KISS THIS
First of all, it’s been a long time since you’ve been to Europe. The last time you were here, was it ’76?
PETER CRISS
Yeah, it was ’76. It has been a long time. But you know it’s funny, not many things change. I haven’t changed much. I see that a lot of the…I see Copenhagen’s changed a lot. I see Amsterdam’s changed a lot. It was different then like this whole red light district you guys got. It was more laid back then. It was much cooler. It was more subdued. It was much more classier. There wasn’t pornography bookstores and all that bullshit. It was much nicer but as far as being back here it’s nice to be back. I got a brand new band, we’re startin’ to push a brand new record and this gave me a chance to see all you guys and you can see how healthy I am and how good I’m feelin’ and to push my new act.
KISS THIS
Is there any special reason you released your 5-track CD before releasing your album?
PETER CRISS
Ah, the 5, that was only released for the fans. That was only gonne be for the fanzines. That was sort of a thank you for bein’ with me all these years, you know, hangin’ out, bein’ a good fan. I love you guys. Here’s a record only you guys can have. It’ll be a special collectors’ edition. And it went over so well we sold 100,000 records and the record company went crazy and they signed me for three albums. I’m not gonna complain about that. Now we just finished the new album which is 11 tracks on it and it’s doin’ phenomenal. It’s doing really great back in the States. I’m getting all this major feedback of it’s doing this and doing that. I’m doing a major bunch of television shows when I go home so it’s really good. It’s a good feeling.
KISS THIS
Can you tell us about the make-up you put on for the 5-Track CD?
PETER CRISS
The make-up was supposedly half…[talking to sommeone who enters the roon]…I’m gonna throw you out I’m gonna stab you…[then, speaking again to the interviewer]…this is my security. Most security guards get killed before they leave me on the tour. I will kill this man before I leave him. I love him but you know, security’s crazy. What was the question? You see now he totally…
KISS THIS
About the make-up?
PETER CRISS
The make-up was to say this was KISS, this is me now. You know KISS took their make-up off which you know, that’s the way it went. It was time for me to take my make-up off although I felt kind of blessed that I left KISS with still my mask on. Cause I felt like I left with dignity but it was sort of sayin’ this is KISS this is the ‘70s, this was you know, baby don’t you let me down, it was all about that stuff and this is brand new. This is the new life. So that’s all it was.
KISS THIS
On your new album I see where you’ve thanked God. Are you a religious person?
PETER CRISS
I’m not really religious, what can I say? I’m spiritual. I’m very spiritual. I do believe in God absolutely. I do believe in God. I belive there’s a devil I belive in karma. I belive what goes around does come around. If you’re a bad dude and you treat people bad and you keep playin’ this game sooner or later you’re gonna get it. It’s gonna come around to you. So I belive that everything that goes around comes around. And I believe in fairness. I treat all my guys in my band even. Everybody gets fair…we call it a piece of the cake. And if you do that for an artist and you give him more ground he’ll create more for you. If you tell him what to play then he’s not an artist anymore. He’s just a worker. I see that a lot with KISS. I see Gene and Paul being the leaders and telling the other two what to do. I don’t do that with my guys I make it a real band. I think I always have. I always like to share. I don’t think it’s cool to ride it alone I think it’s cool to ride with other musicians, to share the music. It’s a gift, number one, to have music, to be able to play music. You know God didn’t just give me drums. He gave me a voice and writing ability that’s unbelievable. Not many drummers can sing like me or write like me so that’s it. So yeah, I’m very spiritual. I belive in a lot of ying and yang, you know, an eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth I wrote a song called The Truth about the civil war, about the Kennedy assassination. I wrote a thing called Strike about striking for your rights. You can wear leather You can be gay or straight. It don't’matter. You can just be what you are, that's’all that counts. I'v’ written a lot of political stuff for the new record that I never touched before. I'v’ never done that type of shit. But I'm’just tryin' to say that we’re sick and tired, the youth is sick and tried of bein’ dicked around, bein’ lied to by the government, bein’ told what to do. I’m just fed up with it. I’m really back for being a rebel again, you know fighting for colleges, fighting for the youth I think we’re not getting a fair share. I think the government’s a bunch a bullshit. So, I find myself again back with a rifle on and bandeleros and fighting for rock soldiers.
KISS THIS
Ace is a special guest on your album. On which tracks did he play?
PETER CRISS
He’s definitely on the single Bad attitude on Blue Moon Over brooklyn, my mom’s song, Down With The Sun and he’s on Strike. Ace, we made a bet. When I played on his last solo album I said if I play on yours you gotta play on mine so he did that. He came down, we had a great time. It was fun playin’ together again. It was fun being together. We had a lot of laughs. It was cool. Ace and I are still very good friends.
