2007.05.13 - 102.1 The Edge Toronto - Interview with Velvet Revolver (Slash, Duff, Matt)

Transcript:
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Interviewer: We’re good? All right. Well, happy Mother’s Day, everyone. We don’t actually have the queen mom here, but we do have some rock ‘n’ roll royalty. Would you please help me welcome to 228 Yonge Street, Velvet Revolver.

(Applause)

Interviewer: Sitting left to right, Matt Sorum, Duff McKagan, and Slash. How is it going, guys?

Duff: It’s good.

(Laughter)

Duff: We just woke up.

Matt: Slash is slurping down at Starbucks. What flavor is that, Slash? (laughs)

Interviewer: Welcome to Toronto. You guys were playing Detroit last night?

Matt: Yes, we did. We played at the Royal Oak Theater.

Interviewer: Okay, how did that go?

Matt: It was a very rock ‘n’ roll stomping crowd. But we expect more tonight out of Toronto.

(Applause)

Interviewer: All right. Well, let’s get right into it. The new album, Libertad, is in stores July the 3rd, and I think when fans heard that you guys were getting together and doing the Velvet Revolver thing, this is the album they wanted. It’s just the ballsy, raunchy rock ‘n’ roll album. How did you guys approach this compared to Contraband?

Duff: Well, I think the biggest difference between the two records was, when we made Contraband – is it working? Am I coming through the radio? I am. Should I talk through this?

(Laughter)

Interviewer: Yes.

Duff: Yeah?

Interviewer: I think so. It sounds good.

Duff: Okay. All right. So the biggest difference was, obviously, with making Libertad we were a band for a few years; and I think on the Contraband tour we finally figured out what our chemistry was - somewhere on that tour, five or six months into it, who knows. You know, before we made Contraband, Scott came into the picture maybe a month or two before we actually the record. So, you know, it was an angry, in-your-face rock ‘n’ roll record, which is the perfect record, I think, for us to make as a debut record. However, now we’ve evolved into ourselves and, when the writing process came for Libertad, we kind of just knew what our boundaries weren’t, you know, at that point. I think we all made the best record we could possibly make with this, and we really dug deep, and I’m pretty stoked, pretty happy with how we all performed on this.

Interviewer: And speaking of the writing process, so was then Scott Weiland a little more influential on this process? Like, you said you guys were an actual band this time as opposed to him joining up with you guys?

Matt: Well, I mean, traditionally Slash, Duff and myself – and Dave as well – have always kind of come up with the riffs and the music before the whole thing starts to roll, you know? So initially, like, Duff and myself got together and wrote a bunch of riffs, Slash had a bunch of stuff, Dave had some riffs. Then, when we all finally got in a room together, initially we were working with Rick Rubin and he had, you know, U2, and Metallica, and a bunch of other stuff he was doing, so he was a really busy guy. We opted to use a producer named Brendan O’Brien, who did the early Stone Temple Pilots as well as Pearl Jam and Incubus, a lot of Rage Against The Machine… I mean, just a killer producer. And when Brendan came in, the ball really started rolling. Like, he’s a musician, he plays guitar, he sings, he told me how to play the drums a little bit, too (laughs). You know, it’s like, he’s a very well-rounded guy. When he came in, man, it just took off, and we were just writing, the songs were coming, and Scott was writing lyrics. We would be in one room jamming on the riff when Scott was in another room writing the lyrics and coming back: “Check it out, I got the lyrics!” And then we would perform it live together, and it got really very exciting for us, because we knew that at the end of this experience we were gonna have an album, you know.

Interviewer: Speaking of Brendan O’Brien: I mean, you say he influenced the album, but when a band has a track record like you guys, is it kind of difficult to work with a producer? Like, you kind of have your ideas and then you’re like, “Well, no, I’ve got 10 million albums behind me. I kind of know what I’m doing.”

(Laughter in the studio)

Interviewer: (Laughs) Slash is awake and…

Matt: (Laughs).

Interviewer: Is it difficult to work with a producer or did, like he said, everything mesh? What kind of influence did he have?

Slash: Um, what did you say? (laughs)

(Laughter)

Slash: It’s just got to be the right guy, because with a bunch of guys such as this group of fellas, we don’t take direction very well. So it’s got to be somebody that we can work with and somebody that we respect, and that’s what Brendan brought to the table. We actually felt sort of a certain chemistry with the guy. He’s a musician and he knew where we were coming from, so we just liked him off the bat. He became like the sixth member, basically. So that’s how that works. Otherwise, yeah, the producer walks in and we’re like, “Fuck you” (laughs) - you know, “Don’t tell us what to do.”

