# 10,000 Volts
**10,000 Volts** is the eighth full-length studio solo album by [Ace Frehley](https://www.edgepedia.org/ace-frehley), the original lead guitarist of Kiss, released on February 23, 2024 through MNRK Records.[1](https://acefrehley.bandcamp.com/album/10000-volts) It was his first album of original material since 2018's *Spaceman*,[2](https://www.allmusic.com/album/10000-volts-mw0004164587) and after Frehley's death in October 2025 it proved to be his final solo album.[3](https://www.guitarworld.com/artists/guitarists/the-life-and-times-of-kiss-guitar-icon-ace-frehley) Promoting the record, Frehley boasted, "My new album is going to make Paul Stanley look like an imbecile."[4](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/ace-frehley-tribute)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Artist | Ace Frehley (born 1951), founding Kiss guitarist, performing as "Space Ace"[3](https://www.guitarworld.com/artists/guitarists/the-life-and-times-of-kiss-guitar-icon-ace-frehley) • [5](https://apnews.com/article/36d8ed5073bc169bf1e14ea1dc13f30e) |
| Release | February 23, 2024, MNRK Records LP; 11 songs, about 40 minutes[1](https://acefrehley.bandcamp.com/album/10000-volts) • [6](https://music.apple.com/us/album/10-000-volts/1716950294) |
| Production | Produced by Frehley and Steve Brown (Trixter); mixed and mastered by Bruno Ravel[1](https://acefrehley.bandcamp.com/album/10000-volts) |
| Lead single | Title track released November 28, 2023; over 1.6 million streams and 800,000 video views by January 2024[7](https://blabbermouth.net/news/ace-frehley-shares-behind-the-scenes-video-from-making-of-10000-volts-album) |
| Billboard performance | No. 72 on the Billboard 200 (13,396 equivalent units); No. 4 on Top Album Sales; No. 2 on Top Hard Rock Albums[8](https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2024/03/06/kiss-rocker-ace-frehley-returns-to-the-billboard-charts/) |
| Significance | First original-material solo album since 2018's *Spaceman*, and his last[2](https://www.allmusic.com/album/10000-volts-mw0004164587) |
## Background and recording
Frehley, sober since 2006, had issued a string of well-received later-career albums beginning with *Anomaly* (2009), followed by *Space Invader* (2014), the two-volume *Origins* covers sets, and *Spaceman* (2018).[9](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mn0000588508) • [3](https://www.guitarworld.com/artists/guitarists/the-life-and-times-of-kiss-guitar-icon-ace-frehley) Writing for *10,000 Volts* began in 2022 with his childhood friend Peppy Castro, formerly of the 1960s psychedelic garage band Blues Magoos, and guitarist Derrek Hawkins, who had toured with Frehley in 2007.[10](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/ace-frehley-on-10000-volts-home-visit) The pivotal collaboration came through Frehley's fiancée Lara, who introduced him to Steve Brown, guitarist of Trixter and leader of Rubix Kube; the two lived about 40 minutes apart in New Jersey and co-wrote most of the album's songs, with Brown co-producing.[7](https://blabbermouth.net/news/ace-frehley-shares-behind-the-scenes-video-from-making-of-10000-volts-album) • [11](https://loudwire.com/ace-frehley-new-solo-album-10000-volts-interview/)
Most of the album was written and recorded in Frehley's basement home studio in a New Jersey suburb, a space decorated to look like a spaceship.[12](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/ace-frehley-steve-brown-10000-volts) Early results underwhelmed Frehley himself; he told *Guitar Player* that he came out of the studio telling Lara, "The stuff that I'm recording is not knocking me out," before the work with Brown took shape.[13](https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/ace-frehley-10000-volts) Brown pushed for concise material: Frehley said early on that "these songs need to be around three minutes," which left the record punchy.[12](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/ace-frehley-steve-brown-10000-volts) The album was announced with a behind-the-scenes video in January 2024, with Bruno Ravel handling mixing and mastering.[7](https://blabbermouth.net/news/ace-frehley-shares-behind-the-scenes-video-from-making-of-10000-volts-album)
