NAMM 2010: Tommy Thayer Interview

[wyatt50001]

You're right tommy is a good player. He's just not the space man!

[wyatt50001]

DAMN GENE, THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER SPACE MAN OR CAT MAN WHY DID'NT YOU GIVE THEM THERE OWN PERSONA? DUDE YOU F 'ED UP KISS!!! WHY MAN, WHY?

[kisshardrocker14]

@wyatt50001 it wasnt just gene

[wyatt50001]

sonic boom the best KISS album ever, bull shit tommy, you suck!!! YOU'LL NEVER BE THE SPACE MAN!!!

[BrandenGuerra]

I was lucky enough to hang out with him last night at a christmas party! Hes aweson!

[cobias]

Love Ace but Tommy seems like a cool competent guy. He nails some of Aces solos really well too. Hope Pauls voice recovers . Want to see them on their next tour !

[DarthMex1991]

KISS fans shouldnt put down Tommy... honestly if KISS came to you and offered you the chance to prance around dressed like the Spaceman for a 6 diget income I know for a fact that nobody on this planet would say "No cause thats Ace not me and Im not going to do that" and if you do.... then you're just a dumbass!

[kisshardrocker14]

@DarthMex1991 we arent mad at tommy!!! we are mad that the offer of being the spaceman was EVEN offered...of course we would take that offer...but why would that offer even need to be offered...why couldnt kiss stay more traditional and give everyone their own persona

[DarthMex1991]

@kisshardrocker14 because its dumb man I would get more mad if they had like "Antman" its stupid there are some exceptions but having their own characters now is stupid as hell

[auroradrow]

What is "crunchy" guitar sound? o.0 I've never heard it described that way. I played concert, performance, & jazz bands. Though granted I only played acoustic 6 string guitar & most of the time was on bari/tenor/alto sax or flute/piccolo. My first compositions were on a childs baby piano. lol But in all those years never heard "crunchy" though I know "tinny" & "flat." Anyways those are very cool looking lamps. Very matrix glowy. :-)

[COBWEBOWNZYA]

@auroradrow A crunchy guitar sound refers to a guitar with distortion that is not warm or subtle, a good example of crunchy guitar tone is AC/DC

[ruderkonge1976]

I like him. I hate the "he is not Ace Frehley" discussion. Frehley hasn't been a part of the band for 30 years beside the couple of years in late 90s. After Frehley left KISS has had other great guitarisst like Vincent and Kulick (the nicest guy of them all). Now it's Tommy. A nice guy too and a great guitarist. Keep rocking Tommy. many KISS fans loves you.

[sonicsteev]

nice!!

[aleczuch]

What a great guy! i know most of you love ace, but i think tommy has more passion and skill with both singing and playing. the whole peter/eric thing i wont comment on cuz i LOVE peter, but eric is amazing too. u have to admit that tommy's vocals on shock me and eric's vocals on beth are amazing live.

[TheWheelofLife100]

@aleczuch ....Say what you want about Thommy and Eric having amazing musical capabilities, that accounts for nothing,when Paul and Gene would gladly kick out these 2 impostors at the drop of a hat,if Peter and Ace decided to rejoins KIss.

[TheOngelma]

hah! Tommy is AWESOME!

[rocknrolla12992]

lol he needs 10 of them :P bullshit ahah i dont really think he needs 10, theyre gonna mic one amp and run it through the pa like any other show lol :P

[Smeghead65]

Hey KISS fans let's unite and make their new cd this year #1.

[Themeparkfanman]

@Smeghead65 I'm definitely buying it the day it comes out. Can't wait to be honest.

[deathdealeroen11]

@EricCarr5091 Im glad to finally hear from someone who makes sense of whats happening with KISS. Not to mention youve been a fan since the 70's. Lots of respect!

[KissFanForever7700]

Tommy, went out as Ace when he was young, on Halloween. He was a roadie, after his band Black and Blue, ran its course. On top of that, he re-taught Ace his solos on the Reunion Tour, and now, Kiss is stronger than ever.

