Kiss
One of the many acts covered are Kiss, who are perhaps even better known for their iconic make up. Here’s the start of that story.It didn’t take long for the band to implement gimmicks to stand out among the scores of other hard rock bands in New York. Kiss began experimenting with new approaches: Gene Simmons began teaching himself how to breathe fire, while smoke machines and lasers became an integral part of the band’s show. But the most important development arrived shortly after their first gig at the Popcorn Club in Queens: the group started to wear stage makeup.
“At the same time that we were forming in New York, there was a very big glitter scene, where boys were basically acting like girls and putting on makeup,” Simmons told the fanzine Porkchops & Applesauce in 1996. “Y’know, all the skinny little guys, hairless boys. Well, we were more like football players; all of us were over 6 feet tall, and it just wasn’t convincing! The very first pictures we took when the band first got together, we looked like drag queens. But we knew we wanted to get outlandish.”
You can find out more of this story and read the whole article from FAR OUT Magazine here
