BRUCE KULICK On Reuniting With KISS During 'Kruise' Concert In Las Vegas: 'It Was Really Magical'

On November 16 — the day after he joined KISS during the final two songs of their unmasked electric performance at "KISS Kruise: Landlocked In Vegas" — former KISS guitarist Bruce Kulick participated in a panel discussion and question-and-answer session at the event, which took place at Las Vegas's Virgin Hotels casino and resort complex. Some excerpts appear below (as transcribed by Clay Marshall for BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On how the guest appearance came together.

Bruce: "It was really exciting. I got a call from Gene [Simmons]. He said, 'You're going to come up on the last two songs. Contact Tommy [Thayer, KISS's guitarist since 2002] and go over some of the arrangements and figure out what you're going to do.' And there I was. It was really magical. I know [fans] were hoping for something like that to happen sometime [during the band's 'End Of The Road' farewell tour], and I think last night was a really appropriate time for that."

On processing KISS's reunion with Ace Frehley and Peter Criss in 1996:

Bruce: "In the beginning, I felt very left behind. I didn't see much value in my years and what I did. I couldn't listen to any of it, but that changed pretty quickly, especially the more I traveled internationally, and people were like, 'I love you. You're the [best] KISS guitar player,' which is of course, in KISStory, a bit absurd, because I wouldn't have had my gig without Ace Frehley and the magic of the original four. But I'm so proud of the fact that that era has survived. It has been much more embraced. At my meet-and-greet yesterday, [some people said,] 'You were my first [KISS] guitarist.' I keep getting stuff like that… My years were pretty defined — we were doing hair metal, rock 'n' roll, but good stuff. It's still Paul [Stanley] and Gene driving the bus."

On the band's 1992 album "Revenge":

Bruce: "Gene is criticized a lot during my era. He was very distracted, because I don't know anyone that works harder than Gene Simmons. He doesn't believe in a holiday or vacation. 'Why would you do that? Why do you want to go to Hawaii? What are you doing?' To him, it's all work and business, and it fuels his being. But certainly, all of a sudden, the songs from Gene were powerful... Usually Paul has the bigger songs, and I know Paul wasn't always in love with that, but that's the way you have the best record you can have. You compete, but everybody comes to the table."

On the album "Carnival Of Souls", which was recorded prior to the reunion but shelved for two years before being released to little fanfare:

Bruce: "We did go a little more toward what was considered grunge. Gene was very attracted to that. I used to describe it as, 'Well, it's going to be a darker, meaner 'Revenge' album.' I was going through a lot of stuff in my personal life at the time, [so] I just kept writing songs and riffs that were usually very dark and kind of wild. Paul [was] very uncomfortable with the vibe, but they weren't sure what to do next. Meanwhile, we'd already filmed 'MTV Unplugged' [with Frehley and Criss], which also had a bit of a clause that people didn't know [about] — there will be a reunion, a real reunion tour if Ace and Peter come out, which in KISStory, [was] obviously very important, and obviously changed the course of my era. That record, I really gave my heart and soul into even though it was dark and everything, and then it had to be shelved for a while. The mixes that came out were all weird. It was a tough time for me, because first of all, they go off with this huge [successful reunion], selling out stadiums and stuff. They still paid me, because they kind of knew, 'What happens if Ace and Peter quit one month in? KISS still exists with Eric Singer and myself.' It was an awkward time — it was real hard for me — but I learned that my talent will get me through this if I stay positive. Eventually, the record came out, and they did a little press for it. 'Jungle', the first single that came out, was one of my co-writes. But it's a strange record — you either love it or hate it. We know that, like '[Music From] The Elder', Paul doesn't like it… but I'm still proud of it in many ways. It's just another one of those interesting facets of what is KISS, and the KISS catalog."

On whether he would have accepted an invitation to replace Frehley as the "Spaceman":

Bruce: "By the time Ace wasn't happy and they were seeing that things were looking iffy, I remember hearing [about it] and thinking, 'Would I become the Spaceman? This is weird. What if they ask me? What would I do?' In the end, it was much easier, and the right path, to have someone like Tommy... I would have had to do every riff much closer to Ace, which wasn't really my style, where[as] Tommy knew that and embraced it. In the end, I really think that it wasn't meant to be for me to remain in KISS, which was something I did miss greatly, but it would have kind of pooped on my era if I suddenly became the Spaceman. It just would have been weird… It was a weird transition time, but when I look back at it, it was all meant to be for a reason, how it all panned out."

On his favorite KISS solos from his era with the band:

Bruce: "I think 'Tears Are Falling' became something realy important to a lot of people. I'm very proud of what I was able to put together with that, and I even had some assist from Paul with the harmony intro part. Interesting song, too — it's such a fun one to play. If you move ahead a bit, there's obviously a lot of speedy stuff, but on 'Hot In The Shade', to do an acoustic solo [on 'Forever'] that was almost romantic… Moving forward, stuff like 'Unholy', I'm so proud of — these wildly manic, powerful, playing-from-my-balls as they used to push me… It's always the guitar player's role to really make a song within the song, and make something memorable. My era was a little more the flashy guitar playing, but I have to say any time I could give it melody and its own emotion that would connect with the fans, then I won, and then the song becomes better."

Kulick joined KISS in 1984 as a replacement for Mark St. John and remained in the band until they reunited with Ace Frehley in 1996. He performs on the albums "Asylum", "Crazy Nights", "Hot In The Shade", "Revenge" and "Carnival Of Souls", as well as "Alive III" and "MTV Unplugged". After parting ways with KISS, Kulick formed UNION with former MÖTLEY CRÜE/THE SCREAM vocalist John Corabi before beginning a 23-year stint in GRAND FUNK RAILROAD in 2000.