{"id":21970,"date":"2023-09-26T10:55:02","date_gmt":"2023-09-26T15:55:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/?p=21970"},"modified":"2023-09-26T10:55:06","modified_gmt":"2023-09-26T15:55:06","slug":"my-1st-kiss-my-1st-concert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/2023\/09\/26\/my-1st-kiss-my-1st-concert\/","title":{"rendered":"My 1st KISS:  My 1st Concert"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"21970\" class=\"elementor elementor-21970\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-5cdf896 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default wpr-particle-no wpr-jarallax-no wpr-parallax-no wpr-sticky-section-no wpr-equal-height-no\" data-id=\"5cdf896\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-5f2f15d\" data-id=\"5f2f15d\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-defac25 elementor-icon-list--layout-traditional elementor-list-item-link-full_width elementor-widget elementor-widget-icon-list\" data-id=\"defac25\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"icon-list.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"elementor-icon-list-items\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"elementor-icon-list-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<i aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"fas fa-music\"><\/i>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-text\">Date of Concert:  December 8, 1998<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"elementor-icon-list-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<i aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"fas fa-music\"><\/i>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-text\">Location of Concert:  Charleston Civic Center in Charleston, WV<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"elementor-icon-list-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<i aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"fas fa-music\"><\/i>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-text\">Opener:  Econoline Crush<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-687501d elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"687501d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Almost 25 years ago, I went to my 1st concert.<\/p><p>I may have seen someone play before this at a Summer Motion\/4th of July event, but I don&#8217;t remember them.<\/p><p>So, this was my 1st concert.<\/p><p>And it just happened to be my favorite band ever:\u00a0 KISS!!!!<\/p><p>December 8, 1998 at the then Charleston Civic Center (Charleston Coliseum &amp; Convention Center in 2023 as I type this).<\/p><p>I was 16 years old (I&#8217;m 41 as I type this in 2023.).<\/p><p>I still was not quite driving yet (actually I was very late getting my license but that&#8217;s another story), and this was before I ever owned a personal computer.<\/p><p>So, I had to get tickets the old fashioned way:\u00a0 go to a ticket outlet.<\/p><p>And this case, it was our local Kroger.<\/p><p>My Dad took me to Kroger on a Saturday morning earlier that year to buy tickets.<\/p><p>I remember it being cold and we waited in line with many others to buy tickets.\u00a0<\/p><p>It took about 2-3 hours before we got them (3 tickets) but no regrets.<\/p><p>I, my Dad, and my brother Christopher went to the show.<\/p><p>A band I had never heard of before or since, Econoline Crush, opened.<\/p><p>They were fine and actually very loud (this was my 1st time hearing music played that loud).<\/p><p>After they were done, I put ear plugs into my ears, and from that point on, I&#8217;ve used ear plugs at almost every show I&#8217;ve seen for safety.<\/p><p>I sadly do not have any pictures to show, other than my ticket stub, but I will give you my memories of this show (It also helps I have the audio and video of it and no I did not record them.\u00a0 I got them from fans.)<\/p><p>KISS were on their Psycho Circus tour (new album at the time has the same name) at the time.<\/p><p>It was still the original lineup of Gene Simmons (Vocals\/Bass), Paul Stanley (Vocals\/Guitar), Ace Frehley (Vocals\/Lead Guitar), and Peter Criss (Vocals\/Drums).<\/p><p>To give some backstory, I actually had just become a fan of theirs earlier that year (at that point, I knew of Gene in the movie Runaway and knew of the band but was not aware of much of their music) when I saw them featured on a VH1 show called The 100 Greatest Artists of Rock &amp; Roll (They were listed at 67.).<\/p><p>I bought a best of album called Greatest KISS first and I fell instantly in love.