2024.05.23 - Rolling Stone France - Slash: (Not) Lonesome Blues
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2024.05.23 - Rolling Stone France - Slash: (Not) Lonesome Blues
From the June 2024 issue of the magazine, released on May 23.
Translation:
____________
Slash
(Not) Lonesome Blues
After a fifteen-year solo career, which has not prevented him from reuniting with Guns N' Roses, Slash is exploring new musical territories with his first blues album, featuring a number of prestigious guests.
By Mathieu David
Ray-Ban and top hat firmly pinned to his head, Slash, on the eve of his 60th birthday, releases his... very first blues album, Orgy of the Damned. An orgy of sounds and solos, featuring an ultra-high-end cast. "I had a blues cover band in the late 1990s," he explains. "Some of the musicians are actually on this album. It wasn't a very serious project. I wanted us to make a record, but I had other things on my mind at the time."
Far from being inactive, Slash set about making this record during a break between two Guns N' Roses tours: "I had this three-week break, so I thought it was the right time to record, since the Conspirators [musicians from his solo project, editor's note] were busy on their own." Using the songs he had covered at the time as a basis, as well as a handful of others, he went on to record Orgy of the Damned. It lasted three weeks.
A plethora of guests feature on this opus, which is as sincere as it is delightful, and on which he was able to bring together Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top), Chris Stapleton and even Brian Johnson (AC/DC). A winning team for a vibrant tribute to the greats, but also to those dear to the guitarist's heart. "I decided myself who would sing on what and called the guests involved, with the exception of 'Awful Dream', with Iggy Pop." The collaboration with the "iguana" came about differently: "Johnny [Griparic, bass] informed me that Iggy Pop wanted to do blues. I called him up and when I asked him what song he wanted to cover, he gave me a straight answer: Sam Hopkins," he recalls. We recorded it acoustically in just two takes. I'm particularly proud of it, because I know it was important to him."
For the cover of "Papa Was a Rolling Stone", the musician turned to soul-R'n'B singer Demi Lovato. "In the original version, the story is told by adult voices, which works for the retrospective aspect, but I wanted to cover it with someone young, to make the story even more poignant," continues the guitarist. "I thought of Demi for her falsetto range and soulful feel." Greatly emotional, Slash can't resist recalling his absent friends: "My biggest disappointment is not having Lemmy [Kilmister of Motôrhead, who died in 2015]. I had a few ideas and it would have worked perfectly," he laments.
However, he doesn't want to be seen as a blues guy: “I listen to a lot of contemporary blues artists who play it full-time and make serious albums," he continues. I don't want to step on their toes, as that would be intrusive and they might take it the wrong way! [Laughs]" Nevertheless, he's been listening to [the blues] since he was a child: "My father was a music fanatic and I was exposed to the Kinks, the Yardbirds, the Who and Moody Blues from a very early age, when I was still living in England," he recalls. I got into the Stones when we moved to the States, but it's all still very much rooted in the blues. My grandmother also made me listen to B.B. King, and when I started playing guitar, British blues influenced me enormously."
A hard rocker at heart, he was eager to cover the great standards of such artists, but "louder, faster and more chaotically". In fact, "Guns N' Roses is the perfect blend of all that, between my vision, Axl Rose's vision, with punk-rock and glam elements." If one doesn't think of the blues when listening to "Welcome to the Jungle", rock'n'roll "has its roots in it", and this prompted Slash to take up the guitar. "I'll never forget the moment I played those four notes, which formed a blues scale. It was as if the heavens opened up to me. It's still ingrained in the music I play, and yet I've never really done it with my bands."
COMPOSITION
While Orgy of the Damned is a tribute to the greats of the genre, the guitarist slipped in "Metal Chestnut", an instrumental of his making. "We were very busy with the arrangements, which we had to finish in time for me to go back on tour. Then [producer] Mike Clink asked me if I had an original track to hand, as if I was supposed to have one ready! I wrote the song in a hurry and showed it to the band the next day. It came out quite spontaneously."
- Transcript (French):
- Slash
(Not) Lonesome Blues
Fort d’une carrière solo de quinze ans, qui ne l’empêche pas d’avoir renoué avec Guns N' Roses, Slash se plaît à explorer de nouveaux territoires musicaux avec son premier album de blues, où l’on retrouve de nombreux invités prestigieux.
