KISS IS Everywhere!

KISSonline.com

Check out this KISS related clip from the Belgian TV show, Generation Quiz. The show's host and guests dressed up and performed as KISS!

Today In KISStory - 1999

AnythingKISS.com

On this day in KISStory - January 31, 1999 - KISS perform at the Super Bowl as part of the Pregame Show. They do a version of "Rock And Roll All Nite".

Awesome KISS Truck

KISSonline.com

Hi KISS,

I'm writing this for a friend (Donnie Coleman), who has absolutely devoted his entire life to KISS, and all that KISS stands for. In his house, he has a complete room (20'x20') that is a 'decorated shrine' to KISS. There are numerous trophies, posters, wallpaper, border, photos, memorabilia, and multiple pieces of 'one-of-a-kind' KISS items. It is truly a sight to behold. His collection of KISS items numbers in the hundreds. He has been to a number of your concerts, but has never had the pleasure of meeting any of you. It would be his biggest-life-thrill to do so.

Donnie has a 'highly modified' Ford F-150 pickup truck that he has maintained in Showroom Condition since he purchased it brand new in 1997. To date, he has spent over $75,000 in modifications to this truck, and has won countless automobile shows with it. I'm sending you a few photos of the truck to show you what I mean.

The photos do not do the truck justice. It is a flawless vehicle, and it's never been driven. It rolls on and off an enclosed trailer for the purpose of viewing at auto shows. He has taken the 'Best of Show' honors (and trophies) a number of times, and the truck continues to blow people away whenever they view it. The interior of the truck (as well as the exterior) is magnificent. Truly, a one-of-a-kind vehicle.

Kindest regards,

Ed Adams

Paul Stanley At Pre-Grammy Gala

WireImage.com

Paul Stanley was among the many star-studded guests at tonight's Pre-GRAMMY Gala in Beverly Hills, Calif. Produced by The Recording Academy and legendary record label executive Clive Davis, this event is the preeminent music industry party in advance of the annual GRAMMY Awards, which is scheduled to take place tomorrow evening. Pictured is Paul and wife Erin Sutton.

Gene Simmons At NAMM Show

CNN.com

CNN iReport has filed this report of the NAMM trade show in California. Check out Gene at the beginning of the interview.

Today In KISStory - 1973

KISSonline.com

On this day in KISStory - January 30, 1973, KISS performed their very first concert at Popcorn (The Coventry) in Queens, NY. The band performed 2 sets at the club that night for a crowd of under 10 people.

Gene recalls how that show came about:

1973 was the beginning.

Wicked Lester had just finished its album for EPIC RECORDS. There were five members in the band, including Paul and myself. Though we had a real recording contract with a major label, and though we had finished an entire album, we were depressed. It just wasn't what we had envisioned.

So, we started again. We tried firing the other three guys in Wicked Lester, but some wouldn't leave. So, we quit.

We started again with a vision. 'Let's put together the band we never saw on stage.'

We got a manager named LOU LINET, who managed JF MURPHY AND FREE FLOWING SALT and DIANA MARCOVITZ (or something like that)...and when he heard the newborn baby -- KISS. He thought it was the worst crap he had ever heard. Needless to say, he was gone immediately. So, we were managerless.

I put together a bio kit, while I worked at the Puerto Rican Interagency Council, as assistant to the Director. Peter's friend owned a printing press and printed up our invites.

But, where to play? We didn't have a manager. We didn't have an agent. We never had.

I made a phone call cold to a place called Popcorn in Queens, NY and on the phone convinced the guy to hire a band, who would soon be changing their name from WICKED LESTER to KISS.

We got the gig -- three nights -- Wed, Thurs and Fri for the sum total of $150.

That was the beginning.

The KISS Pen

KISSonline.com

Here's the new KISS Icon pen being released by Headline Entertainment.

The KISS pens should be available in stores in February.

Classic KISS Video Footage From 1976

www.youtube.com

8mm footage of KISS at Varsity Stadium in Toronto, Canada, in 1976 has surfaced on Youtube. There is no matching audio, but the video itself is somewhat incredible. Imagine the size of the video camera back in 1976!? Probably resembled a small bus in size. If this was fan shot - the guy deserves accolades for getting this footage.

