When Bruce Dickinson joined Iron Maiden in 1981 as Paul Di’Anno’s replacement, the band already had some theatrical elements in their shows, the main one being, of course, their mascot Eddie the Head. As the years passed, the band incorporated more elements into their live performances, making the audience’s experience even richer.
They were not the first to do that, since similar ideas had already appeared in the 1960s with artists like Arthur Brown, who is one of Dickinson’s heroes. But it was in the 1970s that the American band Kiss took live-show theatrics to another level, creating an extraordinary experience for concertgoers. Over the decades, Bruce has given his opinion on many groups, including the one originally formed by Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, Peter Criss, and Paul Stanley.
What is Bruce Dickinson’s opinion on Kiss
Bruce Dickinson already praised Kiss’ early records but also criticized the bands during other eras. “Look at a band like Kiss, for example, when they had their make-up, what did you see on stage? Well, you didn’t see anything else but four Eddies. They didn’t look like musicians anymore, but like clowns. Nobody cared about their musical abilities because they were hidden by the image they were giving of themselves. It’s the same with Ozzy Osbourne, although Ozzy’s music is worth listening to it! Nobody considers Ozzy like a musician anymore, but like a clown, which is a shame. So, in order to have this character, this clown, and keep our identity as musicians at the same time, we created Eddie,” Bruce Dickinson told Enfer Magazine in 1983.
Although he didn’t say many good things about them previously, a couple of years later he praised the band and said he was happy that the original line-up was getting back together. He said that in an interview with Hit Parader magazine in 1996, when asked to review some music videos from other artists, including the unplugged version of Kiss’ Rock and Roll All Nite.
“I loved their early stuff. All the guys in my (solo) band are huge fans. In fact they did an entire sound check in South America as Kiss in full makeup. They spent all afternoon putting on Kiss make-up. We’re actually thinking about getting dressed up and doing a Kiss gig. I guess since I got a hairy chest I’d be Paul Stanley.”
Bruce Dickinson continued:
“I think it’s great that they are putting the gear and make-up back on. But this, I don’t think adds anything to it being unplugged, at least this particular tune. It basically sounds the same as the electric version. It would be a lot cooler if they had the full makeup on,” Bruce Dickinson said.
Curiously, Iron Maiden was Kiss’ opening act in the early 80s, but the band’s vocalist was still Paul Di’Anno. At the time, Gene Simmons was very impressed with the band and also with Eddie. He believed that their music and their mascot was a great combination to help them to achieve fame, calling it “the perfect trademark”. When Bruce Dickinson had a radio show at the BBC, he interviewed Simmons while Kiss was promoting their album “Sonic Boom” in 2010.
Former Bruce Dickinson bandmate was a big fan of Kiss and made him listen to their albums
Before replacing Paul Di’Anno in Iron Maiden in 1981, Bruce Dickinson was part of Samson. They did not have a mascot like Maiden, but they did have an unusual drummer known as Thunderstick. He wore various masks and even performed on stage inside a cage. His real name was Barry Graham, and he was a huge Kiss fan. Whenever the band members were at his house, he usually would make them listen to the records of the American band.
“Samson nearly always headlined at Heavy Metal Crusades, mainly because our management paid for the shows. And thus the world discovered Barry’s alter ego, Thunderstick. The key to the persona of Thunderstick was not just Barry’s adoration of Kiss, but also of bands like the Residents and Devo, strange bedfellows as far as image went.”
“Going round to Barry’s house was like being in a surreal suburban Kiss encounter group. The first realization was that the plywood units you were sitting on all contained old 12-inch guitar speakers, and were all connected to industrial-size amplifiers, which in turn were connected to the turntable, and on it, of course, was Kiss,” Bruce Dickinson said in his book “What Does This Button Do?”.
Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons refused to be interviewed by a man with Iron Maiden shirt
Back in 2012, when Kiss was touring in South America, a journalist went to interview them wearing an Iron Maiden shirt, but Gene and Paul demanded that he change into a Kiss shirt.
Paul Stanley said: “Kiss is spelled K-I-S-S, this does not spell Kiss , Gustavo. You made a big mistake.” Then Simmons said: “I don’t want him wearing an Iron Maiden shirt. We’ve got a Kiss T-shirt. How about if you were Iron Maiden and we wore Kiss t-shirts, is that okay?”
Then Stanley explained that they love Iron Maiden, but they can’t give interviews with people using other bands’ shirts. “We love Steve, we love Bruce, we love Nicko. We love them all. But you’re at a Kiss concert, it doesn’t show respect. You’re in our house,” he said.
Gene Simmons already praised Maiden and said it was unbelievable that they were still not inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. When Kiss was formed in New York City in 1973, Dickinson was only 15. By the time he joined Samson in 1979, they already were one of the biggest bands in the world. They have sold an estimated amount of more than 100 million records worldwide. It is a little less than Iron Maiden, which sold more than 130 million.