KAS: When and how was MR. SPEED born?
RICH KOSAK: MR.SPEED was born out of a chance meeting by myself and the original lead guitarist in the band at a record show in Pittsburgh, PA. This took place in the summer of 1993. I noticed a guy leafing through a KISS book and I made a comment over his shoulder to which started a lengthy conversation. We spent time that day getting acquainted and exchanged phone numbers and shortly thereafter began jamming at his home. The “idea” for MR.SPEED was never intended to be a KISS Tribute Band but rather for the two of us to simply play KISS songs on guitars and record ourselves onto a cassette tape. It’s crazy to me that over 31 years later I’m still telling you about this story.
KAS: Is MR. SPEED the first tribute band you are playing with?
Rich: Yes,…this is the first and only tribute band that I have ever devoted any of my time to. I did a select few “fill-in” shows with another KISS band out of Canada back in 1997 but there wasn’t any substance to those performances beyond playing KISS songs in local bars.
KAS: Mr. Speed has been KISS tribute band for over 30 years, what was your first show, where was it, and what memories do you have of it?
Rich: Our first show was at a venue called THE DECADE in Pittsburgh, PA on June 24, 1994. It was a sweltering hot day and I can vividly remember us nervously setting up our makeup stations in an apartment above the venue which served as our dressing room. We had no idea of what we were to expect and slowly we began to hear the sound of countless conversations lifting themselves through the old floor boards beneath our feet. Friends would come upstairs and tell us that people were beginning to arrive and the place was filling up. I can’t remember how long we actually took to put on our makeup that night but I’m sure it took much longer than it should have. By the time we needed to make our way to the stage the room was filled to capacity with over 250 fans in attendance. We made our way through the kitchen door to the stage and could barely get it open. The place was packed and fans were literally resting their feet on the stage as we performed. The best part about the entire experience for me was that they were charging $5 to get in which totaled $1,250.00 at the door. We were paid $150!We didn’t care one bit because the feeling of what we had just accomplished without having any sort of plan at all was priceless to us.
KAS: An obvious question: why MR. SPEED features the UNMASKED era/costumes/show?
Rich: MR.SPEED has never intentionally followed any trend within the tribute world. When we started there wasn’t any plan or instructional booklet to review to give us the clairvoyance to know right from wrong. The internet didn’t exist and finding resources to help us to figure things out were not easy to find. We would visit costume shops and ask questions of the employees about how to do this and how to do that. As time went on we would meet and subsequently frustrate many seamstresses along the way in helping us to create the different costumes that we would attempt to wear. Eventually the internet paved the way for anyone that wanted to be in a KISS band to wear a select few eras of KISS costumes to which we turned a blind eye. When the last drummer we had that left who was paying tribute to Peter I decided that we needed to make a change that WE wanted to make and not one that was popular according to the fans. Arguably the DYNASTY/UNMASKED era of costuming for the band is seen as a bit too cartoonish of even Vegas-like and subsequently scoffed at. For us it sets us apart from all the others that continue to wear the same two eras of the band or mix & match pieces from here and there to complete an outfit. I love that we stand alone in this regard and it’s what makes me proud of who we are.
KAS: You definitely have an amazing stage production, arguably the best and most KISS-alike in the world. You have a light logo, ramps, stacks of amps, a drum platform, etc.. We guess that it must take a few hours to set up everything and a few staff members as well as a truck (or two) to carry all the gear from one place to another. Please tell us about it, we would love to know all the logistics needed to make this great show happen.
Rich: Our stage set came about by one day simply saying that this is what we wanted. Everyone in the band is tasked with certain strengths that makes our band work as a team. A former member of the band assembled the first version of our UNMASKED stage set from a little bit of this and a little bit of that. Over time however, those pieces began to fail and we needed to have them manufactured in a way that would allow them to travel well and be set up and torn down for each and every show. As I write this we plan to execute the construction of the “decking” as we call it that sits above our facade of speaker cabinets. These are the last remaining pieces of the original set construction and they need replaced. The stage set and gear itself travels in (2) trailers to each and every show. For Vegas we will transfer everything into a 20’ box truck that will make the journey from our base here in Ohio to Vegas and back. We do all of the work ourselves for each show. There are the (4) band members and (2) crew members that set up and tear down our stage set each time that we perform. Not every venue that we perform in is able to accommodate our stage set and there are times that we have to modify it to fit the stage dimensions that we’re presented with. That modification is not ideal for us but it is the nature of the beast and we’ve become accustomed to adapting over the years. We have two drivers on call that work with us whenever we need to move our stage set and gear to and from shows. This allows the band and crew to fly and get to the destination more efficiently as the gear is in route. All in all it works well for us and we are grateful that we have this ability to offer buyers and fans our best effort.
KAS: Do you guys have a fixed weekly routine for rehearsals? Or at this point you know all of the songs and parts so well, that you just need to rehearse just one or two days before a gig?
Rich: You might be surprised to learn that we rarely rehearse as a band. Over the years we have had to source members that do not live here in the Cleveland area to complete our line-up of members within the band. It’s not like there is a KISS Store on the corner where you can go to purchase a lead guitarist. So over the years through networking I’ve come to know and meet certain people that have either expressed an interest in being in MR.SPEED or welcome the opportunity if I happen to reach out to them. The members of MR.SPEED range in age from 50-61 years old and each has a number of years of experience performing in other bands. This experience and our overall love of KISS serves us very well when it comes to our interpretation of the music.