## Songs
The 11-track album is hard rock in the vein of Frehley's Kiss-era material, anchored in his blues-based bends and distinctive tone; AllMusic describes it as "punchy and anthemic hard rock bangers with plenty of N.Y.C. swagger."[1](https://acefrehley.bandcamp.com/album/10000-volts) • [2](https://www.allmusic.com/album/10000-volts-mw0004164587) The title track continues Frehley's electricity theme, recalling the major electrical shock he suffered on stage in 1976 from touching an ungrounded metal railing.[14](https://apnews.com/article/fa7f0dd0b4ab051dc6847f64785c6278) "Up in the Sky" revisits his spaceman persona wondering about mysterious lights in the heavens, while "Cosmic Heart" is a dark, slower-paced rocker that AP's reviewer compared to Kiss's 1975 song "She."[14](https://apnews.com/article/fa7f0dd0b4ab051dc6847f64785c6278)
Several tracks draw directly on Frehley's biography. "Fightin' for Life," the album's hardest rocker, concerns his days running with a street gang in New York City, and "Blinded" takes aim at the risks of artificial intelligence.[14](https://apnews.com/article/fa7f0dd0b4ab051dc6847f64785c6278) "Back Into My Arms Again" was a holdover from his first solo tour in 1985 that had never been recorded until this album.[14](https://apnews.com/article/fa7f0dd0b4ab051dc6847f64785c6278) One song neither Frehley nor Brown wrote: "Life of a Stranger," which Frehley remembered from the closing credits of the film *The Transporter*, originally performed by a singer named Nadia in a sparse Europop style with just a drum machine; he reworked it, noting that its chorus modulates twice.[15](https://ultimateclassicrock.com/ace-frehley-interview-2024/) The closing instrumental "Stratosphere" follows the tradition of "Fractured Mirror," the acoustic-electric piece that ended his 1978 self-titled solo debut.[14](https://apnews.com/article/fa7f0dd0b4ab051dc6847f64785c6278)
## Commercial performance and reception
The album returned Frehley to the [Billboard charts](https://www.edgepedia.org/billboard-charts) in March 2024. It debuted at No. 72 on the Billboard 200 with 13,396 equivalent album units in its first week, and reached No. 4 on the Top Album Sales chart on 13,000 copies sold, a placement boosted by vinyl purchases; it also debuted at No. 4 on the Vinyl Albums tally.[8](https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2024/03/06/kiss-rocker-ace-frehley-returns-to-the-billboard-charts/) On genre charts it opened at No. 10 on Top Rock Albums, No. 13 on Top Rock & Alternative Albums, and No. 2 on Top Hard Rock Albums, held off the top spot only by Queen's *Greatest Hits*.[8](https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2024/03/06/kiss-rocker-ace-frehley-returns-to-the-billboard-charts/)
Reviews divided along familiar lines. Blabbermouth.net scored the album 8/10, calling it "a big, joyful hard rock record" and praising the title track's riff and the harmonies, while Louder's *Classic Rock* review dismissed it as "a low-wattage washout" and suggested the co-writing with Brown flattened Frehley's personality.[16](https://blabbermouth.net/reviews/10000-volts) • [17](https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/ace-frehley-10000-volts) AllMusic named "Cherry Medicine," "Walkin' on the Moon," and the title track as standout cuts.[2](https://www.allmusic.com/album/10000-volts-mw0004164587) Frehley publicly denied rumors that almost all the songwriting was Brown's, and Brown joined him on stage in New Jersey in April 2024.[18](https://blabbermouth.net/news/watch-ace-frehley-joined-by-10000-volts-collaborator-steve-brown-on-stage-in-new-jersey)
