Kiss News

After 40 years and enough greasepaint to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool, founding KISS members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley still understand one very important thing: the fan.

The ancient rockers in the tight spandex (oh yes it is), eight-inch high boots and studs for days were in Vancouver Thursday with the other members of the the band Eric Singer (drums) Tommy Thayer (lead guitar) to launch their Monster Canadian Tour, promote a pop-up store and toss some cash towards Simmons� daughter Sophie�s namesake charity Sophie�s Place (a Surrey facility for kids who have suffered emotional and physical abuse).

Onstage at Tom Lee looking like a stand of silver and black trees the garish (you can see Simmons� fleshy upper thighs through the cutouts in his tights for God�s sake) gang sang the praises of their devoted KISS Army of which about 200 plus were outside waiting to meet and greet their rock Gods once they had finished talking to the press and passing a cheque for $10,000 along to Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts and Sophie Tweed-Simmons for Sophie�s Place.After 40 years and enough greasepaint to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool, founding KISS members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley still understand one very important thing: the fan.

The ancient rockers in the tight spandex (oh yes it is), eight-inch high boots and studs for days were in Vancouver Thursday with the other members of the the band Eric Singer (drums) Tommy Thayer (lead guitar) to launch their Monster Canadian Tour, promote a pop-up store and toss some cash towards Simmons� daughter Sophie�s namesake charity Sophie�s Place (a Surrey facility for kids who have suffered emotional and physical abuse).

Onstage at Tom Lee looking like a stand of silver and black trees the garish (you can see Simmons� fleshy upper thighs through the cutouts in his tights for God�s sake) gang sang the praises of their devoted KISS Army of which about 200 plus were outside waiting to meet and greet their rock Gods once they had finished talking to the press and passing a cheque for $10,000 along to Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts and Sophie Tweed-Simmons for Sophie�s Place.

Simmons a.k.a. The Demon told the assembled media and others that as a band KISS has always known that they were simply employed by their audiences and everything they do is informed by those audiences. Simmons, who loves nothing better than marketing, says the inspiration for the massive merchandise catalogue (think the KISS casket, KISS onesies PJs, KISS skis, KISS barbecue covers and of course KISS T-shirts) comes from the fans.

He said the fans let them know what they want and those things are on the shelves of the KISS Army Depot pop-up store that is located on the main floor of Tom Lee and will be popping up in Calgary, Edmonton and Toronto as the Monster Tour makes its way across the country.

The tour opens in Victoria on Friday and the boys will be back in Vancouver for a show on Saturday.

During the press conference questions were volleyed at the band, who let Stanley (who weirdly reminded me of a fitter and more cogent Liza Minnelli) do most of the talking. Simmons was too busy mugging for the cameras and making sure everyone in the room remembered his tongue is one of his best assets.

I asked what is the biggest difference between KISS of 40 years ago and the guys standing in front of us now. Well aside from a 100 million in international record sales Stanley pointed out the obvious.

�Well, we�re older,� said Stanley, before launching into a laundry list of things the band has learned over the years. He also admitted that the band today likes each other a lot more than they used to.

Well, that helps.

The band closed their Vancouver promo stop off with a meet and greet with a lucky 200 fans who were ushered into the pop up store for autographs.

The gathered were all ages and all stripes of fans. A seven year old boy told me he loves the band and his favourite part is when Simmons sticks out his tongue and spews blood.

�We don�t just have one generation of fans, we have two, three four generations,� said Stanley during the presser. �We really are a tribe.�

Looking at the crowd that was over the moon with excitement there was no arguing with that.

In the photo: We asked you to show your colours to win a pair of tickets to Monday's KISS concert at Prospera Place, and we got some great entries. Tara Godwin of Kelowna sent us the winning photo of her son, Jaxon, dressed up as ghoulish band member Gene Simmons. Godwin said the first concert she ever went to was a KISS show back in 1981 and his father's as well in 1976, so Jaxon will carry on the family tradition and even wear his costume to the show.

By Stan Ashbee

Facepaint, leather and pyrotechnics will explode on stage as rock legends KISS bring their summer tour to Kelowna on Monday.

Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer are the men behind the masks of the "hottest band in the world."

For 40 years, the iconic gods of thunder have reigned in the guise of the face-painted demon, starchild, catman and spaceman. They've been a marketer's dream, from Simmons' popular TV show to to Kiss caskets, cruises, condoms and comics, the band's fire-breathing antics are unstoppable. They roll into town in support of their latest CD, "Monster."

"The new studio record . . . is a big source of pride for us," said lead guitarist Thayer. "The four of us, we wrote the stuff ourselves, no outside writers. We went in and recorded everything. It was a very organic approach and a very simple approach. We just went in and knocked it out and spent three or four weeks in the studio and recorded this great rock and roll album."In the photo: We asked you to show your colours to win a pair of tickets to Monday's KISS concert at Prospera Place, and we got some great entries. Tara Godwin of Kelowna sent us the winning photo of her son, Jaxon, dressed up as ghoulish band member Gene Simmons. Godwin said the first concert she ever went to was a KISS show back in 1981 and his father's as well in 1976, so Jaxon will carry on the family tradition and even wear his costume to the show.

By Stan Ashbee

Facepaint, leather and pyrotechnics will explode on stage as rock legends KISS bring their summer tour to Kelowna on Monday.

Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer are the men behind the masks of the "hottest band in the world."

For 40 years, the iconic gods of thunder have reigned in the guise of the face-painted demon, starchild, catman and spaceman. They've been a marketer's dream, from Simmons' popular TV show to to Kiss caskets, cruises, condoms and comics, the band's fire-breathing antics are unstoppable. They roll into town in support of their latest CD, "Monster."

"The new studio record . . . is a big source of pride for us," said lead guitarist Thayer. "The four of us, we wrote the stuff ourselves, no outside writers. We went in and recorded everything. It was a very organic approach and a very simple approach. We just went in and knocked it out and spent three or four weeks in the studio and recorded this great rock and roll album."

In the 1970s, KISS posters were plastered on teenage boys' bedroom walls, vinyl records with the titles "Destroyer" and "Love Gun" rotated on turntables and "Rock and Roll Over" blared in vintage cars from eight-track players. Fans assembled the Kiss Army, while the band defined how to "rock and roll all night and party every day."

"Every night we go out there, we're excited and we want to show fans that this is arguably one of the greatest bands of all time. We love what we do, and KISS has a timeless appeal to it - the imagery, the characters, the makeup, the outfits and the staging. KISS really created live pyro on stage, all the effects and confetti that everybody uses today. It all started with KISS back in the 1970s," said Thayer. "You know, all the shtick."

"We have a whole new stage design that's entirely new this year, which over the course of 40 years, tour to tour, you try to keep upping the ante and trying to top the last one," he said.

"We call it 'The Spider' stage and the lighting rig and the entire stage has a spider concept to it which is quite extraordinary and it's got a lot of attention and has turned a lot of heads, that's for sure."

Thayer, who's been with the band for more than decade, said "it's an honour to be on stage and be a member of KISS. I was a fan way back in the day when the first record came out back in 1974. I've been a fan ever since. It's been a full circle experience."

He said some of the band's biggest fans are from Canada. "When we come up there we want to deliver a show that's over the top, that's going to make our fans proud of us."

KISS performs with special guests Shinedown. Doors open at 6:30 p.m, show starts at 7:30.

Mike Devlin / Times Colonist

There�s no excuse for not succeeding in life. So says the Demon himself.

�God, in his infinite wisdom, has created night and sleep,� says Kiss singer-bassist Gene Simmons. �By design, somebody � nature, God � created this idea where you get to rest and recharge. You don�t need more than that. So I work hard, play hard, and live hard.�

He also rocks hard.

Simmons, 63, continues to tour mightily with the group he co-founded in 1973. He has dabbled in acting and found success with his highly rated reality show, Gene Simmons Family Jewels, but through it all, there has been one constant for the man born Chaim Witz: rock �n� roll.

The band begins the Canadian leg of its Monster tour Friday night in Victoria, its first-ever local date and the kickoff for 19 stops in Canada (it was formerly 20, but the July 13 date at Calgary�s Saddledome was cancelled this week due to flood damage).

