The Gene Simmons AXE Game Controller features the ability to work with both the PS3 and PS2 consoles. In addition to working with two consoles, the controller also works with both Rock Band and Guitar Hero. This is also the first guitar controller to be officially licensed 3/4 size replica of the guitar Gene Simmons made famous. Wireless connectivity uses 2.4GHz technology for a range of 30-feet. Power comes from three AA batteries and is promised to be 40 hours.

In Use
Definitely, the first thing you notice about the Gene Simmons AXE Game Controller is the design. If you ever saw a Kiss video or a live concert you will be familiar with the axe that Simmons made famous. The Gene Simmons AXE Game Controller is a replica of the actual guitar and looks appropriately heavy metal. The body is black and the edge of the axe is done in silver.
The buttons used on the controller are more like what you see on a stock Guitar Hero controller than what Rock Band players are used to seeing. The buttons are oval shaped with colors on each end. The middle fret button has three dots on it that you can feel allowing you to find the correct hand placement without looking down.

The neck offers lower solo buttons as well that are spaced closer together. An internal tilt sensor activates Star Power when the guitar is held up. The wireless transceiver plugs into the PS3 via a USB port and itself looks like a small axe. The switch for choosing Guitar Hero or Rock Band modes is on the transceiver.
The guitar itself has a power switch so you can conserve battery power when not in use and the connection button is located on the guitar. A shoulder strap is included as are the batteries to power the controller.

One of the things that some users had a problem with on the Peak wooden guitar controller I reviewed recently was the weight and size of the Peak controller. The Gene Simmons AXE Game Controller is sized about the same as a stock controller and weights about the same as well. This makes it easier for smaller players to handle. The Gene Simmons AXE Game Controller is also much cheaper than the Starpex controller at only $79.99. That is not much more than buying a second stock controller for either music game and the Gene Simmons AXE Game Controller looks much cooler. It's also neat that the Gene Simmons AXE Game Controller is a bass replica so your bassist can have a more correct looking controller.

Button feel is very good, though not quite up to the same level as the Peak controller. The whammy bar is positioned well and can be reached when needed but won’t get in the way during fast play. The strum bar offers good feel and should be durable enough. The controller also features a D-Pad and buttons for navigating game menus. The only real issue that might be a problem is that the neck of the Gene Simmons AXE Game Controller flexes a lot, which could mean a shorter lifespan if not well taken care of.

[Comments]

November 29, 2008
14 QUESTIONS WITH PAUL STANLEY (ABOUT NEW ALBUM, TOUR, ETC)
(from askmen.com)
Why is he famous?

One word: KISS.

In addition to being a founding member and front man of one of rock’s most enduring and successful bands, Paul Stanley (aka The Starchild) has also starred as The Phantom on Toronto’s off-Broadway production of The Phantom of the Opera, embarked on a successful solo effort and become a successful artist/painter. You might not know him by name, but you certainly know him by his black-and-white makeup, and with more than 80 million KISS albums sold, more than 30 official KISS releases and a song catalog that includes some of rock’s most memorable anthems, there’s no denying the uncompromising success that is Paul Stanley.

Quick Bio

Humble beginnings -- that’s what we like to hear, and Paul Stanley certainly had those. He was born in Queens, New York in 1952, and soon after KISS was formed in 1973, he took up a job as a cabbie to help fund the band’s expenses. Prior to his gig with KISS, Paul Stanley worked in a factory and a deli. He founded his first band, The Post War Baby Boom, when he was 15, before joining Rainbow, then Uncle Joe, and, last but not least, Wicked Lester, in which he met Gene Simmons. Along the way, Paul Stanley has dated numerous celebrities, pillaged numerous cities and rose to the top of his industry. He’s been married twice (his second and current wife is Erin Sutton), he’s a proud and glowing father and he’s a successful painter. His critically acclaimed painting career emerged as a result of the divorce from his first wife in 2000 -- all this from a largely self-taught guitarist from Queens who failed art at the Manhattan School of Music and Art.

THE INTERVIEW

Q1: First off, congratulations on the future new addition to your family. Do you have any fatherly advice you’d like to offer to our readers who are first-time dads?