KISS Files Suit In Federal Court Over Unauthorized Book

KISS, the world famous rock group, though its licensing agent brought suit in the Federal Court in Detroit, where the "KISS" legend began, against Marc Scallatino and a photographer named in an unauthorized book about the rock group KISS containing KISS photographs taken in 1974 to 1981.

We had no choice but to bring this suit against Mr. Scallatino, a spokesman for KISS said, because Mr. Scallatino was repeatedly warned that an unauthorized publication of "KISS" photographs in a book about "KISS" would violate the exclusive rights of the KISS licensing agent, including the federally registered trademarks covering the distinctive "KISS" logo and the distinctive face paint designed by the members of "KISS." Mr. Scallatino ignored the warnings.

A spokesman for KISS also said we have made a considerable effort in time and money to protect the public from counterfeit "KISS" merchandise, including registering the "KISS" trademarks around the world. We cannot simply ignore Mr. Scallatino's willful violation of the rights of "KISS" after he was repeatedly warned.

The suit also names Janet Macoska, a famous photographer of rock bands, as a defendant. After the lawsuit was filed, Ms. Macoska contacted attorneys for KISS and indicated that, although her name appears in the book as one of the photographers, she had no knowledge of the book and never consented to publication of Mr. Scallatino's book, and, she warned Mr. Scallatino that if he publishes her photographs of "KISS" in any book without consent of "KISS," it would violate the rights of KISS. Based on Ms. Macoska's cooperation and the evidence she has provided showing she was not involved in the unauthorized publication of "KISS" photographs in the book about "KISS", we are dismissing the claims against Ms. Macoska, but proceeding against Scallatino.

Kiss is represented by attorneys Patrick M. McCarthy, Raymond E. Scott, and Gregory D. DeGrazia of Howard & Howard Attorneys PLLC.

Artist Ken Kelly Talks About "Destroyer"

www.insideheavy.com

In 1975 Kiss was riding high on the success of their first live album "Alive". They were about to enter the studios with world renown producer Bob Ezrin to record what would be their most celebrated album ever called "Destroyer". Ken Kelly, famous for his fantasy artwork, was acquired to create the image for the Destroyer album cover. The Destroyer album cover would end up being as striking as the music inside and has since become one of the greatest album covers in hard rock/heavy metal history. Ken Kelly's masterpiece has helped to burn the image of Kiss into the mind of the world!

Ken Kelly is interviewed about the creation of the Kiss Destroyer album cover, which he created two versions of, and reveals the complete back story of how the image was created.

Click HERE to hear the interview.

Ace Frehley Happier Touring Solo Than With KISS & Egos

Alyssa Braithwaite, AAP

Ace Frehley says he's happier touring as a solo artist than with his ex-bandmates because the only ego he has to deal with is his own.

Frehley will begin his It's Ace Downunder Australian tour in Perth on Monday.

"It's great - I don't have to deal with three other egos," Frehley told AAP, laughing.

"It's a pleasure to be able to control my own destiny and not have to argue with decisions other people make.

"Obviously I'm not playing the big arenas like I would have with KISS, but you know, everything is a trade-off in life. I'm much happier now."

Frehley said fans could expect a selection of KISS songs and some of his own material, including tracks from his latest solo album Anomaly.

"I'll be doing a cross section of stuff I've written over the years, like Cold Gin and Shock Me, a couple of KISS classics that I didn't write, and I think I'm going to include Talk To Me in the set, which I know was kind of a hit here," he said.

"Australia has always been a great place for KISS, and for me, and I can't wait to kick some butt on stage, turn the amps up and let it go."

During his two weeks in Australia, the famous rock and roller is also hoping to get in a bit of R and R.

"It will give me a chance to enjoy the beautiful countryside and all the sightseeing in Australia, lay on the beach, shop, go to casinos, and if I can get hold of a motorcycle I'd love to go for a ride," he said.

Today In KISStory - 2007

KISSonline.com

On January 29, 2007, KISS' Rock The Nation Live! DVD was officially certified double-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Pictured is Tommy Thayer's Rock The Nation DVD award plaque. His plaque reads: Presented to Tommy Thayer, To commemorate RIAA certified multi-platinum sales of more than 200,000 copies of the Image Entertainment DVD, KISS Rock The Nation Live!

