Bruce Kulick Reveals the Truth Behind Kiss's FORGOTTEN Album!
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- Опубликовано: 21 окт 2024
- In this exclusive interview, former KISS guitarist Bruce Kulick opens up about the band’s darkest and most controversial album, Carnival of Souls. Bruce reflects on the grunge era that influenced the album’s heavier sound and explains why the record was shelved despite the effort put into its creation.
From his thoughts on the grunge rock movement, working with Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, to how the album ultimately got buried by KISS’s reunion tour with Ace Frehley and Peter Criss, Bruce shares untold stories about what really happened behind the scenes.
Carnival of Souls might not be one of the most popular KISS albums, but it remains a fascinating part of the band's legacy-and in this interview, Bruce reveals why the record deserved more attention. Don’t miss this deep dive into the making of KISS’s most underrated album, the internal band dynamics at the time, and why it still holds a special place for diehard KISS fans.
This is a must-watch for KISS fans and rock music lovers alike!
When I first heard Revenge, I was like, "Oh yeah, Kiss is BACK!" And Carnival of Souls, another excellent album of music.
Love Bruce, they were lucky to have him.
I got a promo copy of Carnival of Souls before it was released, and ultimately shelved. The song "Rain" was in heavy rotation on Detroit radio before it was pulled because of the reunion. It's the only Kiss album that I legitimately love.
Bruce has to be one of the most honest, likable guys in R&R! I remember hearing at the time that CoS only came out because bootlegs were circulating, which Gene and Paul don't make money on, so they release the official album to squash the bootleg. Not sure if true but it was the rumor at the time. If Bruce reads the comments... Revenge is one of KISS' best albums, and although not well attended, was a great concert and stage! I saw the show in NJ, thanks to passes from, Bruce! Thanks!!
I have been a kiss fan since Christmas '75. When alive came out . Revenge is their best album. I said what I said.
100%!!
KISS fan since 83.
While I don’t share your opinion, I respect it.
Rock on bro!
I think alot of revenge is the best they ever did but some of those i just wanna f with you songs at the end ruin the best album thing for me .. but yeah good take
Kiss fan since 1977. Never heard a single Kiss album in its entirety after Dynasty.
When that album came out heavy metal and rock n roll were on the ropes, and thrash metal bands were either going soft or becoming too extreme. Revenge reminded me that a Rock and Roll album could still kick ass!
My brother and i are KISS fans from the original lineup, remaining fans all through the 80’s and into the 90’s. we wanted the reunion so badly, but when carnival of souls came out, we knew the better band had been sacrificed, psycho circus was Cheesey. It was pandering to what they thought the fans wanted, but it wasn’t even the original members. COS is a real KISS album, Psycho Circus is one KISS song with a bunch of attempts at anthems. The people who complain about Carnival of souls being grunge are just like the people who complained that Dynasty was a disco album.
Revenge and Carnival of Souls were both amazing albums. I always found CoS to be dark and heavy, rather than grunge like some fans seem to think. I suppose there was an influence, but I never thought of it as a grunge album. I liked that era of KISS and wish they had tried to experiment with that more. But, money talks.
Loved Revenge and Love the Revenge Concert Tour. Band was firing on all cylinders.
Alive III is excellent.
I was a KISS fan starting in 1976 with the Alive ! double album. Saw them live in 1977 for the Rock and Roll Over tour at the age of fourteen. As much as I loved all that I still think Revenge was one of their best albums. Musicianship-wise the lineup of Paul, Gene, Bruce and Eric Singer I feel was the best.
Carnival of Souls is a great album! Horribly underrated and overlooked!
I love Carnival of Souls!! Great record!!
I doubt he will see this but I am such a fan of his. In addition to his great work, including contributing to Animalize which I picked up during my formative years and still love, he has always been a class act.
Carnival was fucking killer!
I love carnival of souls. It’s one of their best albums. I would have loved to see what they had planned for that album cover.
Bruce🎸made Paul🎤shine on "Carnival of Souls". What a strong,
dark and metal-heavy KISS 💋 album. And Bruce is right.
