Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to John Carlazzo. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

John, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your creative career sooner or later?

Although I’ve played guitar for about 45 yrs, not all those years was I a serious student. Also, I came to the tribute world late which has been somewhat of a curse and a blessing. The downside of starting later is that I only have a few more years, realistically, where I can dance around onstage wearing high heeled boots, makeup and spandex. The upside is that since my kids are grown I now have the time to do this.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Although I’ve been a KISS fan since I was 13, I never considered the tribute thing until about 15yrs ago when I answered a Craigslist post for a non makeup, non costumed music only tribute to KISS. Since I was fan and since I was still married with a family and “real job” I figured it’d be a fun thing to be involved with, especially since I didn’t have to squeeze into some spandex and go shirtless onstage. Long story short, I got the Paul Stanley slot, we started doing gigs and after about 6 months of shows where everyone said we should put on the makeup, we decided to go all out with a makeup-costume show. There are lots of KISS tribs out there and I’ve always aspired to be the one of the best and after about 10 yrs or so I feel confident to say that we’re definitely in the top of what’s out there. I am now the only member left from our original 4 and I’m proud of where I’ve been able to take us. Each of us are huge fans and take our craft seriously (ourselves…not so much). It’s not just about the investment in the correct instruments, amps, FX and the like. We do everything we can to look and sound the part, including diet and exercise. It’s not easy for guys our age to try and look like 25 yr old rockstars. I think that’s what sets us apart for 98% of the other KISS tribs out there.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

When I was in cover bands, it was always fun seeing people enjoy the music we played. Playing 4 hour sets and getting home at 3 or 4am wasn’t so much fun, but overall I loved it. Now, with this band, it’s the good parts of that, but so much more. It really hit me about 7 yrs ago or so when these 2 “older” guys came up to me after the show (we ALWAYS do meet and greets after). They both had long ponytailed hair with more salt than pepper and both were visibly emotional. The more talkative of the 2 said to me something very close to” I want to thank you guys so much for tonight. We saw KISS back in the mid 70’s and for the last 2 hours you guys brought us back there to when we were teens. We forgot our problems and time traveled back to when we didn’t have as many problems. We can’t thank you enough” It really hit the band hard to realize that while what we do may seem silly and frivolous to some, it does have meaning to the people who spend their time and money to come see us. THAT is who we play for. We’ve never forgotten that.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Naturally, starting out, we played local bars for not that much money, and rightly so I think. We were a good tribute, just not a great one. We didn’t have an investor or rich friends/family who would bankroll this up and coming circus act. We did, and still do to a certain extent, operate close to the bone and i’m exceedingly proud of where I’ve taken this talented group of guys. Our biggest crowd to date was around 6000. I’d love to see us play even larger crowds and get into the convention market. That’s been my goal for the last 5 years. So, if anyone reading this knows anyone…..lol

Contact Info:

• Website: www.KissAliveTheTribute.com
• Instagram: KISS.ALIVE.TRIBUTE.BAND
• Facebook: www.Facebook.com/KATTbandrocks