It has been 20 years since the last release by Paul Daniel Frehley and after listening to this disc it will feel like the clock has been turned back to those days once again. I recently read where Ace likens this new album to the first solo outing that he did as a member of Kiss. Believe him when he says this as the spaceman picks up right where he left off with a collection of tunes that seems to be geared to the still mullet wearing crowd that reminisces of days gone by.
Right from the beginning, when he kicks off this disc with the rocker "Foxy & Free" (When was the last time you heard the term foxy?) Ace combines his powerful guitar playing with the cheesy lyrics and testosterone fueled subject matter to the point that one wants to dig out the platform shoes and face paint. While he may say that he is not interested in KISS anymore, this first song could have been a leftover from the Love Guns era. When he then takes you into "Outer Space" on the next song, you will be wondering if he might not have been thinking of what might have been. This trend continues through the next couple songs and the time warp is complete when he does an almost note for note remake of the glam rock staple "Fox On The Run".
Ace does change it up a bit when he steps away from the microphone for what I think are the best tunes on the disc. First is the mostly instrumental piece "Genghis Khan" which starts out with a very cool acoustic guitar then morphs into a chunky, dreamlike electric rocker. Then he gives you a real rocking treat with the instrumental heavy rocker "Space Bear". But the real highlight is the full instrumental "Fractured Quantum" in which he uses the acoustic guitar to make a very Joe Satriani type melody and uses the electric six string to punctuate this very cool song. I found myself skipping to this one time and time again.
The rest of the disc is made up of Ace trying to take his sound in different directions with some working OK and some well, let's just say, will never become something that sticks with you. Like when he does his best Lou Reed imitation on the song "Change The World", where you just sit back and wonder if Ace really thought he might be able to change the world as he says. Or when he deals with his past on the song "A Little Below The Angels" with its attempt to be profound but Frehley has never been known for his lyrical proficiency. On this one, the cheese factor gets just a little bit too much when he employs a kiddy chorus to back him up.
Anomaly is a very mixed bag. It is the album I think Ace wanted to make 20 years ago. It might fill the belly of the fans who are still wishing for a return to their youth but I cannot see this disc gathering much of a new following or for that matter having much of an impact on the music scene today. It is really just a collection of average songs, nothing more and nothing less.
Track listing:
1. Foxy & Free
2. Outer Space
3. Pain In The Neck
4. Fox On The Run
5. Genghis Khan
6. Too Many Faces
7. Change The World
8. Space Bear
9. A Little Below The Angels
10. Sister
11. It's A Great Life
12. Fractured Quantum
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