That the group is staging one of its most in-depth tours of Canada 40 years after it was formed by Simmons and singer-guitarist Paul Stanley says something about their on-stage abilities.

More than that, Simmons said, it speaks directly to their survival instincts.Mike Devlin / Times Colonist

There�s no excuse for not succeeding in life. So says the Demon himself.

�God, in his infinite wisdom, has created night and sleep,� says Kiss singer-bassist Gene Simmons. �By design, somebody � nature, God � created this idea where you get to rest and recharge. You don�t need more than that. So I work hard, play hard, and live hard.�

He also rocks hard.

Simmons, 63, continues to tour mightily with the group he co-founded in 1973. He has dabbled in acting and found success with his highly rated reality show, Gene Simmons Family Jewels, but through it all, there has been one constant for the man born Chaim Witz: rock �n� roll.

The band begins the Canadian leg of its Monster tour Friday night in Victoria, its first-ever local date and the kickoff for 19 stops in Canada (it was formerly 20, but the July 13 date at Calgary�s Saddledome was cancelled this week due to flood damage).

That the group is staging one of its most in-depth tours of Canada 40 years after it was formed by Simmons and singer-guitarist Paul Stanley says something about their on-stage abilities.

More than that, Simmons said, it speaks directly to their survival instincts.

When the rest of the pop-music world is singing to a pre-recorded click-track, Kiss is slogging it out with real instruments.

�When you go see Rihanna, you�re probably getting about 30 per cent live music,� Simmons said. �It�s basically a karaoke show. That doesn�t mean it�s not good. Just be aware they are not advertising the truth.�

Simmons says the current Kiss lineup � which includes guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer, who have been on-board for more than a decade each � has too much pride to offer anything inauthentic. There�s a reason why the group�s official refrain � �You wanted the best? You got the best!� � has opened nearly every one of its concerts to date, he added.

�What you see is what you get. Four guys sweating, no samples, no tapes. We blow a lot of stuff up and we change the Earth�s axis every once in a while. But what you see there is live. That�s what you�re paying a lot of money for, so you should get it live. How dare you step on that stage and not do it properly.�

Sacrifices need to be made to get the details right.

It takes each member nearly two hours to apply their own iconic greasepaint makeup, and the physical toll of trudging across stages in warrior garb every two or three days takes a considerable toll. Simmons adds to that tally breathing fire, spitting blood and flying high in the rafters during his signature song, Dr. Love.

To put it lightly, his dance card is incredibly full.

Simmons still finds time to accommodate interviews, personal appearances and business meetings, mostly for the sake of self-promotion. That�s a four-letter word to most, but for Simmons (who is reportedly worth upwards of $300 million), the sound of cash registers ringing isn�t something to be ashamed of.

�Either you take care of business or the business takes care of you. That�s why you can be Peter Frampton and be the biggest act of the world at the time, and be broke.�

Canada has been very good to Kiss over the years. Simmons says a 2011 concert by the group in Grand Falls, N.B., drew close to 50,000 people, while another appearance in Ottawa on that same trek attracted upwards of 95,000. His extensive knowledge of such matters makes him an exhausting person to come into contact with, but that is part of his charm.

People love to know how Kiss operates. Simmons isn�t telling, but he will pull back the curtain for a glimpse into the spider-like stage setup for the Monster tour.

�Paul [Stanley] came in and started scribbling and said, �What about this?� We all said, �Wow, that�s great,� and handed the piece of paper over to [Kiss manager] Doc McGhee and said, �Build this.� �

Simmons has made music his business, and he�s not about to let details slip away from him now that the group is on the home stretch. He is asked constantly to speak at business functions, and does so � if the price is right. What he learned along the way he learned on his own, the hard way. He didn�t blink when 2009�s Sonic Boom gave Kiss the highest chart debut of its career, nor was he surprised when its followup, 2012�s Monster, hit the top spot on the U.S. hard-rock charts.

Had the group behind Rock and Roll All Nite, Shout It Out Loud, Detroit Rock City and Beth failed to meet expectations, Simmons would have failed in his job as the caretaker of all things Kiss.

