The biggest Halloween party in Arizona was none other than the Raptor Guitars’ Annual Halloween Bash, a free show put on for the local community by store owner George Contreras.
For the kiddies there was a petting zoo from Carter’s Farms, a haunted house put on by Pepi’s Pizza and Luxor Jewelers, and various local businesses handing out the treats. Everyone involved made this a spectacular event by creating a safe environment for the little ones.
For the bigger kids, Raptor Guitars had a gigantic stage that hosted four of the valley’s local bands. Phoenix New Times Best Tribute Band winner Unskinny Bop headlined the event with its rowdy Poison renditions. Look What the Cat Dragged In, Let Me Go to the Show, and Unskinny Bop came roaring out of the PA to remind folks that this was indeed a party. Donnie (Bret Micheals) channeled the Rock of Love star with flamboyant ease. Not to mention, backstage before the show, he gave my son the essential rock star lessons (like tipping the soundguy so he doesn’t hit the “suck switch”). All heart and all fun.
Continuing on with Nothing But a Good Time, I Won’t Forget You, and Talk Dirty to Me were played with the crowd cheering along. American Band and Your Mama Don’t Dance drew the strongest sing-a-longs from the audience as the band’s sound delivered the ultimate Poison attitude. Chad (CC) played each note as if it was coming out of the MTV video itself and even had the typical CC facial expressions down, Tony (Rikki Rockett) laid down a solid beat, and Chad M (C2 – Bobby Doll) delivered the bass line perfection on every note.
While Unskinny Bop closed the show with a high energy performance, I must admit the night belonged to Kissmania, a KISS tribute band. An extremely large crowd gathered for this performance, complete with people in KISS make up (hey, it was Halloween). Even the little ones got in to the face paint. Hitting the stage with Detroit Rock City, every KISS fan in attendance was transported back to hearing the song for the first time (in most cases, it probably was a prepubescent era). Grins spread across faces as far as the eye could see. I Stole Your Love, Cold Gin, Deuce and Do Ya Love Me followed, and met by the loudest of cheers. The band’s 16+ song set was flawless (except when the generator died momentarily – damn roadies falling asleep!) and delivered classic KISS.
Having never seen the band before, and being a KISS aficionado, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Like the rest of the crowd, I was blown away. When the band launched in to Firehouse, I kept a keen eye on the stage to see if we were going to be treated to the fire breathing spectacle that accompanies the song. Sure enough Gene Simmons (Art Long) walked over to the side of the stage and lit a torch, then walked back to the center of the stage. Whoosh! Son of a bitch! – you don’t see many KISS tribute bands do that! Not to be outdone, Ace Frehley (Mark Hermansen) soon had smoke spewing out of his guitar. Peter Criss (Tom Cavanaugh) and Paul Stanley (Mike Blair) kept things going throughout the entire show.
Having displayed perfect showmanship and musicianship, it’s no surprise that the band will be headlining the Raptor Guitars’ Anniversary show next spring. Given the headlining slot and more time, this is one show that you do not want to miss.
Aviledescent and Downright Wicked didn’t fare as well with the crowd. Aviledescent was about a half hour late due to “technical difficulties”, and both bands were a little heavier than what the crowd was willing to tolerate. Both bands were good in their own right, but didn’t mesh well with the two bands everyone came to see.
