By Dan Lorenzo

Dan Lorenzo: You went to high school for music and art, why did you wait so long to start doing something with your artwork?

Paul Stanley: Well, I’ve always been involved in different forms of art. Really what happened was, I kind of soured on art because I enjoy doing things of my own volition; you know, my own decision. When people are telling me what they expect, and what their deadlines are… structuring too much takes the fun out of it. I don’t mind working seven days a week, but it has to be my own decision. I don’t like to work up to other people’s ideas or expectations, so I kind of veered away from art. It sounds very good that I went to the High School of Music and Art, but I actually failed art.

Dan: Really? In the book ‘Behind The Mask” it said you got a 99 in music in art while at school.
Yeah... Maybe 99 out of 1,000. It sounds good (laughs). Not to negate my ability, I just didn’t enjoy the mentality.

So are you a late bloomer as far as art is concerned?
Well, it depends on when you’re planning on bringing the curtain down. I’m not a late bloomer; life is for discovering opportunities up until the end. My intention is to be around for quite a while.

Right now, do you have more confidence as a songwriter or as an artist?
Confidence has to do with living up to what other people expect of me — or what I expect of me. I have total confidence in myself. Whether or not anyone else likes what I do has never been important. That’s probably what got me where I am. My belief has always been if I please myself, I’ll probably find somebody else that’s pleased. I don’t do things to get a compliment from somebody else; it has to originate with me. Am I confident? Yeah, I’m confident that I can please myself.

Who are your favorite artists?
There are so many. The world is full of amazing art. Whether you go back to the Michelangelo’s and the DaVinci’s or Monet and Picasso, you can literally pick up Art News magazine and see enough great art that you’ll probably never see in a museum. There is no shortage of great art. I love Picasso, I love the fact that he loved art, loved his life, loved women and created constantly. His art is meaningful on many different levels.

So you can get into a Dali as much as a Botticelli or Caravagio?
Sure! I think art is like music. There are only two kinds —good and bad.

So when on tour do you go to museums?
I don’t usually do it; I tend to rest when we’re not doing shows. I kill myself on stage for two and a half hours. So running around all day going to museums is something I’d rather do when I’m not on tour.

How many works of art are on display at your exhibits?
Everything is there, whether it’s an original or a giclee. What they are is a high res scan, which is virtually indistinguishable from the original. I’d love to see everybody have art whether they have a trailer or an estate.

Do you work on your art while you’re on tour with Kiss?
I wouldn’t want to. I don’t play guitar when I paint, and I wouldn’t want to paint when I’m playing the guitar.

Could you and Gene still write songs like the early Kiss albums?
That’s a great question. I think we could write something similar, the thing is, music is more than the notes and the words. Music often becomes the soundtrack to your life. What makes those early songs so meaningful for many people is that they can remember what was going on in their lives when those songs were being played. No matter what I write today, as good as it’s going to be, it doesn’t have that impact. Arguably, I think “Psycho Circus” as a song is as good as anything I’ve written and yet I understand that people would rather hear “Detroit Rock City.”

When was the last time you listened to a Kiss CD in your car and which one was it?
I have a compilation CD of basically everything. It’s fun to listen to; I listen to it kinda like you look at old snap shots.

What album has the most songs on that compilation?
Interesting...umm, if you go in terms of songs from one album, probably Destroyer.

Were you ever into the heavier bands like Metallica and Slayer, or can’t you appreciate that kind of music?
I can appreciate that other people appreciate it. I don’t put Metallica and Slayer in the same breath. I think Metallica has at times really straddled the line of commerciality and what they originally came from, where as a lot of other bands of that genre have stayed pretty narrow in their scope.
No, it’s not my thing. It’s not a value judgment. It’s like food is the same as music — whether I like it or not is not the determining factor if it’s good or bad.

This interview by Dan Lorenzo originally appeared in New Jersey’s Steppin’ Out. It is reprinted here with written permission