GENE SIMMONS FANS GET THEIR LICKS IN

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 25 – GENE SIMMONS, Rock God and Co-Founder of the Legendary KISS, nominated to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, has announced fans will be able to get their own licks in with the purchase of a Limited and Personally Signed Edition of the GENE SIMMONS AXE BASS.
         Created by a true music visionary, Simmons has invented the ultimate memorabilia in a one-of-a-kind Collector’s Edition instrument that is personally hand numbered and signed by GENE SIMMONS himself. And every purchase of the Gene Simmons Axe Bass will also include a meet-and-greet with Simmons, sometime on the current KISS tour, or at a convenient time for both.
         "The GENE SIMMONS AXE BASS is, by some accounts a piece of art -- numbered and signed by myself....but in other ways, is simply my instrument of choice in KISS. The Bass that slays them all..." says Simmons.
         Fans who submit an order will be able to choose the tour city and date of the current KISS TOUR they want to pick up their Bass. This meet-and-greet with Simmons will include him personally handing the Axe Bass to the buyer and autographing it during the 2009 KISS tour, a legendary trek across to America to deliver songs off the critically acclaimed, much-awaited new “SONIC BOOM” CD, the first new KISS Studio Album release in over a decade.
         The official GENE SIMMONS AXE TOUR BUS will shadow the KISS Tour covering more than 45 dates across the US and Canada. It will also be featured in the upcoming season of Simmons’ hit A&E reality show, “GENE SIMMONS FAMILY JEWELS.”
          “You could also play this Bass on any stage in the world because it’s better than anything out there,” he says.
         The rocker has only this Axe to grind when it comes to this special bass guitar with its unique design and unique, loud sound. The Limited Edition and Numbered silver metallic with a black burst was personally created by Simmons who approved the electronics, the body type, design and even handpicked the wood. The fingerboard is made from Indian Rosewood and each Axe Bass comes with a case that is also designed and hand painted by Simmons.
         Simmons owns the trademark to the word “AXE" and has for over 25 years. He also owns the trademark to the distinctive Axe shape of the bass.
          “I’ve used the Axe on stage and literally thousands of people have contacted me to ask, ‘Where can I get one? Gene, I need one right now. Can I buy your Bass?’
          “So, I’ve made a limited number of the Basses, and since this has been announced, the results have been on the tsunami level,” Simmons says.
         As KISS fans have known for years, Simmons doesn’t just do things in a quiet way. Forget the concept of plunking down a credit card and receiving your Axe Bass from the UPS man. Fans will have a unique experience with the rock icon.
         Classic Rock radio stations will also be able to have Gene for phone interviews either the day of the concert date or the day before KISS appear in the relevant city. Radio stations will also be able to run their own contest to give away a personally signed GENE SIMMONS Gold Record. The phone-ins and giveaways will be available exclusively to one radio station in each market on his tour on a first come first served basis.
         Simmons says that the Axe Bass is a gift to his loyal fans.
           “I owe the fans everything because they made my life possible,” Simmons says. “When I was growing up, I was never able to get a piece of the Beatles. They weren’t available, but they were still Mt. Olympus to me.
          “This Axe Bass  is just as special for me and the fans,” Simmons says.
          “You may not be able to be Gene Simmons,” he says. “But you can feel like me, with my GENE SIMMONS AXE BASS slung over your shoulder.”