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Kiss - Symphony: The DVD

Kiss - Symphony: The DVD

List Price: $29.98
Your Price: $26.98
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: A HOAX CONCERT!
Review: This "Concert" Dvd is Such a Rip-Off it Smells!! Kiss is Rocks #1 Rip-offs ANYWAY, in EVERY way, THIS Dvd just adds to their BULL! You keep seeing the SAME people in the crowd over & over, like THEY and the band were the ONLY ones there! WITH TODAYS' COMPUTER IMAGING, I WOULDN'T DOUBT THAT ONLY THE BAND, SOME ORCHESTRA (How do WE REALLY know that was Australia's Syn(phony)?)..I'm stressing the "Phony" part, EXTREMELY! And 15 or so people were ACTUALLY there! Wherever "They"were! Let's NOT forget what Kiss said about dubbing the Alive Lp. THIS, just COULD be ANOTHER Hoax. And I'd Put BIG MONEY on it, that it is! Kiss has the nerve to show this DVD in Theatres!!...Wait for this Dvd to hit "Bargin Bins" at some discount store. THE BIGGEST SCAM IN ROCK n ROLL,....KISS!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Unwatchable....I could only go as low as 1 star.
Review: I was looking forward to this one, as I already have the CD. Well, the sound of the DVD is great. Just turn off the picture and turn up the surround sound. The video itself is unwatchable. The worst editing in the history of video. I have read where some think this is nitpicking. It's not. When editing takes away from the viewing experience instead of adds to it, then it is a problem.

A brief example: I chose one of my favorite songs, "Shout It Out Loud" and decided to count the number of edits, camera, transitions, etc...196 in a 3 minute song. 196...that comes out to an average change every 1.08 seconds. Now, some shots actually lingered for maybe 2 seconds, and some just popped on screen for a fraction of a second, but 196 in 3 minutes? Also, you will notice that Gene has the punisher bass in some quick shots and the axe bass in others, all in the same song. This is called continuity, or in this case, lack of continuity...We all know Gene does not change basses back and fourth several times during the same song. It is just careless, sloppy editing.

Unwatchable...Sad, because this is a great concert. The editing actually makes me physically sick. I could only watch about half of this thing before a splitting headache made me turn it off. I would love to see this redone with some actual skill applied to editing. Some lingering shots of guitar solos, some wide screen views of the whole band, some scenes that last longer than 2 seconds.

Nitpicking...I don't think so. This is a great video documentary of a historic event by one of the world's greatest bands that has been reduced to unwatchable status by poor, thoughtless editing.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Buy It!
Review: Simply put -- the DVD is awesome! Peter's back and having fun....Tommy Thayer does an absolutely outstanding job -- welcome to the band Tommy -- goodbye Ace. Paul and Gene .. well, nothing needs to be said -- after 30 years --they've proven they continue to be viable in an ever changing music world. For the guy that stated the sound mix is bad -- I have a 700 watt Bose Surround Sound system and this is DVD is an excellent mix in 5.1 and DTS....as for those that complain about the camera editing -- wake up -- its the 21st century -- this is rock music -- fast paced and heavy -- the camera editing simply matches it. Thanks KISS for 30 GREAT YEARS.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Close caption or subtitles??
Review: Wonder, does this DVD have the closed caption or subtitles (in English, of course)???

I know some of you don't care but I DO!!!!!!! Why?! Because I am deaf and been fan of KISS for nearly 25 years.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: SIMPLY AWESOME!!
Review: THIS DVD IS SIMPLY AWESOME! SOUND AND PICTURE QUALITY IS AMAZING! ITS LIKE HAVING A FRONT ROW SEAT! AND THE MELBOURNE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ARE AMAZING TOO! CAMERA TRICKS ARE INCREDIBLE!!!! A+

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Epileptics Beware!
Review: KISS has been by far my favorite band bar-none, and will continue to be without question. But even with that in mind, I unfortunately cannot give this DVD any more than two stars.

Let me first identify the good. The sound quality of the show is fantastic. The bonus version of "Sure Know Something" from Australia's ROVE LIVE! was excellent. And Act Two was just fantastic. The songs sound absolutely great and the cameras are nice and calm.

Unfortunately, that is where my praise has to end. For the high level of expectation that was associated with this project, the final editing of the concert is atrocious. In both Acts One and Three, the camera cannot stay on one scene for more than two seconds. By the time you have focused on what you are looking at, the image is gone. One of the biggest parts of KISS is the visionary portion of the show. When you cannot hope to focus on the show, there is a huge part lost.

The endless shots of the audience are extremely excessive and they repeat on the same fifteen people over and over. The shots that pan across the stage or the audience in fast-forward are distracting. And why the editor insists on changing from one angle of a band member to another angle to yet another angle in a span of three seconds is beyond me.

