KAS: First of all, the obvious question: When and how was KISSNATION born? Tell us about the band’s history.
Billy: I joined KISSNATION in 2006. The band was already around for several years before then. I had been playing original music but when the band I was in broke up I had the time to pick up some gigs performing with various Kiss tribute acts. KISSNATION needed someone to fill in for their Paul for a gig and I just never left!
KAS: Why did you choose to wear the LOVE GUN/ALIVE II era costumes? We know that you wore different costumes from different eras in the past… Please tell us about that, how did and why did you decide to change your outfits?
Billy: I thought the Love Gun costumes were generally seen as the most iconic and easily recognizable costumes. A lot of tribute bands think they’re playing to primarily the hard core audience but I take the approach that if you plan to play to a large audience you want to make sure you’re reaching the lowest common denominator. So I was pretty adamant that it should feature the original line up characters and I think the Love Gun costumes are often the first that come to people’s mind when they picture KISS. It’s probably the same reason KISS chose to wear them for the reunion. That being said, I would love to wear some of the other costumes at some point too.
KAS: Do you guys have a fixed weekly routine for rehearsals? Or at this point you know all of the songs and parts so well, that you just need to rehearse just one or two days before a gig?
Billy: No, we just rehearse whenever necessary. Sometimes we won’t see each other for extended periods of time. Then it just takes a couple of rehearsals to shake off the rust before we go out to play the gigs.
KAS: Could you tell us about some of your best highlights through your long career so far?
Billy: To me the highlight of being in a KISS tribute band is all about the impact we make on some of the younger fans. When we play shows where parents can bring their young children it’s awesome. I see their eyes light up because to them they don’t really see the difference between us or KISS. It’s like when a kid meets Mickey Mouse at Walt Disney World. Sure we know it’s just a guy in a mouse costume, but to that kid it’s really Mickey Mouse and it’s magical. I get to do that as Paul Stanley and to be able to bring that joy to children and families is just a fantastic feeling.
KAS: How is the selection of songs process before a show? Do you have kind of a stable structure and you just change a few ones or do you like to revise the setlist often in order to not to play always the same songs?
Billy: I plan out of the set list myself. I try to choose a good balance from all eras of the band’s career. I’m a firm believer in that people want to hear the popular songs so I make sure to keep them in there but I like to play a couple of deep cuts too. The problem with deep cuts is every fan says they want to hear them but you can never get a large group of fans to all agree on which one to play. And if you could, then it would be a popular standard. So I try to get a little something for everyone there. It’s a pretty stable structure but there’s some spots in the set where we can interchange some alternates. The same way KISS did that during the Rock the Nation tour. Then after a while I might completely revamp it when we’re returning to some of the same places to play again. It’s really no different than the real band.
KAS: We guess that, when you got the gig to play at the KISS KRUISE event in Las Vegas you got excited… Tell us a bit about how it happened.
Billy: It was really much easier than anyone might imagine. We didn’t lobby for the gig or anything. It’s my understanding that our name was brought up by several people as a band that would be great to have be part of the event. I got a call from Keith Leroux and he said the people running the event wanted to speak with us and it was really as easy as that. I’m honored that people suggested us and that they wanted to have us. I really appreciate it.
KAS: What can we the fans expect from your performance at the Las Vegas KISS KRUISE event? I am sure you are aware it will be probably your most important show. How are you living these months before the big storm? Any special surprise that you may have in your pocket for that show?
Billy: A lot of the details are still being worked out with the event organizers. But I know we’re going to play a few different songs in each of our 3 sets over the weekend. So if anyone wants to catch all three shows there will be some cool surprises each show. What excites me the most about playing these shows is that we will finally get to play to people from all over the world. There are many KISS fans that have shown appreciation for what we do because they saw us on video and now we’ll actually get to perform live in person for them. I have friends from all over the world that I would see at KISS events and now they’re saying they’re looking forward to finally getting the chance to see me perform. That’s what really excites me most!
CHARACTER: PAUL STANLEY/STARCHILD
FULL REAL NAME: Billy May
CITY OF BIRTH: Brooklyn, NY
HEIGHT: 6’
WEIGHT: 195 lbs
FAVOURITE FOOD: It really depends on my mood but you can’t go wrong with Italian food.
FAVOURITE MOVIE: The Godfather or Casablanca.
FAVOURITE KISS ALBUM: Alive is probably my favorite. But if you mean studio album Destroyer is probably their best over all.
FAVOURITE KISS SONG: It’s so hard to answer that so I usually just say Detroit Rock City.
FAVOURITE KISS ERA: I discovered Kiss during the 70s so that will always be most magical to me. I actually have a really soft spot for the Dynasty era.
YOUR FIRST KISS CONCERT: I begged my parents to take me to the Dynasty tour but I didn’t actually get to see them until Animalize.
CHARACTER: THE SPACEMAN
FULL REAL NAME: Ruby Rinekso
CITY OF BIRTH: Jakarta, Indonesia
HEIGHT: 5’10”
WEIGHT: 185lbs
FAVOURITE FOOD: Steak
FAVOURITE MOVIE: Jaws
FAVOURITE KISS ALBUM: Destroyer
FAVOURITE KISS SONG: Deuce
FAVOURITE KISS ERA: 74-79
YOUR FIRST KISS CONCERT: Crazy Nights 1987
CHARACTER: GENE SIMMONS/THE DEMON
FULL REAL NAME: Joe Anastasi
CITY OF BIRTH: Jackson Heights, NY
HEIGHT: 5’10”
WEIGHT: 180lbs
FAVOURITE FOOD: Food. Seriously, all food… 😂
FAVOURITE MOVIE: Rocky (1&2)
FAVOURITE KISS ALBUM: Alive
FAVOURITE KISS SONG: Shout it Out Loud
FAVOURITE KISS ERA: 1977
YOUR FIRST KISS CONCERT: Lick it Up 1983 (Accept opened)
CHARACTER:THE CATMAN
FULL REAL NAME: Allen Rolleri
CITY OF BIRTH:Flushing, NY
HEIGHT: 5’8”
WEIGHT: 165
FAVOURITE FOOD: Fried Chicken
FAVOURITE MOVIE: The Godfather
FAVOURITE KISS ALBUM: Alive II
FAVOURITE KISS SONG: Too many to list
FAVOURITE KISS ERA: The very early years…1974-75
YOUR FIRST KISS CONCERT: Asylum. My older brother took me.
Thank you very much for your time!!!
See you in Vegas!!
