PAUL STANLEY Doesn't Rule Out One-Off KISS Concert In The Future: 'Anything's Possible'

In a new interview with Michael Christopher of Daily Times, KISS frontman Paul Stanley, whose band completed the "End Of The Road" farewell tour last December, said that he isn't opposed to the idea of doing a one-off KISS show, be it on a Kiss Kruise or even just getting together with his old bandmates for a few songs.

"Anything's possible," Paul said. "KISS is so far from over, though KISS as we know it is done. But having our hands and our ideas and our fingers in what KISS continues as makes all the sense in the world. So, I look forward to whatever comes next without knowing what comes next. But I'm open to it all."

Stanley previously touched upon the possibility of KISS playing a one-off show in a January 2023 interview with Yahoo! entertainment music editor Lyndsey Parker. Asked whether the last concert of KISS's "End Of The Road" tour would truly mark the band's final performance or if there was a chance of one-off shows or a Las Vegas residency in the future, Stanley said: "I really can't say. But it is the last of any kind of regular shows or touring.

"It's just time," he explained. "And in the same way, it's time consuming. And physically, it's grueling to do what we do. Hell, if I could go out on stage in my jeans and a t-shirt, give us another 10, 15 years easily. But what we do is a whole different sport. I mean, we're athletes; we're running around on stage with 30, 40, pounds of gear, and it's not possible to do it that much longer. So we're not like other bands.

"So, will we do more shows or one-offs? I really have no idea," Paul admitted. "But this is a real clear mindset that the touring days and doing those kind of shows, that's over."

KISS's most recent lineup consisted of original members Stanley and bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons, alongside later band additions, guitarist Tommy Thayer (since 2002) and drummer Eric Singer (on and off since 1991).

Formed in 1973 by Stanley, Simmons, Peter Criss and Ace Frehley, KISS staged its first "farewell" tour in 2000, the last to feature the group's original lineup.

Earlier in the month, Paul was asked by "Rock Of Nations With Dave Kinchen And Shane McEachern" if it has been "an adjustment" not going back out on tour after the completion of the "End Of The Road" trek. He said: "I was gonna use the word 'adjustment'. There's no way to give that up and not feel a sense of, if not lost, kind of disoriented.

"It was time [for KISS to stop touring], and intellectually it made sense, but that doesn't mean that emotionally, it doesn't play a part in it," he continued. "So, yeah, being home, as I am right now, is normal. What's not normal is I'm not going back out.

"KISS remains. We're so involved in what's going on now and the future and this phenomenal, mind-boggling KISS avatar show. But, yeah, to not be up there — I see video from 10 months ago, 11 months ago, and it almost seems like a lifetime ago, because I've kind of come to grips with not doing that again… Star Child [Paul's stage character] is forever — but me up there, that's done."

Stanley also talked about the prospect of stepping down from the stage and not performing in front of an audience ever again, especially as aging affects the singing voice in various ways, including changes in pitch, volume and clarity. He said: "I would be lying to say that I'm the singer I was 20 years ago, 30 years ago. 50 years ago? Of course not. No prize fighter is the fighter that they were, no basketball player.

"I think that we've all earned the right, and always have the right, to decide what we do and for how long," he continued. "An audience has a right to stop coming. But the rest is up to the individual.

"It's always interesting when I hear someone say, 'Oh, I wish so-and-so would retire from sports or from entertainment because I wanna remember them the way they were.' Well, if you wanna do that, stop watching. But to impose that will, it's ludicrous.

"I'm good friends with singers who certainly have gone through similar things where you come to grips with what you still are and what you're not, and then you either find a way to make it work or at some point you say it's time to let go," Paul added.

The technology being used for the KISS avatars, originally developed for ABBA's "Voyage" show in London, will allow KISS to stay "on the road" in retirement.

The KISS avatars were created by Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) and were financed and produced by the Swedish company Pophouse Entertainment, which is behind "ABBA Voyage".

Using cutting-edge technology, Pophouse Entertainment Group, which was founded by ABBA's Björn Ulvaeus, will create digital versions of KISS. The project was previewed at the final KISS concert in New York in December 2023.

KISS recently sold its entire music catalog, likeness and brand name to Pophouse. While terms of the deal were not officially announced, Bloomberg and Associated Press said it was worth upwards of $300 million.