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Category Archives: KISS News
KISS/Def Leppard Press Conference
KISS and Def Leppard announce summer tour
Chris Baker | Syracuse.com
It’s time to pour some sugar all night long and party every day.
KISS and Def Leppard announced today they will join forces this summer on the Heroes Tour. The 42-city North American tour includes two stops in Upstate New York.
The bands come to Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. on Tuesday, August 5. The tour also stops at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center in Darien Center, N.Y. on Wednesday, August 13.
Tickets for both shows go on sale Saturday, March 22 at 10 a.m. via Live Nation. Tickets for the Darien Lake show range from $32.50 to $149.50. Tickets at SPAC range from $29.50 to $149.50.
KISS will be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame this April, just prior to the tour. In an interview with the Associated Press last Friday, Paul Stanley of KISS voiced his displeasure with the Hall for only inducting the original lineup.
The joint tour marks the first time the two classic rock groups have shared a bill together.
Complete tour dates:
- 6/23 – USANA Amphitheater, West Valley City, Utah
- 6/25 – Pepsi Center, Denver, Colo.
- 6/27 – Sleep Country Amphitheater, Ridgefield, Wash.
- 6/29 – White River Amphitheatre, Auburn, Wash.
- 7/2 – Concord Pavilion, Concord, Calif.
- 7/3 – Sleep Train Amphitheatre, Wheatland, Calif.
- 7/5 – Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, Irvine, Calif.
- 7/6 – Sleep Train Amphitheatre, Chula Vista, Calif.
- 7/8 – The Forum, Los Angeles, Calif.
- Continue reading
KISS to Celebrate 40th Anniversary with Vinyl Reissues, Massive Box Set and Two-CD Compilation
KISSonline.com
KISS is set to mark its 40th anniversary and impending Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction with a variety of special releases, including a series of album reissues on high-quality vinyl, a two-CD compilation and a massive vinyl box set.
The LP reissue series will launch on April 1 with the arrival of remastered versions of 10 of the band’s albums on 180-gram heavyweight vinyl. Additional LPs will be released on May 6, May 27 and June 6. Among the reissues will be three albums that never have been available before on vinyl — 1997’sCarnival of Souls: The Final Sessions, 1998’s Psycho Circus and 2006’s Alive: The Millennium Concert, which previously was only available as part of the KISS Alive! 1975-2000 box set.
The double-CD retrospective, meanwhile, is titled KISS 40 and will hit stores sometime in May. The collection will feature 40 tracks, including one from ever major album the band put out. Among the songs are such classic hits as “Rock and Roll All Nite,” “Beth,” “Hard Luck Woman,” “Shout It Out Loud,” “Christine Sixteen” and “Lick It Up.” The compilation also offers four previously unreleased tunes, a 1977 demo version of “Reputation” and live renditions “Deuce” from 2004, “Cold Gin” from 2009 and “Crazy Crazy Nights” from 2010.
Watch ‘Destroyers’ in Kiss Masks Trash an Auto Lot
Kory Grow | Rolling Stone
A quartet of Kiss fans trashed 25 vehicles and caused more than $40,000 worth of damage in a New Jersey auto lot last week, according to NJ.com. Video of the vandals, found on Gothamist, show them wearing masks with vocalist-guitarist Paul Stanley’s (probably) trademarked stars over their right eyes as they spray-painted the hoods of vehicles and smashed windows with crowbars, fire extinguishers and a shovel. At one point, two of the Stanleys chest-bumped. Police believe the men are in their late teens or early 20s.
KISS guitarist, drummer join list of snubs by rock hall of fame
Mike Boehm | LA Times
Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of the rock band KISS have long cherished living in aggrieved opposition to critics who said they have failed to respect their heavy metal oeuvre, and the band’s impending induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame isn’t changing their tune.
Stanley recently complained to the Associated Press that KISS was being given short shrift by the rock hall because two members of the current four-man lineup, lead guitarist Eric Singer and drummer Tommy Thayer, aren’t going to be hall of famers, even though they “have been in the band for decades and played on multiplatinum albums and toured the world.”
Instead, original drummer Peter Criss and original lead guitarist Ace Frehley, who were part of KISS’ 1970s ascension to stardom but exited in the early 1980s, will be inducted along with perennial frontmen Simmons and Stanley.