Yeah, I’m expecting a daughter in January. If you’re not prepared to surrender the center of the universe, don’t do it.

Q2: Can fans look forward to new KISS material in the near future?

Actually, it looks like we’ll be going in the studio shortly to do the first new KISS album in 10 years. It’s going to be very much a vintage, classic, ‘70s KISS album without much regard to what’s happened since then; it’s back to the roots.

Q3:
Generally speaking, you were the last Kiss member to pursue outside interests; how does it feel to be actively promoting your music from Live to Win and One Live KISS? Are there any surprises on the DVD for fans?

Maybe I just do my outside interests more quietly than others; it doesn’t mean less successfully. There’s a difference between standing up and telling people what you’re planning to do and standing up and going and accomplishing something. I tend to fly a bit under the radar. Certainly, doing a solo album 28 years after the first one, there was some time between them, but I wanted to protect KISS and make sure that there was a KISS.

In terms of shooting the DVD, it was very important that it be more than just a cheesy concert video. So it was shot with 14 cameras and a great director, Louis Antonelli. The purpose in my doing that tour was really to reconnect with the roots, my roots, in the sense that I remember going to the Fillmoore in New York where 2,500 people would see Jimi Hendrix or Led Zeppelin or The Who or Derek and the Dominos, and it was really a very communal thing -- [there's just] something about a band on stage communicating and having this bombastic and yet very intimate relationship with an audience.

Q4:
How did painting start being more than a personal outlet; how did it become public? What style do you consider yourself?

Doing my art came out of something very solitary and something that I had no intention of showing anybody, and yet once people saw pieces in my house, it became really clear that there was a great demand for my art. Again, it all stems from the foundation, being: I want to please myself. Perhaps the art connects so much with other people because it truly is connected to me in the best way; I’m not second guessing what someone else wants to see, I’m trying to do something I like.

The only thing I can say is consistent in all my paintings is vivid color. Because I’ve had such great success so quickly, people really see me on this journey [and] they’re almost on this journey with me. People see my art taking all kinds of turns because it’s exciting and new for me. It certainly goes from abstract to abstract-impressionist to almost an ‘80s Pop Art feel, so it’s something that’s always changing, but that’s part of the excitement, for me at least. I’m also very grateful to know that people love what I’m doing and it’s not only KISS fans, but [that] it’s finding its way into some collectors’ collections with some other artists that I’m certainly happy and proud to be with.

Q5:
What’s your priority right now in terms of promoting: painting or music?

It’s really not about promoting, it’s about doing. Promoting is just the end product of creating. You want people to know what you’re doing if you want to be successful at it, and if people enjoy what you’re doing, you certainly want them to know. I’d have to say that I’ve been devoting a lot of my time to art, although when I was on tour with KISS I never picked up a paint brush or thought about it.

Q6:
You’ve also been busy promoting the KISS Alive/35 tour, celebrating the 35th anniversary of KISS. Can you share some details about that?

Alive/35 has been the celebration of 35 years since KISS Alive! We did 30 shows in Europe in seven weeks; it was the biggest most successful KISS tour in Europe, ever. We played the entire KISS Alive! album and we also did about six encores of all kinds of other great classics. It was very invigorating and very reassuring to us that the KISS Army is more than alive and well; it’s vibrant and vicious. We played to about 400,000 people, and we’ll pick up where we left off [in] the middle of next year, summer/fall, and to the States and Europe.

Q7: In your years with KISS, what has been your favorite moment?

Oh my God. I think the most momentous occasion and moment for me was probably in Dayton, Ohio, or Toledo when I realized that we were virtually selling out every show and that was something new for us. And I realized, looking out at a crowd before going on, that we were going to be everything that we planned; we were going to be as big as we designed it and as big as we fought for.

Q8: What’s your favorite KISS album and why?

I think Destroyer is a great album and I think KISS Alive! is a very important album. I love KISS Alive! because it’s the album that broke us on a much bigger scale; it’s the album that made us superstars.

