1995.02.15 - Guitare Planète (France) - They Are Human Beings (Slash, Eric Dover)

Original text in French:
http://slashsnakepit.chez-alice.fr/biographie/interviews/cesontdesetreshumains.php

Translation:
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They are human beings

I’m sorry, but it's difficult not to ask: what's the current status of Guns N' Roses?

Slash: We're currently on hiatus, but we haven't broken up! Eric and I are heading back to the States shortly, we'll be there for a week before we fly to Australia, and I got confirmation yesterday that we'll be using those eight days to get Guns N' Roses back on track. Anyway, there was no way I was going to leave Snakepit in limbo after the album was released, and I made an arrangement with Axl Rose: I'll make myself available when I can for rehearsals, Snakepit will tour from April to August 1995, and then we'll all rejoin our respective bands to fulfill our commitments. We started Snakepit for fun, not because we were unemployed! Guns is conspicuous: every time we move a finger, the whole world holds its breath! With Snakepit, we can afford to be more spontaneous and still live our teenage dreams.

Do you regret that Guns has become a huge machine?

Slash: No, because I've put so much energy into it that I feel it's been well deserved. What I do regret are the direct consequences: you can't walk around without being jumped on, and it's impossible for us to act like "normal" people. The only moments I really enjoy are when I play live.

Exactly when and how did this desire to play occur to you?

Eric: My older sister and my mother were music lovers, so I grew up in a supportive environment, the house was full of songs, and by the age of eleven I knew that this was what I wanted to do. The classic pattern: you see an Alice Cooper poster and you think "Wow, that's great!

Slash: For me, as someone who was born in the music business, it came naturally. My mother makes clothes and my father designs album covers. Both of them worked for famous artists. I was constantly surrounded by musicians and without even asking myself about it, I got drawn into the whole thing. I had no hopes of being a star, I was just following my heart, and in my opinion, I would have failed if I had really tried to do the right thing.

Was the guitar the first instrument you had in your hand?

Slash: No, it was a piano. My mother urged me to take lessons, for reasons that escaped me at the time, and it didn't catch on. Can you see me as a pianist? Well, why not? I guess my mother wanted to complete my education. She was always like that, she systematically registered me in the best schools. Without much success!

Eric: I did. My folks broke up and made up a few times, and when I was ten, they broke up for good and a couple of hippie friends moved in with us to share the rent with my mom. The guy didn't have a job, he would sit in the corner and smoke during the day, and he taught me "Stairway To Heaven." He's the one who got me into it.

If you were not professional musicians, what would you have been doing? Would you have been selling cars?

Slash: I don't think so. In my family, there's only artists. My brother is a graphic designer and if I hadn't fallen in love with music, I would have probably followed his path. When I'm on the phone, I'm always scribbling on pieces of paper - some of those scribbles turned into logos for Guns or Snakepit! What about you?

Eric: I was a drifter and I would try everything. I started with drawing and painting, without reaching a sufficient level to consider a career in it. At one point, I almost gave up on music. Making an album is easy enough, but it's not an end in itself. I've been on the edge a few times: I had no job, no roof over my head, and I was crashing on a couch at a friend's house. You have to go through that to find the strength to continue. Since then, I can't see myself doing anything else.

Slash: I agree. I've been there, too. I've slept on the couch of every girl that would have me. I liked their beds better, though!

Speaking of which, yesterday, the date of the album release party, was Valentine's Day. I don't know if it has the same meaning in the US, but here it's the lovers' day. What kind of man are you? Romantic or macho?

Slash: I'm a very romantic and emotional person; that's why Renee (Suran Hudson, his wife) has come to join me here in Paris. It's glamorous, there were gifts... and sex!!!

Eric: We were both raised by women, and they taught us from a young age to respect them! So, as a rule, I am emotional - and faithful!

Slash: I was faithful once for two years. Monogamy was never my thing! Well, that was true before, because I'm married now.

You can admit it, she doesn't understand French!

Slash: Well, she does! And, in this case, I'm not bullshitting. I'm serious because I've found the only girl on this earth who can hold my attention. It wasn't easy, but she adapted to my pace and my profession.

She's not in the industry?

Slash: No, she has nothing to do with music. But she lives a bohemian lifestyle like me.

What is she doing?

Slash: Shopping. I think...

As a job, I meant!

Slash: Ah, I thought you were being intrusive like that! She's a model and is thinking of getting into the movie business.

Do you like guns?

Slash: No, although I have some at home, just in case. I love looking at them, taking them apart, eventually shooting them, but since they are dangerous, that's as far as it goes.

Really? Doesn't the t-shirt you're wearing say "The Revolver Club"?

Slash: Uh... (looking down to check) it was given to me! Actually, music is what I love the most.

And outside of that?

