2018 Kiss Kruise Adds Ace Frehley, Bob and Bruce Kulick to Lineup
The first lineup additions for this year's Kiss Kruise have been announced, and it's going to feel like a family reunion. Founding lead guitarist Ace Frehley will perform for the first time at the eighth-annual event, and Bob and Bruce Kulick will team up for their second appearance.
The current lineup of Kiss -- Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Eric Singer and Tommy Thayer -- will perform both a special stripped-down show on the deck of the ship and two full-makeup performances in its intimate indoor theater. The cruise departs from Miami on Oct. 31 and sails to Nassau and Key West before returning on Nov. 5. You can get full details and reserve your cabin at TheKissKruise.com.
Simmons and Frehley have teamed up several times in recent months: writing songs for Frehley's upcoming solo album, performing live together and, most recently, trading stories about their early days at the first of Simmons' Vault fan experiences.
Bruce Kulick played with Kiss from 1984 to 1996, while his older brother Bob co-wrote or secretly played on several songs by the group in the late '70s and early '80s. The two received high marks for their first-ever concert together, which took place at last year's cruise.
"The reaction has been tremendous," Bruce Kulick said at the time. "It couldn't have been a better opportunity to perform those songs -- on that night, on that ship, with that crowd, it’s a gig I’ll never forget."
Kiss' most recent major outing was 2016's Freedom to Rock tour, which found the band focusing on smaller markets that they hadn't previously played in a decade or more.
Last year, Simmons revealed that there was "some writing going on" for a potential new Kiss album, which would be their first since 2012's Monster. But he has also repeatedly expressed discontent with the way streaming and other industry changes have affected what artists are paid for music.
"My daughter last year, Sophie, had a huge song that was released on Casablanca: 10 million downloads," he said. "Do you know how much she made? $450. It almost makes you say, 'You know what? I'll get a day job.'"