Q9:
Back in the ‘80s, a decision was made in order to respect the fans that Vinnie and Carr would have to wear new face makeup; why was the decision made to allow Singer and Thayer to wear the makeup of original members?

It wasn’t to respect the fans; it was a misstep if anything. The idea that we should dilute the four icons, which are world-known (not by name, but by character) and come up with like "Frog Man" or "Turtle Boy" was a big misstep. Those iconic figures are known worldwide; you show anybody in the world a photo of KISS and they’ll tell you it’s KISS. So, it just sold everybody short to think that when somebody left the band that they should take those characters with them. In a sense, we all created each others’ characters because it was the four of us together and the synergy between the four of us that made those characters. Could we have done it on our own? I don’t think so. It was all of us together that came up with it.

Q10: Is there any truth to the rumors about a KISS II reality show?

It’s kind of gotten distorted into something that it really isn’t. The idea that some guys are going to take our place and we’re going to go home is never going to happen. Really, what it was and remains is the idea that Gene and I have created and nurtured something for 35 years… [and] as successful and consistent as we’ve been kind of makes people wonder what it would be like if we put together another band and gave [them] that experience. It’s much closer to that.

Q11:
You’ve suffered some physical ailments in recent years; what are you doing to stay in shape these days?

Today I did a workout that would probably give most people a heart attack. My physical injuries (what a lot of them have been) really come from the amount of punishment I [do to] my body. That’s just par for the course. My workout is pretty exhaustive and exhausting; I do a lot of hill-climbing, a lot of abdominal work and crunches, upper body weights, lower body stretching and weights -- it’s a lot of light weights and lots of reps, a lot of floor stuff and core exercises.

Q12: What’s your biggest career secret, and what advice do you have for readers wishing to become rock stars?

My advice to anybody who wants to succeed is: Stop listening to advice. The most important thing is to assess yourself as honestly as possible and then pursue something that you feel you can do. Only a fool would attempt something that they weren’t reasonably sure they could attain; that’s a dangerous waste of time and life. So, if you listen to people who tell you what’s impossible, they’re usually the ones who failed. My advice is always: Don’t listen to advice. You have all the support and knowledge you need inside.

Q13: What’s the one quality you think all men should have?

Integrity.

Q14: Who’s the hottest woman alive?

Thank god the world is full of beautiful women. I love women. As an artist and as a man, the aesthetics of women, the physicality of them -- they’re all pretty stunning.
[Comments]

November 29, 2008
GENE SIMMONS ON "THE HOUR"
Click here to see an interview with Gene on "The Hour" show. Forward 29 minutes to see the interview. He talks about Simmons Records. They also show some never before seen live-footage from the very first tour in 1974!
[Comments]

November 29, 2008
KISS JOURNAL WEB TV
(From Kiss Journal)
Hello Everyone !!!
We are proud tonight to announce you our new brand new project : The Kiss Journal WebTV
It's our gift for all the Kiss Fans in the World !!!
Kiss Journal Web TV is a broadcast TV created by french site Kiss Journal ( http://www.kissjournal.fr ), the SylvAceProd and the newsletter KISS INFOs.
This is in french language but as the Kiss Army is international our emission will be under-titled in english of course!
Tonight we put on line our promo ad and our emission will be on line next week...if all is ok for us !!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jz1ja0xrVZw
[Comments]

November 27, 2008
KISS KINGPIN RELAUNCHES RECORD LABEL
(from www.winnipegsun.com)
By JANE STEVENSON, Sun Media
TORONTO — Fire-breathing rocker in makeup, high heels and black leather one day, Canadian music scout the next.

Such is the life of KISS bassist-singer-songwriter Gene Simmons, who is in Canada this week checking out new groups to sign to his relaunched Simmons Records label, in a deal with both Universal Music Canada and Belinda Stronach, the former MP turned businesswoman again.

“I want to find the next great three Canadian acts from different genres (each year),” Simmons, 59, said in a chic Toronto hotel bar. “And don’t let them go to America. Provide the care and support that they need here, make them monsters here, and then take them to the rest of the world.”

One possible signing is Toronto prog-hip-hop act Down With Webster.

