For the generation that grew up in the 1970s with KISS an integral part of America’s cultural and musical landscape, it is hard to imagine that their rise to fame was as improbable then as for any rock group in seven-inch platform heels and kabuki-style make-up during any decade.
Nothing to Lose: The Making of KISS is told as a series of interview excerpts that follow the band from Gene Simmons’s and Paul Stanley’s first meeting in a mutual friend’s Manhattan flat to the unprecedented success of the double-platinum album Alive! in early 1976.
It reveals how four guys with more entrepreneurial spirit, work ethic and rock ‘n’ roll passion than musical ability changed perceptions across America and raised the standard of showmanship for acts worldwide. Their determination and perseverance had them outshining even the bands they were opening for with outrageous costumes, special effects, theatrics and catchy songs. “It was all about enjoying yourself and being alive,” says Simmons.
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