GUITARIST ACE FREHLEY DICUSSES HIS NEW ALBUM, THE ROCK HALL INDUCTION AND HIS FORMER KISS BANDMATE’S AUTOBIOGRAPHIES
Greg Prato of Bravewords spoke with original KISS guitarist Ace Frehley. Excerpts appear below.
BraveWords: Why did it take five years to follow up Anomaly?
Ace Frehley: “I was talking to two or three different labels and I just wasn’t happy with the deals that were being presented, and I was still writing songs. Three years ago I moved cross country from New York to San Diego, so that was a big operation, and that kind of set everything back. I had to set up my studio in San Diego. So that all took its toll. But, better late than never, y’know?”
BraveWords: Is it true that you used your 1978 solo album as a benchmark for Space Invader?
Ace Frehley: “Yeah. I’ve listened to it two or three times over the recording process. I tried to take some elements from that record – all my fans cite that as their favorite record.”
BraveWords: What are some of your favorite tracks on Space Invader?
Ace Frehley: “Space Invader, Past the Milky Way, Inside the Vortex, Toys. A lot of the songs were surprises for me. For instance, Immortal Pleasures and Change, those two songs are a big surprise to me, because I collaborated with my fiancé, Rachael Gordon, on those two. She wrote most of the lyrics and the melody for those. It’s kind of a departure from the way I write melody and lyrics. But I think it shows a different side of me – so that was a real positive experience. Also, Past the Milky Way and Space Invader were written the last two weeks of mixing. They were basic tracks with no lyrics or melody, and I wasn’t sure what was going to be the instrumental. Obviously, Starship won out. But those two songs didn’t have anything. The record company said, ‘We need a title track!’ So I said, ‘OK. I’ll write it.’ And I wrote it one afternoon, went into the studio with Warren Huart, and we threw down the vocals and solo. He actually sang on the choruses with me. And that was a real special experience. The spontaneity of that song I think comes across in the mix.”
BraveWords: Now that it’s been a few months since Kiss’ Hall of Fame induction, what are your thoughts on it?
Ace Frehley: “It was a fun experience. I had a great time, and it was really exciting being involved with all the other great musicians and celebrities. I mean, only after the fact did I realized how many movie stars…Steven Spielberg was sitting right near me and I didn’t even see him. Bill Murray was sitting right in front of me, an old friend – I used to hang out with him and John Belushi. It was just a star-studded group of people. It was a lot of fun. My only regret is that we didn’t perform.”
BraveWords: I also thought it was cool that you talked about your sobriety during your speech, because that may inspire others or give them hope.
Ace Frehley: “I try to be a power of example today, but I don’t like to preach. I don’t like to tell people not to drink or not to take drugs. What I like to do is just be a power of example. And obviously, I’m in a much better place than I was ten years ago. I’ll be celebrating eight years September 15th. But my biggest joy is when I’m meeting fans, doing autograph sessions, and a fan will come up to me and whisper in my ear, ‘Ace, I’ve been sober six months’ or ‘I’ve been sober a year. It’s all because of you.’ And that just makes my day.”
BraveWords: What can fans expect from your follow-up to your autobiography, No Regrets?
Ace Frehley: “I’ve already written a few chapters. It’s pretty much going to be a continuation of my last book. I don’t have any axes to grind. I don’t want it to be negative. I don’t want to answer some of Paul Stanley’s negative statements in his book, because I want my book to be entertaining. I want people to after reading the book to be laughing. There’s tons of humorous stories that haven’t been told. A lot of stories from me growing up in the Bronx. I didn’t touch too much on the Frehley’s Comet years in the first book, so I’ll focus more on that. And a ton of Kiss stories still to be told, and maybe some advice to young musicians, advice on women, advice on sex – crazy stuff, who knows?” (Laughs)
BraveWords: Did you read Paul’s, Peter’s, and Gene’s books?
Ace Frehley: “I skimmed through Gene’s. Peter’s…a little fantasies going on, exaggerated stuff. And the same thing with Paul. But you know, when you hear a story, there’s his side of the story, there’s my side of the story, and then the truth is probably somewhere in the middle. Because a lot of that stuff happened 30/40 years ago. And my memory isn’t as great as it should be, but everybody’s got a different take on it. I mean, the biggest comment I can say about Paul’s book was I’m really shocked at how he bashed Peter. He really attacked Peter’s…not only his performance, but his personality. I thought that was really uncalled for. And he kind of threw Gene under the bus a lot, too. Surprised.”
BraveWords: What are the touring plans for Space Invader and who will be in the touring band?
Ace Frehley: “We’re planning on doing some shows in the fall. Matt Starr who played drums on this record will be my touring drummer, and I’m going to be using Chris Wyse from the Cult – as long as he’s available – and I’m not sure on who is going to be second guitar. I’m still auditioning guys.”
Read more at Bravewords.
source: bravewords.com
I BOUGHT my copy on Thursday. Listened to it 3-4 times in a row. I’ve been a KISS fan since I was 13 (1974). Hotter than hell was my first album so naturally the first song I heard by KISS was got to choose. That is still probably my favorite song. Funny how it works that way. The solo work on that album hit me just the right way. I was an instant ACE fan. I was already listening to johnny winter and king crimson and stuff like that, so it was never an issue of who’s better for me, it was how it made me feel inside. He has continued to make me feel like that over the years and that is why I have remained a fan. Ups, downs, all arounds…. I don’t care. It’s his life to live just like anyone else. I have lived a similar life so it was never about judgment for me. All I can say is I LOVE this new album. Are there better songs on other albums? Maybe…it’s a matter of opinion. But as a whole I think this album is the most consistent. At this point in his life (and mine) I give him props on a great album with excellent guitar work throughout. It just seems such a comfortable fit for him….almost full circle from those solos on HTH. “Space-man is the play-a……and I don’t mean thay-a” (sung to the tune of speed back to my baby). Great job Curley!