## Aftermath
Frehley was said to be working on another album in 2025, but on October 16, 2025 he died at 74 after falls in his home studio, making *10,000 Volts* his last record.[3](https://www.guitarworld.com/artists/guitarists/the-life-and-times-of-kiss-guitar-icon-ace-frehley) • [5](https://apnews.com/article/36d8ed5073bc169bf1e14ea1dc13f30e) Kiss founders [Gene Simmons](https://www.edgepedia.org/gene-simmons) and [Paul Stanley](https://www.edgepedia.org/paul-stanley) issued a joint statement calling him "an essential and irreplaceable rock soldier."[5](https://apnews.com/article/36d8ed5073bc169bf1e14ea1dc13f30e)
## References
1. [10,000 Volts, Ace Frehley, Bandcamp (album page and credits)](https://acefrehley.bandcamp.com/album/10000-volts)
2. [10,000 Volts, Ace Frehley, AllMusic review, track list and credits](https://www.allmusic.com/album/10000-volts-mw0004164587)
3. [The otherworldly life and times of Kiss guitar icon Ace Frehley, Guitar World (December 2025)](https://www.guitarworld.com/artists/guitarists/the-life-and-times-of-kiss-guitar-icon-ace-frehley)
4. [A tribute to Ace Frehley, Louder](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/ace-frehley-tribute)
5. [Ace Frehley, Kiss' original lead guitarist and founding member, dies at 74, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/36d8ed5073bc169bf1e14ea1dc13f30e)
6. [10,000 Volts, Ace Frehley, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/album/10-000-volts/1716950294)
7. [Ace Frehley Shares Behind-The-Scenes Video From Making Of '10,000 Volts' Album, Blabbermouth.net](https://blabbermouth.net/news/ace-frehley-shares-behind-the-scenes-video-from-making-of-10000-volts-album)
8. [Kiss Rocker Ace Frehley Returns To The Billboard Charts, Forbes (Hugh McIntyre, March 6, 2024)](https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2024/03/06/kiss-rocker-ace-frehley-returns-to-the-billboard-charts/)
9. [Ace Frehley biography, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mn0000588508)
10. [Ace Frehley on the guitar tone trick he learned from Pete Townshend, Guitar World (May 2024)](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/ace-frehley-on-10000-volts-home-visit)
11. [Interview: Ace Frehley Says New Solo Album Is 'One of the Best Records I've Ever Recorded', Loudwire](https://loudwire.com/ace-frehley-new-solo-album-10000-volts-interview/)
12. ["I've never had a guitar lesson": Ace Frehley on why 10,000 Volts is the best album he's ever made, Guitar World (January 2024)](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/ace-frehley-steve-brown-10000-volts)
13. [Ace Frehley on the creation of his new solo album, Guitar Player (March 2024)](https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/ace-frehley-10000-volts)
14. [Music Review: Ex-Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley is back with another great solo album, AP News (February 23, 2024)](https://apnews.com/article/fa7f0dd0b4ab051dc6847f64785c6278)
15. [The Moment Ace Frehley Knew It Was Time to Leave Kiss, Ultimate Classic Rock (February 2024)](https://ultimateclassicrock.com/ace-frehley-interview-2024/)
16. [Reviews, 10,000 Volts, Blabbermouth.net (Dom Lawson)](https://blabbermouth.net/reviews/10000-volts)
17. [Ace Frehley: 10,000 Volts album review, Louder/Classic Rock (Geoff Barton)](https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/ace-frehley-10000-volts)
18. [Watch: Ace Frehley Joined By '10,000 Volts' Collaborator Steve Brown On Stage In New Jersey, Blabbermouth.net (April 2024)](https://blabbermouth.net/news/watch-ace-frehley-joined-by-10000-volts-collaborator-steve-brown-on-stage-in-new-jersey)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical works and recordings › Albums and recorded releases › Studio albums › Metal and hardcore albums › Traditional heavy and thrash metal albums › Traditional heavy metal albums › 1990s and later traditional metal albums*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license