Slash: I have lots of toys, scale models and shit at home... I love animals, especially snakes - I have 300 of them!

It’s been said that you are fascinated by dinosaurs...

Slash: Yes, they' re all over my house! And I have tons of literature on the subject: scientific journals, treatises on paleontology, studies on the evolution of species, books explaining why dinosaurs disappeared or whether their blood was hot or cold... I developed my own theories by putting all this information together. I was caught up in that when I was a kid. You discover everything the world has to offer at that time, and it's up to you to decide what you like and what you don't.

You can change as you get older: I got rid of my prehistoric plastic monsters a long time ago!

Slash: I haven't, although I'm approaching 30.

Eric: You're just a retarded teenager!

Slash: Look who's talking!

Eric: It's true, I have a few stupid hobbies, like CB. Besides that, I'm really into scientific extrapolations like stuff about time and space.

Are you interested in UFO’s?

Eric: Absolutely!

Slash: Eric is the only person on this planet who has realized that I’m an alien!

What do you know about this story of an interstellar ship crash that the US government tried to cover up?

Eric: I'll tell you a story. Last year, around February-March, I went from Alabama to California in a car, and I made a detour to Roswell, the place where, in 1945, a farmer discovered the remains of an aircraft of unknown origin and the bodies of its passengers, and then the army arrived on the scene and sealed off the area. That's when my engine blew up, and I spent a week there while my car was being repaired! I have a lot of books on the subject, including some on the government conspiracy theory that are very hard to find and that say not to pay for them by credit card, so that the secret service doesn't get on your back. Whether I believe it or not is another matter, but it does intrigue me.

Slash: Speaking of silly stuff, when I'm at home, whether I'm talking on the phone or writing a song, I always have TV cooking shows on in the background.

And do you cook?

Slash: No. But I know everything there is to know about cooking: techniques, names of cookware, how to use it...

What's the point?

Slash: Let's just say I don't have the patience to cook - I only have the patience to sit in bed for hours watching these programs. I have even subscribed to a cable channel that plays them 24 hours a day! Since I don't sleep well, I wake up in the middle of the night, light up a cigarette, and catch the show while Renee is asleep. I guess with this knowledge I'll start cooking the day I'm too decrepit to get on stage.

When do you think that will be?

Slash: Not anytime soon, I hope!

Don't you ever watch movies?

Slash: I do sometimes, but I wait until they are released on video. I hate going to the movies: people are too cramped and I can't stand it. It's been a while since Renee asked me to go to the movies with her!

Eric: Plus, you can't smoke!

Have you seen the four movies Guns are featured on the soundtrack of - "The Dead Pool", "Days Of Thunder", "Terminator 2" and "Interview With A Vampire"?

Slash: Well, we're supposed to go through the rough cuts before we give our approval to make sure it's not a dud - as long as it's a big production and we're contributing significantly. Because there's a lot of stuff that we're just on. For "Days Of Thunder", I didn't know about it. Renee told me about it, and yeah, you can hear Guns N' Roses on the radio in the background. Oh, I forgot... I have a huge amount of porn, but I rarely watch it - I enjoy collecting it.

Is it standard porn or is it off-limits?

Slash: Standard. I have some hardcore stuff, but not snuff.

Eric: Yuck! I prefer weird documentaries.

Like "Faces Of Death"?

Eric: No, it's too violent - it perverts my idea of existence. I'd rather watch reports about rednecks in Virginia playing banjo in the woods, for example. It's hilarious.

Slash: Eric is a strange guy. He sees humor where there is clearly none!

Eric: I also have an LP that was written by a bunch of mental cases. Don't think I'm laughing at them, but there's something funny about them, and it's touching to know that they put their hearts into it and it's not too bad.

How many records do you own?

Slash: A lot. Maybe 800.

Vinyl records included?

Slash: No, only CD's. My vinyl records, as well as my parents' records, are safely stored away. They alone would take up the walls of a large room.

Eric: I think I have about as many as he does, but I've misplaced quite a few in the course of my many relocations.

What do you have in your record collection?

Slash: Everything from Tchaikovsky to Temple Of The Dog - classical, blues, hardcore, folk, rap... plus some Watt Disney movie and cartoon soundtracks.

Did you have the Jellyfish CD's?

Slash: No, I'd never heard of them before I met Eric.

Did you have the Guns CD's?

Eric: Yes, but I wasn't a big fan.

Slash: I'm overly cautious about that. You'll never see me picking randomly through the racks. I used to do that when I was young, and it cost me a lot of money; I was often disappointed and lost money by selling them to a reseller. Nowadays, I have to have someone listen to the album before I consider buying it. Also, for reasons you can imagine, I don't hang out in stores - I go directly to the record companies!

I don't know the date the magazine was released, but it is mentioned in the article that the interview was conducted on February 15.