If only Hotter than Hell had better production way back then. That album could’ve been huge. Soooo many great songs on that album. Agreed on Got to Choose, just a classic. Would’ve loved to have heard Ace do Parasite. Gene’s great on it, but Ace’s voice would have been interesting. Why HTH was produced and engineered the way it was is still a mystery to me.
DR, could you imagine if Bob Ezrin or Eddie Kramer had produced HTH? Maybe they would’ve even gotten Ace to come out of his shell to sing Parasite! Well, even as “muddy” as HTH is, I still love it! 🙂
The remaster sounds a little better. Apparently they wanted to make a heavier album and the producer thought to accomplish that just distort and make everything louder..
Eddie, do you think that peter criss’ 7 minute drum solo that was supposed to be in the middle of “Strange Ways” will ever see the light of day? Maybe on a deluxe or a special edition of HTH?
Yeah that’s what Paul’s book says too. According to him they couldn’t get the first three albums to their liking, which I don’t agree with. The first album was pass-able, and Dressed to Kill was alright as well. I’ve heard the remaster and agree its slightly better. But even the drums are terrible on that album. I’ve always loved HTH but the studio version just didn’t cut it for me. So I’ve settled for Alive or bootlegs, or even things like Watchin You from Alive III, which isn’t a bad version either. Too bad, that album never got its due and I think its one of their best from the glory days. Doug to your point, Ezrin or Kramer could’ve made some magic with KISS back in the day, but obviously KISS wasn’t big enough for producers of their ilk at that time. Even the acoustic guitar intro on Rock Bottom – pure f’n magic – but never got the airplay or the love. I still listen to that on my Ipod and get chills 40 years later. No matter how f’d up those guys were, they sure gave us some good shit in the 70’s. So much so that they’re still living off it today.
DR, Rock Bottom? Absolutely love that song! One of my favorite Kiss songs. Totally agree on the intro, goose bumps all the way through! Love both versions, studio and live, and even after all these years I still don’t know which version I love more! Those years were definitely the most magical time in Kisstory! 🙂
DR…considering Kramer produced their demo’s I don’t think being too big was the issue. This was Bogart’s decision. And yes HTH is easily my favorite of the first 3. Fantastic album.
Kramer would’ve been too expensive for an entire album, and Bogarts and Aucoins credit cards were already getting maxed out.
Strange ways was my favourite song on HTH….thats song is brillant….fantastic solo
Goin’ Blind is one of my favorites. HTH (the song) is actually not a favorite of mine, but the album as a whole is.
Alright Brian B, you may not have liked Hotter than He’ll the song, but what about the instant classic Rip and Destroy?
A true classic it is. I still sing that chorus when we have some demo to do on the job.
They should’ve released it as a single when that movie came out Bmac – it would’ve been the only good thing that came out of that movie.
““We’re planning on doing some shows in the fall”
That means ; not going to most states… That sucks !
He only did a handful of shows for anomaly . I should have traveled the 5 hr drive from mpls to Milwaukee for that if I knew he wasen’t doing a full tour as the last time he played here was in 08 . Thats hard to do for most older fans that have jobs and kids…
I “get” he probably dosent want to be on the road for very long . It just sucks as a fan that has been following someone’s career for 39 years that you may never get to see them again . I wish he would do more cities. Lets hope
Its like ac/dc for me. Such a big ,enjoyable part of my life for soo many years and 6-7 years of your life pass by before you get so see them again
5 hr drive…. ? How long drive [travel] from The Netherlands ya think….? LOL
Remember he actually did a few shows over here for Anomaly, I went to Frankfurt, not too far away for you 🙂 Hope he will come here again this time, but I doubt it.
Pure class! Love ya Space Ace!
Vinnie “Wiz” Vincent would be a great second guitarist. I’d go to see THAT show…
Excellent idea!
The only issue I have with the CD is the change of quality between songs his guitar playing one moment is amazing then in other songs is sloppy which I don’t understand. Love the CD just don’t get why the his guitar playing varies
Unfortunately, having listened to the whole album twice in my car now, I must agree, I had the same feeling. There are also single parts in one solo that are ok and then sloppy or like he was like adding something, or setting the angle of his right hand towards the strings in a different position or sth similar, if you are a guitarist you know what I mean, there are small parts, maybe only half a second, that you would later edit out, because it is just the noise of the distortion pedal or cranked amp coming through in a pause. I would also say that the production is inconsistent, there are things that are OK and there are things that a professional production should handle. I also do not think that his solos on this album come anywhere near his work on the classic Kiss albums, there a lot of “strange notes”, if not out of tune, because apart from what I have just said there also musical inconsistencies in one single solo and between whole songs or song parts. It all makes me think that he either did not use or could not afford a production level that is up with the industries high standard, while “Monster” e.g. is. Maybe the inconsistencies are also due to recording the songs over quite a long period of time under different circumstances and in different studios with different producers/engineers/budgets. – Still, the overall feeling is that this is an album with some great and some minor songs, and I am still hapyy to get new music from him, we are all getting older and you nwver know how it long it will last.