[brihuls13]

I LOVE YOU IM YOUR BIGGEST FAN I EVEN MET YOU CALL me 401-559-2146

[TheWheelofLife100]

Fake, imposter,fraud,impersonator,b grade actor and wannabe rock musician,yes,ladies and gentlemen,may I present to the world the alternate retarded version of Ace,Thommy Thayer.

[PyroMessiah86]

@ chewychicklet I agree with you....BUT he's not the new member he has been in the band since early 2002....almost a decade! People just can't get over the fact KISS are successful with him. Rock on Tommy Thayer! The new amp rocks....I'm looking into getting one myself!

[atomicozz]

I take back all of my negative comments about this joker thinking he is Ace. At first I was really upset that this dick-hole has Ace make up on...which looks really fucking stupid btw. But I just saw the KISS Wal-Mart commercial and I was so impressed with Tommy's acting that now I totally love him. Seriosly, he represented Wal-Mart better than Miley Cyrus. You are so gifted. Thank you Tommy...for making KISS a super group again. I was really worried there for awhile. Sell out fuck.

[deathdealeroen11]

@atomicozz Me too i'm jealouse cuz im not making any money and im still living with my parents..

[atomicozz]

Your not a member of KISS...your a member of a KISS tribute band-the worst one ever. And, you look fucking stupid. And, your guitar playing sucks worse than Slash...and that's pretty bad. Why is this happening? How can Paul & Gene shit on KISS. So sad.

[deathdealeroen11]

@atomicozz Based on your comment, you clearly have no understanding of what music is in the slightest. Please stop talking forever and take up a new hobby that isnt music.

Thank you.

Bye.

[atomicozz]

Please stop this...KISS were cool in the 70's! now...it's embarrassing true KISS fans. Please...just stop : ( Pretty Please? : ( Your all making the KISS ARMY look bad. : (

[deathdealeroen11]

@atomicozz Youre not part of the KISS Army and you dont know shit about KISS. Stfu.

[shep79]

@atomicozz Get over yourself.

[captbss]

It is still disingenuous. I guess you are his butt boy since the word fuck is so special to you. Also when did Ace or Peter ever admit to that being the case publicly. How about that BUTTFUCKEDBOY

[zunidoll2]

Tommy was VERY NICE to me when I met him. When I met Ace at his birthday party, he looked at me (as well as every fan) as though it was a BURDEN for him to be there and I was just ANOTHER SHMUCH asking for his autograph. He stated on The Second Coming that he was doing the tour for his fans and later in some interview he said "FUCK THE FANS". I don't know about you Ace fans, but I was offended by that.

[captbss]

YEAH GREAT BUT YOU ARE STEALING ACE"S IMAGE> HE IS SPACE ACE NOT YOU!

[diamonddust22]

@captbss Hey fuckface, Ace sold his rights to the makeup to Gene and Paul and Tommy isn't stealing anything at all so shut the fuck up

[TheRockinPajamas]

I'm not a Thayer hater, but Sonic Boom is one of KISS's worst albums. Compare it to Love Gun or Revenge, and tell me if Sonic Boom still sounds the best.

[diamonddust22]

@TheRockinPajamas Oh fuck off cunt, Sonic Boom was awesome.

[fggfggfggfgf]

@TheRockinPajamas srry bro but revenge sucks except for god gave rock n roll to you and unholy

[deathdealeroen11]

@fggfggfggfgf Could you be more incorrect?

[kingrex2005]

I was at NAMM! I meet Tommy Thayer just after getting Slash's autograph. He is such a great guy! Saw him and KISS play shortly before NAMM, and it was great, like all KISS shows are suppose to be!

[rch9000]

Nice guy, but you would think he'd want his own identity. Everything about the way he looks, plays, moves, and sounds on stage is really Ace. Ace was always interested in science fiction and outer space. Ace Frehley is the Spaceman because it's part of who he is as a person. The fact that Tommy Thayer has amplifiers called "Spaceman" is a pretty sad thing.

