KISS announces Vegas Hard Rock residency 

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Kiss announces Vegas Hard Rock residency

Kiss, the self-proclaimed "hottest band in the land," will play a nine-show Kiss Rocks Vegas residency at The Joint inside Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, starting Nov. 5.

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Brian Mansfield, Special for USA TODAY 11:35 a.m. EDT July 14, 2014

Kiss — clockwise from top: Gene Simmons, Eric Singer, Paul Stanley and Tommy Thayer — will play a Las Vegas residency at The Joint inside Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in November.

Las Vegas wanted the best, it\'s getting the best.

Kiss, which has used a variant of that line in its introductions for more than 35 years, will play a nine-show Sin City residency this fall.

Kiss Rocks Vegas brings the self-proclaimed "hottest band in the land" to The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino beginning Nov. 5.

"Whatever you\'re used to with Kiss, this will pump it up that much more," says guitarist Paul Stanley. "If Kiss is on steroids, this is a double dose."

Tickets for Kiss Rocks Vegas will start at $49.50 and go on sale Friday at AXS.com.

Vegas Hard Rock spent more than a year trying to book a Kiss residency, says Chas Smith, vice president of entertainment. The Joint previously has hosted extended stays by Santana, Motley Crue, Guns N\' Roses, Def Leppard and Tiësto.

He\'s preparing the Hard Rock for a full-scale Kiss Army invasion. "The activation will encompass the entire property for the month they\'re out here — from the performances onstage to wrapping the hotel with Kiss stuff to having team members wearing Kiss shirts," Smith says.

Under the Kiss Rocks Vegas configuration, The Joint will seat about 3,200.

"Usually, going into a smaller venue means eliminating things," Stanley says. "The great thing about going into The Joint, it gives us the opportunity to add. Much in the same way as a Broadway show, when you have a permanent installation, you\'re not breaking down every night to travel. So we can do things we wouldn\'t normally do."

For the Vegas shows, Kiss will have a stage production "that\'s different from what they\'re touring with and make it one of a kind," says Smith, who is in discussions with members of the Kiss production team. "That\'s really exciting, considering what Kiss has done in the past. They\'ve got some crazy ideas for what they want to do in this venue. In a smaller environment, doing some of those elements will almost make it like a 3-D atmosphere."

The set for the residency will incorporate elements of the "spider stage" the group is using on its current co-headlining tour with Def Leppard. "That being said, it\'s not going to be that show," Stanley says. "Here, we\'re in the enviable position of being able to do a Kiss show that we haven\'t been able to do. We will pack 10 pounds of gunpowder into a 5-pound bag."

Since 2000, Kiss, which consists of founding members Stanley and bassist Gene Simmons, along with guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer, has sold more than 3 million tickets, and its tours have grossed roughly $200 million, according to Billboard Boxscores.

The band released its first album in 1974 and has been celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. In addition to being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in April, it released a two-disc anthology, Kiss 40, in May. The North American tour with Def Leppard ends Aug. 31. The residency at The Joint begins the day after the end of Kiss Kruise IV, a five-day Bahamian cruise.

"We\'re used to riding the Kiss beast," Stanley says. "Sometimes, we just hold on, and it takes us where we\'re going.

"Anybody who sees the band sees four guys reveling in the smoke and fire. Every time we hit the stage, it\'s a victory lap. It\'s a race that\'s never over, but it\'s a race that we continue to win."

Kiss' Gene Simmons, left, Tommy Thayer and Paul Stanley perform.