PHOTOS: Iconic rock guitars and their owners
Stanley groused to the AP that “we have continuing issues with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, starting with the fact that they chose to induct the original lineup when that’s hardly the case with other bands.”
He cited as an example lyricist Robert Hunter’s inclusion when the Grateful Dead was inducted in 1994. To Stanley, Hunter is “a writer who never played an instrument.” Hunter, who wrote the lyrics for many of the Dead’s songs, especially those composed by Jerry Garcia, always was credited as a band member on the band’s album jackets.
The rock hall hasn’t been a model of consistency when it comes to non-original band members. In the case of the Grateful Dead, for example, its website lists four keyboard players among the inductees: original member Ron “Pigpen” McKernan and his successors, Keith Godchaux, Brent Mydland and Vince Welnick (of whom only Welnick, who died in 2006, lived to see the induction).
LA KISS win first game of inaugural season
PAUL STANLEY Talks About Writing His Memoir ‘Face The Music: A Life Exposed’ (Audio)
In the 10-minute audio clip above, KISS frontman Paul Stanley discusses the writing and narration of his memoir, “Face The Music: A Life Exposed”. This episode also includes an excerpt from the prologue.
“People say I was brave to write such a revealing book, but I wrote it because I needed to personally reflect on my own life,” Stanley said. “I know everyone will see themselves somewhere in this book, and where my story might take them is why I’m sharing it.”
Well known for his onstage persona, the “Starchild”, Paul Stanley has written a memoir with a gripping blend of personal revelations and gritty war stories about the highs and lows both inside and outside of KISS. Born with a condition called microtia (an ear deformity rendering him deaf on the right side), Stanley‘s traumatic childhood experiences produced an inner drive to succeed in the most unlikely of places: music. Taking readers through the series of events that led to the founding of KISS, the personal relationships that helped shape his life, and the turbulent dynamics among his bandmates over the past forty years, this book leaves no one unscathed — including Stanley himself.
Gene Simmons Once Had to Talk Eddie Van Halen Out of Joining Kiss
Miriam Coleman | Rolling Stone
Gene Simmons once had to talk Eddie Van Halen out of leaving his namesake band and joining up with Kiss, potentially altering the course of rock n’ roll history. In a recent interview withGuitar World, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee confirmed the rumor that around the time of Kiss’ 1982 album,Creatures of the Night, the virtuoso guitarist was “very serious” about making the change.
Kiss’ Long Road to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Photos
“He was so unhappy about how he and [David Lee] Roth were – or weren’t – getting along. He couldn’t stand him. And drugs were rampant,” Simmons said. According to the Kiss founder, Van Halen took him out to lunch at a diner across the street from New York’s record plant studio, with Vinnie Vincent (who ended up joining the band shortly afterwards) tagging along. “Eddie said, ‘I want to join Kiss. I don’t want to fight anymore with Roth. I’m sick and tired of it,'” Simmons recalled. “But I told him, ‘Eddie, there’s not enough room. You need to be in a band where you can direct the music. You’re not going to be happy in Kiss.’ I talked him out of it. It didn’t fit.”
Simmons also admits that he was going through his own identity issues with the band in the early Eighties, and that Paul Stanley was left to take on a lot of the heavy lifting in Kiss as Simmons pursued an acting career in Hollywood.
“It was starting to affect the band. It was not rock and roll,” he said, noting that former guitarist Ace Frehley was among the bandmates rightfully complaining about his extracurricular ambitions. “But maybe I just wanted to be appreciated outside of Kiss. My life in Kiss is like being a girl with huge tits. All anyone talks about is the makeup, or ‘Let me see your tongue.’ Sometimes you want to say, ‘Can’t you just focus your eyes up here so that we can have a conversation?'”
Gene Simmons Talks ‘CSI’ Cameo, Questions Rap’s Inclusion in the Rock Hall
Brian Ives | News Radio
He’s a football team co-owner, a restaurant chain co-owner, a reality show star, a comic book character, and — lest we forget — a member of the “Hottest Band in the World,” KISS. And tonight, Gene Simmons will add an extra line to his acting resume (who could forget his co-starring role with Tom Selleck in the 1984 film Runaway, or his cameos on shows from “Miami Vice” and “Millennium”?). He’ll be appearing on “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” as the CSIs investigate the murder of a rock and roll groupie and the disappearance of a prostitute.
We have questions for Gene, but should you have any questions, check out our FAQ on KISS.
Talk about your role on “CSI” tonight.
