KISS rethinks plans, will record album in '09

NEW YORK - KISS has reversed course and decided to hit the studio next year to record their first new album since 1998's "Psycho Circus." Guitarist Paul Stanley will produce.

In recent years, bassist Gene Simmons has been vocal about his lack of enthusiasm about making a new album, which he attributes to the state of the business.

"The record industry is in such a mess," he said in November 2007. "There is nothing in me that wants to go in there and do new music. How are you going to deliver it? How are you going to get paid for it if people can just get it for free?"

In 2006, Stanley said making a new KISS album in the shadow of the band's classic repertoire would be a formidable challenge. "The fact is, [fans] may tolerate the new songs, but it's the old ones you want to hear," he said. "I think Jimmy Page and Robert Plant found that out. The [Rolling] Stones certainly know it. The Who certainly know it. So unless you're willing to go into the studio accepting that how your album will be received will never match your expectations, I'm not sure it's worth the effort."

Stanley admitted complete control would change his mind. "I would consider doing it if I could do it the way I wanted to do it," he explained, adding that his 2006 solo album "Live to Win" confirmed how he'd "like music to sound that I'm a part of. To do another KISS album, I would not be willing to compromise my point of view perhaps as much as I have in recent years."

It's unknown how KISS will distribute the album, which will feature original members Stanley and Simmons alongside guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer.

Following their 35th anniversary tour, which primarily played Europe this summer, KISS is expected to hit North America at some point in 2009. *