KISS THIS
Great! Back in your KISS days what was it like for you when KISS became a circus with all the merchandising and toys?
PETER CRISS
It really annoyed me. It was cool because of course, you know, where’s there’s merchandising there’s money, obviously I see that with these conventions. It’s not the money, belive me, they couldn’t pay me enough. I have plenty of money. I’m very comfortable. I have a nice beautiful house on the ocean. I just got engaged as a matter of fact two weeks ago to a Danish girl so things are really going great in my life. But I’m doin’ it to get in touch again with my fans, again to show them that I’m doin’ great. I want my band to come over and tour here and this and that but KISS conventions will keep KISS probably going forever and ever and ever and ever. It’s really obscene. I mean it’s crazy. People look up at us like we’re gods. It scares the shit outa me. But again, you know, I enjoy it. I’m havin’ a good time. It’s almost over. I’m looking forward to getting home actually. I miss home. I got a lot of work to do. But the KISS stuff, it’s KISS. I guess it’ll go on forever and ever and ever and I’m glad about that. That’s a compliment.
KISS THIS
What about your daughter. How’s she see her dad?
PETER CRISS
Well she never looked at me likeshe does now. Now she goes to a…now she’s 13 and I got her a beautiful private school but all the kids in school know who I am. She never really looked at it till now at this age. And it’s like everybody, oh your dad is Peter Criss, can we get a picture of him, can we meet him, can you bring him to school, oh he’s such a hunk and he’s so cute and stuff and my daughter’s freakin’ out cause like I’m dad. I’m always dad but lately she’s getting into it. She starting to dig it. She loves a lot of my music now. She’s finally into my music. She was really angry why we didn’t put The Cat on the 11 cause that’s one of her favorite songs. So my daughter’s very cool. My daughter’s very hip. I get my daughter every other weekend. My girl and her get along great. I raised her for 10 years, took off the business. My daughter and I are very close. But I told her she brings a musician home I’ll kick her ass. No musicians.
KISS THIS
Getting back to The Cat, what’s the reason for the nursery rhyme about Gene and Paul?
PETER CRISS
I was gonna do the original rhyme but when I got out there I was having such a good time and everything was going so great I just said oh screw it and it just came out. It just came out and everybody laughed and went hysterical so we did it as a joke. You know it was just done spur of the moment, joke, let’s have a good time, nothin’ bad. It was not a put down. I just saw them two weeks ago on a plane and we talked about it and they thought it was cool. They actually thought it was very cool.
KISS THIS
Why did it take so long for you to do an album after Let Me Rock You?
PETER CRISS
Well after Let Me Rock You I felt that I was really being shelved, as we say back in America. It’s like KISS said
Peter could do this, Peter could do that but God forbid Peter puts a band together and travels. That’s not cool. So they sort of stopped me at the border and it frustrated me so that I didn’t want anything to do with the business. I decided to travel the world. I’d read books, raise my daughter. I had a big beautiful mansion in Connecticut. I got a boat. I sailed. I just did everything I ever wanted to do. Then again I wanted to get back in the business the last whatever years since I moved to California in ’84. I felt it was time for me to make a noise again. But at that time I was very disgusted at the fact that I broke my ass so much to do such good albums. I think Let Me Rock You was a great album, and it got pushed aside. Nothing was done for it. Yet you have Vinnie Vincent on it and Gene Simmons wrote a song for me—there’s some great musicians on that whole album but it didn’t go anywhere so I thought fuck you, you’re not gonna push my music, I don’t want nothin’ to do with music again. But now after the CD-5, we also did 52 cities back in 92`and we sold all of them out without a record company, without a label, without a manager, just got a Silver eagle and took my guys out and we played 52 clubs, the same clubs KISS played, same exact venues and sold ‘em out (note from « BED » : Peter forgot the show in Quebec city, only 300 tickets was sold in a 1500 seat capacity place) without a label, without a manager, without nothing and that made me realize, men if I could do that if I get a label I got a kick ass band. And I got a label now so things are good.
KISS THIS
You told me before that you collect guns and you’ve been on the shooting range with Steven Segal, the actor.
PETER CRISS
Steven, he’s at the gun range. He’s a member and I’m a member so he’s there. There’s a lot of movie stars that shoot at the Beverly Hills gun club. But I shoot once a week, my girlfriend actually outshoots me, I hate it. She’s a better shot than I am. But it’s not that I collect them as much as I used to. Now I’m pretty happy, I got enough guns, Jesus Christ, we could have a terrorist war, I have so many guns, but I have my favorite guns now. I’m looking for a Buffalo rifle, you know, big big bullets and I just picked up an FBI CIA 14-clip Smith & Wesson 45 so I think I’m pretty cool (laughing).