Interviewer: Exactly. The album starts off with the track Let It Roll, and this is, like I said earlier, just a raunchy, balls-out rock ‘n’ roll tune. When you guys completed this song, was there any doubt that this song was going to lead off the album?

Slash: (Laughing) Yeah. It didn’t even almost make the record.

Interviewer: Really?

Slash: Yeah. At first it was sort of like…

Matt: (inaudible)

Slash: Remember that? It was the least one of my favorites. It wasn’t until there was lyrics to it that we knew it was gonna happen.

Duff: Yeah, these songs, I mean, when Brendan came into the picture, we had, like, 50 things – 45 to 50 different…

Slash: I don’t remember that.

Duff: All those songs?

Slash: We didn’t have 50 songs!

Duff: Yeah, we did.

Matt: (Laughs).

Duff: Yeah, we did. We did.

Slash: 50 noodles?

Duff: 50 noodles. 50… yeah, 50… Just tons of material, and I think we wrote to our limit, you know. And Brendan came in, and we gave him everything, he listened to it… We kind of gave him free reign to which song to start working on. I think She Builds Quick Machines was always a real nice nasty riff that we had. Yeah, it wasn’t until the vocals came on, but as far as the first single, there was…

Slash: It was Let It Roll.

Duff: It was… you know, there was three songs up for the first single, and it became sort of… I don’t know.

Matt: Wait till you see the video.

Duff: Yeah, yeah, video-

Matt: The video is crazy. We blow people up and shit. It’s amazing.

(Laughter)

Matt: We blow up cars… The video really makes the song to me.

Duff: You like that video, don’t you?

Matt: Yeah.

Duff: We just shot it last night.

Slash: Matt really likes it.

Interviewer: When is the video coming out? Do you have a timetable?

Duff: I think-

Matt: Probably right with the single, right?

Duff: 22nd or 3rd of May.

Matt: Yeah.

Interviewer: Nice. She Builds Quick Machines is, like you said, the first single and video. That song, seems like, maybe other than Mary Mary, the song that really lets all of you guys kind of spread your wings, sort of. I mean, like, it has the rocking bass, crazy drums and, of course, Slash does his thing. Was that sort of significant in releasing that song?

Matt: I don’t think so. You know, we gave a bunch of songs to the record company, and they came back and they were all excited about that, and we… I really love the album as an album; it’s, like, a complete listen. It sort of reminds me – I gotta say, in my entire career, I’ve never been able to sit down and actually listen to a record I’ve recorded in its entirety. It’s kind of like – sometimes it’s a bit like, “Oh god.” It puts you there in a place that’s, maybe, emotional or a mental place. But for other people listening to, and for myself listening to Libertad, I love listening to the record from the beginning to the end; sort of like when I used to pick up records - I mean, I don’t want to put us in the category of bands like Led Zeppelin, but when I would sit down and listen to, like, Led Zeppelin, I’d sit with a whole record. That’s kind of how I feel about this record. It’s got a depth to it that it takes you on a journey, and I’m really, really happy about that part of it.

Interviewer: It also sounds like a really fun album to drum to. Because, I mean, you don’t hesitate, the cowbell comes in on track two, and from then on it’s just cowbell. Bang!

Matt: Yeah!

Slash: We brought the cowbell back.

Matt: We’re bringing it back (laughs).

Interviewer: But, I mean, is it fun to drum to, as it sounds like? Because, I mean-

Matt: Cowbell is fun, man. Let me tell you, not everybody can do it. Will Ferrell – but, yeah.

(Laughter)

Matt: I mean, if you listen in the history of rock ‘n’ roll music, there was a lot of big songs with cowbell on them. You know, there was that record that these guys did, Appetite for Destruction-

Slash: Matt actually played the best he’s ever played on this record.

Matt: Aww! Slash, thanks, man.

(Laughter)

Slash: It’s like, at least I have something to say, you know?

(Laughter)

Slash: (?) talking about this shit (laughs).

Interviewer: Speaking with the guys from Velvet Revolver. They’ll play a sold-out show tonight at the Cool Haus. Libertad in stores July 3rd. And the album Libertad, or the name Libertad, is a little serendipitous. Do you want to tell the story of how that came to fruition? Or is your website lying?

Duff: I like that word, serendipity.

Interviewer: Yeah. I saw it on your website, actually.

