‘Kiss Rocks Vegas': Video Review
The first full-length concert video from Kiss in nearly 10 years, Kiss Rocks Vegas, finds the group cramming its famously over-the-top stage show into the atypically small confines of the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.
Surprisingly, this is the much-merchandised band's first home video release since 2007's Kissology Volume Three, and its first-ever concert to be released on Blu-ray. Whether it's due to improved camera technology or the intimate setting, this is also the best-looking Kiss concert movie to date, with lots of great, sharp and up-close shots of the band and wider angles that show off the overall impact of their new floor-to-ceiling video screen-laden stage.
The music holds up its end of the bargain too, with the band leaving some of its more radio-friendly material ("Heaven's on Fire," "I Was Made for Lovin' You," "Crazy Crazy Nights") behind in favor of old-school fan favorites such as "Parasite," "Creatures of the Night" and "War Machine." "Psycho Circus" and "Tears Are Falling" are given beefed-up arrangements that justify their inclusion on the set list, and of course the closing parade of '70s classics – "Love Gun," "Black Diamond," "Shout it Out Loud" and "Rock and Roll All Nite" – end the festivities in high style.
As an added bonus, Kiss Rocks Vegas includes footage of a seven-song acoustic and makeup-free set that the group performed for a select group of fans backstage prior to the concert. "Coming Home" is a highlight here, as it was on the group's 1996 unplugged album, and "Love Her All I Can" is great enough to make you wish they'd add it back to their main set.
Kiss Albums Ranked Worst to Best