Paul Stanley of KISS answers fans questions!

A: I still have that guitar and its brand spanking new grandson is onstage with me every night on the Sonic Boom Over Europe tour.

Q: We’ve never seen you play a Fender. Do you have any specific likes/dislikes about them?

A: I have a couple of terrific Stratocasters and although I love playing them, they are not part of what I do or the school that I come from, but in the right hands, they are understandably one of the true icons of rock ‘n roll.

Q: Do you ever sell and/or intend to sell some of the guitars in your personal collection?

A: I have in the past sold quite a few of my guitars and the ones that I have retained are ones that are connected to me both sonically and emotionally and have a much deeper personal value to me.

Q: Do you have any tips on how I can improve my singing technique?

A: It’s always important to support your voice from your torso and diaphragm and keep it out of your throat. Too many aspiring singers shred their throats thinking you can squeeze notes out of it. You can’t. The more you can incorporate your head tone, supporting it with your diaphragm and chest, the more you’ll avoid wrecking your throat!

Q: Do you do anything special to keep the wear and tear on your guitars to a minimum?

A: Nothing. Like women and many other things in life, a lot of things look better from a distance than up close. My guitars take a beating on tour.

Q: What advice would you give to your son Evan about playing guitar and making music?

A: My son is a phenomenal guitar player and my only advice to him early on was to dig as deeply into the roots of what he loves and discover where it all started, rather than being consumed with copying the current guitar hero per se. I made that point to him by reminding him that Jimi Hendrix didn’t start by playing Purple Haze.

Q: For the Sonic Boom Over Europe tour, will you play some medleys like you did in 2001 in Australia???

A: There are no medleys in the current show, but I think that this is by far our best show and set list to date.

Q: When will KISS be coming to my town?

A: Keep checking the Kiss website. We will be announcing US shows probably within the next few weeks. We are in the midst of our European Sonic Boom Over Europe Tour and have decided that we’re having too much fun to stop.

Q: My question concerns the BEST BALLAD KISS ever recorded. Why was �Nothing Can Keep Me From You� not released as a single? It is much better than Aerosmith’s �I Don’t Wanna Miss A Thing�. I feel you were robbed of a #1 single.

A: I believe it actually was, and sometimes the resistance we’ve met at radio has made airplay impossible, but ultimately, you all listen to what you choose.

Q: There has been some KISS tablature published throughout the years. Does KISS give the companies the exact tablature?

A: As close as some of them may be, there are obvious subtleties that are missing. The challenge, whenever playing someone else’s music is to find the nuances. When you do, you unlock “that door”.

Q: What is your songwriting process?

A: With writing, I tend to come up with a musical idea first and then build on that both lyrically and musically. My lyrics tend to come from stream of consciousness and organically what sings over chord changes or a riff and then it’s just a matter of filling in the blanks.

Q: What do you think about bootlegs?

A: I think that any time someone steals what isn’t theirs; it’s criminal and should be dealt with accordingly. Nobody has the right to sell what isn’t theirs. Nobody has the right to decide how much your work is worth, what you deserve or what you should get. The whole notion of bootlegs and file sharing is as criminal and ridiculous as me calling stealing your car, sharing transportation. You can’t sell what you don’t own.

Q: Is it true, that there one day will be an official “KISS The NEXT Generation???

A: The band has never been stronger, had better reviews, bigger turnouts, or had more fun. There is no end in sight and we are proud of where we’ve been, thrilled with where we are and excited by where we’re going.

Q: If KISS were to play their last show, would Ace and Peter play?

A: I’m not sure that when Kiss plays its last show, I’ll be playing.

Q: If Eric Carr were still alive, what would be the chances of him still being in the band?

A: That’s too hypothetical a question. His loss was a tragedy and it’s pointless to hypothesize.

Q: What do you think of Anomaly? And is the reality show with Ace a go?

A: Honestly, I’ve never heard the whole album. For me, the most important thing is that Ace is alive and hopefully doing what he loves. As far as a reality show, I have no idea what you’re talking about.

Q: Grant me one wish: Never let Peter Criss and Ace Frehley be members of KISS again.

A: Your wish is granted.

Q: Is it true that Eddie Van Halen wanted to join KISS and that Eddie Van Halen wrote the guitar solo for Love Gun?

A: I have no knowledge of that being so. No, Van Halen was not a known band at that time, so that would be impossible. The solo was actually based on a solo from a song called “We Ain’t Got Nothin� Yet” by the Blues Magoos.

Q: Do you have material for future new album?

A: Yes. We had such a great time making Sonic Boom and it was so easy, effortless and the results were so terrific that there doesn’t seem to be much doubt that we will do another.

Q: When can we expect the next studio record?

A: No idea, but I’m sure within the next year or two.

Q: Do you have any plans for releasing more live footage DVDs?

A: There is a Kissology 4 in the works.

Q: What are your future solo plans?