Over the weekend, hard rock music legends KISS concluded their The End Of The Road Tour at Madison Square Garden. The series of sold-out New York City shows marked their final live performance, as we know. Yes, that’s right, KISS is set to retire from touring. Instead of the group pushing their bodies to the limits on the road, they’re launching digital avatars to do the heavy lifting for them. So, what are the KISS digital avatars?
The KISS digital avatars are elevated motion-captured visuals of the band in all their glory. AP said the initiative was birthed through a partnership with Pophouse Entertainment Group (co-owned by Abba’s Björn Ulvaeus) and George Lucas’ special-effects company, Industrial Light & Magic.
In a statement provided to the outlet, Pophouse Entertainment’s CEO Per Sundin preached that the innovation will allow KISS to further their live show legacy without physical limitation. “Kiss could have a concert in three cities on the same night across three different continents,” said Sundin. “That’s what you could do with this.”
KISS frontman Paul Stanley and bassist Gene Simmons spoke about the decision behind developing the digital avatars in the video documentary A New Era Begins.
“What we’ve accomplished has been amazing, but it’s not enough,” said Stanley. “The band deserves to live on because the band is bigger than we are. It’s exciting for us to go the next step and see Kiss immortalized.”
Simmons added, “We can be forever young and forever iconic by taking us to places we’ve never dreamed of before. The technology is going to make Paul jump higher than he’s ever done before.”
As KISS enjoys their retirement from performing, their digital avatars will pick up where they left off.