Tim Carr did not like Kiss.
The Star Tribune's music writer summed up his feelings about the legendary rock quartet's Dec. 2, 1977, performance at the St. Paul Civic Center with one word: perfunctory.
Nobody turned out to see Kiss for the music, Carr argued. Instead, it was all about the pageantry, such as frontman Gene Simmons' tongue-flicking antics and the way the stage workers elevated drummer Peter Criss 30 feet above the crowd during the encore. The band's "greatest hits" are "more for the eyes than the ears and can be experienced only in concert."
"These visual gimmicks are the real greatest hits, along with a constant bombardment of fireworks — flash pots, Roman candles, sparklers, smoke and bang bombs," Carr wrote.
The gimmicks, he argued, "drew too much attention to themselves." Still, he was somewhat complimentary about the band's performance. Guitarist Ace Frehley's strumming, Carr wrote, was "above his usual adequate" and lead singer Paul Stanley "was hitting actual notes and singing melodies during the vocals."
"But this seemed more the result of constant practice than of a particularly spirited performance," Carr wrote. "(This definitely wasn't one of those.)"
Ouch.