Par Mathieu David
Ray-Ban et haut-de-forme solidement vissé sur la tête, Slash, à l’aube de ses 60 ans, sort son... tout premier album de blues, Orgy of the Damned. Une orgie de sons et de solos, présentant un casting ultra-haut de gamme. "J’avais un groupe de reprises de blues à la fin des années 1990, explique-t-il. Certains des musiciens se retrouvent d’ailleurs dans cet album. Ce n’était pas un projet très sérieux. Je voulais que nous enregistrions, mais j’avais d’autres préoccupations à l’époque.”
Loin d’être inactif, Slash s’est donc attelé à la confection de ce disque lors d’une pause entre deux tournées avec Guns N’ Roses : “J’avais ce break de trois semaines, je me suis dit que c’était le moment d’enregistrer, vu que les Conspirators [musiciens de son projet solo, ndla] étaient occupés de leur côté.” Se basant ainsi sur les chansons qu’il reprenait à l’époque, ainsi que poignée d’autres, il se lance donc dans l’enregistrement d’Orgy of the Damned. Qui durera trois semaines.
Pléthore d’invités se retrouve sur cet opus aussi sincère que réjouissant, dans lequel il a pu réunir Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top), Chris Stapleton ou même Brian Johnson (AC/DC). Une équipe gagnante pour rendre un vibrant hommage aux plus grands, mais aussi à ceux qui sont chers au cœur du guitariste. “J’ai moi-même décidé qui chanterait sur quoi et appelé les invités concernés, à l’exception d”Awful Dream’, avec Iggy Pop.” La collaboration avec “l’iguane” s’est faite différemment: “Johnny [Griparic, basse] m’a informé qu’Iggy Pop voulait faire du blues. Je l’ai appelé et lorsque je lui ai demandé quel morceau il souhaitait reprendre, il m’a répondu Sam Hopkins du tac au tac, se souvient-il. Nous l’avons enregistré en acoustique en seulement deux prises. J’en suis particulièrement fier, parce que je sais que c’était important pour lui.”
Pour reprendre “Papa Was a Rolling Stone”, le musicien s’est dirigé vers la chanteuse soul-R’n’B, Demi Lovato. “Dans la version originale, l’histoire est racontée par des voix adultes, ce qui fonctionne pour le côté rétrospectif, mais je voulais la reprendre avec quelqu’un de jeune, pour rendre l’histoire encore plus poignante, reprend le guitariste. J’ai pensé à Demi pour son registre fal-setto et son feeling soul.” Grand sentimental, Slash ne peut s’empêcher de citer ses amis absents : “Ma plus grande déception est de ne pas avoir Lemmy [Kilmister de Motôrhead, décédé en 2015]. J’avais quelques idées et cela aurait fonctionné à merveille”, regrette-t-il.
Toutefois, le musicien ne souhaite pas pour autant être considéré comme un bluesman: “J’écoute pas mal d’artistes blues contemporains, qui en jouent à plein temps et qui font des albums sérieux, poursuit-il. Je ne veux pas marcher sur leurs plates-bandes, ce serait intrusif et ils pourraient mal le prendre! [Rires]” Pourtant il en écoute depuis sa tendre enfance : “Mon père était un mordu de musique et j’ai été exposé très tôt, lorsque je vivais encore en Angleterre, aux Kinks, aux Yardbirds, aux Who et à Moody Blues, se souvient-il. Je me suis mis aux Stones quand nous avons déménagé aux États-Unis, mais tout cela reste très ancré dans le blues. Ma grand-mère m’a aussi fait écouter B.B. King et lorsque j’ai commencé la guitare, le blues britannique m’a énormément influencé.”
Hard-rockeur dans l’âme, il était avide de reprendre les grands standards de tels artistes, mais “plus fort, plus rapidement et de manière plus chaotique". De fait, “Guns N’ Roses est le parfait mélange de tout cela, entre ma vision, celle d’Axl Rose, avec des éléments punk-rock et glam.” Si on ne pense pas au blues à l’écoute de “Welcome to the Jungle”, le rock’n’roll “y trouve ses racines” et cela a poussé Slash à se mettre à la guitare. “Je n’oublierai jamais le moment où j’ai joué ces quatre notes, qui formaient une gamme blues. C’est comme si le ciel s’ouvrait à moi. Cela reste ancré dans la musique que je joue, et pourtant, je n’en ai jamais vraiment fait au sein de mes groupes.”