"I Walk Alone" was prophetic.
I actually love that record. It’s raw and so different for KISS. I was the right age for it, but never really got on with grunge (alt rock was way better ie STP, AIC, GooGooDolls etc). Carnival Of Souls to me was a natural step from Revenge.
it's more heavier than regular grunge tho it's more like a grunge metal album took me years to get into it but now it's just another great KISS album! favorite songs for me is : Rain,childhood's end, seduction of the innocent. to name a few!
Star Wars did not come back better.
He said "bigger" not better.
Carnival of Souls was the ONLY KISS album without make-up that I actually liked.
Lick it up is pretty solid.
I know I speak for quite a few kiss fans when I say I wish after the farewell tour was done Gene and Paul would have went back and got the Bruce and Eric singer lineup back together. And we're still wanting this to happen now that the end of the road tour is over I think there would be some big interest since this lineup hasn't did anything in quite some time.
Revenge was KISS at their non-makeup best. I remember being blown away when I saw the music video for Unholy for the first time. COS never got a fair shake due to the coming of the reunion.
Carnival of souls. Great Kiss grunge record👍🏻
It's a real shame that only two studio albums with Eric Singer and Bruce Kulick were recorded with KISS. That lineup of the band deserved to do more because it's a very talented lineup. KISS went from recording 2 studio albums a year to recording 1 a year to recording 1 every other year. Then they just stopped, I guess, because the albums weren't selling as well. Would have been nice to have a regular old KISS album to follow Revenge instead of that drastic departure in style immediately. Seems like there's an album that should be in between there that would contain a better version of Paul Stanley's style but also include the darker stuff Gene and Bruce wanted to do.
it was normal for bands to release two albums a year in the 70's....when the 80's rolled around it became an album every 1.5 to 2 years. KISS wasnt the only one. Van Halen did the same thing.
As long time Kiss fan, I felt CoS was a return to their heavier stuff. A great album in any case!
COS is in my top 4 of Kiss' albums. Go Bruce!
💪 😎 👍
I don't look at the Kiss catalog and judge an album based on whether it fits my musical tastes or was what I was expecting or wanted; I look at each album simply as to whether it was good or not, and Revenge and Carnival of Souls were good, with many interesting colors as Bruce duly noted.
Carnival of Souls sounds like it was inspired by Alice In Chains. Nice to hear Bruce confirm that. I enjoy every KISS album. I like the original KISS sound heard on the first three albums, Alive! and Rock and Roll Over the best.
KISS hired producer Toby Wright, who has worked with AIC on jar of flies, tripod ep and unplugged.
So Kiss was definitely going for that AIC sound.
I loved that album, listened to it everyday while I was in Vegas.
Had Revenge come out in '89 instead of Hot In The Shade, it would've been huge... and if Carnival of Souls come out in '92 instead of Revenge, it would've been huge. Revenge, Carnival Of Souls, and Lick It Up have always been the holy trinity of non-makeup albums for me.
100%!!!
But unfortunately KISS reacts to musical trends.. they don’t create them.
I saw every KISS tour from Animalize to the Lost Cities Tour. Revenge was the best of the bunch. I’m 52 and I’ve been a fan since ‘77. I loved the original four, and I was over the moon to see the reunion tour. Knowing now what KISS became, I would have preferred that the Reunion tour had been a one off, and then Bruce and Eric had rejoined and continued with Gene and Paul.
Revenge is my favourite Kiss album
CoS was great! It was a whole album of God of Thunder meets War Machine, with a side helping of Unholy. What's not to love?
Carnival Of Souls is a great album. Jungle is one of ny favorite KISS songs. As for it being Grunge, KISS had plenty of songs that were Grunge before Grunge was a thing. Gene has always had a penchant for writing darker songs, and some of their early stuff was very grungy; Going Blind, Strange Ways, Watchin' You...
And don't forget Almost Human, which as I understand, was submitted by Soundgarden for the Tribute album. I would love to hear that cover, and I really don't know why it wasn't chosen, given the time it was released.
