ANTHRAX/PANTERA Drummer CHARLIE BENANTE On ACE FREHLEY's Death: 'A Part Of Our Childhood Is Gone'

During this past Friday's (October 17) "Tribute To Ace Frehley" episode of SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", ANTHRAX and PANTERA drummer Charlie Benante reflected on his KISS fandom, particularly as it relates to the latter band's original guitarist Ace Frehley who died on October 16 at the age of 74. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Ace, for me, was, of course, the guitar player in KISS that when it came time for the light to go on him, he just shined so much. I always equated Ace to [THE BEATLES'] George Harrison. Once George Harrison had a chance to do a solo album — oh my god, what a solo album that was. It's the same thing with Ace. When they all released their solo albums. Ace is the one that, for me, originally was, like, 'Wow, this one is exactly what I thought it would be and more.'"

Charlie continued: "When I was in Vegas, I went to see 'The Wizard Of Oz'. And I equate certain things to 'The Wizard Of Oz' with KISS for myself. Dorothy's three uncles, the way she looks at them, and then how they were the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion. That's how I always thought of KISS. Those guys are like our four uncles that, yes, we weren't related, but God, they had such a vibe with us that it was like family."

Referencing the fact that KISS bassist and co-lead singer Gene Simmons officiated the wedding ceremony of Benante and his longtime girlfriend, former BUTCHER BABIES and current THE VIOLENT HOUR vocalist Carla Harvey, on October 12 at The Secret Garden in Las Vegas, Nevada, Charlie said: "It was the strangest thing because we just saw Gene at the wedding. And as I'm sitting with Gene, it's hard for the 13-year-old in me not to come out. It's impossible. And I think we all can understand that and we all can relate to it. So when one of them passes, it's a profound thing that happens to all of us because a part of our childhood is gone as well.

"Ace, to me, was the clumsy one in the band that we all kind of thought was the fucking coolest," Benante explained. "And just the way he played and his moves — it was magic.

"I never loved [just] one of them; I loved all four of them. I couldn't buy one of something of theirs; I had to buy all four of them, because that's how much each one of them meant to me."

Circling back to Ace's death, Charlie concluded: "This is a big thing, man. This is a big thing for all of us."

Back in 2005, Benante named KISS's "Alive!" as an album that changed his life, telling Greg Prato of Classic Rock magazine: "The first time I ever heard KISS' 'Alive!', I was at a party at a friend's house. The only thing I'd head prior to that as far as KISS was concerned was 'Dressed to Kill'. I was already a fan because of that, but when 'Alive!' came out, it was a totally different thing.

"The thing that I remember most about it was just staring at the package — it opened out to a gatefold, and there was a huge booklet in it. I remember staring at it and being like, 'What the hell?!' Because you would listen to the record and you would visualize in your own mind how it was. You had all these different things.

"I remember early on, when I first heard KISS, I used to think that Paul Stanley's voice was Gene Simmons' voice," he continued. "It was very weird when I saw them on a TV show called 'The Midnight Special', and I was like, 'Wait a minute... he's not supposed to be singing that!'

"I don't think I could say that any of [the songs] was my least favorite, because I loved every single one on that record. I remember just playing it continuously, over and over again. I loved the way side one would kick in — it was like the introduction was the beginning of the show. Then you get to the middle portions — sides two and three — and side four was the big ending; I'll never forget listening to 'Black Diamond' and being like, 'What the hell is going on? The explosions and everything. [The tracklist] is a little out of sequence — actually it's not even a live show; they totally re-recorded it. But who cares? It fooled me back then.

"I loved [Peter Criss'] drumming on 'Alive!'," Charlie added. "I think he was one of the biggest influences as far as having a huge drum kit goes. It was like, 'Look at all these drums. What is he doing with all these?' Because at the time, you had like the 'five-piece-kit drummers out there, like John Bonham (LED ZEPPELIN) and Joey Kramer (AEROSMITH). After Peter, Neil Peart (RUSH) had the big kit also.

"The end of '76 was when I saw them for the first time — 'Alive!' prepared me. I was like, 'Dude this is fucking crazy!' I just couldn't believe it. Everything was going on. I couldn't focus on just one thing. It was just an assault on my senses. Because most of the bands at the time really didn't put on that type of a show the way KISS were doing; it was more or less getting up on stage and playing. It wasn't, y'know... KISS.

"KISS made me realize that this is what I'm going to do with my life. And the mindset just stayed with me; it never left. Before that, I wasn't really taking it as seriously as 'I'm going to make a living doing this.'

"I absolutely still listen to 'Alive!' I listen to it sometimes right before we play — it pumps me up. It puts me in a different state of mind."

The news of Ace's passing came just hours after TMZ reported that Ace was hospitalized on life support after he suffered a brain bleed when he took a fall in his studio a couple of weeks earlier.

Frehley, whose real name was Paul Daniel Frehley, passed away peacefully surrounded by family in Morristown, New Jersey.

TMZ reported earlier on Thursday that Frehley was on life support. He had to cancel his tour dates and his condition had not improved after suffering from a brain bleed from the fall.

Ace co-founded KISS with Paul, Gene and Peter in New York City in 1973. Frehley appeared on KISS's first nine albums, and returned for the band's 1998 reunion album, "Psycho Circus", only to leave again. He was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame with the rest of KISS's original lineup in 2014.

Frehley first left KISS in 1982. He rejoined in 1996 and parted ways with the band once again in 2002 after the conclusion of KISS's first "farewell tour." Since his departure, guitarist Tommy Thayer had assumed the role of the Spaceman.

Charlie Benante photo credit: Jimmy Hubbard / Ace Frehley photo credit: Jayme Thornton