Ex-GUNS N' ROSES Drummer MATT SORUM: 'Digitizing Music In MP3 Format Diminishes Its Soul'

February 5, 2018

In a brand new interview with Forbes magazine, former GUNS N' ROSES and VELVET REVOLVER drummer Matt Sorum was asked how he feels about streaming services such as Spotify and Apple Music. "At first, it came off a bit elitist to me," Sorum admitted, "but [then] [I] [started] to like the idea to get the general public the original WAV forms of the recording. I have Tidal and Spotify on my phone and I love it. [But remember], we spent a lot of time and energy in making a record, then [suddenly] it gets squashed into a digital MP3.

"There's something about connecting with the music by means of its original format; by holding the record in your hand, and watching it rotate until it played its last tune," he continued. "It's a spiritual connection, some might say. You can't connect with music like that today — you can't reach for its soul. Today, digitizing music in MP3 format, diminishes its soul. It's not the same sound."

Sorum went on to say that GUNS and VELVET REVOLVER "were a little behind" the technological curve, "watching bands like LINKIN PARK, who were digitally savy. It was a marketing component — you had to either jump on board and get with it, or be left behind as a bit of a dinosaur. [Post GUNS N' ROSES], in the early '90s, [we] still put out vinyl, cassettes, and then CDs came out. When things started to go online with VELVET REVOLVER, I had suggested the band get up to speed with what [was] happening in the new world."

Sorum, who replaced Steven Adler in GUNS N' ROSES, recorded the highly successful albums "Use Your Illusion I" and "Use Your Illusion II" (both 1991) and "The Spaghetti Incident" (1994). He also supported the group on the "Use Your Illusion" tour and can be heard on GUNS N' ROSES' "Live Era: '87-'93" (1999) and "Greatest Hits" (2004).

Sorum said back in April 2016 that he wasn't participating in GUNS N' ROSES' comeback shows because he wasn't asked to take part in the reunion.

Sorum has said in the past that a GUNS reunion tour should have included both him and Adler, with each playing the songs they recorded with the group. Sorum was inducted as a member of the band into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in April 2012.

Photo credit: Adopt The Arts / Alex Kluft

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