“But if they do it the way they want to do it, they will fail,” said Simmons, who was attending three nights of music showcases. “You gotta do it my way. It’s a benevolent dictatorship.”

Simmons Records was orginally launched in the late ’80s with BMG, and “we had a few hair bands,” said Simmons, “and then music changed.”

The label was relaunched again to put out Simmons’ 2004 solo record, A--hole. The new deal partners him with Universal and Stronach, whose family Simmons has known through business.

“I’ll be in the studio with the bands,” he said. “I’ll be there to beat them up regarding their image, their names. If one of them is a drug addict he’s going to be gone. And I’ve had experience with that. There’s no room for idiots in bands. Because aside from the luck of the draw, it really is hard work. You have to get up every day, and ‘cool’ is a moving target, so it’s a very hard target to hit.”

Simmons is also proposing a reality-TV show for a Canadian network, to document the selected bands’ journey to the studio.

“We’re going to film the development of these bands, so when the record hits the TV show will hit at the same time.”

Speaking of TV, Simmons said he sees no end in sight for his reality show on A&E — Gene Simmons Family Jewels, which will begin its fourth season in March despite the fact that his partner of 18 years, Canadian Shannon Tweed, is tired of the cameras. Also featured on the hit reality show are the couple’s two children, 19-year-old Nick and 16-year-old Sophie.

“Since the kids don’t really have to set up lemonade stands and work for a living, they can work on the show ’til I say,” Simmons said. “They don’t understand that it’s actually going to help them in life later on to have done this, but that’s my resonsibility. Shannon hates to do this. Oh, she can’t stand it. ‘That’s okay, you’ll do it anyway.’ Who says you have to like everything you do?”

As for his day job with KISS, Simmons confirms the veteran glam-rockers are writing songs for a new album that he expects they will record next year and release next summer. KISS singer-guitarist Paul Stanley will produce the disc. The band will follow the album’s release with a limited tour.

“We’ll do a handful of shows just to keep in the game (next) summer, maybe 10 (dates), some Canadian shows. I know Halifax is one, but before you get out there and start the baseball season, they hold exhibition games, that’s what we’re doing. ’Cause once we go out, it’s going to be for a year and a half.”

As for rumblings of a co-headlining tour with Queen, Simmons would only: “Oh, I’ve heard that, but we don’t know until it’s real. I would be happy to step up on that stage. I’d (also) love to step up on a stage with the Stones.”

Just another day with Gene

What does Shannon Tweed, Gene Simmons’ Canadian-born housemate of 18 years, think of him spending so much time now in Canada?

Apparently, it’s just another day with Gene.

“Every day of the week I get up and it’s some new venture,” he said.

“There are any number of new projects all the time, and so she always just rolls her eyes. She goes, ‘Oh boy, here we go again.’ The point of it is when I wake up and I get passionately involved in something, she knows I’m not going to stop until I make it a success.

“But she knows I’ve always been in love with Canada.”

Unfortunately, that doesn’t extend to the outdoors. Simmons recently bought a house in Whistler, B.C., for Tweed and their teenage kids, which was documented on their reality show, A&E’s Gene Simmons Family Jewels.

“I went up for a little bit, but I don’t like nature,” he said. “I like buildings and activity ’cause when I look at a mountain I can’t make deals. I get something from cream cheese and a good hot bagel and some jam. I get Jewish soul. You know, my people wandered through the wilderness a long time ago, I’m done with nature. Give me a Four Seasons hotel.”
[Comments]

November 26, 2008
INTERESTING AUCTIONS
The financial crises doesn't really hurt the Kiss auctions: a belt buckle has just sold for $ 335,- (!):


There is an official RIAA Gold Award on eBay at the moment. What makes it so special is that it is a Gold Award for the Gene Simmons Solo Album, which is also presented to Gene Simmons personally:


a signed Dynasty Tourbook

[Comments]

