Kiss say farewell to live touring, become first US band to go virtual and become digital avatars

On Saturday night, Kiss will close out the final performance of their “The End of the Road” farewell tour at New York City’s famed Madison Square Garden. But will it really be the end? 

During their encore, the band’s current lineup — founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons as well as guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer — will leave the stage to reveal digital avatars of themselves. After the transformation, the virtual Kiss will launch into a performance of “God Gave Rock and Roll to You.” 

The cutting-edge technology will be used to tease a new chapter of the rock band: after 50 years of Kiss, the band is now interested in a kind of digital immortality. 

The avatars were created by George Lucas’ special-effects company, Industrial Light & Magic and in partnership with Pophouse Entertainment Group, the latter of which was co-founded by ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus. The two companies recently teamed up for the “ABBA Voyage” show in London, in which fans could attend a full concert by the Swedish band — as performed by their digital avatars.