Duff: I mean, it’s kind of anti-climactic how the title came about. I had this shirt – I don’t even know where it came from - and had a graphic of the Mexican Day of the Dead on it, and underneath it said “Libertad” in big black letters. And I walked in somewhere and Scott saw the picture first, and he goes, “What is that? It’s kind of cool, kind of dark.” Then he saw the “Libertad” on it and said, “That’d be a great name for a record.” It was kind of just in passing. But I think somehow… I’ve never made a record with having the title before we actually started the record. I think that the name and the feeling of sort of liberty and freedom somehow crept into the band as a whole; I mean, the album kind of sounds like the title in some weird way. But it wasn’t anything more deep than really one guy wearing a t-shirt and another guy seeing it.

Interviewer: And then did you find a coin or something?

Slash: Yeah, it’s just… Our old production manager had this Chilean coin around her neck, and I saw it and it said “Libertad” on the bottom, and it had this stick with wings – you know, angel wings – and shackles on her wrists, and I thought, “That would make a great cover; and it says ‘Libertad’ on it.” It’s like, we’re lazy.

(Laughter)

Interviewer: No.

Slash: So here you go, you know.

Interviewer: Alright. Well, let’s check out some music right now. We’re gonna go back to Contraband. We’re gonna hear Slither?

Matt: Alright.

Interviewer: Music from Velvet Revolver. We’ll get some more with the band live at 228 Yonge on 102.1 The Edge.

[Slither is played]

Interviewer: Welcome back, live at 228 Yonge, joined with Velvet Revolver.

(Applause)

Interviewer: Matt Sorum, Duff McKagan and Slash, and this tour that you guys are in the midst of right now. Actually, you guys started out doing some shows in South America. How did those go?

Matt: That was crazy. Basically, we haven’t been down there, Duff and Slash and myself, in a long time. I think Slash went down with Snakepit in the mid-90s, right?

Duff: It doesn’t count, because he doesn’t remember it.

Matt: (Laughs) But the fans down there are just all about the rock - you know, they’re so passionate. When we got off the plane we played in Chile. We did about 10,000 seaters or something by ourselves and it was just nuts. Then we went into Brazil, and we did a gig with Aerosmith in front of about 75,000, and it was just crazy. We had to have extra security and we were like, “What?” We just had a great time. You know, it was a great warm-up to the tour and really, really kick-started us.

Interviewer: Do the fans seem, like, knowledgeable for the most part, like they know what’s going on in sing-along kind of stuff?

Duff: Well… Like, the Latin fans you’re talking about?

Interviewer: Yeah, sorry, the South American fans.

Duff: I think Latin fans are really knowledgeable of music, extremely passionate about a band that they’re into. So as a band going down, it almost feels like they’re hoisting you on their shoulders, and they really treasure their music and take it seriously. So, you know, as a band you have to take it seriously when you go down there.

Slash (in the background): Talk in South American.

Duff: Yeah.

(Laughter)

Duff: Where are you from?

Someone: Colombia.

Duff: Oh, Colombia, yeah.

Someone (in the background): I saw you in ’92.

Duff: Yeah?

Someone: (inaudible)

Slash: We couldn’t go there this year. It’s too crazy.

Duff: It’s too crazy, yeah. Right. But, you know, if you go, you take your malaria pills and you go down there, and you rock.

Interviewer: Speaking with guys from Velvet Revolver. They do a sold-out show tonight at the Cool Haus. Are you doing a lot of the new material while you’re-

Slash: Six songs.

Interviewer: Six songs, yeah? And is that just kind of mixed in with old Velvet Revolver?

Slash: Yeah. Something like that (laughs).

Interviewer: Yeah?

Slash: It’s gonna be a fucking killer show tonight. It’s gonna be insane.

Matt: You know, we just thought this would be a good way for, like, our real uber fans to get in and check out the music live. The record’s not out, so, obviously, it’s gonna be sort of like a little bit more of a listening thing than a complete rocking thing - but, hopefully, rock to it and listen to it at the same time will be the idea. But, you know, we’re just getting the kinks out and getting going here, so it’s fun to play the new material.

Interviewer: And you’re doing this little club tour now, but I understand you’re going over to Europe to do some big festivals, and then a full Canadian tour once the album is out?

Slash: We’re doing a U.S. tour, then a Canadian tour.

Interviewer: And then a Canadian tour.

Slash: With Alice In Chains.

Interviewer: With Alice In Chains?

Duff: Yeah.

Slash: It’s gonna be badass.

Matt: We’ve got another special guest who we can’t announce just yet, but somebody really cool.

Interviewer: Really? Do you know who’s gonna be fronting Alice In Chains when you’re on tour?

Duff: William.

Interviewer: Yeah?

Duff: Yeah.