November 26, 2008
C.C. BANANA DISCUSSES VINNIE VINCENT TRIBUTE
Michigan's The Bear (WIMK/93.1 FM) recently chatted with rock & roll comic C.C. Banana regarding his participation in the newly released tribute album "KISS MY ANKH: A Tribute To Vinnie Vincent." In this 15-minute interview, DJ and fellow Kiss fan Steve Ponchaud talks with C.C. Banana about his new song "Ted Poley" (a parody of "Unholy" by Vinnie Vincent and Gene Simmons). C.C. also shares details of his unlikely origin and tells of his many rock & roll misadventures. The complete audio interview can be heard here:

http://www.SplitScreenEntertainment.com/images/CC-WIMK.mp3

Despite its humorous overtones, C.C. Banana's parody of "Unholy" is an appropriately heavy recreation of the Kiss original, featuring a guitar solo by Chris Caffery (Savatage, Trans-Siberian Orchestra), guitars and bass by Paul LaPlaca (Zandelle, Z02, Chris Caffery solo band), drums by Dennis Leeflang (Sun Caged, Epica, Bumblefoot solo band) and background vocals by Kelli McCloud (Queen of the Reich) and Vic Rivera (AdrianGale, Crunch, Poley/Rivera). A sample of the song is available at the official "KISS MY ANKH" MySpace page, along with samples of all other songs on the tribute.

http://www.myspace.com/KissMyAnkh

A video clip of C.C. Banana announcing his participation in "KISS MY ANKH" during an episode of "Talking Metal on Fuse" is available here:

http://www.CCBanana.com/sludge/ccbananatalkingmetalonfuse.htm

Though Vinnie Vincent himself has not released any new material in over a decade, "KISS MY ANKH" pays tribute to the undeniable musical legacy of the former Kiss guitarist. Vinnie's compositions are widely regarded as a highlight of the Kiss catalog and remain a staple of the live Kiss set list. All songs on the tribute were written or co-written by Vinnie Vincent and originally appeared on albums by Kiss and the Vinnie Vincent Invasion. The artist roster features a mixture of veteran and rising talent, including members of White Lion, Savatage, Alice Cooper, Trixter, Nitro and others. All in all, "KISS MY ANKH" boasts a powerful lineup of inspired musicians and unforgettable music, assembled in honor of Vinnie Vincent. Further details can be found at the SplitScreen Entertainment website.

http://www.SplitScreenEntertainment.com
[Comments]

November 24, 2008
DID YOU KNOW...
... that the Solo Albums 1978 were released also in a special box in Japan? That Box Set appears on eBay from time to time and sells for a fortune...

[Comments]

November 23, 2008
GENE SIMMONS FAMILY JEWELS
The 4 DVD set (29 episodes, 400 minutes) of season 3 of "Gene Simmons Family Jewels" is now available for just $ 17,49!

[Comments]

November 22, 2008
GENE INTERVIEWS AT THE US STOCK MARKET
Here you can watch interviews with Gene on the US stock market on November 19th:
MSNBC interview
Fox Busineness
[Comments]

November 22, 2008
NEW OFFICIAL KISSMAS MERCHANDISE
Christmas is coming, so it is time to put some new Kissmas Merchandise on the market. There are new Kissmas T-Shirts, X-mas balls, blankets and lots more. See it here.
[Comments]

November 21, 2008
GENE SIMMONS WITH MEDIAWEEK
Click here to see an interview with Gene Simmons on Mediaweek.
[Comments]

November 21, 2008
VIDEO OF GENE AT NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE
Click here to see a video of Gene rising the Opening bell at New Yorks Stock exchange on November 19th, 2008.
[Comments]

November 21, 2008
SIMMONS SOUNDS OFF AT TOURING CONF. KEYNOTE
(from billboard.com)
Mitchell Peters, L.A.
Having recently completed a 30-plus-date European tour, Kiss will "eventually when we're ready tour America," co-founder Gene Simmons said during a keynote address today (Nov. 20) at the fifth annual Billboard Touring Conference, held at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York.

Referring to Kiss as the "juggernaut of all rock'n'roll brands," Simmons said the band is currently working out future tour details. "We've been talking with [manager Doc McGhee] about Europe and then doing a year-long tour maybe this coming summer, but we'll see," Simmons said. "Kiss and Queen, that would be a smash. That would kill. So far (it's) 50/50."