<\/p><p>I soon started buying their albums (they have many), although I still did not have all of them by the time I saw them.<\/p><p>But I was very aware of a lot of it by show time.<\/p><p>They had a big curtain up, as they always do, before the show.<\/p><p>I&#8217;ll always remember the moment the curtain came down and there they were (we had great seats by the way, right by Paul&#8217;s b-stage he flew out onto later on).\u00a0<\/p><p>You could not have taken the smile off my face with anything.\u00a0<\/p><p>I could have died that night and been happy.\u00a0 It meant everything to me and still does.<\/p><p>They played 3 songs from Psycho Circus and a lot of classics from the 70s.<\/p><p>Peter&#8217;s drum kit went up into the air and flew out over the audience.<\/p><p>Ace&#8217;s guitar smoked and flew through the air.<\/p><p>As I said, Paul flew through the air onto the b-stage later on for a few songs.<\/p><p>And Gene spit fire and blood as he does, and flew up into the air on a small platform for his signature song God Of Thunder.<\/p><p>Also, some of the show involved using 3-D glasses.<\/p><p>They did not work for everyone.\u00a0 It depended on where you were, but they worked for me.<\/p><p>What it was was that during certain points in the show, you would be instructed to put on your glasses and you would see some cool imagery.<\/p><p>The imagery included Ace and Peter pointing their guitar and drum sticks right at you, Gene&#8217;s face flying around, and maybe Paul&#8217;s guitar stuck out at you too, and some other stuff I don&#8217;t remember.<\/p><p>I thought it was pretty cool, but again, it did not work for everyone there.<\/p><p>I still have the glasses too, as well as some of the paper confetti that came down from the ceiling at the end of the show.<\/p><p>25 years later, I still love KISS so much.<\/p><p>I love every album and every lineup.<\/p><p>I had no idea that 25 years later, I would still be seeing bands\/artists I love (I&#8217;ve seen KISS 11 times alone as of 2023.).<\/p><p>This was the start of something that for many years was just something fun to do every once in awhile.\u00a0 But eventually, it became a passion\/positive obsession.<\/p><p>There have been MANY shows I did not see and I regret that.<\/p><p>But overall, I&#8217;ve done pretty good.<\/p><p>And I&#8217;m not done yet.<\/p><p>I&#8217;ve been saying for years I&#8217;m going to stop or slow down, but I&#8217;ve yet to do it.<\/p><p>Maybe I&#8217;ll slow down in 2024?\u00a0 We&#8217;ll see.<\/p><p>I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I loved living it.<\/p><p>Onwards.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2d09f1d elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"2d09f1d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Set List:<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-aaf0942 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"aaf0942\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ol><li>Psycho Circus<\/li><li>Shout It Out Loud<\/li><li>Deuce<\/li><li>Do You Love Me<\/li><li>Firehouse<\/li><li>Shock Me<\/li><li>Let Me Go, Rock &#8216;N&#8217; Roll<\/li><li>Calling Dr. Love<\/li><li>Into The Void<\/li><li>Ace Guitar Solo<\/li><li>King Of The Night Time World<\/li><li>Bass Solo<\/li><li>God Of Thunder<\/li><li>Within<\/li><li>Peter Drum Solo<\/li><li>Cold Gin<\/li><li>Love Gun<\/li><li>100,000 Years<\/li><li>Rock And Roll All Nite<\/li><li>Encore:\u00a0 Beth<\/li><li>Detroit Rock City<\/li><li>Black Diamond<\/li><\/ol>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d39bfc7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"d39bfc7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0a43cfb elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0a43cfb\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><!-- default-view.php -->\n<div\n\tclass=\"ngg-galleryoverview default-view\n\t\t\"\n\tid=\"ngg-gallery-6bd76b2106117997472a17167eb6b301-1\"\n\tdata-nextgen-gallery-id=\"234\"\n\tdata-gallery-id=\"234\"\n\t\tdata-gallery-name=\"KISS 1998\"\n\t>\n\n\t\t<!