KISS may have hung up their platform boots for good, but the drama never dies. After a legendary career spanning over 50 years, Paul Stanley is finally setting the record straight on his former bandmates. Ace Frehley and Peter Criss played a crucial role in making KISS what it became—but according to Paul, they also took more than they gave.
Paul Stanley recently sat down for a candid interview where he reflected on the band’s incredible journey. And while he had plenty of gratitude for the past, he also made one thing clear—there were problems along the way, and some of those problems had names.
When people think of the classic KISS lineup, they think of Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, and Peter Criss. The original four. The ones who turned a club band into a worldwide sensation. But according to Paul, while Ace and Peter were crucial to KISS’s success, they were also a major liability.
During his recent interview, Paul didn’t shy away from speaking about the tension that always existed within the band. He acknowledged that both Frehley and Criss were essential in launching KISS to superstardom, but he also suggested that they were holding the band back rather than helping it grow.”
Speaking to Mark Goodman and Alan Light, of the “Sound Up!” podcast, Stanley said:
“I don’t see a lot of negativity. People talk about the glass half empty or half full. I see it overflowing. I mean, I don’t have any negative memories because everything that happens both happens for a reason and is part of the end result.”
“So, if you’re living with bitterness or anger, it means you haven’t gotten past it. And I have nothing but good things to say about everybody who’s been in the band. And we couldn’t have made it without all of them.”
“Everybody contributed something, and certainly Ace [Frehley] and Peter [Criss], above everyone else, are the foundation of this. So, whatever spats there have been, or whatever bickering, I put it in perspective. If you win the lottery, you don’t complain about taxes.”