Gene Simmons: It was a role I was born to play. I was thrilled when they called and asked me to play “Gene Simmons.” Not the first time I’ve played myself: I did it on “Ugly Betty” and “Castle” and in the forthcomingEntourage movie. I’ve played other roles as well, this was kind of a hybrid. I play myself but I’m suspected of murder. If I told you more about the plot, I’d have to kill you.
In 2008, you published Ladies of the Night: A Historical and Personal Perspective on the Oldest Profession in the World, so you’re obviously familiar with the industry.
It was a researched book, I’m not a gentleman who paid for it. And, you’re right! I’m glad you asked me: KISS are being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. [Note: the interviewer had yet to get to that question] It’s a well meaning organization run by about ten guys. I don’t think that there are any women on the board, which is interesting. And these ten guys, some of them are good guys, some perhaps not, decided that there would be rappers and disco artists inducted. Our contemporaries, the Eagles, are in the Hall of Fame, and every single member that has been in the Eagles is inducted. And so when they offered the induction to us, we graciously said thank you. But then they said, “Only [founding members] Ace [Frehley], Paul [Stanley], Peter [Criss] and Gene get to be in.” So we said, “OK, thank you.” And so we called up [former members] Ace and Peter and said, “Congratulations, we’ll proudly stand alongside you, accept the award.”
70s KISS Podcast – episode 5: Bill Baker
Steve
70s Kiss Podcast | Bill Baker, Talks about his first experience being a 70s Kiss fan, Ace Frehley’s Guitar tech, friend as well as owning memorabilia.http://www.theacefrehleyarchive.com/
KISS and Def Leppard to Make “Major Announcement” on March 17
KISS and Def Leppard are calling a press conference for March 17 in Los Angeles to make a “major announcement.” Though there’s no official word, a source close to one of the bands tells ABC News Radio that KISS and Def Leppard are planning a summer co-headlining tour, set to kick off in late June and go through the very end of August.
Though it’s being billed as a co-headlining tour, the source tells ABC News Radio that KISS will be the closing band on all dates. There is speculation that the tour could extend internationally, but as of now only U.S. dates are set.
The press conference will stream live next Monday on Live Nation’s website.
KISS and Def Leppard have combined album sales of more than 200 million.
Copyright 2014 ABC News Radio
Sneak Peek – Rocker Gene Simmons Guests on Next CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION
On the next episode of CBS‘s CSI: Crime Scene Investigation titled ‘Long Road Home,’ the CSIs investigate the murder of a rock and roll groupie and the disappearance of a prostitute that both have ties to a mysterious band.
The episode airs Wednesday, March 12 (10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. KISS lead singer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Gene Simmons guest stars as himself. Get a sneak peek below!
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is a fast-paced drama about a team of forensic investigators trained to solve crimes by examining the evidence. They are on the case 24/7, scouring the scene, collecting irrefutable evidence and finding the missing pieces that will solve the mystery. D.B. Russell, the CSI supervisor for the grave shift, is a family man and scientist, but not a nerd. Son of hippie parents, he’s a left-coast Sherlock Holmes who devours crime novels and looks at every crime scene as if it were a story waiting to be told.
The team’s other members include CSI Julie Finlay, a blood spatter expert who always speaks her mind, regardless of the consequences; Nick Stokes, the conscience of the team, often driven by his emotional connection to the victim to always get the job done; Sara Sidle, aka “Mrs. Grissom,” relentless in her pursuit of criminals and the moral compass of the team; Greg Sanders, once an off-beat tech analyst and now an experienced and intuitive crime solver; and Morgan Brody, an exile from the Los Angeles Crime Lab and the daughter of Undersheriff Ecklie. She’s a natural-born investigator who still has a lot to learn about politics and family.
AFL’s LA KISS unveils helmets that are football’s version of the reverse mullet (photos)
The LA KISS of the AFL has unveiled their helmets and they are unlike anything we’ve seen before.
Call them football headgear’s version of the reverse mullet: Party in the front (full-frontal flames, visors and facemasks included) and business in the back (sleek chrome).
Hydro Graphics Inc. of Newberg, a company that’s made a niche for itself with the Oregon Ducks’ liquid metal helmets and branched out from there, did the work.
The KISS play in the same league as the Portland Thunder, and they meet in Los Angeles on April 5 and June 14. They play in Portland on July 12.
