During a recent interview on VRP Rocks, Bruce Kulick said he is ‘disappointed but not surprised’ that Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley left him out of the KISS farewell.
“I was disappointed that I wasn’t involved but I didn’t expect to be involved,” the guitarist revealed. “I never got the vibe. I didn’t know about the avatars, okay? That was a very last minute where I only heard a little peep about something unusual happening on the last night.”
Kulick added, “And then there it was, the beginning of ‘God Gave Rock and Roll’ with my guitar blasting through the Madison Square Garden and that’s the future. So I know they missed an opportunity not celebrating in a bigger way, the KISS history, all the years.”
“I really wish they would have mentioned all the other players, all the other very important influential people in their career but it was their show, their choice. Not mine,” the rocker reflected on Gene and Paul’s decision.
He continued, “I know the fans were as well. I got so much feedback that they didn’t understand that but it was truly the last show and they are concentrating in a very big way in this next era of KISS which would be this avatar.”
“And that with technology and what’s could be being created and coming in three years from now or whatever, who knows how incredible that could be,” Bruce said of the avatars.
This isn’t the first time Kulick talked about being invited to the farewell show. “I’ve made peace with not being included in KISS’ ‘End of the Road.’ That said, no, they never called me,” he told Guitar World.
He also noted, “I’ve always missed being in KISS, but if being in KISS meant being the Spaceman like Tommy, I wouldn’t want to do it. And if being a part of the final shows meant I had to ask to be there, I’d rather stay home. I guess that’s why Ace respects me and has always been kind to me.”
“I’m not disappointed they didn’t ask me to be in KISS again. To be in KISS again, I would have had to be the Spaceman, right? If I had done that, I would have negated my entire non-makeup era,” Kulick further shared.
Even though he left the band in 1996, Kulick performed with his KISS bandmates for a few shows over the years.