Guitarist Bruce Kulick mentioned that he was never asked to join KISS in the early 2000s or for their farewell ‘End of The Road’ tour, but he’s not bothered by it.
In a new interview with Guitar World, Kulick admitted to missing being in KISS:
“I’ve made peace with not being included in KISS’ ‘End of the Road.’ That said, no, they never called me.”
Kulick also wasn’t asked to join when Gene Simmons & Co. decided to return from retirement. However, the guitarist doesn’t regret missing out on that opportunity either. He explained why:
“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.”
He added:
“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 Is ‘Relieved’ To Not Be In KISS
In an April 2020 interview with Sleaze Roxx, Kulick said that he felt ‘relieved’ he wasn’t asked to rejoin the band after Frehley left the band for good back in 2001:
“I was relieved [when they didn’t ask me to step in after Ace left]. 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.”
He added:
“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.”
Although he left the band in 1996, Kulick came together with his KISS bandmates for a few shows throughout the years.