Here Today... Gone To Hell!

MATT SORUM: VELVET REVOLVER Has Album's Worth Of Music With COREY TAYLOR Ready To Be Released - July 25, 2011

Dani Buarque of the "Lokaos Rock Show" (web site) conducted an interview with drummer Matt Sorum (VELVET REVOLVER, GUNS N' ROSES, THE CULT) when he performed with the Brazilian rock band KIARA ROCKS on July 13 at naMATAcaf? in S?o Paulo, Brazil. You can now watch the chat below.

When asked if guitarist Slash's current solo career and intensive tour schedule is the primary reason VELVET REVOLVER has been out on hold, Sorum said, "Slash has been on tour almost two years now [but] it's not the reason [VELVET REVOLVER is inactive]. I think the reason is that is hasn't fallen into place yet. After [we parted ways with singer] Scott Weiland [in 2008]? We had such a great first record, especially. The second album is still a good album, but? It's hard to replace Scott for that particular band, I think. It's a bit of a gray era.

"VELVET REVOLVER, we really felt that we were? Especially Slash, Duff [McKagan, bass] and myself, we were the three main guys that started VELVET. 'Cause Scott came in much later. So to replace Scott, we felt, could be possible. And we tried a couple of guys and it didn't work out. [But] I don't wanna say it's over. It's just on a hiatus. We'll make music again together at some point."

Sorum was also asked if there was any truth to the rumors that former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach auditioned for VELVET REVOLVER. "Sebastian tried out at the very beginning," Matt said. "Sebastian came in and sang six songs before we got Scott. But we knew at that time?.

"It was funny, because when we did VELVET REVOLVER, we had our relationships with certain singers, but we wanted to make a modern rock album, and we had to figure out a way to make that work. We didn't wanna be like GUNS N' ROSES. We knew we had that in us anyway, especially the Slash and Duff sound was the initial sound of [GN'R's classic debut album] 'Appetite For Destruction', the way they played together and everything. Part of that chemistry was there, and when we added Scott, it brought it into a more modern rock element. He came more from grunge ? the Seattle [sound like] SOUNDGARDEN, PEARL JAM and bands like that. So it took it sort of forward. We became more of a modern rock band and we were on modern rock radio. GUNS N' ROSES wasn't even being played on those radio stations in America.

"When we asked Corey Taylor [SLIPKNOT, STONE SOUR] to join, that was my idea. I said, 'Why don't we get Corey Taylor from SLIPKNOT?' And he's a great guy, number one ? he's an absolute sweetheart ? and he rocks. [But] Slash just didn't see it like the rest of us did. We liked it. We had ten songs. [We] could put the album out tomorrow. It's done. I said, 'Let's go.' But Slash wasn't feeling it. If we're not all feeling it together, we can't do it."

While the team-up of Corey Taylor with VELVET REVOLVER never officially took off, VELVET guitarist Slash did confirm that the band got together with Taylor to jam and even record some new material. The Pulse Of Radio asked Taylor what they worked on at those sessions. "We did a bunch of stuff, you know," he said. "We did a bunch of stuff from the first album, we did a bunch of stuff that we had been kind of demoing back and forth and whatnot, seeing if it would work, you know, just like that, and it was a lot of fun, man. You know, we ended up writing a bunch of stuff as well and just kind of seeing what would happen in that creative sense, you know."

Slash admitted in a recent interview that he was the main reason why Taylor didn't get the frontman job, explaining, "It just didn't seem to fit right to me. And he's great, and I love Corey, but it didn't seem like the answer to the VELVET REVOLVER problem."

Taylor told a Canadian radio station after hearing of Slash's comments, "I guess it just wasn't working for him, which . . . He's Slash and he's entitled to have that, and I'm not gonna argue with him. But it was cool to just be able to get together and jam with those guys and I made some really cool friends."

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=161104

I just produced an interview with Corey Taylor that will air in a few weeks.  I made sure to get the lowdown on the VR situation and he said that he is not going to be in VR but he and Duff will probably do something together.  He said something along the lines that  you might hear some mystery band on the radio and it will be Corey and Duff.  He said this on camera in front of our studio audience so  it's not top secret or anything just thought some of you would want to know.

Very cool, thanks.  It doesn't surprise me after all of the praise Duff has given Corey lately.  I wonder if Matt will join them as well.

Please post the interview when it becomes available, I'd really like to see it. :)

niice. You must have a cool job Bodhi! :beer:

Matt says in the beginning of the interview that they've stopped looking for a singer.


