An Aerosmith vs. KISS battle erupted recently when Steven Tyler slammed the New York rockers in a recent interview.
"KISS is a comic-book rock band,” Tyler told 102.5 The Bone in Tampa Bay, Florida. “They've got a couple of hits, but they're more, they're comic book — you see them in their spackled faces."
Read more of Tyler’s comments here.
KISS frontman Paul Stanley responded to Tyler’s comments on Rockline, telling host Bob Coburn, "When [the new Aerosmith] album comes out, let's put [it side by side with ours and] let the music do the talking. Steven may have been overenthused and needs a reality check."
Now, Aerosmith bassist Tom Hamilton has weighed in on the battle, telling Pure Grain Audio, “It’s funny. I don’t know where that came from. I guess he just happened to say something in the course of an interview and it got blown up.”
“Well, there’s some entertainment value there... Rivalry. Any story with good conflict in it is interesting,” continued Hamilton. “We used to tour with them in the '70s. Actually, we didn't really do that many tours together. We did some shows together and then we parted ways because we had made it and then they made it. So, they were out on their own. There was a rivalry and I remember the dressing room talk about the opening act and what they wear, what they look like and what they do, but over the years I've come to have more respect for KISS through fans that I know.”
“They have very very loyal fans and as far as Steven’s comment in a way their origins are... If you talk to Gene Simmons, he might even agree with it,” added Tom. “He was a huge comic book fan like most of us were in our early days... Some of us made a separation between that and what we did musically, but he wanted to live that out with his band and it’s pretty cool. When I want to listen to music, I go back to my Beatles, Stones, Zeppelin and Dire Straits. I don’t think I necessarily listen to KISS that often, but I love that song of theirs "I Want To Rock And Roll All Nite And Party Every Day." It’s just really accurate in describing what teenage males want.”
Read a full interview with Hamilton at Pure Grain Audio here.
Aerosmith will release their new album, "Music From Another Dimension," on November 6; KISS recently issued their 20th studio album, “Monster.”
KISS See also:
VIDEO: KISS answer fan questions at SiriusXM Town Hall
KISS: Peter Criss responds to comments by Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler