Toronto rocker DANKO JONES recently launched a column at Canada's Huffington Post. Following is an excerpt from his latest article:

"This week was a big week for me for three reasons. First, our band released our new album Rock and Roll is Black and Blue. Second, the book Too Much Trouble: A Very Oral History of Danko Jones by author Stuart Berman was put out by ECW Press. And third, KISS, my favourite band in the whole world, also put out their 20th studio album, Monster.

This serendipitous convergence has had me bringing up the fantastically face-painted foursome from Queens, New York this week more times than usual during press interviews, and of course, brought out long-standing lingering conundrums I've always had with regards to the band.

Whatever side of the fence you're on when it comes to KISS is of no matter. KISS are an undeniable tour de force, more popular than ever, and from preliminary listens of the Monster album, in top form.

But there's always one thing that's bothered me about the band. If one could travel through a Rock 'n' Roll Time Tunnel and witness the greatest moments in rock, most people would choose to be in the studio audience when The Beatles played the Ed Sullivan Show, or when Jimi Hendrix lit his guitar on fire at the Monterey Pop Festival. Not me. I'd choose to be in the room at the exact moment all four original members of KISS chose their stage names. It's a moment in rock history that's never considered but, on closer look, begs discussion.

Their countless gold albums, successful world tours and endless merchandise have not only kept them constantly in the public eye, but helped shape popular culture. The costumes, the makeup, and that world famous tongue have all become iconic and synonymous with the over-indulgent era of the '70s and the self-absorbed '80s. But what's always struck me as peculiar was for a band that strove to be larger than life, they sure as hell chose pretty dull stage names.

When Chaim Witz arrived in the United States from Israel it wasn't long before he became Gene Klein. Gene Klein changed his name again to 'Gene Simmons.' When Gene formed KISS he decided to change his whole persona and became 'The Demon' -- a towering man-monster who spat blood. Despite changing his whole persona to something as menacing as The Demon, he still kept the name Gene Simmons. And frankly, 'Gene Simmons' sounds like a used car salesman, not some blood-curdling demon. It's kind of like if Spider Man insisted on being called 'Peter' or 'The Amazing Peter.'"

Go to this location for the complete article.

Catch Danko Jones live at the following shows:

October

16 - The Circus - Helsinki, Finland
17 - Debaser Medis - Stockholm, Sweden
18 - Pustervik - Göteborg, Sweden
19 - John Dee - Oslo, Norway - SOLD OUT -
20 - KB - Malmö, Sweden
21 - Docks - Hamburg, Germany
23 - Schlachthof - Bremen, Germany
24 - Melkweg - Amsterdam, Netherlands
25 - Ancienne Belgique - Brussels, Belgium **
26 - Le Trabendo - Paris, France **
27 - Komplex - Zürich, Switzerland**
29 - Arena - Vienna, Austria
30 - Longhorn LKA - Stuttgart, Germany
31 - Theaterfabrik - Munich, Germany

November

1 - Postbahnhof - Berlin, Germany
2 - FZW - Dortmund, Germany - SOLD OUT -
3 - Batschkapp - Frankfurt, Germany - SOLD OUT -
13 - Mavericks - Ottawa, ON
14 - The Casbah - Hamilton, ON
15 - Call The Office - London, ON
16 - Virgin Mobile Mod Club - Toronto, ON
17 - The Oak - Winnipeg, MB
18 - New City Legion - Edmonton, AB
20 - The Gateway - Calgary, AB
21 - Commodore Ballroom - Vancouver, BC