[KISSARMYHQ]

@rch9000 what's he gonna call the amps, DEMON ? It's called the music business for a reason and Tommy the junior guy, it's really not his choice. Like this band couldn't have found another willin' gtr . Not that TT wasn't willing mind you. Everyone knows ACE sold the rights and actually still gets paid for it . And TT does a damn yeoman's job .

[rch9000]

@KISSARMYHQ, give it a rest man. I've heard all of the pseudo-intellectual arguments from blind devotees like yourself. You're not revealing anything new here and my point about Tommy still stands.

[deathdealeroen11]

@rch9000 It Has nothing to do with what he wants though...its his job, in the end.

[vezonproductions]

@rch9000 Ace signed a contract when he joined KISS in the 70ts. he agreed to that his mak up/persona on stage is a trademaark to KISS, not the individual, Ace have no right to claim the spaceman title for himself, so did peter.

[atomicozz]

I like the way Ace & Peter played in the 70's while they were drunk and/or on drugs...Rock-N-Roll !!!!!!

[Luukablee]

@atomicozz how could you like that? a show must be perfect not with drunk people on stage, if you go drunk on stage you dont like to play on stage

[noneofyourbusines123]

wait to gibson give him a signature now

[virtualairline]

Tommy Tayer is the best and higher guitarist of the world

[misspunkchick18]

Tommy and eric are great guys in interviews they seem really humble and down to earth , at the end of the day i'm happy to see kiss with eric and tommy because they are much more competant and capable of playing there instruments these days than ace and peter probably are . Tommy is just a good guitarist as ace i really enjoy listening to his solo's and erics a great drummer his solo's are awesome , if ace and peter don't want to be in the band anymore they should deal with it.

[tomisboe]

i love tommy

[roockowacko]

weird how noone who actually works with kiss havent noticed that almost every fan wants new characters for tommy and eric. i dont care what gene does with his money but they could do soo much more than just livin in the past , it would be better for them and the fans...

[mammo8369]

@roockowacko fans dont want new characters. did u forget what happened in the 80's when kiss had the hawk and the anhk warrior ?? fans lost interest. kiss is spaceman, demon, star child, catman, and nothing else. fans dont mind this line up, thats why they are breaking attendance records all over the world

[roockowacko]

@mammo8369 ok the hawk was bad but i wouldnt like to see vinnie wearing the spaceman outfit so the ankh character was ok . tommy and eric are awesome and sonic boom is in my opinion one of the best kiss albums but if someday they decide that eric and tommy should get their own characters i really wouldnt mind , im glad carr had his own makeup nd everything. i dont think they would lose any fans if they changed their looks , it was a combination of peter leaving and the elder that caused it.

[mammo8369]

@roockowacko the thing people forget is they worked so hard to establish those 4 iconic characters, that now so late in the career it would be silly to introduce new characters. you would have to change all the merchandise, all the shirts, everything to the new faces. people would get confused and would loose interest. with these 4 faces, these are the ones people know best. to the majority, this is kiss. its like coke or disney changing its image, would be silly right ??

[roockowacko]

@mammo8369 yeah i guess youre right : )

[mammo8369]

@roockowacko i know it seems logical to put new characters, but like i mentioned in my last msg, doing it would be a massive task. just be glad kiss is still around, still doing new music and tours, could be worse, we could have the village people or culture club lol

[roockowacko]

@mammo8369 yeah , even ace said that hes not happy about someone wearing his makeup but if he had to choose who will wear his outfit he would also choose tommy , but peter for some reason still doesnt like him cuz he still thinks of him as his bus boy. in my opinion those guys are awesome and i cant wait to see kiss live the first chance i get : )

[mammo8369]

@roockowacko eric and tommy are amazing live, they play the songs the way they should have always been played. gene and paul still have it, they move like 30 yr olds and although pauls voice is a little scratchy, it comes of worse here on vids than in real life. this version of kiss is the best make up version you will see i promise you.

original is never the best. is the first person who ever played guitar in the world the best ??? NOPE some guy named jimmi came around 500 years later

