1993.01.25 - Australian TV Channel 7 - Interview with Slash

Transcript:
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Slash: We don’t advocate violence, we don’t advocate any racism, or, you know, that gay activist stuff that they’re putting on us.

David White (voice-over): The Gunners are here and in no mood to put up with critics who rag them as violent.

Slash: As far as dealing with all these little groups that get together and try to sabotage what we’re doing, it’s just like, no big deal. You know, what are they gonna do? (laughs) And I don’t think that anybody who actually listens to the records that we put out really listen to any of these organizations anyway.

David White (voice-over): It’s a reputation as the bad boys of heavy rock with the wild parties and hard-edged (?) that Slash, the lead guitarist with the band, says was well earned.

Slash: For a rock band we’ve mellowed out a bit, just because it just got dull. I mean, hotel bashing got to be boring and expensive, the orgy scenes got old, the drugs got old – the whole thing, you know. Joe Perry put it best: you just got tired of feeling sick and tired.

David White (voice-over): After experiencing stunning success with their debut album, Appetite for Destruction, life for the Gunners changed and, for Slash, heroin took over.

Slash: I got into it just because it happened to be my drug of choice. I mean, it’s one of those things that’s fun for a while, but it does take over and it has a definite effect on your work. It’s gonna get you one way or the other, either you quit or it’ll kill you, or you’ll lose your career or something. It will take over in the end, I learned that one.

David White: So what turned the tide for you?

Slash: Everybody else told me, “Dude, you gotta do something.” So they tried to put me in rehab, and I’m not the type for rehabs – you know, I fix it myself. So I went there for three days, and escaped, and took off and cleaned up my own house. I’ve been clean since. It’s one of those things where, when you’re on tour, the sex and drugs element becomes sort of like your way of making yourself feel like you’re having a good time. When you’re working 24 hours a day, travelling constantly with no real control over reality, except for the two hours that you spend on stage, the rest of it is a nightmare. So you end up chasing women and getting stoned a lot.

David White: A lot has been written and said about the Gunners. After all, when you’re the world’s hottest rock band that goes with the territory. But what really gets up Slash’s nose are the lies, and he’s targeted this book [shows the book “Appetite For Destruction: The Days of Guns N’ Roses” by Danny Sugerman].

Slash: It’s staff like that, because kids only – well, not kids, but people in general only believe in what they read or what they see on TV, and so when a book comes out and a, say, Guns N’ Roses fan sees it on a rack and buys it, that’s all he’s got to go on. And that guy has never even met us.

David White: Really?

Slash: That guy is so full of it. I’m gonna kick his ass when I see him. I’ll – (laughs)

David White (voice-over): The target for most Gunners’ critics is lead singer Axl Rose. But Slash says his buddy is misunderstood.

Slash: You know, he just attracts trouble, because people don’t like people like that. They have a hard time dealing with somebody who’s that blatantly honest. It scares people, so the obvious reaction is to retaliate, which is what he has to deal though, especially, like, with police and authorities, and all kind of stuff.

[Footage from the St. Louis riot]

David White (voice-over): Axl had one of his biggest run-ins with authorities after he was fined for inciting this riot. Fans went berserk. It’s an experience Slash says he never wants to relive.

Slash: They destroyed the stage, the lighting thrusters, we have equipment out on the lawn, up by the concessions, and a lot of cops coming by in stretchers with blood all over, and all the guys from the crew defending the equipment and getting hit with things. It was a situation - I had no idea that we were capable of being that powerful.

David White: Did you feel scared?

Slash: Yeah. I mean, especially when we are in this little van with our heads ducked down, and they said, “Take your top hat off!” and I was like, “Okay...” (laughs) You know, cuz they’d see it in the windows when we were driving by. And it wasn’t something that we incited. You know, you don’t expect a riot to – especially after we played for an hour-and-a-half. For Guns N’ Roses, it’s like, there’s no such thing as feeling safe onstage or offstage.

David White: How would you describe Guns N’ Roses?

Slash: There’s no simple answer I could give you that would suffice. I mean, there’s a lot – some of the elements to Guns N’ Roses, and, as personalities individually, we’re really distinct personalities, and us all getting together it’s very complex.

David White (voice-over): And, as Slash & Co. prepare for their two mammoth outdoor gigs in Sydney and Melbourne, here’s a timely word of advice.

Slash: I just want everybody to have a good time and I hope it’s as good for them as expected. And just don’t beat each other up or anything, don’t start any riots and don’t throw anything at the stage (laughs).

Article about this interview (that's how I figured the date) in the Sydney Morning Herald, January 24, 1993:

https://images2.imgbox.com/3f/22/SUv61MUa_o.jpg

Transcript:
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Bored stiff

REAL Life's David White says he was impressed with the honesty of Guns 'N' Roses guitarist Slash when they met to record an exclusive interview to be screened on the Channel 7 show tomorrow. In the interview, Slash rejects criticism that the group incites violence. On heroin, he says: “I got into it just because it happened to be my kind of drug. It was fun for a while and it has a definite effect on you, it's gonna get you one way or the other. Either you quit or it'll kill you. I learnt that one." Slash, who recently married his long-time model girlfriend, also told White that Guns 'N' Roses had mellowed. “Hotel bashing got to be boring and expensive, the orgy scene got old, the drugs got old. Joe Perry from Aerosmith put it best: ‘You just get sick and tired of being sick and tired’."