GUNS N' ROSES Guitarist RICHARD FORTUS 'Gets Along Really Well' With AXL ROSE

GUNS N' ROSES and THE DEAD DAISIES guitarist Richard Fortus was recently interviewed by the Social lifestyle magazine. You can now listen to the chat in the YouTube clip below. A couple of excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On how he felt when he was first asked to join GUNS N' ROSES in 2001:

"To be honest with you, it sort of wasn't my thing. I wasn't really… I wasn't into metal as a kid, I was sort of a punk rock kid, and all the bands that I was in were all very different; they weren't metal. So when I first got that call, I thought it was unusual, but it sort of made sense because of the people that were in that band at the time: Robin from NINE INCH NAILS, Tommy from THE REPLACEMENTS, Brain from PRIMUS. Those were all guys that I knew and [from] the same type of genre that I was in, so it sort of made sense. And Axl [Rose, GUNS N' ROSES singer] sort of wanted that — he wanted a diverse type of thing. He didn't want guys that were just, you know, L.A. metal guys. 'Cause, you know, GN'R always had some roots in punk rock as well."

On his relationship with Axl Rose:

"We get along really well. You know, I guess we come from a very similar place as far as our influences and definitely relate on that level. And I think, essentially, with Axl, ultimately, that's all that really matters to him — is the music. So if we relate on that point, then everything else sort of falls into place."

On whether he thought he would stay in GUNS N' ROSES for as long as he has:

"I never really thought about it. And I've always done other things as well. Because I have to work; I just have to do stuff. Otherwise, I get really depressed, if I'm not working. So I've always done other things. And it always keeps it sort of fresh — when you can step outside of something and then come back to it. You have a new sense of appreciation for it, or a new perspective to add to it."

Fortus joined GUNS N' ROSES in 2001 and became the band's longest-serving post-Slash guitarist.

Fortus is currently promoting the musical collective supergroup THE DEAD DAISIES' new album, "Revolución".

GUNS N' ROSES recently parted ways with guitarists DJ Ashba and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal.

The last GUNS N' ROSES album, "Chinese Democracy", came out in 2008 and ended a 17-year absence of new material.

The most recent lineup of GUNS N' ROSES toured intermittently since 2006 and played its second Las Vegas residency last year.