Carnival of Souls kicks ass
I much prefer Kiss Alive 3 than Revenge. Beautifully mixed.
Revenge is one of my favorites, if not the favorite Kiss album ever!
That album was much better than the 3 albums KISS did afterwards.
Psycho circus great song
I hated COS when I first heard it. Now, I LOVE it!!
It doesn't matter whether Paul Stanley or Gene Simmons like CoS or not, or whether they stand behind their work. They already have my money for the CD and the vinyl in their account anyway. The main thing is that I like CoS and I can enjoy and celebrate the music.
Class act...love your era Bruce!!!
Thank you
I love revenge.
I thought lick it up was their best since rock n roll over. Which is actually my favorite with original kiss members
COS was in the vein of Hotter Than He'll..Revenge was more KISS-like. Bruce is a class act.
I call psycho circus the kiss family album it featured Paul gene Bruce Tommy Ace and Peter.
The musical lurch to the darker side, was i think an unsurprising career move on reflection.& shouldn't have been perceived as being the 'Kiss of Death' The Carnival of Souls is also the name of a cinematic cult classic, culturally the analogy is hopefully not misplaced. Once again great interview, & Your content continues to inspire!😊
We Love You Bruce!!! 🎸⭐️
It’s so nice to hear someone (Bruce) talk about Kiss without the ‘spin’ that Paul and Gene always feel the need to put on it.
My girlfriend at the time loved that album and wore it out.
Revenge was the best!
I remember refusing to hear the leaked COS in 1996. I wanted to hear the real release whenever that would have been. I wish i knew which versions on yt were the actual leaked bootleg from back then, and not the demos. Because there was a time, in 1996 that the album was complete and the final mix was being traded, albeit low quality.
Briliant album. 2:05 Very thick AIC influence (sometimes too much) but that's okay, Bruce admits that it had a big influence on the songs, and we love AIC.
I like Carnival of Souls, it was different for KISS and they were just following what was popular at the time, but I think they did a decent job with it.
Carnival is one of their best albums imo
Huh?? No way it's the first six LPs only...
Around this time Bruce's guitar work is way up there. Alive 3, Revenge, COS more you listen the better it gets. But they got offer alot of money to simply go back and put the makeup on and do a reunion tour. They stuck with that with Tommy Thayer, now its the avatar.
I have seen the makeup has a child, non-makeup has a teen, makeup has an adult. Wow they rock it for 50 years thru rock disco, hair band, grunge, then back to makeup. Bands today use audio tracks effects, the computer does the crazy sounds instead of a lead guitar. Times have changed
If you took the best songs off of Revenge and the best songs from this album, now that would have been a killer album
It's an exceptionally creative album. Top 3 KISS album for me. Jungle and In the Mirror are great songs. Definitely takes a big step outside the KISS box. Needed a better mix and better artwork.
I wish after the farewell tour kiss would have returned to this sound and took back off the makeup, they were taken seriously during revenge
Brilliant album 👍
Kiss should release the Tommy Thayer video that he did for the album in the studio
I wish Carnival went with the original cover art.
I couldn't agree more.
I always thought Revenge would have been bigger if it had a couple of songs from Carnival on it like Rain, and Master and Slave.
COS was streets ahead of Sonic Boom and Monster
Carnival is my favorite KISS album. They had every right to make that music because they invented grunge with God of Thunder.
Revenge and Carnival of Souls are two non make up albums I would put up against all their make up albums….I’ve been a fan since the first album….
Revenge and carnival souls were too great hard rock albums by Kiss playing wise kiss was at the top of their game and never sounded better.
There's a reason Revenge didn't go anywhere. Had nothing to do with Grunge.
People were tired of KISS doing the new thing while slamming their previous album. I hate hearing how KISS became followers only in the 80s. They were ALWAYS doing that. Even back in Wicked Lester they were following others
Carnival of souls woulda been the ultimate nail in the coffin.
i loved revenge and souls ,although i felt souls could have been produced better
Revenge was a big disappointment for me. There was all this buzz about how heavy it was, and it was the first Kiss record I got since Creatures. But it was really just another hair metal record. There was nothing heavy about it at all. They should have pulled a Painkiller, and did a solid, heavy traditional metal record. I don't suppose it matters in hindsight, but it could have been a bigger success than it was.
