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KISS kicked off the 2021 US leg of their “End of the Road” tour on Wednesday night (August 18th) at the Xfinity Center in Mansfield, Massachusetts, resuming their farewell outing after a 17-month break due to the pandemic.
The Mansfield date marked the first time KISS had played a full concert in front of a live audience since March 2020 (they played a New Year’s Eve livestream show from Dubai and an abbreviated five-song set at the Tribeca Film Festival in June 2021). The band’s “End of the Road” farewell trek launched in January 2019, but had been sidelined due to the pandemic.
The KISS Army came out in force, packing the arena to witness a setlist stacked with signature songs: “Detroit Rock City,” “Lick It Up,” “Deuce,” and “Black Diamond,” just to name a few. A rousing rendition of “Rock and Roll All Nite” closed out the show.
inger-guitarist Paul Stanley tweeted his gratitude to the fans following the concert “FIFTEEN THOUSAND PEOPLE TONIGHT! Mansfield, You left me humbled. Thank you. My deepest attitude of gratitude.”W
While the band has embarked on farewell tours in the past, bassist-singer Gene Simmons has affirmed that the “End of the Road” tour will indeed be KISS’ final outing. “We’re gonna go out on top,” Simmons declared in June. “I don’t wanna stay onstage too long. You don’t wanna ruin the legacy.”
The KISS touring lineup features band founders Stanley and Simmons, along with guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer, both longtime members of the group. Van Halen singer David Lee Roth had supported the early 2020 shows that KISS played prior to the pandemic, but it was recently revealed that he would no longer be on board for the rescheduled 2021 dates.
KISS will continue their farewell tour tonight (August 19th) in Bangor, Maine. The dates run through an October 9th show in Tampa, Florida, and will be followed by a Las Vegas residency that kicks off in late December. Get tickets via Ticketmaster or StubHub.
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