BLABBERMOUTH.NET
In a new interview with
Sleaze Roxx, former
KISS guitarist
Bruce Kulick once again said that he was "relieved" he wasn't approached to rejoin the band after
Ace Frehley left for good back in 2001.
"When I had to leave in '96 after the success of the
KISS 'Unplugged' performance, people were aware of the musicianship that existed in the band between
Eric Singer [drums] and I, but after 20 years of people hearing about
KISS in makeup, it was kind of like
'Star Wars' when it was rebooted people went to see what it was all about," he said. "I understood that it was the original guys, they put the makeup on and people were excited to either see it again or see it for the first time. That carried on, then it carried on and it carried on. [
Laughs] It then reached a point where
Gene [
Simmons] and
Paul [
Stanley] couldn't continue with
Peter [
Criss] so they called on
Eric Singer to step into the role and the makeup.
"
Eric is such a tremendous drummer," he continued. "I was genuinely happy for him. I still am. Then when
Ace started dropping the ball, it was seamless for them to go with
Tommy Thayer who does such a fantastic job as the 'Spaceman.'
"If I had been asked to step into the 'Spaceman' role, it would have been really awkward for me. I get asked by the fans a lot, 'Well, why aren't you there?' I think
Tommy stepping into the role was a lot more natural than
Bruce Kulick becoming the 'Spaceman' and shooting rockets off of my guitar. I would have had to play the songs note for note like
Ace. I don't think I could do that and remain happy in the band.
Tommy does that to perfection. I was never required to learn the classic stuff note for note, but if you're going to be the 'Spaceman,' it would have to stay true to the way
Ace plays it. That's not to say that I don't play the classic songs with respect. I play the
GRAND FUNK RAILROAD songs with respect, while injecting my own style into them, like I did in my time in
KISS. I would lose my 'liberties' if I stepped into the 'Spaceman' role.
"I'm friends with
Tommy,
Bruce added. "We've gotten closer over the years on the
'Kiss Kruise'. We've spoken a lot on the
'Kruise'. He once said to me, 'Hey, I never got into the Floyd Rose whammy bar thing. How do you play
'Crazy Nights'?' I said, 'Don't worry about it. Play it how you play it. It's what works for you. I don't take any offense and you don't need to copy how I do it.'
"
Tommy's style is so much closer to
Ace's than mine. I have a unique style to my approach you can hear it on
'Tears Are Falling',
'Who Wants To Be Lonely',
'Unholy' and even the acoustic solo on
'Forever'. I am proud of my body of work for that era of
KISS. I'm embracing it. The fans are embracing it. It's all good."
Kulick went on to say that he is at peace with the fact that he will never be part of the makeup era of
KISS.
"I was relieved [when they didn't ask me to step in after
Ace left]," he said. "I think if I had been asked and done it, I think it would hurt. I know that
Tommy and
Eric avoid… I'm close to both but I'm closer with
Eric. They avoid reading things online. Their best medicine is to just do a great job every night and not read that stuff. I'm shocked that sometimes someone will leave a snarky comment toward me. I'm, like, 'Really?' I don't get into that stuff and I don't like anything negative on social media and I never do or post anything negative. I won't allow anything negative. There's times I read something and I choose to ignore it. Everyone has a voice these days. They have a laptop, a tablet or a smartphone.
"I was relieved, but how could I not have 'entertained' the idea if I was asked? At the time when they swooped
Tommy right in, I was already in
GRAND FUNK RAILROAD and I was and still am pretty happy with my role in the band. Sure, it wasn't
KISS, but it's a great gig. Now think of it from this angle. Let's say they made the right proposition and I took it, then
Ace wanted back into the band. Where would that have left me? No
KISS gig and no gig in
GRAND FUNK."
Read the entire interview at
Sleaze Roxx.
In 1984,
Bruce joined
KISS, where he remained as their lead guitarist for more than a decade, accompanying the band on the
"Animalize" tour and continuing with the band until the 1996 reunion tour.
Bruce is heavily featured on
"Kissology – Vol. 2" and
"Vol. 3", the band's DVDs spanning
KISS's historic 45-year career.
Kulick joined
GRAND FUNK RAILROAD in 2000 and continues to perform with the group to this day.