While the legendary rock institution Kiss has officially retired from traditional touring, the band’s legacy is far from over. Founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons are currently gearing up for the launch of a massive, highly anticipated avatar show, tentatively scheduled to premiere in 2027.
Utilizing cutting-edge technology originally developed for the highly successful ABBA virtual residency in London, the upcoming digital concert experience will allow Kiss to remain on the road indefinitely.
During a recent appearance on the “Rock Of Nations With Dave Kinchen And Shane McEachern” podcast, Paul Stanley praised the groundbreaking technology and teased what fans can expect from the virtual revival.
“Well, the band continues. Without touring, there’s so much in the pipeline. This avatar show that’s going to be in Vegas is gonna blow everybody’s minds. It’s not like what some people have called holograms and all this kind of experimental and kitschy stuff. This is seeing us. This is as real as I am, and I think it’s gonna just blow people away. And it extends the band that much further,” Paul said (as transcribed by Blabbermouth).
He added: “There’s no reason for us to live within the boundaries of other rock bands. They live within those boundaries because that’s all they can be. And it’s great, but we are not that — we’re Kiss.”
In a separate interview with Ultimate Classic Rock, bassist and co-founder Gene Simmons echoed that immense confidence. Comparing the upcoming Kiss avatar experience to the groundbreaking Sphere venue in Las Vegas, he promised an unparalleled spectacle.
“We’re gonna blow your socks off in a way multiple times more exciting than the Sphere. People who go to Vegas to see a show in the Sphere are awed by the massive scale of everything. There’s nothing wrong with the Sphere, [but] I’ll go out on a limb and make sure people understand this [the Kiss avatars] is gonna make that seem like popcorn fart. It’ll be mind-blowing.”
Detailing the highly immersive nature of the production, Simmons revealed that the show will go far beyond simple visual projections.
The experience will reportedly “attack the senses as well. If you see a dragon coming in to scoop you up and it breathes fire, there will be fire all around you, and you’ll feel the heat. The fire, the brimstone, the coffee, you’ll be able to smell it. We attack the senses instead of virtual reality, which only attacks the eyes.” Furthermore, the bassist confirmed that the multi-sensory avatar show will eventually be staged “all around the world,” rather than remaining exclusive to Las Vegas.
Financed and produced by the Swedish company Pophouse Entertainment—the same minds behind the ABBA virtual concerts—the Kiss avatar project is a massive financial undertaking. Back in December 2023, Simmons noted that approximately $200 million was being invested into the show.
However, unlike the realistic 1970s-era digital replicas utilized by ABBA, the Kiss avatars will lean heavily into the band’s larger-than-life comic book personas. Previewed briefly at their final concert at Madison Square Garden on December 2, 2023, the digital band members appeared as towering, eight-foot-tall fantasy superheroes capable of breathing fire and shooting electricity from their fingers while levitating above the crowd. This bold creative direction officially makes Kiss the very first American band to go fully virtual.
For Stanley, focusing on an immersive avatar show was a much more appealing route than simply booking a traditional residency at the Sphere. During a Q&A session at last year’s “KISS Kruise: Landlocked In Vegas,” the frontman explained his reservations regarding the massive Las Vegas venue.
“From the time the Sphere opened, people would say to us, ‘You guys are a natural for the Sphere. I’m not really so sold on the idea because Kiss has always been about being larger than life, and at the Sphere, the band is on a postage stamp. For my money, I think you don’t even need a live band there. People are watching the screens, which are amazing — what’s being programmed, the content, is incredible, but I want the band to matter. You forget that there’s a band on that little stage, so I’m not really sure how we would do it,” Stanley said at the time.
