In a new interview with Metal Global, Hammerfall guitarist Oscar Dronjak shared his thoughts about using artificial intelligence music generators. When the topic switched to KISS’ decision to continue performing with avatars, the guitarist explained, “I see what you mean, and I agree with you with a band that I am not a super fan of, but a band that [I feel like] ‘I don’t care if it’s a real thing or not, I can go see it,’ then it would make sense,” he said of ABBA’s performances with holograms.
But when it comes to KISS, the rocker doesn’t seem to be interested. “But for KISS, absolutely no way. I’ve seen ’em a million times. That’s one of my favorite bands of all time, [it’s] been [one of my favorite bands] since I was a kid. I’m not interested in seeing an A.I. KISS or whatever the thing they’re planning — that doesn’t have any allure for me at all,” he added.
Both KISS fans and other rockers reacted negatively to the idea of the band continuing their legacy with avatars. Paul Stanley addressed the backlash and defended his band’s decision in an earlier interview. “One thing that’s interesting is people, I think, perhaps even understandably, got the wrong impression initially of the avatars. Because at the Garden shows, we wanted to give people a glimpse of some of the things, or one of the things, that’s to come.”
The KISS avatars were created by Industrial Light & Magic and funded and produced by the Swedish company Pophouse Entertainment. Pophouse Entertainment is also behind ABBA Voyage.
KISS will reportedly be the first American band to go completely virtual and put on an avatar show. The avatars will be used for live performances around the world as well as in online digital spaces. Some people refer to it as the metaverse.
The first digital avatar shows will start in 2027.