[roockowacko]

@mammo8369 i just hope they last in this lineup for as long as possible , paul once said that kiss will last longer than him

[mammo8369]

@roockowacko i think kiss will continue on without original members. they will use current make up characters but have 4 new guys. i think it would be cool, because when you see kiss live, you are seeing those characters. they worked so hard to market them it would be a shame to let it go to waste. i have no doubt that 50 years from now, kiss will still be playing, the image is too big to kill

[roockowacko]

@mammo8369 that would be awesome , but still i want these guys to play as long as they can : )

[mammo8369]

@roockowacko lol im sure this line up has 1 or 2 albums left in it, and possibly 4 or 5 years of touring ahead. gene and paul are still in good health, we havent seen the last of them yet. as for peter and ace, they died years ago

[roockowacko]

@mammo8369 paul said ( in the metal-rules interview ) that the new album will come within a year or so , so thats great for now : )

[jigglediggle29]

@mammo8369 - Yeah, have fun to listen more shit like this sonic desaster. Gene and Paul are moving like 30 yr olds? Hahahaaa. Eric and Tommy are miles away from the creativity of Ace - not Peter and Ace died years ago, Kiss died years ago with this two monkeys fake ace and fake peter. It is all about money, that's why Gene and Paul are touring and touring - and the music? Forget about it. Eric and Peter are just two guys who have to do what Gene and Paul want. If they don't do it: They're out

[mammo8369]

@jigglediggle29 its people like urself that are unable to see how pathetic ace and peter have become..ace and peter stopped being creative in 1977, thats why they were both replaced by session players on dynasty and unmasked, washed up drugo's. tommy plays the solo's better than ace could himself, all you have to do is watch kissology and see how pathetic they were on reunion, PC and farewell tour.

ace and peter were employees on the reunion tour dont forget that !!!

[bassace1358]

@mammo8369 well if Gene can make money on that idea he will

[jmofrombully]

Tommy rocks, local boy from my current town, he was great in Black and Blue...I have an HK Switchblade and play in three different rock bands; hard rock, covers and metal, and the amp cam imulate a Marshall, a Mesa, and anything in between!!!

[evelskunny]

he is a nobody in the Guitar World,I would like to hear a solo record from him as Good as any of Frehley's,Sorry Its not Gonna Happen.lol

[mammo8369]

@evelskunny whats makes you think ace's solo albums are any good ?? they all performed poorly on the charts and the only reason they sold a little bit was kiss fans were buying them. ace is not a solo artist, his last album was a flop on the charts and has only sold 30k in over a year !! dont forget tommy had to teach ace how to play again in 96 !!

[SpaceAceify]

Haha what a beautiful amp!

[OraclesOath]

Ace was an idiot, could not play very well BUT he is the Space man. Tommy is by far a better guitarist but he is not Ace.... end of story.

[evelskunny]

he sux! fake ace! gay!

[Spartacusi23]

@evelskunny Perhaps you didnt know this and your just a fag but remember tommy taught ace his own guitar solos for the reunion tour!

[rikkisogazgf]

He waz awesome in Black'nBlue!! Met him @ hiz Cold Gin (KISS tribute band) gig n Houston TX 1990! He roxed! ;-P

[Tribeofjudah99]

Gene Simmons very own bitch..

[01PaulStanley]

NICE AMP BUDDY!

[chewychicklet23]

who cares what people think of tommy!!!!!!!

i think tommy is a great guy and a good guitarist!!!

and a good spaceman!! he is the new member of kiss and the new spaceman, people are just going to have to live with the fact tommy is in the band, and give him a chance!! i like tommy! i thinks hes cool!!

[01PaulStanley]

@chewychicklet23 ditto. I think the same as you

[cosmokramer41]

@chewychicklet23 we share the same opinion

[KISSARMYHQ]

@chewychicklet23 he is

[Sylvii98]

@chewychicklet23 you're totally right! :) Tommy Thayer is a great guitarist and he's my Idol

[Sylvii98]

at 3:51, did she want to say Ace frehley?

