Kiss (styled KISS in capitals) is an American hard rock and heavy metal band formed in New York City in January 1973. Easily identified by its members' face paint and flamboyant stage outfits, the group rose to prominence in the mid to late 1970s on the basis of their elaborate live performances, which featured fire breathing, blood spitting, smoking guitars, and pyrotechnics. Kiss has been awarded 24 gold albums to date in the USA. The band has sold over 19 million albums in the United States,and their worldwide sales exceeded 100 million albums.
The lineup of Paul Stanley (vocals and rhythm guitar), Gene Simmons (vocals and bass guitar), Ace Frehley (lead guitar and vocals), and Peter Criss (drums, percussion and vocals) is the most successful and identifiable. With their makeup and costumes, they took on the personae of comic book-style characters: The Demon (Simmons), Starchild (Stanley), Spaceman (Frehley), and Catman (Criss). The band explains that the fans were the ones who ultimately chose their makeup designs. The "Demon" makeup reflected Simmons's cynicism and dark elements, as well as his affection for comic books. Paul Stanley became the "Starchild" because of his tendency to be referred to as the "starry-eyed lover" and "hopeless romantic." Ace Frehley's "Spaceman" makeup was a reflection of him wanting to go for a ride in a space ship and supposedly being from another planet. Peter Criss's "Catman" makeup was in accordance with the belief that Criss had nine lives because of his rough childhood in Brooklyn. Because of creative differences, both Criss and Frehley were out of the group by 1982. The band's commercial fortunes had also waned considerably by that point.
In 1983, Kiss abandoned its makeup and profited from a commercial resurgence throughout the rest of the decade. Buoyed by a wave of Kiss nostalgia in the 1990s, the band announced a reunion of the original lineup (with makeup) in 1996. The resulting Kiss Alive/Worldwide/Lost Cities/Reunion Tour was the top-grossing act of 1996 and 1997. Criss and Frehley have since left Kiss again and have been replaced by Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer, respectively. The band continues to perform with makeup, while Stanley and Simmons have remained the only two constant members.
Kiss was named by VH1 as 10th on their list of the '100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock'and 9th on 'The Greatest Metal Bands' list by MTV. On 23 September 2009, Kiss was nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,ten years after becoming eligible but on December 15, 2009 it was announced that Kiss did not make it into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Cacophony was an American metal band formed in 1986 by guitarists Marty Friedman and Jason Becker. Cacophony is often recognized for its technically challenging, neo-classical metal and speed metal elements, as well as featuring two shred guitarists. The band broke up in 1989, with Friedman joining the successful thrash metal band Megadeth and Becker joining David Lee Roth's solo band.
Their first album, the predominantly instrumental Speed Metal Symphony, fused classical and hard rock styles with Friedman's preference of exotic scales (especially obvious in the song "The Ninja"). It featured exceptionally fast, melodic and technical music.
Their second release Go Off! was a more song-oriented album, while still displaying the virtuosity of the two guitarists. Besides Becker, Friedman and Marrino, it featured a new bassist and a new drummer. The drums were played by Deen Castronovo, however the picture of new drummer Kenny Stavropoulos was included on the back cover and one tour (the last) in the USA and Japan was with Kenny Stavropoulos and with vocalist - Dan Bryant (Hexx). The guitar playing is more technical and the harmonization of the lead lines and solos are different from the common twin-guitar harmonies made common in heavy metal by such bands as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest.
Nitro was officially formed in 1987 after the release of Jim Gillette's solo album Proud to Be Loud, on which Michael Angelo Batio and bassist T. J. Racer performed. Drummer Bobby Rock, previously of Vinnie Vincent Invasion, was recruited and the band began recording material for their debut album. Signed with Rhino Entertainment, Nitro released O.F.R. in 1989. Rock left the band after the recording of the album, and was replaced with K. C. Comet for the subsequent promotional tour.
After the O.F.R. Tour, Comet and founding bassist Racer departed from the band, leaving Gillette and Batio to find new members. Ralph Carter and Johnny Thunder were brought in on bass and drums respectively, and the band proceeded to record the follow-up to their debut album. Nitro II: H.W.D.W.S. was released in March 1992, after which the band broke up in 1993.
Post-Nitro, Gillette married hard rock musician Lita Ford and became a bodybuilder and Batio began and pursued a long solo career. In 1998, a collection of Nitro demos were featured on a compilation album entitled Gunnin' for Glory, which also included three songs by The Michael Angelo Band.
When asked at a Lita Ford gig if Nitro would ever get back together, Jim Gillette responded with "It would be great to do; maybe next year. It would take about six months to get back to where I would like it to be vocally.
Bon Jovi is an American hard rock band from Sayreville, New Jersey. Formed in 1983, Bon Jovi consists of lead singer and namesake Jon Bon Jovi, guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres as well as current bassist Hugh McDonald.The band's line-up has remained mostly static during their 26-year history, the only exception being the departure of Alec John Such in 1994, who was unofficially replaced by Hugh McDonald. The band have become known for writing several rock anthems, and achieved widespread recognition with their third album Slippery When Wet, released in 1986. Bon Jovi are well-known for songs including "Livin' on a Prayer", which has become their signature song, as well as "You Give Love a Bad Name", "Wanted Dead or Alive", "Bad Medicine", "Keep the Faith", "Bed of Roses", "Always", "It's My Life" and "Have a Nice Day". Their latest hit single is "We Weren't Born to Follow."
After prolifically touring and recording during the late 1980s, the band went on hiatus following the New Jersey Tour in 1990, during which time Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora both released successful solo albums. In 1992, the band returned with the album Keep the Faith and have since created successful albums throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Their 2000 single "It's My Life", which followed a second hiatus, successfully introduced the band to a younger audience. Bon Jovi have been known to use different styles in their music, which have ranged to country for their 2007 album Lost Highway. Their latest album, The Circle, was released on 10 November 2009 in the United States.