What do you think of the KISS’ look? Let us know in the comments.
Any bets on whether this song by KISS — the team is owned by band members Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons — figures prominently in the team’s game day productions?
Three Sides of the Coin episode 66 – Mitch Lafon leaves the show
Michael Brandvold
Paul Stanley Q&A: Kiss Frontman On ‘Destructive’ Childhood, New Book and Why the Rock Hall Is Like a ‘Distorted Bar Mitzvah’
Gary Graff | Billboard
In April, Stanley embarks on a book tour for his memoir “Face the Music: A Life Exposed”… The rocker talks why he finally put his life on paper, the inaccuracies of Gene Simmons’ own book, and what actually went down with the Rock Hall of Fame
Few bands know how to celebrate better than Kiss; it coined the concept “rock and roll all night and party every day,” after all. And this is a time of celebration for the group, with this year marking the 40th anniversary of its first two albums, the launch of the Arena Football League’s L.A. Kiss and its upcoming Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (though not without drama; read on) on April 10 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Best of all for frontman Paul Stanley is the April 8 publication of his autobiography “Face the Music: A Life Exposed,” a revealing memoir in which he writes frankly about the travails of his youth and the triumphs and tribulations of both Kiss and his personal life.
Stanley lights out on a six-city book tour that begins April 7 at the Tribeca Barnes & Noble in New York with subsequent stops at the Barnes & Noble in Staten Island (April 8); Bookends in Ridgewood, N.J. (April 9); Barnes & Noble at The Grove in Los Angeles (April 16); Warwick’s in La Jolla, Calif. (April 17); and the San Francisco Jewish Community Center on April 25.
With all that going on, it’s not surprising our conversation with the Starman was wide-ranging and characteristically forthright.
You’re the last of the original Kiss members with a book of your own. Just a slacker?
It really had nothing to do with the band as far as being first, last, middle. It wasn’t with any of that in mind. The truth of the matter is I had sworn for, literally, decades not to write an autobiography. I always go back to George Orwell, who said the autobiography is the most outrageous form of fiction. And I would say 90-plus, 95 percent of the autobiographies by any of my contemporaries would be better suited on a roll of soft paper, so at least you could use it for something, ’cause they’re nothing more than self-serving fantasies or delusions or love letters to themselves. They serve no purpose. What I finally came to grips with was the idea that my life could be inspiring to other people… and almost more importantly I wanted something that my children could read when they got older to understand what it took for me to succeed and a better understanding of who I am and perhaps what they need in their lives to move forward. So there was a real purpose to this as opposed to just some sort of bragging rights.
Podcast Rock City – Crossover; is it possible to be a fan of Tommy and Ace?
Joe Polo
Producer Richie Wise talks Dust & KISS (March 7 2014)
Mitch Lafon
KISS co-founders sign Kansas company as Rock & Brews franchisee
Joyce Smith | Kansas City Business
KISS co-founders Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley have signed their first Rock & Brews restaurant franchisee, a Kansas native who plans to open five locations in Kansas and Oklahoma.
Kirk Williams, president of Legacy Restaurant Group LLC in Topeka, currently owns 21 Wendy’s restaurants in Kansas and Missouri, including 11 of the 55 Wendy’s restaurants in the Kansas City area.
Williams has formed Kanbrews LLC to develop, open and operate five Rock & Brews in Kansas and Oklahoma over the next five years. He also has an option to open an additional five units in Missouri and Nebraska. A corporate owned restaurant was planned for Overland Park but it will now be owned by Kanbrews and at least one more Rock & Brews could open in the Kansas City area.
Williams said the concept is “very family and neighborhood friendly.”
“The thing that sold me I think was the variety of craft beers, that was one piece. And I was real excited about the quality of the food,” Williams said. “It was really beyond my initial expectations. You want people to come back for the food.”
KISS rockers’ restaurant opens on Maui
Erika Engle | Star Advertiser
Rock & Brews Paia opened for business at 11 a.m. Wednesday, but famous KISS rockers Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley were not present for the first lunch service.
The restaurant’s famous co-founders were present for the blessing about a month and a half-ago, according to the hostess on duty Wednesday afternoon.
“We like to call them our mascots,” she said.
The Star-Advertiser reported on the planned restaurant two years ago, which raised community hackles in the historically low-key town.
The restaurant will be open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
Rock & Brews also has locations in Southern California and Los Cabos, Mexico.