Ace Frehley in Greensburg reviewed
The universe’s most infamous spaceman- Ace Frehley has returned to planet Earth, descending on the little town of Greensburg in rural Pennsylvania to play a show in support of his latest cosmic offering- Space Invader via eOne Music.
Like he always does when he visits our planet, the guitar toting space traveler has surrounded himself with the best musical life forms he can find, this time in the form of guitarist Richie Scarlet, bassist Chris Wyse and drummer Scot Coogan.
Frehley’s spaceship must have hit some heavy cosmic traffic, because even though his band was on site and ready to go, Frehley himself arrived at the Palace Theater a mere 5 minutes before show time, so it was a good thing that Pittsburgh rockers Supermonkey were there to rock the house until he got there, which they did and then some.
The band delivered a rock solid set of bluesy Rock N Roll with titles like “Microphone,” “Give It To Ya,” “Whatcha Gonna Do,” “Last Rock God” and “Falter” alongside a couple of really tasty covers and did a damn fine job of gearing up the crowd.
As the house lights dimmed and the intro music of “Fractured Mirror” began to wail through the speaker system, fans leaped from their seats to rush the stage, their screams so loud that they could not only be heard, but felt.
Wasting no time, the band ripped into “Toys” and “Gimme A Feeling” from the new album. Followed by the Kiss classics “Rocket Ride,” “Parasite” and “Love Gun,” which drummer Scot Coogan sang, stopping only long enough to joke that they really had no idea where they were, because no one hung the sign to tell them.
It’s no secret that Frehley tells hysterical stories, but hearing his one of a kind laugh as he tells them, makes it impossible not to join in. It’s also no secret that Frehley is one of the most talented guitar players on this planet or any other for that matter. His literally smoking hot guitar solo at the end of his signature song “Shock Me” is still one of the highlights of his show till this very day.
Other highlights included solo standards like “Breakout,” “Snowblind,” “Rock Soldiers,” “New York Groove” and “Rip It Out,” as well as Chris Wyse’s equally impressive bass solo and an absolutely riveting performance by guitarist Richie Scarlet.
Overall, fans were treated to a nearly two hour set, but it was the show stopping encores of “Detroit Rock City,” which drummer Scot Coogan now sings better than Paul Stanley and “Deuce” that would be stuck in everyone’s head as they drove home that night and for days to come, precisely why he is a living legend.
-Eric Hunker
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