It's a shame we'll probably never hear this album.

What I got from this interview is that Duff and Matt wanted Corey, but Slash didn't.Slash is the leader of the band, so ultimately he's the one that's going to decide on that matter and the other guys apparently can't do anything.

And here I am still dreaming the impossible: Bach!  :'(

Having Corey as the new singer would've been GREAT! But I guess Slash is looking for a "softer" singer. Corey must be too manly for him... Man, I would love to hear those tracks

I think I know where you're going with this, but it still made me laugh.  Imagine them explaining to Corey why he didn't get the job. :hihi:

Corey is more of the Scott Weiland type imo

Slash wants a screamer.

Yep, something in the Axl vein.

''' But Slash wasn't feeling it '''

Matt Sorum

 :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

...slash wants to milk the 'slash' brand name a little longer so 'slash' is conveniently not keen.

That said, if Corey was really objectively incredible, then Slash would go for it methinks.

I just reckon at the time Matt and Duff, with Corey, were seeing the glass as half full and Slash saw it half empty. But it was still a half glass!

Slash is Slash, thats HIM and not a band. so goin out making music, playing live is just a normal thing, huh?
by the time it also might be some brand name but milking himself? not goin to work :hihi:

What I wanna know is why everyone always forgets about Dave when they're talking about the singer search. He's a member of the band, too, last I heard.

hmm, maybe because I have more of say in Velvet Revolver than he does.   :hihi:

If Velvet Revolver were really a priority, they would have gone with Corey Taylor.   But Slash would rather do his solo thing, because he can get a bigger percentage...and be the star.  Also seemed like a lot of fans were still not sold on Corey...it would have been viewed as another side project for him, and he could've bailed at any time, for something else.   Would still be cool to hear a Duff/Corey sideproject like Bodhi mentioned, something a little more under the radar, but still authentic. 

Just because Corey is the bigger star doesn't mean he was necessarily the right man for the job.
I think if the songs were there, Slash would have been on board. Why else would they have auditioned him in the first place?

Didn't know Myles Kennedy and the rest of the band were working for free! Also, I'm sure having Kid Rock, Ozzy Osbourne sing on your record did not exactly come cheap ::)

Good point.

Also, if Slash had such a problem sharing the spotlight, he probably wouldn't have Iggy, Lemmy, Ozzy, Cornell, Stockdale, Shadows, Fergie, Levine, Kid Rock etc on his solo album.
If VR recruited Corey, he might rival Slash in terms of star power, but it would still be viewed as Slash's band.
I don't get the sense that sharing the spotlight would be a determining factor in the search for a singer at all. They just want the right guy.

Slash wants a singer for VR who suits his style of playing. He is not toning down his playing for another singer like he was forced to do with Weiland. He is not making the same fatal career move again. He is not settling on a singer again. There will be no VR until that guy magically appears, if ever.

i dont think its all sharing the spotlight, its just creative control. And I don't think you could argue that Slash has less 'control' Solo than with VR, even if he is using those big names. He may not have 100% control but nobody is telling him what to play on guitar and thats what really matters to him. He's said things to this effect in interviews.

I just think the right guy threshold has gotten alot higher as Slash has been doing successful solo-y. so I agree if VR found the absolute perfect dude 100%, then he'd go back . But if its like "take a bit of a risk with Corey in VR" vs "keep being succesful solo-y" -  its not worth it for him, whereas it would be for the rest of the band.

Limulus your post made 0% sense to me. It made so little sense that I actually am lolling at it and imagining you high or something. But I don't know what you look like so for some reason I'm just picturing Steven Adler high writing that..  ;D
But if you're trying to say that hes not milking aspects of his brand, your wrong IMHO. He is milking the IMAGE of himself ie the fact that RIGHT NOW in 2011, he is big from Guitar Hero and his cartoonish image and his first album and its red logo and all that shit. He has built up this big worldwide brand by touring on the back of his first album that, if he doesn't milk now, will go to waste!

After looking into more Corey Taylor stuff the dude is really a VERY versatile singer.  Slipknot is only a fraction of what the guy has done.  I've seen him do great acoustic work, piano ballads, rockers and metal songs.  He is a way more versatile singer than Myles or Scott ever will be.  That is not a shot at them,  but it is true.  There are songs Corey Taylor sings that you would never guess were him because his voice sounds completely different than other songs he has done, that is the type of front man I want in VR.  

