In a new interview with Germany’s Rock Antenne, original KISS guitarist Ace Frehley was asked if he is happy the band’s farewell tour, End Of The Road, is finally over. He responded (as transcribed by blabbermouth.net), “I’m happy it’s over, because I’m not gonna be compared to them anymore… But I don’t get this avatar thing that they’re gonna do.”
He continued, “I mean, I saw some of it on a video on YouTube last night. It kind of looked like it was geared towards children. And it’s not rock and roll. I get up on stage without backing tracks, plug my amp into it, plug my guitar into a Marshall and go. That’s it. It’s always been that way and always will be.”
When queried if he watched the last KISS show online, Frehley said, “I watched [a YouTube video of the show in] Indianapolis [from the End Of The Road tour], and I’m not impressed. But that’s me. Tommy Thayer is not a bad guitarist. He just is more mechanical than me. Nobody can copy my solos the way I play them, because I’m sloppy and nobody can move like me. Nobody. And I’m surprised the fans bought Tommy pretty much, because I think for several years that Tommy was in the band, people didn’t even know it wasn’t me. I used to get phone calls from people and say, ‘Hey, KISS is playing in town. Can you get me tickets?’ I go, ‘I’m not in the band anymore.’ They go, ‘You’re not?’ Because when I quit the band the second time, they did not make a big press release. They kind of buried it and just made the transition. But the last tour I did with KISS, Tommy Thayer was bringing me sandwiches and he was a tour manager and a gofer. But he’s not a bad guitar player. I’m actually friends with Tommy — just all the guys in the band. I’m good friends with [drummer] Eric Singer. Me and Gene [Simmons, bassist/vocalist] are very close. When Gene put out his Vault Experience, I went on the road with him. I went to Australia with him. Before we made it really big, me and Gene used to room together. So Gene has a soft spot in his heart for me.”
In other Ace news, the guitarist will releasing a new album, called 10,000 Volts, on February 23rd, 2024. He released the first, self-titled single, on November 28th, which can be heard, here.
6 Responses
IMNick: Comment of the month. I’ve just had it with Ace. He’s got a big mouth, but he can’t back it up. I’m enjoying watching him bury himself. He could say whatever he wants, but at the end of the day, the performances speak volumes. And his performances are shit. Shit that costs money to witness. No thanks.