KISS Performing "Hotter Than Hell" In Oshawa

Source: KISS WORLD

Here is a video/photo montage we put together of KISS performing "Hotter Than Hell" in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada on Wednesday, October 7th, 2009. The city of Oshawa finished first place in a North American "Demand KISS" in your city promotion put on by Eventful.com.

Here's the list of the top 10 cities for the Eventful "Demand KISS" promotion:

1. Oshawa -- 14,569
2. Winnipeg -- 12,913
3. Sault Ste. Marie -- 11,315
4. Kingston -- 6,840
5. Calgary -- 6,695
6. Peterborough -- 6,355
7. Saskatoon -- 5,603
8. Toronto -- 5,304
9. Edmonton -- 5,290
10. Sudbury -- 5,207

Ace Frehley On Australian TV

au.tv.yahoo.com

Ace Frehley was recently interviewed on Channel 7 "Sunrise" in Australia. During the interview Ace announces that he is engaged to his new girlfriend Rachel Gordon.

Click HERE to view the interview.

Ace's Australian tour dates:

February
1 - Perth, Australia - Metropolis Fremantle
4 - Adelaide, Australia - HQ Complex
5 - Melbourne, Australia - Palace Theater
7 - Sydney, Australia - Enmore Theatre
8 - Brisbane QLD, Australia - Brisbane Tivoli Theatre

Photos: KISS On Wall Street

Eric-Singer.com/Photos by Hab Haddad

Here are some behind the scenes pictures from KISS on Wall Street at The New York Stock Exchange where KISS rang the closing bell. We were there to promote the 125th Anniversary of Dr. Pepper and promote our upcoming Super Bowl Commercial that will air at the 2:00 min. timeout of the first half.

Trailer For KISS' Spanish Concerts

Here's a promotional video for the European KISS tour "Sonic Boom Over Europe: From The Beginning To The Boom".

European KISS Shows To Be Available On USB Stick

BBC

Kiss fans who saw the rock band on their 2009 US tour had the chance to take the show home with them in their back pockets when they walked out of the venue.

"We do a multi-track recording of each night and make the recording available on a USB drive right at the end of the show," says Gerrit Schumann from German company Music Networx, which makes the recordings.

"We have USB duplicators that do it pretty much automatically at the venue. We stop recording about half an hour before the end of the show and include a download code, with which the fan can then download the encores and remaining 30 minutes online."

Each stick cost about $20 and an artist will get anywhere between 20-50% of the price, he says. With around 1,000 sticks sold a night at 58 dates last year, that adds up to several hundreds of thousands of dollars for the band.

They will do it all again for their European tour this year, where they will also introduce an instant download-to-mobile option.

Kiss, already the masters of music merchandise, are also selling meet-and-greet gig packages for £905 per person in the UK.

KISS' Visit To The New York Stock Exchange

Photos by Steve Freeman

Here are some more photos of KISS at the New York Stock Exchange on Monday. The band stopped by to promote the new KISS - Dr Pepper Super bowl commercial. The commercial will be aired in the 2nd quarter of the big game on February 7th. Over 100,000,000 viewers are expected to tune in for the game!

Paul Stanley: Boom Time

By Alan Di Perna, Photo by Travis Shinn

Originally published in Guitar World, Holiday 2009

Paul Stanley talks about Kiss' success as a live act and how he and Gene Simmons once again found their old chemistry and made Sonic Boom pure dynamite.

On a recent autumn afternoon, Paul Stanley was relaxing at his L.A. home prior to hitting the road for another leg of Kiss' Alive 35 tour. He took the occasion to talk with Guitar World about the long and winding road that has brought him and the band from Alive! to Sonic Boom, Kiss' latest album.

GUITAR WORLD Is it significant that Kiss were propelled to the top of the charts in 1975 by a live album?

PAUL STANLEY Definitely. I think we've always been a live animal. What we found back then was that our first three studio albums weren't selling particularly well, yet we were quickly becoming a band that was selling out live venues everywhere. There was no correlation between our ticket sales and our album sales. It became clear that what was needed was an audio souvenir of the Kiss experience. But I don't think we could ever have predicted that Alive! would become as big or as important as it did. As soon as it came out, they couldn't keep it in the stores, because it was the album that everybody who loved the band had been waiting for.

GW Why did you decide to release Sonic Boom as a package with a live DVD and a bonus album of rerecorded Kiss hits [titled Kiss Klassics]?