Matt: It’s good. It’s really, really good. I mean, you know, William does a killer job and all the rest of the boys are up there, so it’s an awesome show.

Duff: And I think it’s right, speaking of Alice In Chains. You know, obviously a big tragedy hit that band, and these guys, for the years surrounding that before and after, kind of were shell-shocked and they went their separate ways, and it was kind of sad to see these guys, Jerry and Sean and Mike – it was kind of a waste of talent, a waste of three guys who really can rock, and Jerry can really write a great rock song. When they started playing with getting back together two years ago, I just thought it was the right thing to do; you know, those guys shouldn’t just stop. They found this guy, William, and he’s amazing singer. It felt right to me when I saw him, and felt right enough to all of us in Velvet Revolver to take them out, and it’s gonna be a kick-ass rock show.

Interviewer: And that’s for the American and Canadian shows?

Duff: Yeah.

Slash: I think for the Canadian. I don’t want to overstep my boundaries, but I would imagine so.

Interviewer: And I also noticed you guys are playing a show, a festival in Germany and Italy called The Gods of Metal?

(Laughter)

Interviewer: What the hell is that?

Matt: That’s just what they do in Germany, you know.

Duff: Oh god!

Matt: They just call it beer-and-metal kind of names.

Interviewer: Have you guys seen the documentary?

Matt: What?

Interviewer: That documentary that’s based on metal…

Slash: Yeah. The one about the death metal people.

Matt: Yeah, yeah.

Interviewer: (Laughs) So you guys want to be part of that, obviously.

Slash: It’s not good to be a pastor over there.

(Laughter)

Interviewer: Don’t go to church. Speaking with the guys from Velvet Revolver. Let’s talk a little bit more about the new album that’ll be in stores July the 3rd. Not one song can define quality bands anyway, and maybe I overanalyze the crap out of this, but the song The Last Fight, not definitive of Velvet Revolver, but, I mean, if you guys were to have an anthem, it would almost be like, that’s the anthem, The Last Fight - like, from the vocals to the music to the solo… Is that fair to say or did I, maybe, put the bomb down (?)

Slash: That’s more for you guys to judge. I mean, I couldn’t personally say, you know, what the anthem is; because we just sort of write the songs as they come, and if it sounds good, it sounds good. But looking at it from the perspective of, like, “Oh, it’s an anthem,” or “This is…” is a little too analytical, as far as I’m concerned.

Interviewer: Okay. I’ll put the pipe down before (?)

Slash: Sorry.

Interviewer: Very cool.

Slash: They’ve got F1 racing behind your head, so I’m just staring past you there (laughs).

Interviewer: Can’t Get It Out Of My Head, that’s the only song that features acoustic guitar. Was that intentional? You kind of wanted the acoustic guitar?

Slash: Yeah, it’s acoustic guitar driven (laughs).

Duff (in the background): Can’t Get It Out Of My Head?

Slash: Yeah.

Duff: Is it?

Slash: Yeah. Remember we recorded it with acoustic? (laughs)

Matt: When we recorded the song, we recorded it with acoustic.

Slash: We tried to put something on there that was a little bit indicative of the original, you know, because other than that it’s got all these heavy guitars later over the top.

Interviewer: Very cool.

Slash: That’s, I don’t know (?)

Matt: It’s from a band called Electric Light Orchestra.

Interviewer: Oh, okay.

Matt: It’s a cover.

Interviewer: Oh, really?

Matt: Yes sir.

Interviewer: I wasn’t aware. And then, Get Out Of The Door, as well as the majority of the album, Slash seems to use a lot of the wah pedal? And then, what’s that pedal that it’s, like, the Peter Frampton pedal?

Slash: It’s not a pedal. It’s… well, I mean, you turn it on with your foot, but it’s a voice box and it really, sort of – it’s a tube that comes up out of this little mini driver that your amp drives. The sound comes up through this little mini driver through a tube into your mouth and out through a microphone.

Interviewer: Wow.

Slash: It’s great for loosening your caps on your teeth (laughs).

(Laughter – unintelligible cross talk)

Duff: You use voice box? Just joking.

(Laughter)

Interviewer: Dude, your guitar is talking. Do you break that out at the live show then, or is that…

Slash: Do I break it out a lot?

Interviewer: Yeah, at the live shows.

Slash: Um, when I can.

Duff: When we let him.

Interviewer: Very nice, all right.

Matt: He used that on… Get Out Of The Door.

Slash: That’s what he’s talking about.

Matt: Yeah.

(Laughter – pause)

Interviewer: This is awesome. I feel like we’re all at the same intellect right now. That’s great. Okay. So I think we’re gonna check out another tune, yeah?