Another problem is that the editor does not understand how to edit a concert to begin with. When a lead guitar riff is being played, the camera should be focused on the lead guitarist. When lyrics are being sung, the majority of the cameras should be focused on the singer(s), and not on some other body part. There are also too few wide angle shots to let the viewer truly gain a perspective of the sheer size of the show. Finally, one of the best songs from the concert (God Of Thunder) is so hard to see because of the reflected green lights and poor camera angles that it is a chore to watch.

Finally, why is Act Three on disc one and on disc two? The concert proceeded from Act One to Two to Three. It did not start with Act Three. That is why it is Act Three. The behind-the-scenes scenes were nice, but there really was not that much, unfortunately, and it would have been nice to see something more detailed about the collaboration between the band and the symphony.

So, it is my unfortunate responsibility to limit this DVD to only two stars, even with the high hopes that I had for the DVD (Which is from a good concert) from my favorite band.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Minor Let Down
Review: After seeing the concret in it's unedited form, I was really looking forward to getting the DVD of this great night of music. What I got was a bummer. The DTS is actually the worst mix on this DVD, and the 5.1 is a little better. The 2.0 mix is the best, and on my stereo that [is bad]! All of the mixes have a lack of bass, and the rear channel audio is distored.
Too many quick cuts. I have to agree with the other reviews on that one. The songs were not only out of order of how they were performed on the night of the show, the songs for Act 3 were out of order on the DVD as they are on the box.

In terms of Kisstory, this is a must have disc. Though I have always thought Peter was the worst of the three drummers kiss has had, he did a great job that night, and Tommy "shocked me" with his Ace imitation. He can really fill the shoes.

I could do without the numerious close ups of Gene's c**kpiece, and they should have left in the breif version of "Here comes the Sun" that Kiss did with the mini symphony. But I stay a true Kiss fan.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Please stop nitpicking.......
Review: This is a wonderful DVD and all I can say is "MORE". David
Campbell you deserve a hand. The orchestration is nothing
short of fantastic. Sure, it is a bit jumpy in spots but
I, for one, don't mind audience shots at all. I enjoy
watching people who love this band as much as I do. I
could sit here and pick at any numerous things from a
band that has 30 years with all their songs but I won't.
What is here is done fantastically. I love Ace but Tommy
Thayer is great. I just saw them a few weeks ago and they
still have it. Like Gene says "the hell with the Rock n
Roll Hall of Fame......it is great finally to see what
has been in my minds eye for years......a fantastic,
visually stunning, well recorded Kiss concert. Can you ask
for anything more.......

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Great show, average disc ! (where's the center channel?)
Review: As other reviewers have noted the show is great, but the camera editing is just too hyperactive. Quick editing can help the viewer get energized, but there is a point where it gets tiring when the cuts are every second or so.
The audio seems great at first, but then I noticed NO sound from my center channel in DTS or DD 5.1 mode. I tested with another dvd and found my system to be functioning properly. Any one else have this problem? Could an error that big make it through quality control and Gene's attention to detail?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The dubbing question answered...yes!
Review: First, let me say that I really like this DVD. The sound is superb and you can really hear the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra better than on the CD release. The fast-paced edits are a bit much but it keeps with the fast pace of the music...The documentary/making of segment is cool, as well as the TV show appearance. Overall, this is a very entertaining DVD from THE most entertaining band in the world.

I've been a KISS fan for 27 years (seen them live 26 times...so far) and have tons of video (mostly bootleg) of the band live. I notice all the flaws...but, live shows (especially on the scale of KISS) are rarely perfect. At this one-off show they had one chance and one chance only to get it shot and get it right.

In response to the question of dubbing? YES. Absolutely. For whatever reason I found it really easy to notice using Gene as the source. This is why: after spitting blood prior to "God Of Thunder"...you can see parts AFTER that song where he has no blood on him...then he does, then he doesn't...and well, you get the idea.

Especially during "Great Expectations" where they cut to him and he has perfect make-up and NO BLOOD...then cut again and there's the blood...then again NO...then again yes! In addition, notice that he has TWO (2) basses during the song...the ax and signature.

Maybe they shot footage on the stage without the audience and cut it in later? Who knows...did anyone else notice this or am I imagining it all? Just wondering.

So, there is obvious dubbing involved. And yes, sometimes with their mouths covered by the mics you can splice in any part of any song and it isn't really noticeable especially when the shot is quick...which there is a lot of in this DVD. But, in truth...SO WHAT?...everything gets cleaned up and made to be as perfect looking as possible. It's all illusion anyway...movies, tv, even KISS concerts.

With all this it still makes for one helluva DVD from an excellent band that is always fun to watch! So, just enjoy it for what it is: FUN!


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