The bellman was at the door to pick up his luggage, his cell phone was ringing (the ringtone: Led Zeppelin's "Black Country Woman") and he had a hacking cough. None of those interruptions prevented singer Paul Stanley from talking about his favorite subject, Kiss.
As it celebrates its 35th anniversary, Stanley's band is hotter than an arena full of flamethrowers. The Kiss Alive 35 tour has filled stadiums in Europe and South America (it comes to Target Center Saturday). "Sonic Boom," Kiss' first album of new material in 11 years, debuted at No. 2 despite being available only at Wal-Mart. And after being shunted aside for 10 years, the band is finally on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ballot.
To top it all, "not only are we getting incredible response from the audience on tour, but it's odd to also get good reviews," Stanley said from Atlanta, with mock surprise.
Kiss' mouthpiece, who turns 58 in January, talked about "Sonic Boom," the status of former members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss, and the newest Kiss products -- M&Ms and a Mr. Potato Head.
Q Why did you decide to go with a Wal-Mart exclusive for "Sonic Boom"?
A The reality is that the music retail store has pretty much dried up. The music industry is in a tumble, to say the least. And Wal-Mart offered us the opportunity to put out a package that kind of followed our philosophy of giving more than just an album. There was a time when we would include a Love Gun or a poster or a tattoo -- something to just take it over the top. We were able to put together a package that [also] has a CD of re-records of 15 songs and a DVD of excerpts from our most recent stadium show in Buenos Aires. To be able to do that for 12 bucks, it's a no-brainer. Plus, there are a lot more Wal-Marts at this point than there are record stores.
Q There had to be pent-up demand after not releasing an album since "Psycho Circus," your 1998 reunion project.
A There's pent-up curiosity, but there's also room for people to be weary or leery of a new album. There was a lot of anticipation for the last one, and it turned out to fizzle instead of sizzle. It's virtually impossible to make a band album when you're dealing more with members' attorneys than with members. The last time I checked, the attorneys don't play instruments too well. The days of entitlement and demanding songs on an album and how to be featured, those days are over, at least in this camp. The premise of this album was vastly different; you had four people very committed to making a statement, taking what we do live into the studio.