Back in the mid-1980s, legendary former Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley was looking to put together a solo band to record new material and tour. That band became known as Frehley’s Comet, and for a few years, the band was a big success, thanks to hit songs/videos such as Rock Soldiers, Into the Night and a cover of ELOs Do Ya.
Frehley’s Comet disbanded after two studio records and one live album, but the friendship formed between two of the band’s key members, guitarist/keyboardist Tod Howarth and bassist John Regan, lasts to this day and was the genesis for a new melodic hard rock project called Four By Fate. The band’s debut album, Relentless, is set to be released in early June through Amazing Record Co. in Europe and The End Records in North America.
But it has not been an easy path. Since forming in 2014, the band has seen a number of sometimes abrupt lineup changes, and the tragic death of one key contributor, long-time Twisted Sister drummer A.J. Pero, who died suddenly in the spring of 2015 while touring with Adrenaline Mob.
“We are enthusiastic about finally being able to release this album. But it’s been a tough haul. We were excited to get the thing finally recorded and in the can with all the obstacles that we had initially. But you know the obstacles are still going on to this day – there are still issues. But that’s nothing new for this industry, especially in this day and age. John Regan and I thought as we got older and more experienced and seasoned that we would be more deserving of a smoother path. But no, we got a battered cobblestone road,” said Howarth with a chuckle.
Pero was brought in as a last-minute replacement for the project’s original drummer who was injured in a car crash just before recording was set to commence. And he made an immediate, positive impact, both as a musician and a person.
“The album has sort of become a tribute to him because I think it was one of the last things he ever did in the studio. A.J. blended in so well with what we were trying to accomplish, and he played on the first six songs that we recorded before his passing. We were so excited because we thought of how great the next six songs were going to be. He came in with three days’ notice and I basically taught him the tracks in the studio and he got them down so quickly. He was such a pro. We were hoping down the road to maybe make him the permanent part of the project,” Howarth explained
“It was such a sad loss. We got along with A.J. so well and we really just clicked. John loved playing with him because he was such an inspirational foundation as a drummer. We got close to him in just those three days. I was back in my hometown of San Diego when I got the call saying A.J. had passed and it was devastating to his friends and family. And it also meant another hurdle for our project because A.J. was going to be an important part of Four By Fate moving forward.”
Into the breach came another skin basher of some note, Rob Affuso, the long-time former drummer of Skid Row.
“He agreed to actually just do the second six tracks in the studio and then the same thing happened where we just really got along
and worked well together and he wanted to be part of the project and fortunately he still is today. And it’s great to have someone like Rob who is known to music fans. Every little bit of foundation helps to present the band in the manner that we want to present it. So having Rob bring in his input and his popularity and fans, will be alluring both from his reputation and musically.”
Early in the process, Canadian six-string sensation Sean Kelly (Helix, Nelly Furtado, Metal On Ice, Lee Aaron) was in the mix as the band’s lead guitarist, but he had to depart from the project when scheduling conflicts started to arise because of the various delays.
“We have to give a lot of credit to Sean Kelly, as he bowed out very gracefully. Not only is he a true professional, but he’s an amazing guy. He still has a couple of lead guitar parts on the album and they’re just phenomenal. He is a cool guy and we still talk once in a while. We have stayed friends. I know he is so busy with so many incredible projects and that is fantastic. He deserves every bit of success because he is an incredible player and songwriter and a great gentleman,” Howarth said, adding that Regan then suggested New York State guitarist/songwriter Patrick James Gasparini be Kelly’s replacement in Four By Fate.
“Pat had some regional success here in the Hudson Valley but he is really known as a professional songwriter and he writes all the time and records all the time. He is really quite prolific and an amazing writer. He has his own studio and his son is a fantastic drummer and does the drumming for him in the studio as well. John knew him and was brought in to do some recording with Pat, and did three songs. Just before we started recording, Sean had left and John came back to me and told me to listen to this song that he had recorded with Pat. And it was a track called Follow Me, and that’s now on our new Four By Fate CD.
“I thought it was great and sounded very similar to my style of writing. John thought we should use the song and I said sure, it was great with me. I am not an egomaniac where I think I have to write everything and sing everything. So we recorded it. When Sean left, we were thinking about other guitar players and then John said why don’t we just get Pat to do it if he wants to? He’s provided us with another built-in songwriter, he also sings lead and brings a different type of timbre to the band. And it worked. He joined the project, he busted his butt to learn all l the songs and get the parts down, he recorded some of the newer songs and he added a real dynamic of heaviness that I love.”
Besides a host of new, impactful, melodic original songs, Four By Fate decided to record a couple of covers as well for Relentless. One is These Times Are Hard for Lovers originally done by John Waite. Regan played in Waite’s solo band for a number of years before joining Frehley’s Comet. The band also did a unique arrangement by Howarth of Rick Derringer’s Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo.
When Four By Fate performs live, they will play these and other songs from the album, as well as songs from each member’s past pedigree. This means there will be some Cheap Trick material too, as Howarth has performed on and off as the band’s live keyboardist for more than 30 years.
“I think once we get back out doing shows we’re definitely going to be doing some Frehley’s Comet stuff too, because that is the foundation for our reputations. We don’t want to dwell on it because we want to make sure people hear the Four By Fate material, but John and I know the fans will want to hear some stuff from Frehley’s Comet. I will put some Cheap Trick stuff in the set to and we will do at least one Skid Row song because of Rob. It’s fun to play these songs and I know the fans are going to want to hear something associated with Rob’s pedigree as well as mine and John’s,” he said.
The Regan/Howarth partnership is key to the success and energy of the Four By Fate project. Howarth explained that the friendship and partnership between the two is like that of two brothers.
“We are very close. There was a stretch of time when we didn’t see each other or talk to each other for many years. But like with most guy friends, they can do that. You can skip it for many years and pick it up right where you left off. John and I are very, very good friends. We’re also very good business partners. He is very good at the business part of it because he has a real head for business. I am more on the creative end, so it works well. We think very much alike,” he said, adding that both of them are still appreciative of the opportunity that Ace Frehley afforded them more than 30 years ago.
“We don’t talk much to Ace but there’s no hard feelings. Ace is doing his own thing and he is busy and he is happy and that is important for him because obviously he’s earned it and deserves it. And we’re doing our thing too. With every band I have played with there have been different opportunities – some were better than others. I have had band situations where my creativity restriction was huge. Frehley’s Comet was the best creative experience that I have ever had besides my own personal band. I look back very fondly on that time, and I know John does too. I am very grateful and very thankful for the things and the opportunities I was given by Ace. And it’s funny, it’s what a lot of people know me for, even though I was only in the band for a few years and I played with Cheap Trick, on and off, for close to 30 years.”
Four By Fate’s Relentless will be released on June 3 in physical and digital formats.
For more information, visit Four By Fate on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FOURBYFATE/?fref=ts
Or visit the website at http://www.fourbyfate.com/
- Jim Barber is a veteran award-winning journalist and author based in Napanee, ON, who has been writing about music and musicians for a quarter of a century. Besides his journalistic endeavours, he now works as a communications and marketing specialist. Contact him at jimbarberwritingservices@gmail.com.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMpvBzkncFs
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