Ace Frehley recently discussed his connection with Eric Singer, the new drummer for KISS, on an edition of the “Decibel Geek Podcast.” According to BLABBERMOUTH.NET’s transcription, he stated: “I truly enjoy playing with Eric. He has such a snap in his snare and is an amazing drummer. Because when we were performing “Shock Me” at a convention years ago, he completely outperformed the drummer who had been playing before. “Yeah, that’s a drummer,” I replied. I always give Eric a round of applause.
I know he would prefer having me play guitar in the band than [KISS’s most recent guitarist] Tommy [Thayer]. I don’t think he’s a huge fan of Tommy, but it is what it is. [KISS founders] Paul [Stanley] and Gene [Simmons] call the shots.. He’s such a great drummer, and he has such a snap in his snare. ‘Cause I jammed with him at a convention years ago, and we were doing ‘Shock Me’, and he just blew away the drummer that was playing previously. I said, ‘Yeah, now that’s a drummer.’ I always tip my hat to Eric.
When Ace criticized KISS’s most recent lineup for being “half a KISS cover band” ten years ago, Singer retaliated against Frehley, pointing out that neither Frehley nor original KISS drummer Peter Criss had any issues performing with replacement members wearing the band’s original makeup while they were still employed by KISS.
Rolling Stone magazine quoted Singer as saying, “This is something that I notice that nobody seems to point out.” Ace was in the band when I joined in 2001 to help with the makeup, and he didn’t mind at all that I was messing with Peter’s makeup while he walked onstage and made that KISS money. He actually thought it was fantastic, and he didn’t want Peter to rejoin the band. Then proceed with Ace’s departure the next year. As we fast-forward, they suddenly call Peter back, and Tommy Thayer is shown playing the guitar while sporting Ace makeup. Suddenly, nobody seems to worry that Ace designed the makeup. Did Peter not have any issues?
Even though Frehley and some of the other original KISS members had been disparaging each other in recent years, Frehley told Mark Strigl of SiriusXM’s Ozzy’s Boneyard last November, before KISS’s last show, that he didn’t have resentment toward KISS.
“I wish KISS the best, all the best on their final shows for the ‘End Of The Road’ tour,” he stated. “Really, there are no animosities. Sometimes we say things out of passion, and other times we don’t remember them at all. However, I adore those guys. I just let it go because we’re all getting older and our memories aren’t as good as they once were.