In a new interview, Kiss guitarist Paul Stanley revealed the secret to the band's enduring success: creating emotional music.
"We don't make art that is intellectual, we make art that's emotional," Stanley told Gulf News. "That's why people remember their first Kiss concert, their first Kiss song, and they remember when Kiss first came on the radio. It's a powerful connection."
Stanley also said that Kiss has always been about giving their fans their money's worth: "We have never lost sight of the fact that without our fans, there's no Kiss," he said. "We wanted to be the band that gave everybody their money's worth."
"I always say this: 'a crappy band with a big show is a crappy band'," he explained. "We didn't start as a band with everything. We started as a band making music we listened to."
"When I was young, I saw Led Zeppelin, I saw Jimi Hendrix twice and I saw all the greats. They inspired me. And it was never about being a part of a band with make-up and fireworks … Our music doesn't need intellectualizing or philosophizing." Stanley added.
"I know there are entertainers right now who can draw bigger crowds, but I don't know if they are going to in the next 50 years. We have done that. Our devoted fan base is almost like a tribe."
When touching upon the band's End Of The Road tour that theoretically will see its final two concerts at New York this December, Stanley mused: "This time around, it's kind of like the victory lap at the Olympics. We are coming with our fists raised … We are going to bring this enormous show. This is our final tour and trust me, there won't be another. I know people often say: 'he will come back and we are actually not finished.' But this is it."
