ACE FREHLEY Is Putting Finishing Touches On New Studio Album

Ace Frehley is putting the finishing touches on his new solo album for a tentative early 2023 release.

The original KISS guitarist offered an update on the LP's recording progress while sharing a list on social media of his "Best 10 Sci-Fi Movies Released Up Until 1960". At the end of the message, he wrote: "My New Studio Record is nearing its completion! Hopefully it will be out Spring-Summer 2023!!!"

Back in November 2021, Ace said that he had collaborated with his longtime friend Peppy Castro on "some heavy songs."

Peppy reportedly taught Frehley how to play guitar and previously collaborated with KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons as a songwriter and performed on Frehley's and KISS frontman Paul Stanley's solo records.

In December 2020, Frehley told Talking Metal Live that he would start recording his next all-original album the following year. The record will be the follow-up to "Spaceman", which was released in October 2018 via eOne. At the time, he said that had "been writing all along. Plus, I have tracks that I've already recorded that I have to revisit and decide whether they have a chance to make it on my new studio record — [if they] have to be rewritten or [they're] just good the way they are," he explained. "And I've got people sending me song ideas constantly… So, little by little, it's an ongoing process, and it evolves as it goes."

Earlier in 2020, Frehley told Canada's iHeart Radio that he had "only written about three songs" for his next LP, and he added they were "not finished." He said: "Now that I'm [living] on the East Coast [after moving to New Jersey from Southern California], my engineer only lives an hour from me, Alex Salzman, who worked with me extensively on this last record, and he played a lot of bass guitar as well, So it's gonna be even easier, 'Origins Vol. 3' and the next [original] record."

Frehley's latest release was "Origins Vol. 2", the sequel to his 2016 collection of cover songs that inspired the former KISS guitarist.

"Origins Vol. 2" featured cover versions of THE BEATLES' "I'm Down", DEEP PURPLE's "Space Truckin'", LED ZEPPELIN's "Good Times Bad Times", THE ROLLING STONES' "Jumpin' Jack Flash", THE KINKS' "Lola" and THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE's "Manic Depression", among others. A cover of the 1975 KISS tune "She" also appeared as a bonus track. Guests on the set included CHEAP TRICK's Robin Zander, Lita Ford and former KISS guitarist Bruce Kulick.

KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons co-wrote two tracks on "Spaceman", "Without You I'm Nothing" and "Your Wish Is My Command", the latter of which also features Simmons's bass playing.