STANLEY With all the classic Kiss albums, you always got more than just an album. We put in tattoos or posters, or love guns [Love Gun came with a cardboard "love gun"(assembly required)]. Working with Wal-Mart as the exclusive distributor of Sonic Boom put us in a position where we could do more than just put out an album. Wal-Mart made it possible for us to include the disc of 15 classic tracks and the DVD of performances from one of our stadium shows in Buenos Aires.

GW The songs on Sonic Boom seem custom made for big stadiums. "Stand," in particular is quite anthemic. It's even got the "Hey Jude," crowd sing-along ending!

STANLEY At our best, that's what we do when we write. Actually, I think my style of songwriting comes more from the [late Fifties/early Sixties] days of pop than from heavy metal. I think a song needs a verse, a prechorus and a chorus. These are things that a five-minute guitar solo is never going to take the place of.

GW Your stuff is always pretty classically structured: a good bridge and, as you say, three good verses and a killer chorus.

STANLEY Yes. I like to think that a song comes full circle. It leaves you satisfied at the end because it takes you back to where you started, only at a higher level of emotion. Dynamics and the way you build a song's arrangement are important, but you have to build on a foundation.

GW In the early days, you and Gene shared writing credit on some of the band's best-known songs, including "Rock and Roll All Nite" and "Strutter."

STANLEY Yeah. It's interesting. Gene and I often put both our names on them. And there are other songs that we didn't put both our names on, but where we also had a big hand in each other's writing. And on Sonic Boom we wrote together. I was very adamant that we write together. I think there was a little hesitation about it at first, but it was effortless. At first Gene said, "Well, we write differently now, and our styles have changed." I said, "No. It's essential to the chemistry of the band to have us write together." Both our names are on a lot of the new songs.

CLICK HERE to read the rest of the article - http://www.guitarworld.com/article/paul_stanley_boom_times?page=0%2C0

KISS Coffeehouse Wins Award

wmbf.com

The KISS Coffeehouse has been chosen as the best coffeehouse on the Grand Strand. The "Grand Strand" is over a 60 mile stretch of coast line, from the North Carolina border, all the way down to Georgetown, SC. This was the inaugural "Best of the Grand Strand" contest featuring more than 500 of the Grand Strand's best local businesses, in over 65 categories, and was voted on by the local viewing area's viewers! In all, over 11,000 votes were cast by viewers!

Coffee with attitude didn't exist in the marketplace until the KISS Coffeehouse exploded onto the scene in Myrtle Beach, SC. KISS Coffeehouse is a stimulating environment to drink a stimulating beverage.

Saint Gene Simmons

KISS WORLD/Break.com

Check out this amazing piece of stained glass created to look like Gene Simmons.

This must be the church of "KISStianity ".

It's a KISS World...We Just Live In It.

Paul Stanley Firehouse Helmet On Ebay

Ebay

An original Paul Stanley Kiss Firehouse helmet from the Dynasty Tour is currently listed on eBay.

Check it out HERE.

Latest In KISS Collectibles

KISSONLINE SNEAK PEEK

Here's the promotional sales flyer for KISS licensee Dizzy Heights – featuring their new KISS dog tags & stickers. These KISS items should be available in mid February

KISS Is Everywhere!

KOL

This KISS image is featured in a TV commercial for a European Political Party, CIU. The ad features a diverse group of images and basically says "This is the new face of the CIU (Federation Nationalist Convergence and Union.)"

View the ad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_Plhgtx0lg

Ace Frehley Announces Three U.S. Shows

AceFrehley.com

Ace Frehley has announced three shows in the United States in March.

March. 19 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Casino Wolf Den
March. 20 - Atlantic City, NJ - House of Blues
March. 21 - New York, NY - Nokia Times Square

For more information on ticket sales click HERE.

Ace will be touring Australia in February on the following dates:

Feb. 1 - Perth, Australia - Metropolis Fremantle
Feb. 4 - Adelaide, Australia - HQ Complex
Feb. 5 - Melbourne, Australia - Palace Theater
Feb. 7 - Sydney, Australia - Enmore Theatre
Feb. 8 - Brisbane QLD, Australia - Brisbane Tivoli Theatre

KISS Suing To Stop Sale Of KISS Photo Book

The Associated Press

The Associated Press reports, a company that controls photos and posters of the rock group Kiss is suing to stop the sale of a book with pictures of the performers.