[kiss22nd]

@chewychicklet23 so do i why the hell would they fans not give him a chance that's fucked up

[stevedrums]

Tommy and Eric have nothing to do with the makeup. They are employees of Gene and paul. It's all owned by Gene and Paul and from their perspective - from a marketing standpoint - they probably feel that by giving them new identities that that would hurt the "brand" aspect of the band. Keep in mind that as a fan, you look at things emotionally. gene looks at things from a financial point of view and the original faces are trademarked and all important.

[JuggaloCarl]

@stevedrums just employees of Gene and Paul??? ok how many songs did Gene and Paul let Bruce Kulick, Mark St. John, or Vinnie Vincent sing? As far as I recall they only let Eric Carr sing ONE song and Eric Carr was a phenomenal singer. For Tommy Thayer to be in the band for only a few years and to sing his song on a KISS record is pretty big for just being an "employee". Peter and Ace don't have the endurance anymore the way that Eric and Tommy do even though their 10 years younger than them.

[stevedrums]

@JuggaloCarl It doesn't matter how many songs Eric Carr got to sing or didn't sing. he was an employee of the band as are Tommy and Eric. The fact that they were allowed to sing a song each on the album has nothing to do with their employment status. It has more to do with the confidence gene and paul have with them as musicians/employees. I don't know what your point is exactly.

[dfrye4]

I feel sorry for Tommy. All they needed to do was give him his OWN character and people wouldn't give him such a hard time. It's not like the band hasn't been a revolving door of members for 30 years. It's just hard to accept anyone else as the spaceman.

[mavrim7]

@dfrye4

Well said!!! Tommy needs his own costume!

[HackerGuitarist]

as much crap as tommy deals with, he is a super nice guy and very humble

[StyrofoamKup]

Tommy used to be the band's assistant then went on to become band's manager and while being a guitar player got himself in the gig of no-less Ace Frehley who's had enough of Kiss since 1980 or so. So respect to him seriously, he's a great guitar player and just so it happens he's not the original lead guitar for Kiss.

[willtheman69]

Tommy Thayer Sucks and so does Eric Singer. These bums are basically tribute guys In the real KISS, and making one hell of a living doing It. Paul and Gene obviously have no respect for the personas that ACE and PETER created or they wouldn't have allowed this shit to continue. And It blows my mind that other so called "old school fans" like me, are OK with this lineup. I have met Gene and Paul, and I would love to again, just to say " Way to go assholes" , thanks for making KISS one big joke!

[Sdrumer14]

@willtheman69 Dude what do you mean a tribute to the REAL Kiss. Dude wake up this is the real KISS now get over it. They are BOTH BETTER MUSICIONS than peter and ace. Everyone to replace them is better. Do you think they came in and said i wanna wear the old make-up? Dude open your eyes the management thought the fans would want something like a clasic 70's kiss concert so stop complaining man. As Tommy said in this interview at 3:06, kiss is bigger than ever!

[willtheman69]

@Sdrumer14 Bigger than ever? LMAO. You said It, MANAGEMENT (gene and paul) talked them Into continuing because of gene's lust for money. And who do you know that Is inspired by tommy???? Ace on the other hand has Inspired the likes of Dimebag Darrell, and too many others to name. Better musicians, that's your opinion. I wonder If the current lineup could sell out Tiger Stadium like they did during the reunion? Probably not since IT'S NOT THE REAL FUCKIN KISS!!!!!!

[Sdrumer14]

@willtheman69 Ok maybe tommy hasn't inspired anyone but he's just been playing the old stuff so who is he to inspire? I'm sure considering that Tommy wrote and played the guitar parts on the Pshyco Circus album, he has inspired some people. He re-taught ace some shit for unplugged and your person, Dimebag Darrell, was arguably the best in the world and ace isn't even close to the best. Let's be glad that tommy can play the licks better than ace could NOW. I like the 70's Ace and Peter. Not now.

[heavymetal4ever90]

@Sdrumer14  thats true ..

