SLASH Speaks Out On AXL ROSE, New Project With Ex-GN'R Bandmates

Former GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Slash has spoken to MTV.com about the new project he has formed with ex-GN'R bandmates Duff McKagan, Izzy Stradlin and Matt Sorum and the as-yet-unnamed group's ongoing vocalist search.

Here are some of the more interesting quotes from the interview:

On how the new band came together:

"There's just a certain chemistry we have. None of us were planning on getting together. None of us knew it was going to happen. But when we get together, there's a certain kind of click we have."

"The five of us [Slash, McKagan, Sorum, plus BUCKCHERRY's Josh Todd and Keith Nelson] played [the Los Angeles benefit for the family of drummer Randy Castillo last spring] and it was just insane. It was just really powerful, and Steven Tyler got up with us, and it was just an amazing night. And so we all talked about it, the chemistry, and how that was the first time we had all played together, really played together, since GUNS broke up. And so we started writing songs."

On Izzy's position in the group:

"Izzy showed up, all of a sudden, and so we wrote a whole bunch of songs with Izzy. Izzy's sort of in and out. He's not what you would call a permanent fixture in this thing, but we've just been writing a lot of really great songs with him. And we just decided to go the full nine yards."

On the vocalist search:

"This is fucking poor man's 'American Idol'. I'll know it when I hear it. Right off the bat, I'll know. We're just trying to find a really great fucking rock and roll singer, and it's really hard to find anybody that you'd consider genuine, and it's also somebody who's got to fit in with us. It's not impossible, but it's not easy. It could be somebody known, or somebody unknown, who's just a star and doesn't know it."

"If we got a girl that sounded like Janis Joplin crossed with Joan Jett with a bit of Tina Turner, that would be rocking. That would be an unprecedented move, because no one would expect that. But just not that many girls have actually applied."

On whether they would perform any GUNS N' ROSES material live:

"There's some [old GUNS] material we would play, a couple of songs that are really indicative of the real hard rock side of what GUNS N' ROSES was. But it's in no way, shape or form a GUNS reunion, or supposed to be labeled as the original GUNS back together to rehash GUNS material. We've written up to 60 songs at this point, and we're not really concerned about old shit."

"I don't think I'd ever go near 'Welcome to the Jungle' or shit like that because it's too GUNS N' ROSES, signature material that I think is better left off to Axl to do."

On the GUNS N' ROSES tour kickoff in Vancouver that became a riot instead:

"Nothing surprises me. When he really has all his shit together, Axl is brilliant, so it'll be happening. It just takes him a while to get around to it. As far as showing up to gigs? That's all par for the course. We've all seen that movie. What better way to kick off a GUNS N' ROSES tour than to miss the first gig?"

Singers interested in audition for the group can send tapes to:

Slash
13636 Ventura Blvd., Suite 434
Sherman Oaks, CA 91423
USA

To read the whole interview, click here.