Guitarist Bruce Kulick, known for his work with KISS, Union, ESP, and Grand Funk Railroad, has announced his participation in the upcoming Las Vegas Guitar Trade Show next month.
Fans can meet Bruce at the Silverton Casino on Friday, November 8th from 12 PM to 3 PM, and on Saturday, November 9th from 11 AM to 3 PM. Don’t miss out on this exciting opportunity!
In a notable collaboration, hard rock and heavy metal icon Bruce Kulick has teamed up with Johnny DiFatta, the “Sensei of Vintage 1980s Guitars” from AXN Guitars, to launch a line of boutique guitars under the new name Kulick Guitars.
“Meeting Johnny from AXN reignited my passion for M-1 guitars from the 1980s. This partnership will enable me to create boutique-quality guitars that are worthy of my name on the headstock,” said Bruce Kulick.
Bruce Kulick’s impressive resume includes 12 years and eight albums with the legendary KISS, with his contributions on the Asylum and Revenge albums regarded as essential. He also spent 23 years as a member of Grand Funk Railroad and has collaborated with renowned artists like Meat Loaf, Billy Squier, Union, Avantasia, Lordi, and Michael Bolton.
Johnny DiFatta, a skilled luthier and ESP enthusiast, is dedicated to reviving the glitter, glam, and grunge of a vibrant era in rock history. AXN Guitars has established its own reputation in the market, making waves in the guitar world.
If you’ve seen recent performances by The Bruce Kulick Band, you may have noticed Kulick playing an ESP-styled guitar that evokes memories of his time during the Asylum album era. Kulick’s AXN-backed Asylum boutique guitar serves as both a tribute and a mission statement—combining retro elegance with the flair of arena rock.
Remember the heavy metal scene of the Big Eighties? The colossal stages, breathtaking pyrotechnics, dazzling light shows, and deafening decibels that resonated in your bones long after the concert? The image and glitz, along with custom-built guitars adorned with graphics, defined the MTV era of the 1980s.
AXN Guitars founder Johnny DiFatta aims to keep that spirit alive, and he has enlisted the help of former KISS and Grand Funk Railroad guitarist Bruce Kulick. Together, they are producing Kulick boutique handmade guitars.
“Bruce reached out to me because we shared a passion for the same style of guitars, and we started discussing the instruments he used during his KISS era,” Johnny explained as they laid the groundwork for their collaboration. “We reviewed the early 1980s ESP catalogs of the guitars Bruce played and utilized during live performances.” DiFatta added, “ESP guitars were one of my two main influences as a guitar manufacturer, the other being early Charvel guitars.”
Next year marks the 40th anniversary of KISS’s Asylum, which marked Bruce Kulick’s recording debut with the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers. The album has inspired a retro homage project that began in 2020.
Reflecting on this, Johnny noted, “The ESP guitar Bruce performed with during the early KISS days was his 1985 ESP M-1 featuring a flip-flop paint job. It’s the same guitar that now hangs in the Hard Rock Cafe in London, right next to Eric Clapton’s Stratocaster. I went on to produce a replica of that M-1 ESP but with a chunkier neck. We used calipers to measure Bruce’s favorite ESP guitars. I guided Bruce in adjusting the thickness of the guitar neck, and he opted for a slightly thinner neck profile reminiscent of the 1980s with an R2 nut. Now, Bruce has that tribute guitar, and he uses it live.”
In a creative twist, Johnny wanted to incorporate a Beatles-esque touch to the guitar design, inspired by the Asylum album cover. “Bruce mentioned it would be fantastic to have a guitar featuring his face from the Asylum cover. I confirmed that we could do it, as I was already making AXN custom guitars with artwork. I took a photo of a guitar without any graphics and used Photoshop to design the instrument. I even sourced the largest poster of the Asylum artwork I could find to create an accurate representation of Bruce’s face, ensuring it fit perfectly within the overall design.”
The resulting tribute guitar blossomed into a collaborative project between two “guitar geeks.”
“Bruce is eager to offer boutique guitars,” Johnny shared. “His fans continually request more guitars that celebrate his KISS era. We’ve discussed the materials, hardware, specifications, and pickups that go into making these instruments. Bruce showed a keen interest in learning about what makes a guitar exceptional. He found my knowledge intriguing since I’m a luthier, a guitar player, and I’ve been in a working band.”
The features of a Kulick guitar will include locking bridges, a single humbucker, and a non-reversed headstock showcasing the Kulick logo on the front and the AXN logo on the back. Each guitar will be handcrafted and “period correct,” as Johnny confidently states.
This collaboration brings retro craftsmanship back to life, delivering major league throwback guitars inspired by the vibrant sounds of the 1980s.
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