Jamie Hince of The Kills performing at Somerset House London, England on July 12, 2005. (WENN.com)

Jamie Hince prefers a small, intimate affair.

No, the guitar-playing half of The Kills isn't referring to his upcoming wedding to Kate Moss. He's talking about his preferred setting for a gig.

"I'd much rather play in a smaller venue," says the 42-year-old Londoner, calling from sunny San Diego, Calif. "There's an intimacy with the audience in a small venue, and sweat dripping off the walls. You can make eye contact with people. That's something I much prefer."

But not something he's likely to see much of in the future. For Hince and singer Alison Mosshart, the days of tiny shows and indie-rock anonymity are coming to an end. Her sideline gig fronting Jack White's Dead Weather has introduced her to legions of young fans -- who are now discovering The Kills via their fourth and most commercial album Blood Pressures. And of course, Hince's supermodel romance hasn't exactly lowered his profile. He's become tabloid fodder back home, where every rumour about his nuptials is breathlessly trumpeted by gossip sheets.

Does Kate really want to book Led Zeppelin for the reception? Has he actually asked Mosshart to be his "best man?" You won't find the answers here; I was politely but firmly prohibited from asking Hince any personal questions during our interview, which was monitored by a publicist. So we discussed side projects, musical fascism and cheap guitars. Here are the highlights:

It seems the spotlight on you is brighter than ever. Does it feel that way?

It doesn't really. But remember, I'm living my life inside of all this. It's been kind of a gradual thing for me. Since I started The Kills, it's been a journey and an adventure, with things changing. But this is what I signed up for. I want it to be unexpected and bizarre. And there's a lot of differences people see that aren't necessarily there, you know. A lot of people think that my band's just started now because they've just seen it. But I've been doing music since I was a teenager.

Does it bother you that some of those new fans think of Alison as the singer in Dead Weather and The Kills as her side project?

It's just normal, isn't it? Those kids went to see her in a just different band. So many interviews I do, people want to be negative and pit us against each other. Yeah, Alison was in a different band. But kids don't share the negativity, so it doesn't bother us. I'm just excited about playing to anybody.

You've said you usually start writing songs around rhythms, but on Blood Pressures you began with melodies. How did that happen?

I was just playing a lot of acoustic guitar. So when I went in I already had a ton of songs. I was aware we hadn't really done much with melody. Of course, when people talk about melody, they just mean the songs are more accessible -- and writing accessible songs is something I never really aspired to do (laughs). We've tried to approach songwriting differently each time. For us, it's not about the notes and the chords. The melodies aren't anywhere near as important as the two people making the music. That punk thing, the triumphing of ideas over ability; that's at the root of The Kills. It's never been about craftsmanship.

How does your creative partnership work? Are you and Alison of the same mind or do you argue a lot?

We're incredibly close. We've lived in each other's pockets for a decade. We work so much together that there's an instinct. We're kind of psychic musically and creatively. But yeah, part of getting somewhere with a musical partnership is facing up to every single reality and not hiding anything. And that involves arguing and bickering. We're certainly not of one mind. But we are really interested in there being a unity of spirit, a unity of creativity, a unity of action. And when you want that, you work your way 'round to finding it.

Is there a general division of labour when it comes to songwriting and recording?

Well, on this record, I took more of a role in the studio with the music because Alison was on tour. So that's just how it was dictated. But before, Alison would come up with a song idea and I'd finish it off. This time, she'd come up with an idea and I'd take the essence and completely change it. I was doing that with my own songs as well. So I definitely took the reins more.

Why do everything yourself? Are you just a control freak?

(Laughs) I think there's elements of that. I've been in bands and it's all been watered down by everyone pitching in and trying to reach a consensus. I think it's important to try to reach a consensus with most things in life, but not with art. Not with music. You have to be a fascist with music. You have to be a dictator to get what you want, and not spare anybody's feelings along the way if you want to make good art. That's the main reason we ended up with it just being the two of us. We just couldn't find anybody that had the same passion. If we got anyone else involved, it would water it down. And after a decade of it, you start getting the fear that it's your secret weapon in a way -- the electricity two people can make.

You seem to favour old, cheaper-looking guitars. Is that for looks or sound?

I just walked into a shop years ago and found this guitar on the wall. It was a Hofner 176. It had loads of buttons and switches on it and it was really cheap so I bought it. And it happened to be the greatest guitar I ever played, so I bought more. I've probably got about 12 now. There's something about the pickups; they're brutally loud and clear. And I like the struggle of playing it. I like feeling all the knots in it and knowing it's not running smoothly. I bought myself a really good Gibson semi-acoustic and it's too smooth for me. It doesn't need me to play it; it plays itself. So it's not the same. I feel a bit of a charlatan with a super-duper expensive guitar in my hand. I'm not a virtuoso. I'm more of a vandal.

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The Kills Canadian dates

April 30 | Montreal | l'Olympia

May 1 | Toronto | Sound Academy

May 8 | Vancouver Commodore Ballroom