Gene Simmons Blames Radiohead, NIN for Dead Music Biz
- Posted on Jun 19th 2008 11:00AM by John D. Luerssen
- Comments (31)
Kiss bassist Gene Simmons is blaming artists like Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails and Green Day offshoot the Foxboro Hot Tubs for "contributing to the demise of the record industry" by giving away their music for free.Gene's also blaming the fans.
"The record industry is dead," Simmons tells paper the Daily Star. "It's six feet underground and unfortunately the fans have done this. They've decided to download and file share."
Explaining why Kiss hasn't released a new album in a decade -- its last was 1998's widely-panned 'Psycho Circus' -- the not-so-forward-thinking, tongued one continued, "There is no record industry around so we're going to wait until everybody settles down and becomes civilized. As soon as the record industry pops its head up we'll record new material."
Translation: Don't hold your breath for a new Kiss disc, kids.
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Reader Comments(1 of 2)
Satanat 6-19-2008
KISS sucks (musically) and always have. Who cares if they put out a new album or not.
I hope Gene Simmons dies.
romanstabsat 6-30-2009
haha satan couldnt have said it better myself..this guy is a clown (literally) and his music sucks along with his whole band..nobody is waiting for you to put out an album simmons you loser...you have 0 talent...fans download the music for free regardless...what radiohead did is allow them to do it legally and pay for it as they wish (which would sadly probably work for kiss too even though they suck horribly) radiohead adn NIN and bands like that are extremely passionate about the stupidity in the idea that someone gets arrested and has to pay over 200,000 dollars which they dont have for download 24 songs, but the rest of the country gets away with it every day..its bull, and its absurd for corps to pick and choose randomly to persecute downloaders...radiohead is the best band to have ever walked this earth, and thats all that matters, gene simmons, you dont matter one bit, so choke on your own tongue you talentless hack
Stephanieat 6-19-2008
Quit whining!! Nine Inch Nails and Radiohead OBVIOUSLY care about their fans and the music not the amount of money releasing an album is going to put in their pocket unlike Gene who I did respect at least until I saw this though I never really cared for his music. The biggest bands on earth on the ones bitching about this it's the smaller bands it's hurting like you don't have enough money as it is?!
Markat 6-19-2008
How would you like to work for free.....I know i wouldn't, you have to look at this from an artist's prespective. The record companys have alot of employes to pay who are not makeing millons..just regular guys. Those are the ones getting laid off cause you dont want to pay for your music.
Jeff Trexlerat 6-19-2008
The RIAA most certainly isn't going to go bankrupt because of file-sharing websites and torrents anytime soon. While the CEO at the top may have to actually sell one of his enormous vacation homes, who cares?
Boo-hoo is all anyone would say to him. These lawsuits against file-sharers are outright ridiculous in there own sense, and are a direct attack against hard-working people everywhere. Just to add a few 0's to their bank account.
Bands like RH and NiN release their music for free, because they KNOW without a doubt, it's going to get onto the internet one way or another. They also do it in support of fans worldwide, who realize they don't need to spend 20 or 30 bucks on a CD that's just going to get scratched and useless anyways.
Recording "artists" like Gene Simmons and his KISS band are just as greedy as Metallica was when it launched it's attack on Napster, just to line their pockets a bit more. Enough is enough, not like they can't fill their private jets up anyways..
klanz123at 6-25-2008
It's in fashion to call anti-downloading bands like Metallica "greedy". However, I honestly don't know how young bands succeed without the revenue from recorded music. Touring, especially for an unestablished band, is not going to cut it financially. Of course established bands can give away their music for free. They can also charge $100 for a ticket to their shows. Downloading and file sharing has upset the industry and has thrown the system out of whack. Personally I think Gene Simmons is an idiot, but he's on the mark with this one.
amosfanat 6-21-2008
I think Gene Simmons claimed to have slept with over 30 thousand women during the years ...Come on you spoiled cow tongue a little humble about it. Kiss was one of the very worst crapola media scams that made millions. They did not sell music, it was the hunt to find out who was behind the masks , that was it, God ...it was so stupid. However, they the ones laughing at us.
Brandon Delpat 6-23-2008
Artists don't make their music for money, Mark. They make their music for the fun of making music. The record industries just use good bands to make money and get pissy if they don't cause of their own greed.
nomadturkat 6-23-2008
I used to like KISS, until Gene took the merchandising too far. Its a fkn joke. YOU killed KISS Gene.