He also has no ego, is a laid back dude, and fronted one of the most successful rock/metal bands of the last decade.  Slipknot is way bigger than anything Slash or Duff have done post 1994.  I dont know where else you were going to find a guy with that much on his resume who was still starstrucked to be jamming with Slash and Duff and was completely grateful for the opportunity.  Also from a business perspective, the Corey/VR potential marriage garnered a ton of press.  

Maybe Phineas and Ferb's schedule will free up and we can get VR back on track!!


Here is an example of Corey's versatility.  I just feel like he could have fit any style VR wanted to go in.  Once again this just shows Slipknot is a small portion of what Corey does.  One of the best rock songs in recent years in my opinion>>>>

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CP0KRDRuZiM

If this were Facebook, I'd be liking the fuck out of this post. Zzyzx Rd. is an amazing song, and shows that Corey is more than just the angry, shouty guy that people seem to think he is. Out of all the rock singers to come into prominence in the last 15 years, I'm pretty sure Corey is the most versatile and chameleon-like of them all. The only thing that might have made him a little out of place in Velvet Revolver is that he often works the stage at more of a leisurely pace than than the rest of the band that run around at full throttle for the entire show. But then, so does Myles Kennedy, and he doesn't seem out of place playing with Slash.

Sure, it goes without saying that has more control with the solo album than he would with VR. I think Scott was a pretty versatile singer, but Slash doesn't have to worry about one guys limitations, if any if he has the choice of picking a different singer for different songs. Pretty cool luxury to have. I think it worked out great. I'm happy he did the solo album because Libertad sounded more cohesive than Contraband to my ears, but a bit uninspired.

The whole "milking" thing sounds negative, which maybe isn't how you intended it to come off as, but I see it as him having fun doing what he wants to do. He's touring with ego less people who seem to genuinely be enjoying playing together, whereas VR wasn't that band the past couple years. Why would he rush back into another potentially bad situation when he's enjoying what he is doing now? Especially when it's been successful?

He's out there touring and recording/releasing records. He's as active as he's ever been since GNR. People like to get their panties in a bunch when he does a commercial, but he's out there making music, which is all that matters to me.

I think Corey Taylor is a talented guy, but clearly something didn't work there. Maybe they didn't give him enough time, who knows. I for one think he has a good voice, but not impressed with the lyrics I've heard.

eh just cos Corey does slow songs doesn't mean he is the right guy for VR. He's not bad considering the sad state of music we are in... but still he is more on the bland late 90s--present side than on earlier 90s and before side. As for as legendary frontman goes

Scott is WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY above this dude's league. Please

Scott has IT

I wouldn't know Corey Taylor if he walked up to me with a name tag.

Probably cuz he was always wearing a mask in Slipknot lol

I agree.  Corey may be technically better than current-Scott, but honestly, what are these hit songs Corey has done???...cuz I don't know or care about any of them lol  Honestly, there is probably one I like from the first Slipknot album, but I don't even know what it's called, don't own the album, not my style.   Corey is just too metal and I think STP has more of a diverse sound.   I always thought Slipknot was very overrated in the late 90s (I mean 9 people on stage in masks for a rock band?...I was listening to Wu Tang instead...and STP) I was also never into that System of a Down, Mudvayne scene.)  I also think Stone Sour's music sounds pretty bland and soulless for the most part.  Really corny besides a few good vocal parts.  Nowhere near the depth of STP.  I know a bunch of ppl are gonna get pissed and call me ignorant and say I'm wrong, but this is my opinion as a music fan.

its amazing how underrated STP are... their catalog of hits is massive.

Scott is one of the all time great onstage performing frontmen.. u can't stop watching him.

I tell this story all the time how i went to see VR to see Slash and Duff and ended up watching Scott entire concert.. Slash became a backdrop


Not impressed from what ive seen of Corey onstage... he has myles kennedy type stage presence when notwearing a costume.

