When Ironton resident Jamie Spears was younger, he and the other neighborhood children used to use black and white shoe polish for KISS makeup.

Spears, his wife, and two of their children came out to the Tri-State Mega Festival & Fair Thursday night to watch four men who turned the same childhood play into a way to make a living.

The KISS Army Band, based out of Louisville, Ky., began 11 years ago when several fans of the real band, all playing in other bands

at the time, came together. Even though the members technically reside in different states, they all have a common residence.

"The road is our home," guitarist/singer Bryan Angel, a.k.a. Paul Stanley, said.

"We always say we're the coolest band in the world," Steve Clark, a.k.a. Peter Criss, said. "KISS bills themselves as the hottest."

Bassist Terry Thede, a.k.a. Gene Simmons, said the first time he ever saw KISS was a "mind-blowing" experience. He said he always loved their music, and believed the band members were the epitome of artists.

"It set my brain cells in motion. It inspired me. My mom always thought I was a demon and I had a long tongue, so I decided to put it to use," he said.

The band members said what sets them apart from other KISS tribute bands is detail -- making sure their costumes, music, vocals and performance is true to the original band's style.

Some of the members of the band's families have had to adjust to this unorthodox method of making a living.

"My folks had to deal with wall-to-wall KISS posters and me cranking up the music in the basement," lead guitarist Douglas Gary, a.k.a. Ace Frehley, said. "For my dad, it's a little weird. But it pays the bills, and we have decent morals."

The band members were also impressed by the number of fans they and the original KISS have that were born after the height of the band's popularity.

One of the new fans is seven-and-a-half-year-old Madison Smith.

"I was listening to 92.7, and it popped on. I started liking their music," she said.

Bill Wellman, 24, of Ashland, Ky., a longtime fan of the band, came in full Gene Simmons-style makeup. Jamie Shears, who has seen the real band live, did not know if his two sons, Alex, 8, and Joshua, 6, would ever get to see the real band live. Jamie, Alex and Joshua, along with Jamie's wife, Amy, all came in KISS T-shirts and the children wore full makeup.

And what does the real KISS think?

"KISS likes a good tribute out there," Thede said. "They're flattered. It keeps the energy alive."