Kiss Catalog Ltd. says trademarks are being violated by "Vintage Kiss Photos: 1974-1981." The lawsuit names Marc Scallatino of Blackwood, N.J., and photographer Janet Macoska of Cleveland.

Kiss Catalog, based in New York, is asking a judge to shut down vintagekissphotos.com.

Macoska says she sold some Kiss images to Scallatino but warned that he couldn't use them for a book. E-mail messages seeking comment were left Tuesday with Scallatino.

The lawsuit was filed last week in federal court in Detroit, where part of the 1975 Kiss album "Alive!" was recorded at Cobo Arena.

Read the article HERE.

Wolfmother To Open For KISS In Berlin, Leipzig And Hamburg

KISSNews.de

According to KISS News.de, German promoter Wizard Promotions have just announced Wolfmother as the opening act for the Kiss shows in Berlin, Leipzig and Hamburg! The concert in Oberhausen is almost sold out and will not have Wolfmother as an opening act.

Sonic Boom Over Europe:
From The Beginning To The Boom

KISS LIVE Europa-Tour 2010

25.05.10 LEIPZIG / Arena + WOLFMOTHER
26.05.10 BERLIN / O2 World + WOLFMOTHER
31.05.10 HAMBURG / Colorline-Arena + WOLFMOTHER
01.06.10 OBERHAUSEN / König-Pilsener-Arena

Ticket are available HERE.

KISS Radio Show In France

KISSonline.com

I'm a huge KISS fan since '79 (with "Dynasty" album)! After all these years of loyalty to KISS, I'm proud to announce the birth of my KISS broadcast - 'KISSIN' TIME' (started January 5, 2010). It is located in a small region of France (Bourgogne) and presented by myself on RADIO MORVAN 95.8.

The broadcast is live on RADIO MORVAN 95.8 (local radio) every Tuesday & Saturday from 8 to 9 PM. It is also transmitted on the net and with podcasts. The show has been a big success with so many KISS fans in France & worldwide.

We have the same passion here in France about KISS... we are united with the KISS Army around the world! We love it loud !

Laurent Lahierle

Photo: KISS At The NYSE

Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images

Paul Stanley, Eric Singer, Tommy Thayer, and Gene Simmons of KISS ring the NYSE closing bell at New York Stock Exchange on January 25, 2010 in New York City.

CLICK here to view a gallery of KISS photos from their visit to the NYSE.

KISS Rings Closing Bell At New York Stock Exchange

NYSE.COM.

KISS rings closing bell at New York Stock Exchange, 1/25/10.

"It's Ace Down Under" Live Tour Trailer

Here is a video trailer for Ace Frehley's upcoming five date excursion in Australia.

Ace's Australian tour dates:

February
1 - Perth, Australia - Metropolis Fremantle
4 - Adelaide, Australia - HQ Complex
5 - Melbourne, Australia - Palace Theater
7 - Sydney, Australia - Enmore Theatre
8 - Brisbane QLD, Australia - Brisbane Tivoli Theatre

KISS At The NYSE - Fox Business News

www.youtube.com

Here's KISS at the New York Stock Exchange with the CEO of Dr. Pepper on January 25, 2010! Courtesy of Fox Business.

KISS' Press Schedule For Today

KISS will do interviews on the following radio and TV stations today:

Sirius Satellite radio:

11:05 - 11:30 Playboy Channel
11:35 - 12:00 Road Dog Trucking

3:40 - 3:50 Fox Business TV Channel

PodKISSt #28: “BK3″ Interview!

Bruce Kulick is about to unleashed a monster! His new album “BK3? arrives in stores on February 2nd, 2010, and it is fantastic! Bruce was kind enough to grant us an exclusive PodKISSt interview, packed with insights and info about this great new album. Plus, you’ll hear the new single “Hand of the King” courtesy of Bruce!

Don’t forget that Bruce will be appearing at the KISS Coffeehouse on Saturday, February 6th at 2:00 PM for the “BK3? release party!” Details can be found HERE.

Also in this installment, we check back in with artist extraordinaire Michael Doret, who gives us the inside scoop on the new autographed KISS prints for “Rock and Roll Over” and “Sonic Boom.” Don’t miss out on these limited-edition beauties!

