PAUL STANLEY SAYS Kiss EARNED THE RIGHT TO ‘EVOLVE’ WITHOUT HIM 

Paul Stanley Says Kiss Earned the Right to ‘Evolve’ Without Him

Paul Stanley said that Kiss have earned the right to “evolve” without his presence, or any other original members, for that matter.

It’s a continuation of a theme he’s been discussing for some time, having previously said he wanted to spend more time with his family than touring allowed.

“I see the indelible bootprint that we've made, and KISS DNA is in every live band's show out there,” he told PureGrainAudio in a new interview. “We've also raised the standard of what audiences expect and will tolerate from performers. That's incredibly rewarding. And to have other bands and musicians say, 'Gee, without you, there'd be no me' is great. I think that that's validation to a point that says that this band should continue with or without me.

"When a band or anything, a team, lasts 40 years, 50 years, the only way for it to continue is to evolve," he added. "That means in terms of personnel – otherwise, it's impossible. There are bands touring at this point with one or no original members and I have no problem with that, because it didn't happen overnight. It was a series of changes over years or decades. If someone were to say, 'Well, there's no original members in one of the versions of Yes,’ I’d say, 'Who cares?' It sounds like Yes and the pedigree is Yes, so is it Yes? Yes!”

Stanley and Gene Simmons are the only remaining original members of Kiss, although Ace Frehley and Peter Criss retain certain connections with the band. “I think that Kiss is a concept, it's an ideal,” Stanley said. “It’s a way of performing and giving to an audience, and that goes far beyond me. I’m a big fan of mine – I think I'm really good at what I do – but it doesn't mean there's not somebody else out there who can bring something to the band.”

Repeating his previous assertion that his theoretical replacement wouldn’t be a “clone” of him, Stanley noted, “I was influenced by a lot of people, so there's people out there who are influenced by me."

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