in lieu of an active recording career between 1999 and 2007, and the two studio albums of new material they did record. Former members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss are covered in detail, though the other former members, with numerous projects, have become somewhat condensed. This volume celebrates a line-up that has now lasted nearly a decade with guitarist Tommy Thayer, who is rapidly approaching tenure equal to Bruce Kulick's twelve-years, and Eric Singer, who has been in the band longer than any member apart from Gene and Paul - "The legend's growing as the story's told!"