Click HERE to listen to the podcast.

KISS To Ring Closing Bell At NY Stock Exchange

nyse.com

Today, January 25, legendary rock band KISS and "I'm a Pepper" ad icon David Naughton are teaming up with Dr Pepper Snapple Group CEO Larry Young to ring The Closing Bell at the New York Stock Exchange in celebration of the 125th Anniversary of Dr Pepper America's oldest major soft drink.

Gene Simmons, a.k.a. "Dr Love" and star of the current "Trust Me, I'm a Doctor" ad campaign, will also be featured with all of his KISS band mates in an upcoming Super Bowl ad for Dr Pepper Cherry. Naughton, star of the classic Dr Pepper commercials and the 1981 film An American Werewolf in London, is ranked by AOL.com as one of the "Top 25 Ad Icons of All Time."

In addition to ringing the NYSE Closing Bell, Dr Pepper also has a special anniversary surprise planned that no one will want to miss.

Webcast:
A live webcast of The Opening Bell (beginning at 9:29 a.m.) and of The Closing Bell (beginning at 3:59 p.m.) will be available on the homepage of nyse.com.

French Band Covers "I Was Made For Lovin' You"

The French star band "Les Enfoires" will release a cover of KISS' "I Was Made For Lovin' You" entitled "Si L'On S'Aimait, Si." The song will benefit the charity "Les Restos Du Coeur" ("Restaurants of the Heart"), which distributes food packages and hot meals to the needy.

"Les Enfoires" features almost 40 top French music stars, and their CD sales and TV audience is always one of the biggest in France each year.

Here's a commercial featuring a clip of the song.

KISS To Appear On German T.V. Show

KissUSA.de

KISS will appear on Europes most successfull TV show "Wetten, dass..?". This will be the first time, that KISS will appear on that show. During the Reunion tour, there were plans for KISS to do the show, but they finally decided to play a concert in Stuttgart instead.

The show will air February at 8.15 pm German time. The channel is ZDF.

Wetten, dass..? (German for "Wanna Bet..?") is a German language game and entertainment TV show. The shows are broadcasted live six to seven times a year from different cities in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland and can easily attract 50% and more of all German speaking viewers on that evening.

KISS Army, You Look Great!

KISSonline.com

Check out these great photos of the KISS Army!

You can send KISS WORLD your pictures and stories as well: kissarmypics@gmail.com

Fan's KISS Caricatures

KISSOnline.com

WOW...awesome KISS caricatures by Keith and Kevin Bolick. Some of their earlier artwork currently hangs on the walls of the KISS Coffehouse in Myrtle Beach, SC!

Tommy Thayer Speaks Out On Rock Hall Of Fame

www.mydesert.com

In the baseball Hall of Fame, when one of the all-time greats is denied induction, there is a pretty clear reason why — gambling, steroids, etc. — but in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, it's much less clear why some of music's biggest stars are left out.

One in particular is Alice Cooper, a forefather of “shock rock” and whose hits “School's Out,” and “No More Mr. Nice Guy” have become iconic anthems.

And then there's Tommy Thayer, guitarist for the rock band Kiss, which has its own collection of rock anthems such as “Rock and Roll All Night” and “Shout It Out Loud.”

“The true rock and roll bands, the ones who are still out there rocking, are still doing arenas for 40 years, you would think it would get some kind of recognition,” Cooper said. “What are you going to do?”

Kiss and Alice Cooper are not the only notable acts left out. Others include The Moody Blues, Steve Miller, and Deep Purple.

“And they will be (inducted), we will be,” Cooper said. “I don't know how it works. No one knows how it works. There's a lot of people who really should be in but aren't.”

Thayer said one thing that gets him is how some other acts that already have been inducted might not necessarily be true rock acts.

“It's ridiculous. How can you put Patty Smyth in between those three bands, or Madonna even?” Thayer said. “I love Madonna, but is that rock and roll?”

As a genre, rock and roll has been around since the 1940s. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is in its 26th year.

From what Cooper and Thayer can gather, the hall of fame inductees are selected by a committee.

“It's not based on the people's choice, that's for sure,” Thayer said. “There's a club of guys back east that makes these decisions based on what their particular tastes are. I think they're missing out on something. It's laughable some of these bands are not in there. They're some of the greatest rock and roll bands of all time.”

