Adam Graham of Detroit News recently conducted an interview with KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

On the band's current lineup vs. the original lineup:

"(People say) family is the most important thing. Actually, no, it's not. Love, respect and discipline is the most important thing; and if your father is a drunk and abuses the family and makes it dysfunctional, kick (him) out. Blood is thicker than water? No it's not. Self-respect, discipline and honesty is the most important thing. If your mother or father or brother or sister is a drug addict (kind of) loser, toss him out. It's called tough love.

"Love yourself and respect yourself enough to have pride in what you do. Love and respect and have pride for the band you're in. When we get up on stage, that's holy ground. This is electric church, and no one on that stage — me or anyone else — wears the makeup and platform heels by some kind of birthright. This ain't Europe; just 'cause your dad was king doesn't make you the king. You've got to earn it. And when you defile KISS, you should be thrown out."

On the controversial KISS casket:

"They sold out, of course. You can't get another one anywhere. I don't even have one anymore. I sent the last one to the family of (deceased PANTERA guitarist) Dimebag Darrell (Abbott). The last will and testament of his family is that he be buried in a KISS casket. (I sent) the one I had right here in my museum."

On KISS merchandising:

"How cool is it to walk in and see KISS Mr. Potato heads, or KISS M&Ms? Come on. We love the STONES and we love U2 and RADIOHEAD, but I don't want to see Thom Yorke's face on an M&M."

On KISS' live philosophy:

"If you bring your eyes to a concert, we want a visual boom, a visual overload. And you should get that, for (heaven's) sake. You're paying as much for a concert ticket as some down payments on cars. It's nuts."

On KISS' tour with AEROSMITH earlier this decade:

"When we both decided to go out, (headliners were) going to be flip-flopped every other night, but we immediately stepped up and said, 'Don't worry about ego, we'll go on first every night, not a problem. And we promise you, people will forget you were there.' "

On a favorite Detroit memory:

"We were backstage getting ready (at Cobo) and we were doing photo sessions, and I was in full makeup, and I had to go to the bathroom before we went out (on stage). And a really pretty girl walked in there, and I said, 'Sorry, miss, you're in the wrong bathroom.' She said, 'No no no, I wanted to give you a present before you get up on stage.' And I'm going, 'I love Detroit.' "

On being Gene Simmons:

"It's good to be me. People say life is short and all that; still, you can live big, you can live a full life if you get off your (behind) and do something. I believe a lot of people go to their grave and on their headstones it might say, 'I woulda, I coulda, I shoulda.' On my tombstone it's going to say 'Thank you and good night.' I wanna go up in flames. That's KISS."

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