A SAVOIR
COMPOSITION
Si Orgy of the Damned est un hommage aux grandes figures du genre, le guitariste y a glissé “Metal Chestnut”, un instrumental de son cru. “Nous avions la tête dans les arrangements, que nous devions finir à temps avant que je reparte en tournée. C’est alors que Mike Clink [producteur] me demande si j’ai une compo originale sous la main, comme si j’étais censé en avoir une de prête! J’ai écrit ce morceau en vitesse et je l’ai appris au groupe le lendemain. C’est sorti de manière assez spontanée.”
Translation:
____________
Slash
(Not) Lonesome Blues
After a fifteen-year solo career, which has not prevented him from reuniting with Guns N' Roses, Slash is exploring new musical territories with his first blues album, featuring a number of prestigious guests.
By Mathieu David
Ray-Ban and top hat firmly pinned to his head, Slash, on the eve of his 60th birthday, releases his... very first blues album, Orgy of the Damned. An orgy of sounds and solos, featuring an ultra-high-end cast. "I had a blues cover band in the late 1990s," he explains. "Some of the musicians are actually on this album. It wasn't a very serious project. I wanted us to make a record, but I had other things on my mind at the time."
Far from being inactive, Slash set about making this record during a break between two Guns N' Roses tours: "I had this three-week break, so I thought it was the right time to record, since the Conspirators [musicians from his solo project, editor's note] were busy on their own." Using the songs he had covered at the time as a basis, as well as a handful of others, he went on to record Orgy of the Damned. It lasted three weeks.
A plethora of guests feature on this opus, which is as sincere as it is delightful, and on which he was able to bring together Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top), Chris Stapleton and even Brian Johnson (AC/DC). A winning team for a vibrant tribute to the greats, but also to those dear to the guitarist's heart. "I decided myself who would sing on what and called the guests involved, with the exception of 'Awful Dream', with Iggy Pop." The collaboration with the "iguana" came about differently: "Johnny [Griparic, bass] informed me that Iggy Pop wanted to do blues. I called him up and when I asked him what song he wanted to cover, he gave me a straight answer: Sam Hopkins," he recalls. We recorded it acoustically in just two takes. I'm particularly proud of it, because I know it was important to him."
For the cover of "Papa Was a Rolling Stone", the musician turned to soul-R'n'B singer Demi Lovato. "In the original version, the story is told by adult voices, which works for the retrospective aspect, but I wanted to cover it with someone young, to make the story even more poignant," continues the guitarist. "I thought of Demi for her falsetto range and soulful feel." Greatly emotional, Slash can't resist recalling his absent friends: "My biggest disappointment is not having Lemmy [Kilmister of Motôrhead, who died in 2015]. I had a few ideas and it would have worked perfectly," he laments.
However, he doesn't want to be seen as a blues guy: “I listen to a lot of contemporary blues artists who play it full-time and make serious albums," he continues. I don't want to step on their toes, as that would be intrusive and they might take it the wrong way! [Laughs]" Nevertheless, he's been listening to [the blues] since he was a child: "My father was a music fanatic and I was exposed to the Kinks, the Yardbirds, the Who and Moody Blues from a very early age, when I was still living in England," he recalls. I got into the Stones when we moved to the States, but it's all still very much rooted in the blues. My grandmother also made me listen to B.B. King, and when I started playing guitar, British blues influenced me enormously."
A hard rocker at heart, he was eager to cover the great standards of such artists, but "louder, faster and more chaotically". In fact, "Guns N' Roses is the perfect blend of all that, between my vision, Axl Rose's vision, with punk-rock and glam elements." If one doesn't think of the blues when listening to "Welcome to the Jungle", rock'n'roll "has its roots in it", and this prompted Slash to take up the guitar. "I'll never forget the moment I played those four notes, which formed a blues scale. It was as if the heavens opened up to me. It's still ingrained in the music I play, and yet I've never really done it with my bands."
COMPOSITION
While Orgy of the Damned is a tribute to the greats of the genre, the guitarist slipped in "Metal Chestnut", an instrumental of his making. "We were very busy with the arrangements, which we had to finish in time for me to go back on tour. Then [producer] Mike Clink asked me if I had an original track to hand, as if I was supposed to have one ready! I wrote the song in a hurry and showed it to the band the next day. It came out quite spontaneously."
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