OSHAWA - The KISS army is on its way to 'the Shwa" and the Motor City is bracing itself for the invasion.
In fact the band consisting of Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer left their hotel in New York City at 1 p.m., heading for the airport to make the trip north.
"We can't wait to get there," said lead guitarist Thayer. "The whole band is excited."
Fresh off an appearance on Late Show with David Letterman, KISS is ready for this fan generated show at the GM Centre.
"We know it's KISS crazy in Oshawa," said Thayer. "And we really appreciate that."
With this show tonight, the controversy that KISS had in fact originally snubbed Oshawa is revisited - despite the fact the fans there won an online contest for KISS to play there.
"It just wasn't like that," said Thayer, adding "we were always going to play there."
When the original tour schedule came out without an Oshawa date, the furor heated up and feelings were hurt.
"It was just a matter of sorting out a date," said Thayer. "You know how things get today - they go viral on the Internet."
He said the whole band knew they had to move up the date.
"We didn't want it to look like we were going to not play Oshawa when we always were," he said, laughing. "Of course we were - that's where our fans are and we all recognize that. That's a fact."
He said Simmons has no bad feelings about the episode and despite appearing angry at the media at the time he is past that.
"He just gets gnarly sometimes when things are being portrayed a certain way that they actually are not," said Thayer. "He is looking forward to it."
Thayer said he loves the whole idea of Oshawa hosting this show - a reminder of how he saw the band for the first time when he was 14 back in his hometown of Portland, Ore.
"When I saw those Marshall amplifiers stacked up on stage I said this band is for me," he said.
Thayer replaced original guitar player Ace Frehley full-time in 2003 and he is having the time of his life. "I am in KISS," he says, adding he often pinches himself.
He said, who knows, but perhaps there will be fans like him whose dreams will come true tonight as well.
"You never know because dreams do come true if you put in some hard work for them," he said.
KISS hits the stage after 8 pm. tonight.