If u aren't Kiss, i hate gimmicks

It is not ignorant, just a different opinion. : ok:

Also no offense to some on the board, but it seems that not many of you are open to music by bands who formed after 1992.   I always thought bands like Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden were pretty boring.  Not BAD bands , just not bands I want to invest a lot of time in. Very predictable radio rock for the most part.   I like songs by them but have no desire to really follow them and I can't even name all the names of people in the band, which is rare for me.  STP and Nirvana I thought were the best of that bunch, and the best 2 bands from to come out of that  early 90's scene.  But even they were never a pimple on the ass of Guns N Roses or Metallica.  Hell I thought late 90's Marilyn Manson was a hell of a lot more interesting than anything that came out in the early 90's.  It seems no one on this board talks about the more current/relevant bands.  With so many great young hard rock bands out there today, I don't really know why anyone would still talk about those early 90's bands.

oh and D, about you not recognizing Corey Taylor if he walked up to you, the exact same thing can be said for Scott Weiland.  If you say Scott Weiland to someone you usually have to include "hes the singer of STP."

maybe not overseas but here in the U.S. Scott would certainly be recognized on the streets.

by fans of STP sure, not the average person.

the average person wouldn't recognize Slash & Axl if they were together lol

anyone in the U.S. who likes popular music knows who Scott is

If the common person recognize a person or not doesn't necessarily have to have anything to say about the persons skills.....There probably is a shitload of talented singers out there we haven't heard of.

The stuff recorded with Corey Taylor would sure be interesting to hear. Corey Taylor is a great vocalist and a great frontman, and he is also in my opinion "real". He also got the personal (drug)history to refer to in the lyrics, wich seems to be important for the VR-guys.

I also agree with Bodhi that a lot of talented bands arose in the late half ogf the 90's, and later, like Manson, and Slipknot. Just because Taylor is known for a newer kind of metal/hard rock, I believe he would adjust fine with VR. Still, in my opinion, Scott is a greater frontman, singer and poet..     But the taste is like the bottom.....

I agree with half of that Bodhi, tons of great rock bands out now.

But not knowing why people still talk about those early 90's bands?

That's a point in time in the US that was as influential (musically and culturally) as '77 was in England.

It changed radio, fashion, perception et al...

Beyond my blathering..

I'd like to hear the Corey stuff but not to the point of drool...

I guess what I really meant was why the 90's bands get talked about so much more on the board here than a lot of the newer hard rock bands that are doing some awesome things.  Avenged Sevenfold is a perfect example.  They are the hottest hard rock band in the country right now, topping the Billboard Charts, headlining festivals, really flying the flag for Guns N Roses, Metallica etc.. yet most on this board are still talking about bands like Alice in Chains, Soundgarden and Pearl Jam as like the be all end all of music.  Its like anything post 1992 gets dismissed pretty quickly and it seems that Corey Taylor is one of those things.

I'm pretty sure my opinion is the exact opposite of all yours in this post, haha. I personally think that bands like Marilyn Manson, Korn, Limp Bizkit etc had there hands in the demise of good popular music. I thought they were okay, cool for a change to an extent. I bought Korn's first album, really dug the drums and bass parts. It got pretty old for me within a year at the longest though and I'll probably never revisit it again. Same with Limp Bizkits first album, and then I think they got progressively worse to the point where they just became a joke. Tried to get into Marilyn Manson, but that's mission impossible for me. Then you had that god awful wave of "punk" music like Sum 41 and Blink 182.

Of the 90's bands you mention, I put Soundgarden and AIC at the top, after GN'R of course, and Nirvana and Pearl Jam at the bottom. Always felt PJ were overrated as they never put out a record that impressed me front to back like the others. Plus they got soft real quick. Second album quick. You wouldn't know McCready is a phenomenal guitarist listening to PJ, but it's obvious when listening to Temple of the Dog or Mad Season. They find a way to hide one of rock's best drummers in Cameron as well. Voices don't come much better than Layne Staley or Chris Cornell. I would recommend digging deeper into Soundgarden, because very few bands have a discography as eclectic as theirs. STP is one of my favorite live bands and their first 3 records were gold. Not sure what the fuck went wrong after Tiny Music though...

I'm pretty open minded when it comes to music, but just don't think they make them like they used to. People still talk about the early 90's because it's something we will most likely never see again. I'd kill to find ONE new band today that sounded anywhere near as good to me as those from that era. If you have any songs to recommend that you think would change my  mind I'd love to hear em.

Anyways, way off topic, but just thought it was funny how polar opposite my view was from yours.

yeah that is funny how we are on completely different sides of the spectrum on this.  I hated the early 90's for the most part with the exception of the few bands we mentioned but  I really love Oasis, Sum 41, Blink 182 and My Chemical Romance.  I really enjoyed Marilyn Manson and NIN for a period of time there.  I'm a big fan of Warped Tour and a lot of bands there.

