KISS News Bits

[silverfish]

Justin Hawkins Blasts Ace Frehley On Live Show: ‘You’re A C—t If You Make The Darkness Late’

A video surfaced on Rock News Desk showing Hawkins addressing the issue on stage, after Frehley’s
overran performance pushed back The Darkness’ set.

Hawkins told the audience:

“You’ve noticed I wear a watch on stage. Some of you think, ‘Oh, that means he’s not 100% in it. He has
to sort of regard the time ‘cause he just wants to get back and eat the prawn sandwiches in the dressing
room.’ There’s a bit of truth in that, but I think the important thing about rock and roll is punctuality!”

“I’m not gonna mention any names, but somebody overran, and thus we were late coming on stage. I
apologize to all of you. But in fairness, the artist that overran – I’m not gonna name any names, okay?
I won’t name any names.”

Then, he openly named the ex-KISS guitarist, blasting him for his rider demands and referring to the
wig he’s been wearing for years:

“But I think some of their rider requirements were a little bit difficult to source in the middle of the f**king
Caribbean. One of those being wig adhesive! I’m talking about Ace Frehley. Sorry, guys.”

Allegedly, Frehley’s security approached The Darkness frontman in a coffee shop, confronting him about
the previous day’s remarks. This led to a private discussion between the two rockers, after which they
took photos together, suggesting a resolution had been reached.



Full story at:
https://rockcelebrities.net/justin-h...darkness-late/

[Von Halen]

Ace would have been doing the crowd a favor if he had stayed out long enough to make this douche and his shitty band miss their entire set.

[Mushroom]

A douche and a c—t on a boat. Who would have guessed that could ever happen?

Justin Hawkins is a two-faced douche

[Rikk]

I've never understood the whole DARKNESS thing. It just went right over my head. Does nothing for me. (For one, I can't stand the guy's voice.)

Funny enough, the first person I remember selling them as the "next big thing" was a certain Diamond Dave...

[DLR Bridge]

I enjoy some of his YouTube spots. The Justin Hawkins Rides Again thing. He does have some interesting insights about “the pitfalls and perils of the music industry.” He often jokes that he knows what Darkness song is his attorney’s favorite. He seems pretty well aware that they never quite topped their first single. Him goofing on Ace was more than likely just part of the silliness of their show.

[VHscraps]

I've never understood the whole DARKNESS thing. It just went right over my head. Does nothing for me. (For one, I can't stand the guy's voice.)

Funny enough, the first person I remember selling them as the "next big thing" was a certain Diamond Dave...

I think Dave may have been at a point in his life where he was thinking 'where's my influence' ... and there was Justin Hawkins doing the splits and dressing like - let's be honest - a dick, it being the 2000s and not the 1980s.

I think the Darkness worked at the start cos irony still worked. We seem now to live in post-ironic times, so it doesn't quite have the same appeal. But I did like some single they released probably ten years ago, where his voice sounds different than the balls in a vice style of some of the early Darkness - 'Open Fire', which is just a bit reminiscent of She Sells Sanctuary, or maybe it is pinched from 'December Sunlight' by The The (or maybe that is pinched from The Cult).

[Seshmeister]

It was difficult to not think that Justin was a complete fucking lightweight when he ended up in rehab within a year of their career taking off and also in a relationship with their female manager.

I mean really - get a fucking grip.

[DLR Bridge]

The sign was supposed to read, Puppet Show - The Darkness.

[Terry]

I remember that 'The Darkness' hype circa 2003 or whatever...that they were gonna simultaneously save and revive fun hard rock and roll. Can't say if said hype was something the band perpetuated or if there really ever was some grass-roots hysteria over them...they seemed much bigger in the United Kingdom than they ever were in the States, where they basically had their Thing Called Love hit and that was it.

Although who can really give a shit about Justin Hawkins and Ace Frehley getting in a tiff over start times on a rock cruise?

[Terry]

The sign was supposed to read, Puppet Show - The Darkness.

At least The Darkness got a bigger dressing room than the puppets...

[Terry]

It was difficult to not think that Justin was a complete fucking lightweight when he ended up in rehab within a year of their career taking off and also in a relationship with their female manager.

I mean really - get a fucking grip.

His rock star status always came off as more the result of him cultivating the media than anything else.