-- Thumbnails -->\n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"ngg-image-0\" class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail-box\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tngg-3-columns\t\t\t\"\n\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/wp-content\/gallery\/kiss-1998\/379583420_1313414519298546_6966969569373601915_n.jpg?t=1695743693\"\n\t\t\ttitle=\"\"\n\t\t\tdata-src=\"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/wp-content\/gallery\/kiss-1998\/379583420_1313414519298546_6966969569373601915_n.jpg?t=1695743693\"\n\t\t\tdata-thumbnail=\"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/wp-content\/gallery\/kiss-1998\/thumbs\/thumbs_379583420_1313414519298546_6966969569373601915_n.jpg?t=1695743693\"\n\t\t\tdata-image-id=\"12971\"\n\t\t\tdata-image-name=\"379583420_1313414519298546_6966969569373601915_n.jpg\"\n\t\t\tdata-title=\"379583420_1313414519298546_6966969569373601915_n\"\n\t\t\tdata-description=\"\"\n\t\t\tdata-image-slug=\"379583420_1313414519298546_6966969569373601915_n\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"ngg-fancybox\" rel=\"6bd76b2106117997472a17167eb6b301\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img\n\t\t\t\t\ttitle=\"379583420_1313414519298546_6966969569373601915_n\"\n\t\t\t\t\talt=\"379583420_1313414519298546_6966969569373601915_n\"\n\t\t\t\t\tsrc=\"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/wp-content\/gallery\/kiss-1998\/cache\/379583420_1313414519298546_6966969569373601915_n.jpg-nggid0512971-ngg0dyn-300x300x100-00f0w010c011r110f110r010t010.jpg?t=1695743693\"\n\t\t\t\t\twidth=\"300\"\n\t\t\t\t\theight=\"300\"\n\t\t\t\t\tstyle=\"max-width:100%;\"\n\t\t\t\t\/>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"ngg-image-1\" class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail-box\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tngg-3-columns\t\t\t\"\n\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/wp-content\/gallery\/kiss-1998\/379615151_870038144629856_6353960975071818830_n.jpg?t=1695743693\"\n\t\t\ttitle=\"\"\n\t\t\tdata-src=\"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/wp-content\/gallery\/kiss-1998\/379615151_870038144629856_6353960975071818830_n.jpg?t=1695743693\"\n\t\t\tdata-thumbnail=\"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/wp-content\/gallery\/kiss-1998\/thumbs\/thumbs_379615151_870038144629856_6353960975071818830_n.jpg?t=1695743693\"\n\t\t\tdata-image-id=\"12970\"\n\t\t\tdata-image-name=\"379615151_870038144629856_6353960975071818830_n.jpg\"\n\t\t\tdata-title=\"379615151_870038144629856_6353960975071818830_n\"\n\t\t\tdata-description=\"\"\n\t\t\tdata-image-slug=\"379615151_870038144629856_6353960975071818830_n\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"ngg-fancybox\" rel=\"6bd76b2106117997472a17167eb6b301\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img\n\t\t\t\t\ttitle=\"379615151_870038144629856_6353960975071818830_n\"\n\t\t\t\t\talt=\"379615151_870038144629856_6353960975071818830_n\"\n\t\t\t\t\tsrc=\"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/wp-content\/gallery\/kiss-1998\/cache\/379615151_870038144629856_6353960975071818830_n.jpg-nggid0512970-ngg0dyn-300x300x100-00f0w010c011r110f110r010t010.jpg?t=1695743693\"\n\t\t\t\t\twidth=\"300\"\n\t\t\t\t\theight=\"300\"\n\t\t\t\t\tstyle=\"max-width:100%;\"\n\t\t\t\t\/>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t<br style=\"clear: both\" \/>\n\n\t\n\t\t<!-- Pagination -->\n\t\t<div class='ngg-clear'><\/div>\t<\/div>\n<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Date of Concert: December 8, 1998 Location of Concert: Charleston Civic Center in Charleston, WV Opener: Econoline Crush Almost 25 years ago, I went to my 1st concert. I may have seen someone play before this at a Summer Motion\/4th of July event, but I don&#8217;t remember them. So, this was my 1st concert. And it just happened to be my favorite band ever:\u00a0 KISS!!!! December 8, 1998 at the then Charleston Civic Center (Charleston Coliseum &amp; Convention Center in 2023 as I type this). I was 16 years old (I&#8217;m 41 as I type this in 2023.). I still was not quite driving yet (actually I was very late getting my license but that&#8217;s another story), and this was before I ever owned a personal computer. So, I had to get tickets the old fashioned way:\u00a0 go to a ticket outlet. And this case, it was our local Kroger. My Dad took me to Kroger on a Saturday morning earlier that year to buy tickets. I remember it being cold and we waited in line with many others to buy tickets.\u00a0 It took about 2-3 hours before we got them (3 tickets) but no regrets. I, my Dad, and my brother Christopher went to the show. A band I had never heard of before or since, Econoline Crush, opened. They were fine and actually very loud (this was my 1st time hearing music played that loud). After they were done, I put ear plugs into my ears, and from that point on, I&#8217;ve used ear plugs at almost every show I&#8217;ve seen for safety. I sadly do not have any pictures to show, other than my ticket stub, but I will give you my memories of this show (It also helps I have the audio and video of it and no I did not record them.