KISS

Drawing from the flamboyant stage antics of Alice Cooper alongside the gritty glam stylings of the New York Dolls, Kiss quickly became a teenage obsession across 1970s America. Young fans gravitated primarily toward the group’s striking visual presentation rather than its recorded output. Outfitted in wildly colorful costumes and theatrical face paint, the quartet delivered an immersive live spectacle complete with fog machines, explosive effects, dramatic illumination, blood effects, and pyrotechnics that fired the imaginations of countless youths. Yet the band’s sonic approach merits recognition as a potent blend of rousing, riff-driven hard rock anchored by crisp hooks, paired with power ballads fueled by heavy guitars, memorable choruses, and orchestral arrangements. That formula helped shape both the arena-rock template and the glossy pop-metal sound that ruled the late 1980s. In 1983 the musicians performed without makeup on the platinum-certified album of that title, only to restore the war paint a decade later. Since then these Rock & Roll Hall of Famers have sustained strong ticket sales while moving more than 75 million records globally, with key milestones on such landmark releases as Alive!, Destroyer, Rock and Roll Over, Love Gun, Dynasty, and Lick It Up.

Kiss originated from the vision of Gene Simmons on bass and vocals together with Paul Stanley on rhythm guitar and vocals, both veterans of the New York hard-rock outfit Wicked Lester. Simmons and Stanley recruited drummer Peter Criss after spotting his advertisement in Rolling Stone, and guitarist Ace Frehley answered a notice placed in The Village Voice. Even at their inaugural Manhattan performance in 1973 the act emphasized spectacle, prompting Flipside producer Bill Aucoin to extend a management contract immediately afterward. Just fourteen days later the band signed with Neil Bogart’s newly formed Casablanca label. Kiss issued its self-titled debut in February 1974, which reached number 87 on the U.S. album chart. By April 1975 the group had already delivered three full-length records while crisscrossing the country, steadily cultivating a devoted audience.

Assembled from those extensive road dates, Alive! arrived in autumn 1975 and propelled the quartet to rock superstardom, climbing into the Top Ten while its single “Rock ’N’ Roll All Nite” peaked at number 12. The next studio effort, Destroyer, appeared in March 1976 and became the band’s first platinum release; it also contained their initial Top Ten hit, Peter Criss’ ballad “Beth.” Kiss mania reached fever pitch as an avalanche of licensed products—pinball machines, cosmetics kits, masks, and board games—flooded stores, complemented by two Marvel comic books and the made-for-television film Kiss Meet the Phantom of the Park. A 1977 Gallup survey crowned Kiss the nation’s most popular group. The members avoided public appearances without makeup, and the Kiss Army fan club swelled into six figures.

Even that level of acclaim had boundaries, however, and the quartet tested them in October 1978 when each member issued a simultaneous solo album. Simmons’ record performed best, peaking at number 22, though all four efforts landed inside the Top 50. Dynasty, released in 1979, extended the platinum streak but marked the final studio outing with the original lineup, as Criss departed in 1980. Kiss Unmasked, issued that summer, relied on session drummer Anton Fig; Criss’ permanent successor Eric Carr joined in time for the ensuing world tour. The album became the first since Destroyer not to achieve platinum status, and 1981’s Music from the Elder—the initial project recorded with Carr—failed to reach gold and stalled at number 75. Ace Frehley exited after its release and was replaced by Vinnie Vincent in 1982. Vincent’s debut with the band, Creatures of the Night, improved on its predecessor yet still peaked at number 45.

Recognizing the need for reinvention, Kiss abandoned makeup for 1983’s Lick It Up. The resulting publicity restored commercial momentum, yielding the first platinum album in four years. Animalize, released the next year, matched that success and reaffirmed the group’s core audience. Vincent departed afterward; Mark St. John stepped in but soon left due to Reiter’s Syndrome. Bruce Kulick assumed lead-guitar duties in 1984. Throughout the remainder of the decade Kiss continued releasing strong-selling albums, highlighted by the early 1990 ballad “Forever,” their biggest single since “Beth.” Plans for a new project with longtime producer Bob Ezrin were interrupted when Eric Carr was diagnosed with cancer; he passed away in November 1991 at age 41. Eric Singer took his place, and the band recorded Revenge, a Top Ten gold-certified effort that ended a three-year studio hiatus. Alive III followed in 1993 and sold steadily, though it did not match the impact of earlier live releases.

In 1996 the classic lineup—Simmons, Stanley, Frehley, and Criss—reconvened for a worldwide tour that reinstated the signature makeup and elaborate stage production. The trek ranked among 1996’s biggest draws, and the reunited ensemble delivered Psycho Circus in 1998. While the supporting tour thrived, album sales fell short of expectations. Echoing the diffuse late-1970s era, few tracks featured all four original members performing together, with most supplemented by session players, as the focus appeared to shift once more toward merchandise rather than new music. Amid speculation that the Psycho Circus Tour might conclude their run, the quartet announced a U.S. farewell outing for summer 2000 that became one of the year’s top-grossing events. Shortly before scheduled dates in Japan and Australia in early 2001, Peter Criss exited again, reportedly over compensation issues. Eric Singer returned and, despite some fan controversy, wore Criss’ cat-man makeup, which Simmons and Stanley controlled through ownership of the designs.

With the band ostensibly retiring by late 2001, an expansive career retrospective box set was prepared, while summer 2001 brought perhaps the most extravagant item yet: the “Kiss Kasket,” a $4,000 coffin available to devoted followers. The group remained largely inactive for the balance of the year, but 2002 opened dramatically when Gene Simmons gave a provocative NPR interview promoting his autobiography; he criticized the network and made suggestive remarks to host Terry Gross. The book itself sparked tension within the Kiss camp over pointed comments about Ace Frehley. Frehley declined to appear at an American Bandstand anniversary broadcast, so wig-wearing Tommy Thayer filled in, a move Simmons quickly labeled another profit-driven decision. The band continued global touring without fresh material until 2008, when members reentered the studio, re-recorded signature songs, and issued Jigoku-Retsuden, also known as KISSology or Kiss Klassics, initially available only in Japan.

During spring 2009 the musicians began work on their first studio album in eleven years, resulting in Sonic Boom, released that October. Produced by Paul Stanley and Greg Collins, the record was sold exclusively through Wal-Mart in North America. In 2012 the twentieth studio album, Monster, arrived, reviving the cowbell-laden party rock of the 1970s while nodding to the darker metal edge of 1992’s Revenge. After fifteen years of eligibility, Kiss entered the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. The following year the band issued a collaborative single with Japanese idol outfit Momoiro Clover Z. In 2017 the single-disc compilation Kissworld appeared alongside the launch of a similarly titled world tour. Later retitled the “End of the Road” tour, the trek continued without interruption into 2021.