When I was 20 years old Gene Simmons called me at my house. OK, it was actually my grandparents’ house (I was living there during college) and it was KISS‘ tour manager Tommy Thayer who called, with Gene next to him. “Hi Cyrus, this is Tommy Thayer, KISS’ tour manager. I also have Gene here…
When I first started my fanzine, I looked forward to the fun part: Writing stories about KISS for KISS fans. I dove into it head first, not thinking about what else might be involved. The Washington State KISS Konnection was published on a quarterly basis and had paid subscribers. I didn’t make any money off…
When I was in high school, my life was KISS. Sure, I had friends and family, but those people were victims of my endless rants about how KISS was the greatest-damn-band-in-the-world and why-they-should-be-listening-to-them. On Halloween I’d go to school in KISS make-up. If there was a talent show at school, I’d appear in KISS make-up…
When I was 16, I thumbed (actually fingered, but that sounds wrong, so I’ll stick with thumbed) through my Aunt Jackie’s collection of Stones, ZZ Top, and Average White Band LPs to discover an album of mystery. I pulled it out of the mix. The album artwork was unique and beautiful. It was designed to look…
Cyrus Aman 