Now KISS this:
http://www.pitchfork.tv/special-presentation/nine-inch-nails-live-from-rehearsals/1000000
Welcome Jim!at 6-23-2008
But bringing that bastardized version of kiss out on tour with two schmoes wearing Ace and Peter's makeup is the height of integrity, right Gene?
r0ckmyliifex3at 6-24-2008
So what? Just because they release their music for free doesn't mean they're killing the music industry. Those rich bastards are very well off it won't hurt them too much. It's always gotta be about money. Right now Green Day is doing the Foxboro Hot Tubs thing for fun. They could be sitting on their asses with all the money they made from American Idiot but they're actually out there still playing kick ass punk music because they enjoy it. Not because of the money. That's what any artist should do. Don't do it for the money- do it for the love of it.
Neilat 6-24-2008
gene simmons dosen't get it that the musical artists who give away their music for free do it because they love music, and want to share that love with fans. plus, radiohead didn't give it away for free, you could donate if you wanted to, and most people I talked to donated like 2x the cost of their regular cd. I just think that the music industry is there for people to just have fun, and enjoy the music that they love so much, so thanks green day, radiohead and NIN, you guys fucking kick simmon's ass!
TONY SANTOSat 6-24-2008
Right on Gene,,,,but it would be nice to record new music and give it away as a gift to all the fans that made you rich.......True the record buss is over...you at least lived a great life and maybe its time to give back......
fftydonat 6-24-2008
Nine Inch Nails gave away Year Zero yet it still debuted at #2 on the charts when the physical cd came out. Trent Reznor is in touch with his fans and knows what they want and knows they respect him. He gave away their recent record for free as a way for saying thanks to all his fans. It's about having that communication with your fans. NIN doesn't need to sell action figures and lunchboxes.
bimotarichat 6-24-2008
A complex issue... times they are a changing and it is rapidly becoming apparent that information is becoming more and more free in all senses of the word... yes the music industry is being shaken up... and yes innocent people are being hurt... and for that i am sorry... but more importantly is how it will effect the overall quality of music that fans have access to... only time will tell... until then I hope Gene (whose music I generally enjoy) can roll with the punches and figure out a new way to make music, attract fans, and make a living... it is no secret that he was in it for the money from the start and he did well... the time was right and his marketing skills were spot on... but times change and thus his product will have to change... good luck Gene! And more importantly lets hear some good music again! Radiohead has always produced great ground breaking music, and so has NIN... mucho respect to them!
PS I have bought more than my fair share of music (about 4000 discs over the last 20 years and i still buy them because I want good quality sound when I really care about the music), including ALL of KISS's albums... I buy much less now for a variety of reasons... the quality of music is down, also the number of quality retail outlets is down and so is the variety of music available, and I have less time to listen... also the record cos made some bad pricing mistakes and quality decisions early on...I am interested in new music formats like SACD and DVD-a but they seem to get little attention from consumers, retailers, and the labels... sad but true... ahhh fatherhood and work... may I find time for some critical listening soon!
barton4001at 6-24-2008
KISS SUCKS. Look at the REAL movers in the music business, and see who's the inspiration. DAVID BOWIE. He searches light years ahead to find new trends in music, style and substance. Gene Simmons, wash your face, and take that brillo pad of a toupee off your head. And get tested for every STD, and alzheimer's. You're out of touch. It's not a Kiss world. (celeb apprentice)
michaelthealeyat 6-24-2008
OMG I agree with Satan! Gene Simmons is disgusting and should choke on his own tongue!
Gene Simmons killed A&E!
And Radiohead just released that album like ten minutes ago and the record industry has been jacked since napster.
Gene Simmons should take his prostate medication and go back to painting his ugly face so he can get laid again.
Gene Simmons should drown in Jimi Hendrix's 40 year old puke!
Jamesat 6-25-2008
If marketing and gimmicks were all there were to Kiss, then the band would not have lasted so long, they would not have sold out at arenas (whuch they were still able to do during their "no make-up" days), fans would not have surrounded their local radio station demanding that they play Kiss music, and they would have faded into obscurity a long time ago. Anyone who says that Kiss isn't about the music has obviously never heard any of their songs, except maybe "Rock and Roll All Night" or "Beth."
Whether you agree with Gene's comments or not, no one can deny the impact that the music of Kiss has made in the rock world--or indeed other genres. Shoot, even Condoleeza Rice is a card-carrying member of the Kiss Army.
Jamesat 6-25-2008
Whoops! I misspelled "which." Don't you hate it when you misspell a word, and don't catch it until after you post the message!
One other thing I forgot to mention about Kiss--not only do they put on an amazing concert, but they also actually sing in concert, not lip-sync.
decibel101at 6-25-2008
jeez. what grade are you people in? yes, gene's tired and irrelevant but make a comment that speaks to the issue. radiohead and nin have the luxury of giving it away because they are established acts and can make a buttload of money touring. giving their music away is just as much a marketing ploy as anything kiss ever did with a lunchbox. filesharing IS killing the recording industry. and while the mega-labels of yore needed a rough shaeup something has to be done. it IS the music BUSINESS people. artists deserve to be paid for their work like evrybody else.