The history of KISS—its KISStory, if you will—is filled with in-fighting and back-biting, enough to fill memoirs by all of the original members. (Singer-guitarist Paul Stanley is a little late to the party—his comes out in April.) So it should come as no surprise that the original four can’t put aside their differences long enough to slap on some makeup and play three songs on April 10, when they’re inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. If you read between the lines of various interviews given over the past couple of weeks, it seems as if Stanley and bassist Gene Simmons—who continue to milk the KISS brand for all its worth—wanted to include various members who’ve been part of the band in the years after drummer Peter Criss and guitarist Ace Frehley left, or were kicked out, or rejoined, or whatever the hell happened. Frehley claimed in a recent radio interview that the Hall Of Fame was excited to have the original quartet perform, with makeup, but that Simmons and Stanley weren’t having it. A couple of days later, Stanley decided that no incarnation would perform, and that he would show up to simply accept the honor—even though he’s kind of pissed that KISS wasn’t inducted long ago. When asked by Classic Rock magazine whether it was an honor to be inducted, Stanley said no, adding that “Their attitude is elitist and doesn’t reflect the public.” Assuming all four original members take the stage to accept the non-honor together, expect some of that wonderful Hall Of Fame discomfort. [h/t to Blabbermouth]
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