2012.02.24 - KOMP 92.3 - Interview with Matt

Excerpts from Metal Hammer:
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Former Guns N’ Roses and current Velvet Revolver drummer Matt Sorum has spoken on the future of both bands and Guns N’ Roses’ Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction.

That Matt Sorum chap has commented on Guns N’ Roses’ Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction, as well as the future of Velvet Revolver, who recently reunited for a special gig with original singer Scott Weiland.

“People keep asking me about the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, and I’m really like the last guy to ask,” he told Komp 92.3 Radio in Las Vegas. “I was the guy that joined Guns N’ Roses and I was lucky to get the gig. And I was sort of there to be of service to the rest of the band. And the band is Axl Rose, Slash, Duff McKagan and Izzy Stradlin. Yeah, was I in the band? Sure. But when it comes down to making the decisions, I was the last guy to hear about it. So when people ask me [about Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame], I go, ‘To be honest with you, I really don’t know what’s gonna happen.’ I just don’t know. Will I be there and be available for whatever happens? Yeah.

“And at the same time, I would like to see [original Guns N' Roses drummer] Steven Adler up there. . . We are getting along now, which is great, because there was a lot of years where, I think — and I’ve said this in the press before — I was sort of like the guy who was having sex with his ex-girlfriend, you know what I mean?! It’s like, you don’t like the guy at all if you don’t know him, but it still pisses you off. It’s like, ‘He’s with my old lady’ kind of thing. But I think once he got to know me, he realized that I wasn’t there to [screw] him over or whatever, and if it wouldn’t have been me, it would have been some other guy. It’s like he was out of the band. I think people maybe that are GN’R fans of the original lineup have to kind of look at it that way.

“Guns N’ Roses would have either imploded completely after Steven, or someone would have come and replaced him. There was about three or four guys they tried out before me, and luckily, I was the guy that sort of stepped into that position. After a lot of years and a lot of healing for Steven, he was able to accept the fact that that was the situation. And I have always supported him in the fact that, I said in the press a few times, if Guns N’ Roses ever got back together, it would be cool if I played the ‘Use Your Illusion’ stuff and he played the ‘Appetite’ stuff, and if he was healthy enough to do that, I would support him on that. To me, it’s not about the money, ’cause if it does come down, which, I don’t wanna tell you what the offers have been, but I know they’re in the multi-, multi-million-dollar range. Yeah, if I was asked, what would I say? Probably yes. But Steven’s in line for that before I am.

“As far as GN’R and the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, me and him are gonna go there together; I said I’d meet him there. It’s part of our lives, it’s part of what we’ve done and what we accomplished. And he was there for the beginning and I was the guy that came in and, basically, went out there and helped send the GN’R message to the rest of the world.”

Of Velvet Revolver status he adds; “”We haven’t closed the door on it, because it’s not a thing that we really wanna break up, but at the same time, we haven’t found the right guy. And to go back with Scott, it’s like a little bit dangerous good territory. I mean, I love the guy. The chemistry, as a band, is great onstage, but backstage it wasn’t great. I think, for me, I’m at a certain age now where it’s like I wanna be able to go out and play music and have a really good time doing it. If I make some money, that’s great, too. But the main thing is, I don’t really wanna deal with too much crap anymore. I think we’re all getting a little too old.. We’re not 20 anymore, so going out there and having to deal with a bunch of crap is not really where our headspace is at.”

https://web.archive.org/web/20120302112918/http://www.metalhammer.co.uk/news/matt-sorum-talks-guns-n-rosesvelvet-revolver/