As even Bruce reveals, Kiss became FOLLOWERS instead of LEADERS.
KISS was always following trends. Listen to Wicked Lester.....listen to Dynasty..... Carnival of Souls is no different.
COS is possibly their best album from a songwriting point of view. And I'm not even a big grunge fan, not really.
Gene had the best songs on Carnival. Really on any of the heavier KISS lps like Creatures and Revenge,Gene has the better songs. Bruce is my favorite KISS guitarist.
Carnival > Revenge
Unholy 👍 great album
If you know what i mean
I enjoyed it. Not every album should sound the same as the ones before. I like when a band tries different stuff even if it might not be a great album such as "The Elder".
GREATE ALBUM REAVENGE I HAVE BUY THIS ALBUM FOR THE SECOND TIME TODAY, THOU SHALL WELL BUY IT FOR A SECOND TIME TO HEAR THOU SHALL NOT, BUT ITS THOU SHALL DO AND I KNOW BECAUSE I AM A CHRISTIAN AND CAN DO ANYTHING,BUT JUST DONT WANT TO DO ALL THINGS BECAUSE ITS RICHT SOMETHINGS ARE WRONG...SOMETIMES. AMEN
That's when I stopped caring about Kiss. I knew the reunion was a terrible idea because Gene and Paul already had better musicans with Bruce and Eric. Dismissing them for Ace and Peter and a heavy paycheck was a terrible idea. They wwere already rich and famous.
Betteer to have a one off tour and say goodbye to the 70's era and then continue on with Bruce and Eric. The both of them were definitely cheated.
I like Revenge, and I thought Carnival was okay. Psycho, Sonic Turd, and Monster Crap are all terrible. Terrible I say. You know how Kiss always claimed MC was copying them....well Kiss were copying Generation Swine and Streets of LA. Total bullocks.
What KISS records does KISS actually like? 😂
Destroyer. Creatures of the Night. Revenge.
Pretty much the first 6 albums, Creatures of the Night and Revenge are the most acclaimed by the band themselves
@@mr.brenman2132 lol awesome. 3 records in 50 years. 👍
@@WhyTheHorseface You asked what records they really liked. I'm more referencing Paul. I know Ace likes the 70's records.
Just pandering to what was popular at the time. That’s who they were after 78.
They went from driving the bus to trying to catch a ride on it.
Love Bruce and his era of the band (and all eras actually!), but I HATE this album! I rate it dead last out of their entire catalog and haven't listened to it in decades!
Honestly, that album kinda sucked, especially after Revenged. The only really good song on it is I Walk Alone. Still way better than Psycho Circus though; that album sucks the whole way through.
Great bands set trends... kiss followed them... a shame because kiss (including ace and peter) were more talented than that.
Kiss does grunge? No wonder they wanted to shelve it 😂
It was actually a pretty solid album. It was more in the vein of Alice in Chains.
i like that album go on early ….its a lot better than The Elders imho
Who are we kidding. Us classic KISS fans mostly feel the same way - Carnival of Souls has it moments but overall it is not "classic KISS", the songs are not good enough and teh drop D tuning is not KISS. It sounds like crap overall. Not enough riffs, not enough hooks, just not good enough.
Carnival was unlistenable. Revenge was ok.
Carnival sucks hard and it’s not kiss he know this
Revenge was the best non-makeup album they made.
terrible sorry
CoS was a crap album Bruce. The reunion came at the right time for the band. It saved them as you’d all lost steam and were all coasting towards the exit door. Paul already had both eyes on a solo career. The period from 84 to 96 was as dry as toast. Unfortunately that’s the time you were in the band but by that time Kiss were just another touring rock band pumping out second rate tunes with terrible titles and crass lyrics.
Carnival of Souls is like the Jerry Lewis’s “ The day the clown cried”. Except Carnival of souls got out there . Exceptionally terrible record.
You're insane! That album was phenomenal