KAS: How is the selection of songs process before a show? Do you have kind of a stable structure and you just change a few ones or do you like to revise the setlist often in order to not to play always the same songs?
Rich: When new songs are considered we simply communicate via email with one another and everyone does their homework for their particular part. We’ll choose a version that we all know and that the fans can relate to as well to work out. Once we arrive at a particular show we’ll use the sound checks to run through a particular song or two and give it a shot. If it feels like it will work we’ll stay with it. If it feels like it needs a bit more love then we’ll try it again at another venue later in the tour. I want to make clear that since the very beginning MR.SPEED has always taken a lot of pride in performing songs from the KISS catalog that we consider to be “vault” tracks or “deep” cuts that fans might not expect. Sure everyone can play “Detroit Rock City” but adding something like “Mr.Speed” to the set list has always been a feather that we like to keep in our cap. For this Vegas experience we’ve added 8-12 new songs of which we will add selected tracks to our shows in order to not play the same show more than once.
KAS: According to one of the latest interviews with Paul Stanley, which talks about tribute bands and has generated a lot of controversy, how much of passion and how much of business is there in Mr. Speed?
Rich: I can fully attest that the “passion” for KISS that we had in the beginning is still very much alive in us now 31 years later. But it has become a business in that we take what we do very seriously. First and foremost we’re fans just like those people that continue to come and see us. I like to say that we take it to an unhealthy level by wearing the costumes and the makeup but in the end we’re all in the same place celebrating KISS together. We never rely on the money that we make performing to get us from day-to-day in our lives because the reality is that nothing is guaranteed in life. Shows can be cancelled without any notice so each one of us has a career of sorts that we maintain to allow us to be in this band when we are able to. The business of MR.SPEED never takes a day off and we are available 24/7/365 days a year to entertain offers for the band should they arise. I have seen the interview with Paul that you mentioned and I can state without hesitation that as the leader of this band I agree with him 100%. This is THEIR creation and we’re using it to live out our rock ’n’ roll fantasies. There isn’t a day that goes by where I’m not grateful for the fact that they allow us to continue as a tribute to what they have created, I’m not that foolish. We have always tried to pay the utmost respect to them within our own abilities and financial means possible. MR.SPEED has never had any sort of financial backing or endorsement deals throughout its entire career. We have built who we are out of the blood, sweat & tears of decades of hard work. We have worked to be the KISS Tribute Band that we would want to go see just as KISS did with their dreams when they were starting out. I do believe that our hearts are in the right place and I do believe that what we offer is something that other KISS style bands just don’t have the work ethic to go after because it is a lot of work but if you love what you’re doing is it really even work?
KAS: What can we the fans expect from your performance at the Las Vegas KISS KRUISE event? I am sure you are aware it will be probably your most important show. How are you living these months before the big storm? Any special surprise that you may have in your pocket for that show?
Rich: We plan to bring the very best MR.SPEED shows to Las Vegas this November. What I mean by that is that we have put together our set lists so that we appeal to fans from all around the world of all ages. You will see the entire stage set that we are very proud of complete with many of the stage antics that we are allowed to execute. We will be spit shined and ready to go to share this celebration to the best of our abilities and we will certainly have surprises up our sleeves too. We are physically training to be at our best and performing at some very special events prior to taking the stage in Vegas that will have us in the right frame of mind. This will be a true test for our KISS Tribute and I can assure you that we will be ready to show the worldwide KISS Army who we are.
CHARACTER: STARCHILD
Full Real Name: Rich Kosak
City Of Birth: Pittsburgh, PA
Height: 5’ 10”
Favorite Food: Japanese
Favorite Movie: STAR WARS
Favorite KISS Album: Destroyer
Favorite KISS Song: Mr.Speed
Favorite KISS Era: Dynasty/Unmasked
First KISS Concert: July 21, 1979 at the Pittsburgh Civic Arena
CHARACTER: ERIC CARR/THE FOX
Full Real Name: Rich Hattery
City of Birth: Canton, Ohio
Height: 6’2″
Favorite Food: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cream Pie
Favorite Movie: Back To The Future
Favorite KISS Album: Dressed to Kill
Favorite KISS Song: Watchin’ You
Favorite KISS Era: Late 70s-Early 80s
First KISS Concert: Hot In The Shade – June 9, 1990 – Richfield Coliseum
CHARACTER: ACE FREHLEY (THE SPACEMAN)
Full name: Mark Allen Hermansen
City of birth: Great Bend, KS
Height: 6’6″
Favorite food: Sushi
Favorite movie: Logan
Favorite KISS album: Creatures of the Night
Favorite KISS song: Unholy
Favorite KISS era: Revenge
First Kiss concert: Asylum tour Wichita KS 1985
CHARACTER: GENE SIMMONS (THE DEMON)
Full Real Name : Shane Smith
City Of Birth : Woonsocket, RI
Height : 5’11’’
Favorite Food : Italian (Chicken Parmesan)
Favorite Movie : A Christmas Carol
Favorite KISS Album : Double Platinum
Favorite KISS Song : Love Gun
Favorite KISS Era : Love Gun
First KISS Concert : Crazy Nights tour December 12, 1987
