Fans will need to exercise patience, as it appears they’ll be waiting for more than three years to witness the inaugural performance of the KISS avatars
Yesterday (December 23, 2023), KISS shared a brief video unveiling that a show featuring the KISS avatars is set to take place in 2027. The band conveyed in the clip: “50 years is a long time, and what the future holds is in the making.”
The technology behind the KISS avatars, originally crafted for ABBA’s “Voyage” show in London, will enable KISS to remain “on the road” even during retirement.
Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) is credited with creating the avatars, with funding and production handled by the Swedish company Pophouse Entertainment, known for its work on “ABBA Voyage.”
Earlier this month, Gene Simmons, KISS‘s bassist/vocalist, revealed an investment of “about 200 million” dollars for the avatar show.
In contrast to the “ABBA Voyage” show, which faithfully recreates a 1970s ABBA concert in a specially constructed London arena, KISS‘s avatars showcased at the band’s recent final concert in New York will adopt a more fantastical approach. According to BBC News, the avatars will portray the band as eight-foot-tall superhero figures breathing fire, shooting electricity from their fingers, and floating above the audience.
These avatars are set to feature in live shows worldwide and digital online environments, collectively referred to by some as the metaverse.
No further details have been announced yet for the makeup clad band’s plan with the band’s avatars. “We’re going to figure it out after the tour,” Pophouse CEO Per Sundin said prior to the final show at Madison Square Garden. “Is it a KISS concert in the future? Is it a rock opera? Is it a musical? A story, an adventure? These four individuals already have superpowers. We want to be as open as possible.”
KISS is poised to make history as the first American band to fully embrace virtuality and present its own avatar show. JOCOUP Creative, an experiential design firm co-founded by Thierry Coup, a former Universal Creative director, and Johanna “Jojo” Atilano, associated with BRC and Universal Creative, is also part of this innovative project. Thierry Coup has been appointed as the creative director for the avatar show.