[Seshmeister]

It's incredibly likely that he makes way more money from his 583 000 subscribers on his YouTube channel that he does doing gigs never mind record sales.

A whole new way for bands to get angry and split from their lead singer... The Darkness already being a uniquely odd band where the professional session player guitarist lets his kid brother squeaky singer play the guitar solos????

[Terry]

I mean, for sure he and The Darkness had their moment...even with just north of a half million youtube subscribers I tend to doubt Hawkins is rolling in it...unless he has a lot of sponsorships or whatever. Like I said, perhaps his cache is bigger over in Europe and the United Kingdom re: gigs. He's no Kenny Loggins, that's for sure.

[Nickdfresh]

It's incredibly likely that he makes way more money from his 583 000 subscribers on his YouTube channel that he does doing gigs never mind record sales.

A whole new way for bands to get angry and split from their lead singer... The Darkness already being a uniquely odd band where the professional session player guitarist lets his kid brother squeaky singer play the guitar solos????

Maybe but depends on a lot. The base pay seems to be around $2000/mo: https://www.beaconinside.com/how-muc...ake-per-month/

I think a million subscribers is where they take off...

[silverfish]

Kiss sells catalog, brand name and IP. Gene Simmons assures fans it is a ‘collaboration’

The hard rock quartet have sold their catalog, brand name and IP to Swedish company Pophouse
Entertainment Group in a deal estimated to be over $300 million, it was announced Thursday.

The ways in which Kiss’ avatars will be utilized has yet to be announced, but Pophouse CEO Per
Sundin says fans can expect a biopic, a documentary and a Kiss experience on the horizon.

An avatar show is scheduled to launch in the second half of 2027 — but don’t expect it to look
anything like “ABBA Voyage,” Sundin told the AP. And fans can expect it to kick off in North America.

Full story at:
https://apnews.com/article/kiss-sell...5f35c62670a4f2

[Nitro Express]

At least The Darkness got a bigger dressing room than the puppets...

Those guys were posers and fake as a $3 bill.

[Nitro Express]

Kiss sells catalog, brand name and IP. Gene Simmons assures fans it is a ‘collaboration’

The hard rock quartet have sold their catalog, brand name and IP to Swedish company Pophouse
Entertainment Group in a deal estimated to be over $300 million, it was announced Thursday.

The ways in which Kiss’ avatars will be utilized has yet to be announced, but Pophouse CEO Per
Sundin says fans can expect a biopic, a documentary and a Kiss experience on the horizon.

An avatar show is scheduled to launch in the second half of 2027 — but don’t expect it to look
anything like “ABBA Voyage,” Sundin told the AP. And fans can expect it to kick off in North America.

Full story at:
https://apnews.com/article/kiss-sell...5f35c62670a4f2

You never sell a cash flow producing asset unless you think it’s spent and then you find a sucker to unload it on. It’s called taking the money and running.

[Vinnie Velvet]

Gene is once again full of it. Looks like Paul and Gene are taking the money and runnin.

Pophouse can do what they want with the KISS IP as they see fit now. Sure it will start out as a "collaboration" but remember what Disney did to Lucas' story treatments to the Star Wars sequels?

Yeah.

[Fairwrning]

So did Ace and Peter just make 75 mil? They came up with the characters...or did Gene and Paul fuck em years ago?

[Nitro Express]

Gene is once again full of it. Looks like Paul and Gene are taking the money and runnin.

Pophouse can do what they want with the KISS IP as they see fit now. Sure it will start out as a "collaboration" but remember what Disney did to Lucas' story treatments to the Star Wars sequels?

Yeah.

I don’t blame them. As far as Ace and Peter go, they probably get royalties. Unless you write lyrics like Niel Peart did, drummers usually are the lowest paid people in a band. Ace wrote some of the best KISS shit so he probably still does ok royalty wise.

[Nitro Express]

I’m kinda enjoying Ace doing the I will show you! With his 10,000 volts album and tour. Not getting invited to the final show pissed him off and motivated him to get out and sell his own shit. Ace clearly has a beef with Paul. He seems to respect Gene. I guess the dirt Ace had on Paul is Paul was fucking his sister. That’s the rumor anyways.

[DLR Bridge]

So did Ace and Peter just make 75 mil? They came up with the characters...or did Gene and Paul fuck em years ago?

I’m fairly certain it’s the latter. Utterly ridiculous.