​To the aging, toothless rocker who has been singing "All I want for Kissmas is a cruise with the band to the Bahamas where I can play mini-golf with Tommy Thayer and see Gene Simmons without his make-up," your wish has been heard and granted!

Kiss has just announced that the guys will again be calling on the Kiss Navy to suit up in their sexiest black vinyl swimwear and SPF face paint to, you know, rock and roll all night (for four nights) and party every day (for five days) on the high seas!

In case you missed our coverage of last year's voyage, you can get a taste -- with your Simmons wannabe tongue -- of what this thing is all about here. 

More >>

Photo by Ian Witlen

Kiss superfans Steve and Sharyn Mitchell.

​Kiss die-hards don't ever need to prep for what is an inevitable daily immersion in their favorite band, but getting on a boat is something above and beyond. County Grind found out all about it when we tagged along for the inaugural Kiss Kruise this past October. Our complete coverage from the 2011 event is here, and now it's time to start thinking about next year, as the postcard below indicates.

More >>

The Kiss Navy wants you for 2012.

​View all of our Kiss Kruise coverage here.

Although some Kiss Navy members were already planning their 2012 Kiss Kruise experience the moment they got onboard the Carnival Destiny two weeks ago, now the thing is official.

Echoing sentiments he expressed during the band's second full-makeup show of the mid-October excursion from Miami to Half Moon Cay to the Bahamas and back, Stanley says: "Yeah, we're going to do it again next year. Start getting ready, 'cause this is nothin'! You ain't seen nothin' yet."

More >>

Life has finally settled back into a world without 24-hour buffet lines, a pocketful of poker chips, and a daily dose of Kiss. For those who attended the Kiss Kruise on October 13 to 17, the withdrawal symptoms are getting heavy. To cap off County Grind's extensive coverage -- for the time being, anyhow -- here's a video scrapbook of the experiences that includes the sights and sounds of a weekend that Gene Simmons will never forget.

More >>

Photo by Ian Witlen

Kiss superfans Jamie Ross and Jackie Ram.

​Our complete Kiss Kruise coverage is here.

One young Kiss Army member put it best when he said, "All other music fans are measured against Kiss fans." With about 2,000 diehards aboard the Carnival Destiny -- many of whom never considered taking a cruise previously -- a weekend voyage dubbed the Kiss Kruise proved to be the ultimate test of this fan base's dedication.

It was surprising that pop culture writer Chuck Klosterman was nowhere to be found on the very first Kiss Kruise. Few people -- save official biographers Ken Sharp and David Leaf, and prolific author/bassist Gene Simmons -- have published such passionately written accounts of the band over the years.

Klosterman devotes much of a chapter of his 2005 book Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story to a road trip through Montana in which he excitedly listened to all four "unloved" 1978 Kiss solo records -- each titled after an individual member of the band -- back-to-back. He writes: "I love Kiss because the world makes sense when I think about them." And a large percentage of Kiss Kruisers feel exactly the same way.

More >>

Photo by Ian Witlen

​Kiss Kruise Day 4
Carnival Destiny
Sunday, October 16, 2011

View all of our Kiss Kruise coverage here.

Unlike the previous days of KISS Kruise, this one was confined to the Carnival Destiny. Thus, we got to really rub elbows with the rest of the passengers during a day filled with many activities that had the feel of a drunken, hard-rocking expo.
More >>

Photo by Ian Witlen

​KISS Kruise
The Palladium Lounge, Carnival Destiny
Saturday, October 15, 2011

View all of our coverage here, and check out a Kiss live slideshow here.
 
When a person says "P.S., I Love You" on the Kiss Kruise, it's more than likely referring to the group's singer, Paul Stanley. Without devoting several paragraphs to the power of his pouting, puckered red lips and backhand pick-tossing, let's leave it that he was one fierce bitch for the second full-makeup show this past Saturday night.

"Strutter," which Stanley reminded the crowd was a song on the band's original demo, awakened a story about the New York of yesteryear -- a time of leather and lace. But Stanley had the hip swivels to rival any woman of that era for a few seconds during the second full-makeup performance of the cruise.

"We decided we're doing this again next year," he announced early on while the boat was docked in Nassau, Bahamas. "This is like camp on a boat!"

More >>

Photo by Ian Witlen

​Photographer Ian Witlen stayed extremely busy over the course of the four-day Kiss Kruise this past weekend. We brought you an initial set of pictures yesterday, and now here's a bunch featuring some great photos strictly from Kiss' three performances -- one unmasked and two in full makeup.

More >>

Artwork by Tristan Elwell

​Here's the masterful cover for our issue this week, which features an article breaking down bits of each day of the Kiss Kruise -- held October 13-17 on the Carnival Destiny. It's by yours truly, and features photography by Ian Witlen.More >>

Photo by Ian Witlen

​The madness of the Kiss Kruise's maiden voyage, which took place October 13-17 aboard the Carnival Destiny, is still ringing in our ears, and the salty air is still in our nostrils. And, thanks to the hard work of photographer Ian Witlen -- and the support of Sixthman -- there are lots of visuals that will never be forgotten. The four days at sea are carefully documented in our Kiss Kruise slideshow, which assembles 45 indelible images (and we have lots more) from the weekend.

More >>