Slash: That’s better.

Interviewer: (Laughs)

Duff: Is there a song yet?

Slash: I just think it’s gonna be some show tonight. (?)

Interviewer: I don’t think we’re allowed to play new material.

Duff: What?

Matt: Why not?

Interviewer: I talked to your label guys. I don’t think we’re allowed to. Is there anything you guys want to hear out of the last album?

Slash: We heard that one already.

Someone in the background: Superhuman!

Slash: Okay, play Superhuman.

Interviewer: Superhuman (?) It’s good?

Slash: We’re playing it tonight anyway, so…

Interviewer: Alright. I think we’re good. Live from 228 Yonge, it’s Superhuman, Velvet Revolver.

[Superhuman is played]

Interviewer: 101.2 The Edge, Superhuman from Velvet Revolver. The band joins me live right now at 228 Yonge and just sampling some guitars there in the background, hanging out here. How’s everybody in the crowd doing?

[Crowd cheering]

Interviewer: Excellent, excellent. All right. Well, thank you guys so much for stopping by. I know it’s kind of a rush (?) and you guys literally got into town this morning. I just got one question. I’m just gonna put it out there. It’s gonna be awkward, I guess it’s most obvious. I’ll start with you, Slash. Have you played Guitar Hero? And if so, what was your score on Sweet Child O’ Mine? And can you complete Free Bird on Expert?

Slash: No.

(Laughter)

Interviewer: Duff?

Duff: Um, my wife and my girls are addicted to that.

Interviewer: Yeah?

Duff: But I haven’t ventured-

Slash: I can’t get past of the fucking Megadeth song on Expert.

(Laughter)

Interviewer: And Matt?

Slash: It’s weird, because if you’re a guitar player it’s even harder to play than if you’re not.

Interviewer: I’ve heard – well, Matt do you play, because the guys that I know that are extremely good at it are actually drummers. So I don’t know how-

Matt: I’ll give it a shot. Let’s get one of the bus. Rick…

(Laughter)

Slash: We’ve got a couple of songs on the new one.

Interviewer: What’s that?

Slash: We have two Velvet songs on the new one, Guitar Hero 3.

Interviewer: Oh yeah?

Slash: Yeah.

Interviewer: Which ones?

Slash: Um, I’m not sure. I think they got Quick Machine and either Let It Roll or Get Out Of The Door, I think.

Interviewer: Nice. Are you guys in the video games or anything when you travel on the bus or the plane?

Slash: Porn movies.

Duff: We watch movies.

Interviewer: You watch movies, yeah?

Slash: That’s a joke.

Interviewer: What’s in the DVD player right now? Anything good?

Slash: What?

Duff: What did you watch last night?

Matt: Last night we watched an old documentary-

Slash: We watched-

Matt: The old documentary with Muhammad Ali-

Slash: It wasn’t a documentary. It was the Mike Douglas Show in 1972.

Matt: Mike Douglas Show. Yeah. And Sly Stone.

Slash: And Sly Stone, and Muhammad Ali, and some politician, and the singer from Fiddler on the Roof.

Duff: Who was the politician? Was it (?)

Slash: No, it’s Hays.

Matt: He’s interesting.

Duff: Yeah. And then-

Slash: And then we watched Rock and Roll Circus with the Stones and the Who. And then we watched Déjà Vu, Denzel Washington.

Matt: Has anyone ever seen Rock and Roll Circus with the Rolling Stones?

[Crowd cheering]

Matt: You should rent that, that’s pretty awesome.

Interviewer: Very cool. Actually, real quick. Do you know what time you guys are going on stage tonight per chance?
Slash: 10 p.m.

Interviewer: 10 p.m.? All right, live at the Cool Haus tonight, sold-out show. We look forward to seeing you guys when you return after the album is out, and hopefully back with Alice In Chains. Guys, thank you so much for stopping by and taking-

Slash: We’re gonna play now.

[Applause]

Duff: Thanks for having us.

Matt: Always good to be in Toronto.

Slash: Are you gonna play anything else?

Interviewer: I’ll play – we can play whatever you guys want.

Slash: Play… Sucker… What’s it called? Sucker Train Blues?

Duff: Oh yeah, yeah.

Interviewer: Okay. Good.

Slash: Outro song.

(Laughter)

Slash: So we can the fuck out of here.

Interviewer: All right. We’re good?

(Inaudible talk in the background)

Interviewer: Your manager turned my mic off. I think that means “Shut up and let them leave.” All right. Velvet Revolver live tonight at 10 o’clock. Right now 101.2 The Edge.

Finished transcribing this.