\u00a0 I got them from fans.) KISS were on their Psycho Circus tour (new album at the time has the same name) at the time. It was still the original lineup of Gene Simmons (Vocals\/Bass), Paul Stanley (Vocals\/Guitar), Ace Frehley (Vocals\/Lead Guitar), and Peter Criss (Vocals\/Drums). To give some backstory, I actually had just become a fan of theirs earlier that year (at that point, I knew of Gene in the movie Runaway and knew of the band but was not aware of much of their music) when I saw them featured on a VH1 show called The 100 Greatest Artists of Rock &amp; Roll (They were listed at 67.). I bought a best of album called Greatest KISS first and I fell instantly in love. I soon started buying their albums (they have many), although I still did not have all of them by the time I saw them. But I was very aware of a lot of it by show time. They had a big curtain up, as they always do, before the show. I&#8217;ll always remember the moment the curtain came down and there they were (we had great seats by the way, right by Paul&#8217;s b-stage he flew out onto later on).\u00a0 You could not have taken the smile off my face with anything.\u00a0 I could have died that night and been happy.\u00a0 It meant everything to me and still does. They played 3 songs from Psycho Circus and a lot of classics from the 70s. Peter&#8217;s drum kit went up into the air and flew out over the audience. Ace&#8217;s guitar smoked and flew through the air. As I said, Paul flew through the air onto the b-stage later on for a few songs. And Gene spit fire and blood as he does, and flew up into the air on a small platform for his signature song God Of Thunder. Also, some of the show involved using 3-D glasses. They did not work for everyone.\u00a0 It depended on where you were, but they worked for me. What it was was that during certain points in the show, you would be instructed to put on your glasses and you would see some cool imagery. The imagery included Ace and Peter pointing their guitar and drum sticks right at you, Gene&#8217;s face flying around, and maybe Paul&#8217;s guitar stuck out at you too, and some other stuff I don&#8217;t remember. I thought it was pretty cool, but again, it did not work for everyone there. I still have the glasses too, as well as some of the paper confetti that came down from the ceiling at the end of the show. 25 years later, I still love KISS so much. I love every album and every lineup. I had no idea that 25 years later, I would still be seeing bands\/artists I love (I&#8217;ve seen KISS 11 times alone as of 2023.). This was the start of something that for many years was just something fun to do every once in awhile.\u00a0 But eventually, it became a passion\/positive obsession. There have been MANY shows I did not see and I regret that. But overall, I&#8217;ve done pretty good. And I&#8217;m not done yet. I&#8217;ve been saying for years I&#8217;m going to stop or slow down, but I&#8217;ve yet to do it. Maybe I&#8217;ll slow down in 2024?\u00a0 We&#8217;ll see. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I loved living it. Onwards. Set List: Psycho Circus Shout It Out Loud Deuce Do You Love Me Firehouse Shock Me Let Me Go, Rock &#8216;N&#8217; Roll Calling Dr. Love Into The Void Ace Guitar Solo King Of The Night Time World Bass Solo God Of Thunder Within Peter Drum Solo Cold Gin Love Gun 100,000 Years Rock And Roll All Nite Encore:\u00a0 Beth Detroit Rock City Black Diamond Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_vp_format_video_url":"","_vp_image_focal_point":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21970","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","category-concerts"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21970","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21970"}],"version-history":[{"count":34,"href":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21970\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22007,"href":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21970\/revisions\/22007"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21970"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21970"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diaryofanardentfan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21970"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}