�If you approach this thing like a job, that�s good. Turn the TV off, turn the phones off, pick up your instrument and take out your notepad, and sit there. In other words, put in the time. Don�t wait for inspiration to hit you.�

[email protected]

What: KISS, with Shinedown

When: Friday, 7:30 p.m. (doors at 6:30)

Where: Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre

Classic rock band KISS celebrates the kickoff of its Canadian tour promoting new album Monster with an appearance at its KISS Army Depot pop-up store at Vancouver�s Tom Lee Music



By Francois Marchand, Vancouver Sun

�You wanted it, you got it.�

That is classic Gene Simmons: Make the fans believe that it�s all for them, and they will keep coming. More importantly, they will shell out the big bucks to get the latest from their favourite rock gods.

The fans came in droves to Tom Lee Music in downtown Vancouver to meet their idols � appearing in full makeup and leather gear � and scoop up some of the merch the band had to offer at its KISS Army Depot pop-up store, one of many that have appeared across the country ahead of the band�s Canadian tour promoting 20th studio album Monster and kicking off in Victoria Friday night.

The tour hits Rogers Arena in Vancouver Saturday.Classic rock band KISS celebrates the kickoff of its Canadian tour promoting new album Monster with an appearance at its KISS Army Depot pop-up store at Vancouver�s Tom Lee Music



By Francois Marchand, Vancouver Sun

�You wanted it, you got it.�

That is classic Gene Simmons: Make the fans believe that it�s all for them, and they will keep coming. More importantly, they will shell out the big bucks to get the latest from their favourite rock gods.

The fans came in droves to Tom Lee Music in downtown Vancouver to meet their idols � appearing in full makeup and leather gear � and scoop up some of the merch the band had to offer at its KISS Army Depot pop-up store, one of many that have appeared across the country ahead of the band�s Canadian tour promoting 20th studio album Monster and kicking off in Victoria Friday night.

The tour hits Rogers Arena in Vancouver Saturday.

LEGO sets, action figures, posters and even sets of replica boots will be on display and up for grabs at Tom Lee until Sunday, but the band also made sure to point out its generosity at a press conference held Thursday at noon.

Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts was in attendance to receive a $10,000 cheque donated to Sophie Tweed-Simmons� charitable endeavour Sophie�s Place, which she set up with Watts to help youth in the Surrey area.

�Sophie has always been committed to helping young people,� Simmons said, with a hint of pride, during the press conference. �Sophie�s Place is a place where kids with dysfunction � verbal abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse � can go and be among other young people with no pressure. It helps thousands of abused kids every year.�

Tweed-Simmons, Simmons and Canadian model and Playboy playmate Shannon Tweed�s daughter, was also slated to sing at the home opener of the B.C. Lions Thursday night at BC Place.

Tweed-Simmons and her brother Nick were both fixtures of Simmons� Family Jewels reality television show, which showed the inner workings of the Simmons household.

�You would like to think your kids are a reflection of you,� Simmons told The Vancouver Sun in an interview following the press conference. �But I couldn�t hold a candle to our kids. They are phenomenal. I wanted to say I had nothing to do with the B.C. Lions game (on Thursday) or how she got herself on X Factor or when she sang with The Tenors in Dallas � a song that she wrote. I had nothing to do with that. You try to help your kids, but both of them are go-getters and I marvel at them.�

Stanley pointed out in the interview that the band will also be donating money to a charity in Toronto named About Face, which helps kids with facial deformations. Stanley has microtia, a condition where one of his ears wasn�t fully formed at birth.

Though part of the profits from the pop-up stores across the country will go to charity, Simmons did not want to get bogged down with numbers.

�What we�re really doing is raising awareness,� he said. �If we didn�t give a penny, it would still be a good thing.�

Photos by Meera Bains/CBC.

Here's the KISS Army at the Vancouver KISS Army Depot earlier today.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2013/07/04/bc-kiss-vancouver.htmlPhotos by Meera Bains/CBC.

Here's the KISS Army at the Vancouver KISS Army Depot earlier today.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2013/07/04/bc-kiss-vancouver.html