[StyrofoamKup]

@willtheman69 Please remember that Ace & Peter let a lot of people down for allowing there faces to appear on the covers of KISS albums & singles they didn't play on! so cut the crap with making the band more serious than what's ever been.

[JuggaloCarl]

@willtheman69 whatever dude! Ace and Peter don't have the endurance to go out on stage and perform anymore, or want to be in the band for that matter. Have you seen them live with Tommy and Eric? Gene and Paul are in their 60s now, Tommy and Eric may be a bit younger than Gene and Paul, but they bring life to the band. I don't understand why you "old schoolers" are complaining about this, their still KISS, and if Peter and Ace don't wanna be part of it anymore, than KISS continues on....again.

[HamerScarab1]

Tommy rocks!!!

[tmib92]

Sonic Boom is far away from being a good KISS album

[heavymetal4ever90]

@tmib92 it is kinda good ( ok its not like lic it up or destroyer but its on the same level as revenge

[tmib92]

@heavymetal4ever90 and or Destroyer & Dressed to Kill :)

[graemegwoodman]

Ace is not a drugged up loser ace Frehley is and was the heart and soul of the band gene simmons and Paul Stanley are the reason why ace didn't like kiss because of their studio recording dominance and ace Frehley the band twice both times they were his choice!

[heavymetal4ever90]

@graemegwoodman yes AND he wanted do a solo carrer to ( during the 80 s )

[Juan666]

Maybe if Ace wasn't such a drugged up loser, they wouldn't of had to find a replacement, so stop hating on him. No-one ever has anything bad to say about Tommy anyway, all they every say is "He's not Ace" Well observed.

[DarthMex1991]

you know we KISS fans should not be hating Tommy because hes just living all of our fucking dreams, for all those poeple who say Tommy sucks because he's dressed like Ace all I gotta say is if Paul and Gene asked you to dress like Ace play the songs and get paid for it are you gonna say no! I wouldnt

[whitecloud1980]

the ace makeup on the amp head itself is just plain wrong. i like tommy sure, he aint no bruce tho and sure as hell aint no ace.

[liamferg2309]

@whitecloud1980 he's just as good as ace

[rocketmaan]

Hey DEBO... get your facts straight. Ace performed parts that were recorded by BOB KULICK in a lot of instances. When you hear "ACE" on the records, sometimes it's BOB KULICK (the bald brother of Bruce- Google him). In light of this... your comments are hysterical. And to say Tommy 's never done anything historic is a joke. When was the last time YOU played with a full orchestra, managed to be invited into the biggest band of all time and have an amp designed for you?

[jamieworldhero]

Tommy is awsome hands down. He is better than ace.

[Kabul81]

ayaz

LMFAO !!!!!!!!

Jman

[Kabul81]

Bottom line kiss has sold out it's fanbase

With this farb Ace!

Jman

[ayaz66]

bullshit get over it this kiss line up is bad ass if you dont belive it go see this line up live they will destroy you keep rockin tommy

[shellyelly]

i agree with boon and mongo

[shutterspine]

dont you idiots never let go. tommy has worked with kiss for years. as for ace hes a drunk bafoon, as well as peter. bruce was the best guitarist kiss has ever had. and dont forget,, it was tommy teaching ace how to play his own shit when the originals got back together. those who do not learn from history, are doomed to repeat it! ace and peter both sold the rights to their make-up years back.... its not theirs anymore. grow up kiss fans, its not 1975 anymore,, shutterspine!

[jamieworldhero]

So you

re in the middle? you don't hate or like Tommy?

[jmniland1]

Agreed...Gene and Paul are making the KISS bitch do this..he is a cool dude and a really nice person...KISS didn't want a new star in the band (look what happened to Vinnie and Bruce)...they wanted someone to blend and do what they are told

[Mongocock]

i agree man...makes me sick to see the spaceman logo on there

[boonatron]

Tommy, you seem like a cool enough dude, but sorry man, Ace Frehley is is the ONE true SPACEMAN buddy! I feel bad that Gene and Paul are making you pretend to be Ace and not be yourself.