Local Vibe

Gene Simmons may be familiar to you for being the bassist and co-founder of one of the greatest bands to ever take to the stage, KISS. Or perhaps some of you may only remember that he can practically lick his own eyebrows with his freakishly long tounge, and still more of you may have caught an episode or two of his reality TV show. But how many of you knew that he was also a record label executive?

Well it is this latest title that he is hitting the road with and aiming the tour bus for Canada. He has been talking about searching out Canadian talent for his label for a while, but after an unappreciated comment from a certain U.S. media outlet he has determined that he is ONLY going to seek bands from Canada. Sorry about that America, but this is great news for the Canadian Independant Music industry.

Simmons Records is seeking video submissions

Gene and his record label, Simmons Records, are soliciting demo videos from unsigned Canadian bands to join his all-Canadian imprint, which is partnered up with Universal Music Canada. “The mandate of Simmons Records is Canadian,” Simmons recently told CBC Radio, “not only content but Canadian bands, and we’re going to make sure that the next generation of world stars that emanate from Canada — they won’t have to [move to the U.S.].”

One thing that this says loud and clear is that he is confident about the quality of rock and roll that is floating around the venues in cities across this great land, and he wants to help some of these bands reach out and make a name for themselves, with a little KISS for good luck.

Check out the website here. To the local bands out there, I hope you take advantage of this and submit your video if you have one because he will be making a stop in Toronto as a keynote speaker for Canadian Music Week between March 11th and 14th. It wouldn’t be a big stretch to drive down the 401 to catch a band that caught his attention with a kick-ass video submission.