Kiss News

As rock band approaches 40th anniversary, here are a few tidbits to rock, roll every night

By John Liberty

It shouldn't come as a surprise that the legendary rock band Kiss has started celebrating its upcoming 40th anniversary in bombastic fashion.

The band turns 40 in January and announced in late August the release of a massive -- not to mention massively expensive -- book to commemorate four decades of rocking and rolling all night. The 3-foot-by-2.5-foot book priced at $4,250 features rare photographs and is signed by the band. There are only 1,000 copies of the book, which suitably will be called, "Monster," the same name as the band's forthcoming new album due out Oct. 16.

The 12-track album, the 20th of the band's career, is said to be all original material.

�We weren�t interested in making just a great KISS album, but a great rock album that lived up to the bands we loved growing up,� Paul Stanley said in a press release. "The ones who got us to play music in the first place.�

Kiss will headline the 160th Allegan County Fair when it performs with Motley Crue at 7 p.m. Sept. 11. Although they may be long in the tooth, or tongue as it were, the group still says it brings the heat.
"All I know is we're having the time of our lives getting up on stage and living up to our motto - 'You wanted the best. You got the best.' This is the hottest band in the world," founding member Gene Simmons said at the book release announcement at The Viper Room in West Hollywood.As rock band approaches 40th anniversary, here are a few tidbits to rock, roll every night

By John Liberty

It shouldn't come as a surprise that the legendary rock band Kiss has started celebrating its upcoming 40th anniversary in bombastic fashion.

The band turns 40 in January and announced in late August the release of a massive -- not to mention massively expensive -- book to commemorate four decades of rocking and rolling all night. The 3-foot-by-2.5-foot book priced at $4,250 features rare photographs and is signed by the band. There are only 1,000 copies of the book, which suitably will be called, "Monster," the same name as the band's forthcoming new album due out Oct. 16.

The 12-track album, the 20th of the band's career, is said to be all original material.

�We weren�t interested in making just a great KISS album, but a great rock album that lived up to the bands we loved growing up,� Paul Stanley said in a press release. "The ones who got us to play music in the first place.�

Kiss will headline the 160th Allegan County Fair when it performs with Motley Crue at 7 p.m. Sept. 11. Although they may be long in the tooth, or tongue as it were, the group still says it brings the heat.
"All I know is we're having the time of our lives getting up on stage and living up to our motto - 'You wanted the best. You got the best.' This is the hottest band in the world," founding member Gene Simmons said at the book release announcement at The Viper Room in West Hollywood.

Members of the band -- Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer -- were not made available for an interview, but here are a few facts and tidbits.

Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley left their band Wicked Lester and joined with drummer Peter Criss and guitarist Ace Frehley to form Kiss in January, 1973.

The band has 28 gold albums

Kiss has 100 million albums sold worldwide, including 40 million in the U.S.

"Monster" will be the band's first album since 2009's "Sonic Boom"

Paul Stanley and Greg Collins produced the new album

Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer have been with the band for more than 20 years each

"Monster" track titles are: "Hell or Hallelujah"; "Freak"; "Back to the Stone Age"; "The Devil Is Me"; "Take Me Down Below"; "Love Gun"; "Lick It Up"; "Outta This World" and "All for the Love of Rock & Roll"

The book "Monster" was printed on the same binder used by The Vatican, according to Billboard.com

Gene Simmons on their contact with Criss and Frehley: "You've had girlfriends before, right? You're happy that you had the girlfriends and now you're happy that you don't have those girlfriends. That's our life too. They were fantastic for the formative years but not everybody is designed in their DNA to run marathons."

Paul Jordan, an Army veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, won a job with KISS as part of TODAY's Hiring our Heroes series. He's writing dispatches about his experience for TODAY.com.

By Paul Jordan, KISS roadie

It's a dream job, but traveling as a KISS roadie is not all fun and games. It requires a lot of hard work, long bus rides and little sleep.

I was put into the carpentry team knowing next to nothing about that field. My education started immediately. On show days, my mentor and I set up and place various pieces of equipment on the stage. During performances, my workplace is between the barricade and the singers.

I also assist with some of Gene Simmons� theatrical effects. And if anything goes wrong during the show, I'm one of the guys scrambling to fix the issue.

Backstage is a professional environment where the band prepares to give fans the greatest show they've ever seen. The band members are friendly guys who stop and say hello.Paul Jordan, an Army veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, won a job with KISS as part of TODAY's Hiring our Heroes series. He's writing dispatches about his experience for TODAY.com.

By Paul Jordan, KISS roadie

It's a dream job, but traveling as a KISS roadie is not all fun and games. It requires a lot of hard work, long bus rides and little sleep.

I was put into the carpentry team knowing next to nothing about that field. My education started immediately. On show days, my mentor and I set up and place various pieces of equipment on the stage. During performances, my workplace is between the barricade and the singers.

I also assist with some of Gene Simmons� theatrical effects. And if anything goes wrong during the show, I'm one of the guys scrambling to fix the issue.

Backstage is a professional environment where the band prepares to give fans the greatest show they've ever seen. The band members are friendly guys who stop and say hello.

One big roadie benefit: I have the best seat in the house every night. I still mouth the lyrics to my favorite songs when there's a free moment. I've also met some celebrities, including pitching great Randy Johnson, members of Pearl Jam, and "American Idol" contestant James Durbin. Vinnie Paul of the heavy metal band Pantera sat 5 feet away from me at the Dallas show.

I've been given the nickname �Hollywood� since joining the crew. It started when we were in DC, and I was asked to do an interview for a local TV station. One interview turned into four, and the nickname was born. Since then I've been on TV five times, radio once more, and featured on various Internet sites.

Despite my coworkers' gentle teasing, I like talking with the press because it gives me a platform to spread the word about veteran unemployment.

I feel lucky: I get to travel the country, help produce the best rock show on the planet, rub elbows with celebrities, spread the word about veteran issues -- and get paid for that work. I have the greatest job in the world!