Ace Frehley 3/20/10
by UpInSmoke on 3/21/10House of Blues Atlantic City - Atlantic CityRating: 4 out of 5I would describe myself as a fan of Ace Frehley, but not necessarily a fan of Kiss, though there are songs that of Kiss that I like, and recognize their vast contributions to the world of Rock. Having listened to Ace since the late 1980's through his solo work, played mostly on WSOU-FM in NJ, I grew accustomed to Ace's catchy riffs, lyrics, and choice of band mates and their playing prowess, from Frehley's Comet through Anomaly, and hail Ace's consistent use of excellent drummer Anton Fig. Songs like "Five Card Stud", "Shot Full of Rock", "Limbo", "Insane", and "Rock Soldiers", are the songs that for me, define the Ace Frehley musical experience. Not to discount his work with Kiss, but, those kinds of songs are what drew me to Ace, his solo work. I also have his newest work, Anomaly. I was excited to finally get to see Ace live for the first time, after waiting some 20 years since my introduction to his music. Ace played a mixture of Kiss songs, those of which he wrote or contributed to on Kiss albums, along with many of his own early on, such as "Rocket Ride", "New York Groove", "Rip It Out", "Speedin' Back to My Baby", and only a few later ones such as "Rock Soldiers", and "Pain in the Neck". Very few songs from Anomaly. Ace's band was phenomonally LOUD, at least 4-5 times louder than the opening band which was mixed very well and detailed, you were able to distinguish one guitar from another and clearly pick out the drums and cymbals. Unfortunately, Ace's show was SO loud, that that defined detailed sound of the opening band's sound mixture, was lost in the sonic bludgeoning. Poor choice to play so loud, at the expense of sound quality, for which the House of Blues is usually able to deliver. I would like to add that the opening act, Acey Slade and the Dark Party, were excellent, both sonically and performance wise. They were a sort of Punk-Gothic-Metal band fronted by Acey Slade, and these guys were very tight, creative, had "the look" and this band belongs on stage in front of appreciative crowds. I had the opportunity to talk with Acey after the show and personally thank them for their show. I will look for them in the future. And, I will continue to listen to Ace, for another 20 years or so. Hopefully I wont have to wait that long for another new CD and tour. Go check out Ace!
