The Unmasked Tour was a concert tour by the American hard rock band Kiss. It was the first tour not to feature original drummer Peter Criss, and the touring debut of his replacement Eric Carr.[1]
Background
The Unmasked Tour was the first time that Kiss only played in Europe, Australia,[2] and New Zealand, with only one show played in the United States, at the Palladium Theatre in New York.[3] "Cold Gin" returned to the set for the first time since the Rock & Roll Over Tour, and featured Ace Frehley on co-lead vocals, rather than solely Simmons, who had sung the song on all previous tours on which it was performed. "You're All That I Want" was performed briefly, but was quickly dropped. "Strutter", which had not been performed live since the Destroyer Tour, returned to the set as well. Iron Maiden were the opening act for the European leg of the tour.[4][5]
English heavy rock band Girl supported Kiss at Stafford, Bingley Hall. During an autograph session from the band while on tour in West Germany, more than 2,000 fans in Frankfurt ended up causing severe traffic jams. The West Germany concerts would bring in a total of 100,000 fans.[6] The stage show and costumes, with the exception of Carr and Stanley, were holdovers from the Dynasty Tour.
This was the last tour that Ace Frehley performed with Kiss until the 1996 reunion tour.[7]
In the tour program for the band's final tour, Stanley reflected on the tour:
Playing Australia in 1980 was amazing. We were big beyond any comprehension. When we were first told that we were huge in Australia I really didn't have any idea what that meant until we went there. When people were saying you're as big as The Beatles were that's kind of hard to comprehend until you get off a plane and there's thousands of people at an airport and there's thousands of people camping outside your hotel and we couldn't leave the hotels. "Shandi" had already been a hit there. We were the front headline of the papers for virtually three or four weeks. It reached the point where I was asking that we not have any more parties because literally every night the promoter threw a party for us.[8]
Reception
Roman Kozak, a reviewer from the magazine Billboard gave the performance a positive review. He opened his review, noting of the lineup changes with the introduction of the new drummer Eric Carr. Regarding the show, he acknowledged the performance as the typical Kiss show, but noted that the band were performing on a smaller stage than usual, with the performance being basically the same, with the inclusion of loud musical energy, special effects and lighting. He cited the change in the band's sound being more "melodic" and "pop-side", but still gave the fans the hard rock and heavy metal they wanted, taking note that the song "Talk to Me" was well-received by the audience.[9]
^Lewis, Barbara (December 27, 1980). "Pop scene". Fredericksburg: The Free Lance-Star. p. 20. Retrieved July 22, 2021. Kiss has been on tour in Australia playing to crowds of 20,000 and more at giant soccer stadiums.
^(2019). End of the Road World Tour Program, pg. 16.
^Kozak, Roman (August 9, 1980). "Talent in Action: Kiss". Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 32. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. p. 34. ISSN0006-2510. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
^Gooch, Curt; Suhs, Jeff (2002). Kiss Alive Forever: The Complete Touring History. New York: Billboard Books. ISBN0-8230-8322-5.
Sources
Gooch, Curt; Suhs, Jeff (2002). Kiss Alive Forever: The Complete Touring History. New York: Billboard Books. ISBN0-8230-8322-5.
