Brian asked me to post this for him so here you go duder!! 
Well, I finally got around to writing this review of Ace Frehley's new album, "Anomaly", albeit a couple of months late!
It's been twenty years since the release of Frehley's last studio record, "Trouble Walkin'", and his newest creation more than makes up for the excruciating wait! Ace Frehley appears to have really come into his own, and is living up to the promise of greatness which he established with his first solo album in 1978. "Anomaly" features a great collection of songs mixing fun, hard-rocking tunes, with some surprisingly introspective and sensitive ones. Many of the heavier songs are pure Ace, with his trademark note bending, and bluesy soloing. The record opens up with the heavy chugging of "Foxy And Free", a kick-ass forshadowing of some of the heavy-hitting things to come! It only gets better from there! Songs like "Outer Space", "Pain In The Neck", and "Sister" are as powerful as "Cold Gin" or "Parasite" ever were! His cover of The Sweet's, "Fox On The Run" is an instant classic, which sounds like it was tailor made for him in the first place! And many of these songs have got the Ace Frehley sense of humor stamped all over them. You can just imagine him smirking his way through these tunes as he shouts out, "It's like I told you, I came from outer space!" Fans of his classic KISS solo album will be happy to hear that he's still on the right track. "Anomaly" is even better than that landmark record, and it tops what he did with Frehley's Comet, as well!
But what stands out the most for me are the softer, ballad-type songs. These songs showcase a new and improved Space Ace. These are not of the typical drunken-antics variety. Instead, what we are treated to are songs about appreciating life, feeling regretful for past actions, and the desire to be a better human being in the future. It's obvious from songs such as "A Little Below The Angels", and "Change The World" that Ace is trying to show people that he has improved as a person, and wants to inspire great change in others. For instance, in the song, "Change The World", he proclaims, "When I was young, I played, I had lots of fun, but now I can see it's time for a change." He's telling the world that he's not the same old guy he was in the past. He's learned from his mistakes, and wants to do the right thing now. And in the song, "It's A Great Life", the lyrics state, "Now times have changed, so don't be fooled. You gotta remember, you gotta be cool." He seems to echo sentiments I've been having lately (especially since 9-11). That is, we just can't live the same old way we've been living for so long. The planet's in turmoil, and there's too many things we have no control over. We have to be better people. We should all just treat each other with respect and kindness. Or as my heroes Bill and Ted would say, "Be excellent to each other!" These ballads are among the best songs simply because Ace has put his heart and soul into them. When an artist does that, you just can't lose.
In keeping with the tradition of some of his previous albums, Ace closes out "Anomaly" with another installment in the "Fractured Mirror" series. This new tune is called, "Fractured Quantum". There are no lyrics whatsoever here. But with just the light-hearted melody Ace Frehley plays on this song, a feeling of inspiration and hope are evoked. I found it to be a most excellent way to end this excursion into outer space!
Great review!!
Well, I finally got around to writing this review of Ace Frehley's new album, "Anomaly", albeit a couple of months late!
It's been twenty years since the release of Frehley's last studio record, "Trouble Walkin'", and his newest creation more than makes up for the excruciating wait! Ace Frehley appears to have really come into his own, and is living up to the promise of greatness which he established with his first solo album in 1978. "Anomaly" features a great collection of songs mixing fun, hard-rocking tunes, with some surprisingly introspective and sensitive ones. Many of the heavier songs are pure Ace, with his trademark note bending, and bluesy soloing. The record opens up with the heavy chugging of "Foxy And Free", a kick-ass forshadowing of some of the heavy-hitting things to come! It only gets better from there! Songs like "Outer Space", "Pain In The Neck", and "Sister" are as powerful as "Cold Gin" or "Parasite" ever were! His cover of The Sweet's, "Fox On The Run" is an instant classic, which sounds like it was tailor made for him in the first place! And many of these songs have got the Ace Frehley sense of humor stamped all over them. You can just imagine him smirking his way through these tunes as he shouts out, "It's like I told you, I came from outer space!" Fans of his classic KISS solo album will be happy to hear that he's still on the right track. "Anomaly" is even better than that landmark record, and it tops what he did with Frehley's Comet, as well!
But what stands out the most for me are the softer, ballad-type songs. These songs showcase a new and improved Space Ace. These are not of the typical drunken-antics variety. Instead, what we are treated to are songs about appreciating life, feeling regretful for past actions, and the desire to be a better human being in the future. It's obvious from songs such as "A Little Below The Angels", and "Change The World" that Ace is trying to show people that he has improved as a person, and wants to inspire great change in others. For instance, in the song, "Change The World", he proclaims, "When I was young, I played, I had lots of fun, but now I can see it's time for a change." He's telling the world that he's not the same old guy he was in the past. He's learned from his mistakes, and wants to do the right thing now. And in the song, "It's A Great Life", the lyrics state, "Now times have changed, so don't be fooled. You gotta remember, you gotta be cool." He seems to echo sentiments I've been having lately (especially since 9-11). That is, we just can't live the same old way we've been living for so long. The planet's in turmoil, and there's too many things we have no control over. We have to be better people. We should all just treat each other with respect and kindness. Or as my heroes Bill and Ted would say, "Be excellent to each other!" These ballads are among the best songs simply because Ace has put his heart and soul into them. When an artist does that, you just can't lose.
In keeping with the tradition of some of his previous albums, Ace closes out "Anomaly" with another installment in the "Fractured Mirror" series. This new tune is called, "Fractured Quantum". There are no lyrics whatsoever here. But with just the light-hearted melody Ace Frehley plays on this song, a feeling of inspiration and hope are evoked. I found it to be a most excellent way to end this excursion into outer space!
Great review!!
