During a recent interview with Gibson TV’s The Collection, singer and guitarist Paul Stanley revealed that he stopped playing guitar after KISS’ final show in 2023.
Host Mark Agnesi asked Stanley how long it took after their last show for him to pick up his guitar again. “Really good question,” Stanley replied. “Last week, I was trying to figure out why I haven’t picked up a guitar.”
He continued: “I’ve played a couple of guitars in here, but really, I haven’t played much. And I couldn’t figure out why. Then I thought, if I started playing, I was afraid that I would miss playing with the band and doing what we do.”
“That’s my DNA. I just needed to back away for a bit. It’s 50 years with KISS. That’s pretty phenomenal. To cut it off, at least in terms of being a live band, takes some acclimating to and adjusting to. So I needed a little time just to sit back and get my bearings,” Stanley explained.
KISS’ final show took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City on December 2, 2023. After their farewell tour, Stanley admitted to feeling a bit lost.
“There’s no way to give that up and not feel a sense of, if not lost, kind of disoriented,” he stated during an appearance on “Rock of Nations with Dave Kinchen & Shane McEachern” last month. “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. 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 is forever — but me up there, that’s done,” he added.
The KISS avatars show was announced during the band’s final concert, with Gene Simmons later revealing on social media that the virtual band will make its debut in 2027.
