Gene Simmons is pretty much a professional troll at this point, and we’re not just saying that because his hair looks like if like a Troll Doll. He knew that people would react to the interview he gave to his son earlier this month for Esquire when he declared that rock was dead. And of course everyone write about it. And when they did, they mentioned Gene Simmons. And KISS. Dammit. At any rate, journalist Mitch Lafon asked Rob Halford, the metal god, what he thought of Simmons’ comments. You might not be surprised to hear that the Judas Priest frontman doesn’t think that rock is dead yet.
“No, I’ve heard that statement a number of times through the decades that I’ve been in metal. I don’t think it is. I think it’s absolutely in incredible shape right now. [It’s] never been stronger… I think we’re surrounded constantly by new talent and the enthusiasm that surges from new bands of all kinds keeps rock alive and strong, and I think it’ll always be that way. So, for me, when I check out the metal sites that I do every day — I check out a dozen metal sites from different places around the world — I see the strength and the power there, and it’s tremendously exciting. It’s a different world now, for sure, in terms of the way the industry side of the business works. That is a whole new perspective compared to how it was even twenty years ago, with the advent of the Internet, which created an enormous amount of… a change of perspective. It affected everybody in a great way. “So what I’m saying is rock isn’t dead. It’s alive, it’s thriving, and it’s exciting.”
So take that, Gene. Some young whippersnapper that’s two years younger than you doesn’t think rock is dead either! Judas Priest’s tour in support of Redeemer of Souls kicks off next week.
