RAMMSTEIN's RICHARD Z. KRUSPE: 'I Wouldn't Say Rock's Dead'

RAMMSTEIN guitarist Richard Z. Kruspe, who is currently promoting the sophomore album from his EMIGRATE project, is the latest musician to respond to KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons' recent comment that "rock is dead."

Simmonstold Esquire magazine last month — in an interview conducted by his son Nick — that "rock did not die of old age. It was murdered. Some brilliance, somewhere, was going to be expressed and now it won't because it's that much harder to earn a living playing and writing songs. No one will pay you to do it."

Simmons went on to elaborate that as a result of file-sharing and other issues, record label support for rock music was not available like it was when KISS was coming up, concluding, "It's finally dead. Rock is finally dead."

Asked to weigh in on Gene's comments, Kruspe told Australia's Heavy magazine: "I dont think rock will ever be dead because it's a life statement for a lot of people. But what I do realize is that the quality of records is very poor. I understand why — there's no time, there's no money, [and] everything becomes a promotion tool.

"I said it a few years ago: people only fuck themselves by stealing music. But I think also there is another movement coming. Streaming will maybe save something.

"People are spending money on music at the moment, but it just has to go in the right direction.

"We need to go through that generation that wants to own music to the next generation that says, 'I dont care, I just want to have it.' Then, well, have another way of paying the artist, for people to get money again to invest in music.

"I wouldn't say rock's dead; it's just going through a really poor quality stage."

Kruspe's EMIGRATE project will release its sophomore album, "Silent So Long", on November 4 via Spinefarm. The CD, which was produced by the EMIGRATE bandmembers themselves and mixed in February/March by Ben Grosse (MARILYN MANSON, DISTURBED),features guest appearances by Lemmy Kilmister (MOTÖRHEAD),Jonathan Davis (KORN),Marilyn Manson, Canadian born Berlin-dweller Peaches, and Frank Dellé from chart-topping German collective SEEED.