Paul Stanley Says He Was ‘Miserable’ on KISS’ 2000 Farewell Tour: ‘No Sense of Camaraderie or Joy’

Paul Stanley did not want to rock ‘n’ roll all night during the KISS Farewell Tour.

During the June 11 episode of The Magnificent Others with Bill Corgan, the KISS guitarist reveals what was going through his head during the 2000-2001 tour that was meant to be their farewell tour. (The band wound up reuniting for the End of the Road World Tour in 2019.)

“I’m going, ‘I am miserable I’m really miserable,’ ” Stanley, 73, recalled thinking while on the road. “The music was erratic at best. Some nights [were] awful, there was no sense of camaraderie or joy in what we were doing.”

He also mentioned that bad reviews don’t bother him, but when Stanley agrees with them, that’s an issue.

“It’s different when you go, ‘They have their heads up their asses’ or they want to attack what you’re doing, but when you read things and go, ‘This is right and I’m really unhappy.'”

“So it really felt like let’s put the horse down, let’s just shoot it. It went against everything that we had always believed and that’s that the band is bigger than us.”

Stanley notes that KISS — whose original lineup was comprised of him, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley and Peter Criss — had survived fans wanting something different from them along with people interfering with “different agendas.”

“So, why would this be any different, right? But we felt like okay, we’re back in the personas and the iconic look that we created and now we have to put this to bed.”

Following the Farewell Tour, Stanley said that he was at the car wash when someone approached to say they really liked the show and asked if KISS was coming back for a 35th anniversary tour. This took him by surprise. “You still want us?” he recalled asking the fan.

He also clarified that none of the fans wanted them to put away their platform boots, leather outfits and dramatic makeup. “We were only gone ’cause we decided to be gone. Nobody wanted us gone.”

Years after the 2000 tour, Stanley told Billboard about the band’s future in 2018 ahead of their second “farewell tour.”

“The thought of me not being involved certainly comes to mind,” Stanley said at the time. “I’m not sure about the idea of KISS coming to an end. We’ve built something that’s so iconic, and I think it transcends any of the members so I can certainly see me not being there, seriously.”

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He also mentioned not wanting to “leave home.” “I have a family and I have children and, honestly, I think my primary responsibility is to be a dad, and I don’t want to miss out on that. And certainly, as we got older, we know that life is finite and I pick and choose what I want to do at this point.”

KISS embarked on their End of the Road World Tour in 2019 and postponed their live performances amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The band previously performed their “final show” in late 2023 at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

Up next for KISS is three shows in Las Vegas this November.

Source People.com