“I don’t do that”: the difference between Kiss and AC/DC
A battle of the bands’ competition seems like it’s something resigned to school talent shows, but maybe it might also just work in the big league. It would be an amazing sight: massive rock stars being pitted against each other and truly having to sing – or play – for their supper. The lineup for such an occasion would inevitably cause a bit of a stir – but Gene Simmons from Kiss would be straight there, determined to put the world to rights.
His imagined appeal for an event like a battle of the bands only comes from his own making, having spent a lifetime spouting outlandish statements and, more recently, comparing the characters of his rock compatriots to his own work. For anyone else, this may seem like shaky ground to tread, but from experience, do we ever think Simmons has shied away from voicing how he really feels?
Overall, the rock scene of the 1970s and ‘80s was dominated by a few seismic bands – Kiss, of course, alongside the likes of Iron Maiden, Metallica, and AC/DC. But it was on the point of the latter outfit that Simmons recently decided to wax lyrical about the areas that set his group and the Australian rockers apart, and his thoughts may be more surprising than you think.
Speaking of Kiss’ ethos compared to the others, Simmons said in an interview with Ultimate Guitar: “I could argue the AC/DC or Metallica idea, which is, you stay true to your DNA. Well, it’s an argument that works well for them. And Iron Maiden.”
The frontman continued: “We didn’t have a choice because we gave in. There were those first records that had, you know, sort of Chuck Berry crossed with this and that: a little Beatles, a little Motown, a little this, a little that. Whatever that thing was, the identity, the fingerprint, was diluted as members within the band started to veer from the band. There are other bands that have stayed true to who they are and have survived and become bigger. By the way, I don’t do that. I go, ‘That’s their journey. This is ours.'”
It demonstrates a rare glimpse of humility from Simmons in acknowledging that Kiss’ decision to eschew expectations may not have always been a gamble that paid off. Ultimately, however, he said, “I prefer to make dollars. The only thing I care about is a brand new five-year-old who experiences Kiss or the imagery, even if it’s not the music, just somehow gets seduced and beguiled by that.” That good old sense of capitalist gain is clearly never far from his heart. Between eye-watering fan experiences and their striking, copiable looks, Kiss definitely had the ability to draw crowds in on a commercial appeal down to fine art.
This may be arguably less so for the range of other bands Simmons compared himself to, perhaps indirectly highlighting their longstanding sonic class as being of a more refined taste than Kiss. Nevertheless, that’s not to say that the battle of the bands’ competition wouldn’t put on a show – but Simmons would totally be charging his money’s worth to let the audiences in first.