Read more HERE.

Ace Frehley In OZ

Ace's Frehley's Australian tour is set to start this Monday.

Feb 1, 2010: Perth, Metro Fremantle

Feb 4, 2010: Adelaide, HQ

Feb 5, 2010: Melbourne, Palace

Feb 7, 2010: Sydney, Enmore

Feb 8, 2010: Brisbane, Tivoli

www.AceFrehley.com

Dutch KISS Concert Poster

Here's a Dutch KISS Sonic Boom Over Europe Tour posters for KISS' Arnhem, Holland show.

The Hughes Brothers On Being KISS For Halloween

When we were younger, growing up in Detroit, the inevitable yearly Halloween fight would take place: Who was going to be Gene Simmons, “the Demon” of the rock band KISS, that year? We would fight and fight until one of us folded or our mother would settle it by making both of us Gene Simmons. Great! Two half-breed Gene Simmons mutants walking down the block with pillowcases filled with candy. Yeah, Mom, thanks. That’s really going to help with the confusion of being a twin.

I do recall that one year one of us folded and went out as Peter Criss’ “Catman,” black and white make-up running down our cheeks from the tears of disappointment, settling for the lesser known, less exciting member of KISS, who possessed none of Simmons’ powers—bloody-mouthed, fire-breathing, serpent-sized, cunnilingus-dazzling tongue!

The Hughes' brothers latest directed movie "The Book of Eli" is now in theatres.

Gene Simmons' Signature Bass

By Phyllis Pollack

If you have an axe to grind with the band Kiss, this is the time to do it. Kiss bassist Gene Simmons has revealed that fans can now purchase a Limited Edition, personally signed version of the Gene Simmons Axe Bass. No surprise, the bass is shaped like an axe. For those who want to show off their chops with this axe, of for those who just want to own this collectors item, there are two models of the bass.

"I know that people will buy this," Simmons told Examiner.com.

One of the two models is a high-end version that is limited in number, which sells at $5000.00 each. It is available now through a special website. Obviously a collector's item for Kiss fans, the instrument comes with an elaborate hard-shell case that has Simmons' face displayed on it in full Demon make-up, surrounded by flames.

He said fans can go to a Gene Simmons website to buy one.

Simmons, whose band has been playing together and releasing music for 35 years, also stated that he personally designed the bass, as well as the case. Each bass comes with a certificate of authenticity.

A far less expensive Cort replica, the GS-AXE-2 will be made available in guitar stores at around $500.00, starting on February 1, 2010.

The GS-AXE-@ bass was displayed for the first time ever today at the NAMM Trade Show, by Simmons, himself. Simmons offered a peek at one of the basses this morning at the National Association of Music Merchandisers NAMM) trade show at the Anaheim Convention Center.

The Kiss icon was a special guest at the Exclusive Product Preview Day, which highlighted a myriad of new products for musicians at the trade show held as a confab for music instrument and music product companies. NAMM is a non-profit organization that integrates relationships between companies and consumers, and strengthens the $17 billion international musical instruments and products industry. The convention this week marks the 108th trade show that has been held by NAMM.

Orders for retailers will be accepted at the NAMM Show. Orders will ship in March.

Simmons told Examiner.com that each one of the bass guitars was hand made by only one individual. "It takes about a month to make one," he said, adding, "The wood is from Thailand. The weight has to do with the thickness. The fact it is so solid helps make it superior. It gives the bass its resonance." He added, "Hold this bass. You can feel that thickness."

While most guitars are made with the body and the neckpiece as separate pieces that are connected, Simmons' bass is made in one piece. Simmons says doing this gives it better sound. "Hold this," Simmons told Examiner.com. "You can feel how solid this is."

The Cort GS-AXE-2 bass will include a padded bag with Simmons' face on it. It will have a 34 inch scale, a hard maple neck, rosewood fretboard, die cast tuners and Might Mite pickups.

Simmons got the name for the bass from the term "axe" that refers to instruments. He has owned the trademark to the word "axe" for almost three decades.

Simmons said he decided to do this because so many fans have requested a bass like the one he plays. Says Simmons, "I owe the fans everything, because they made my life possible."

For those who want to Kiss some Axe, this is the perfect vehicle.