During the address, Simmons, who is also a reality TV star and entrepreneur, stressed the duties of being a live performer. "I don't care if you're Axl Rose, forgot to tie your shoelaces or your father molested you when you were three -- you're a bitch if you don't show up onstage when it says 9 o'clock," he said, drawing loud applause from the audience.

"You need to have the integrity and self-respect to respect the promoter who paid you the money in advance, the hall and the people who makes all our lives possible," he continued.

Speaking to an audience of primarily concert promoters, venue officials and booking agents, Simmons warned those in the live entertainment industry that it wouldn't be wise to lower concert ticket prices. "Don't do that, you're training an entire generation of people to pay less for something and then more for something else," he said. "They won't know what the value is and they'd rather pay less every time."

Simmons stressed that the touring business needs to quickly think about the future of its model. "Thank God you're the last vestiges of a dying breed, because the record industry is already dead, because we trained the people [that] they don't have to pay for stuff that they used to pay for," he said. "The record industry allowed that and people are shocked they're out of business."

Meanwhile, Simmons expressed his discontent with the fact that Kiss, which he co-founded in 1972, has not yet been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. "A lot of those guys on the board can go and get my sandwich when I want, and I mean that in the nicest way," he said. "There are disco bands, rap bands, Yiddish folk song bands in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but not Kiss. I believe we have more gold records in America than any other group, but it's OK."

Billboard executive director of content and programming for touring and live entertainment Ray Waddell conducted today's Q&A with Simmons. The keynote address was filmed for an episode of his A&E reality show "Gene Simmons Family Jewels," currently in its third season.
[Comments]

November 20, 2008
ANDRE LABELLE (VINNINE VINCENT INVASION DRUMMER 1989-90)
(from rockpages.gr)
We continue our year-long KISS special feature with the 19th interview of a KISS-related figure. This week, ex-Vinnie Vincent Invasion drummer, Andre’ Labelle talks about his tenure in the band between 1989-90. Here’s an excerpt:

Rockpages.gr: You worked together with Vinnie, Chris Lee and Robert Fleischmann on various songs that were destined for the "Guitars From Hell" album. What do you remember from those sessions and how close you were in releasing the record?

Andre Labelle: Vinnie recorded the bass guitars himself on those sessions. Robert
Fleischman was the last to be tracked. I stuck around for all the vocal
recording. Robert tracked the vocals effortlessly. His ability to nail it in
one take was amazing. The album was to be released on Enigma records but
they lost there distribution with Capital records and the album got shelved.

You can read the rest of the interview on:
http://www.rockpages.gr/standard.aspx?type=13&sub=K&lang=EN
[Comments]

November 20, 2008
OFFICIALLY LICENSED "LOST TOY" SURFACES AFTER 32 YEARS
It’s not everyday that a never-before-seen officially-licensed KISS item from the 1970s surfaces, however, an eBay auction (which is slated to end this Sunday) can certainly lay such a claim. A KISS “lost toy” from the 1976-77 Rock And Roll Over Tour has surfaced in the form of a gold-plated, metal key chain in the shape of the band’s infamous lightning bolt logo.

The auction can be viewed here.

This “lost toy” was apparently only offered for sale at a few of the shows on the tour and was quickly forgotten by the KISS Army-who (at the time) might not have been able to afford such a high-end item. The metal key chain bears the band’s official merchandise marking “Copyright 1976 Aucoin by agreement with ‘KISS.’”

This virtual prototype item is only one of 2,000 items to be offered by former KISS Alive Forever coauthor Curt Gooch. Other high-end items to be included in the auction: a Paul Stanley smashed stage guitar, an original KISS-Hotel Diplomat concert poster from 1973, and even a Gene Simmons blood cup + several 1970s signed KISS items.
[Comments]

November 19, 2008
"KISS MY ASS" DVD RE-RELEASE
The "Kiss my ass" DVD has just been re-released in the "Rock Legends" series with a new cover.

[Comments]

posters...