I do agree with you that they dont make them like they used to.  1987-1993 is my favorite era of music minus the grunge/alt rock bands.  I thought those were the best years of GNR, Metallica and Megadeth, 3 of my 4 favorite bands.   I put Avenged Sevenfold in their category.  I'm always hesitant to put newer bands on the level of my favorite 3 but I am blown away by all of their albums.  "Nightmare" is right up there with the classics in my opinion.  I would give that album a listen from start to finish, great guitar album and just great hard rock in general.  I think you might like it.

I used to go to all the Warped Tours. Mainly to see Vision of Disorder, which they routinely backed out of. Yup, 87-93 were the golden years, haha.
I will check out Nightmare. Not sure if they already missed you, but I would highly recommend catching Soundgarden live if you can grab a cheap ticket.
I was surprised to see they haven't lost much, if any since their hey day. I think they'd win you over.

As for this album with Corey Taylor, I'd like to hear it.

I trust a lot of slash's judgement... If the album was great, we would hear it. He must know that it isn't great.


Kind of like when Josh Todd tried out.. those guys had HUGE hits with Crazy Bitch and Sorry but SLash knew it wasn't the right fit.

Same with this.. do u want a guy in 2 other big bands being ur singer? Sounds like it would constitute a lot of juggling and it wouldn't feel like a "REAL" band.

I believe Manson roots go back to 1989 or early 90s at the latest. Korn was an interesting progression to NIN/Manson but were shortlived because where can you take your sound from there. Linkin Park was a good mixture of nu-metal and pop that was interesting but lacked the musicianship to stop rehashing the same songs over and over. System of a down..great band sonically like soundgarden to a lesser extent. Rage was pre-numetal so they are great. Then you have whinny emo-metal which also was short-lived. Now you have bands like AX7 extremely talented players getting away from the blandness of the past 15yrs but still where is the next great frontman?

Korn were shortlived? You realise that they're still going, right? And they've taken their sound to a lot of interesting places.

I'm coming at this from a different standpoint to everyone hear, because I love all of the bands from the early 90's (Nirvana, AIC, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, STP, Screaming Trees etc.), the stuff that happened in the late 90's with Manson, Korn and Deftones, that bit in between with bands like Nine Inch Nails, and Slipknot, Stone Sour and Avenged Sevenfold. I really can't understand why people would bother comparing them and talk about which are better, because to me they've all put out some of my favourite music.

By comparison, there are only a few bands that got big in the 80's that I think are even worth a second glance (Guns N' Roses obviously, Metallica, Jane's Addiction, The Cure... and to a lesser extent because they never really got that big, The Replacements and Soul Asylum).

More versatile?  I hope you have more examples than a piano ballad.  Scott Weiland is incredibly versatile:


Bossa Nova: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odJuNyfteQg  or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-_rvXfkkI0&feature=related

Country: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ejGWkv1y90

Jazz: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4t2VSB5EJxc  or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hQsAG8OW9c

Hard Rock: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXFB78DNBEg&feature=related

Glam: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T92Y7ChqSSk 

Trip Hop/Industrial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kK3euiI0BpA or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcy1cuNedQg

Punk-ish: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AW2ajUGtG4g or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LI_VvD3mAsI&feature=related

Eastern European-ish (?): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxB7f58vii4&feature=related

Christmas Standard:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fpxmDAOePQ

...and then of course there's the work he did w/ VR which most of you are familiar.

Glad you mentioned A7X, I saw them tonight live for the very first time, and those guys are definitely contenders for carrying the flag of new hard rock once the likes of Metallica and GN'R are no longer around.
And I'd definitely put M. Shadows up there as a potential great frontman. He certainly had the vocals, he just needs to work on some of his stage presence, which is already pretty good.

awesome work digging this up

bodhi's definition of versatile is screaming nonsense  to singing a ballad.

That is a  good song he really doesn't leap through my speakers and do anything special though. sounds like a hundred other very good rock singers. doesn't make me spine tingle or really provoke my thoughts like Loving The Alien or Atlanta from STP 

honestly, watch that Barbarella live vid Tip posted and try to convince me Corey can hold Scott's Dick?  no way

Corey to Scott is like Justin Timberlake to Michael Jackson..... Still good artist but just not in the same stratosphere.

This vid makes Myles Kennedy look like Axl stage presence wise.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72VFOazWGAk


Scott doing same song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FF4m8riqWpM

One looks like a legendary iconic rockstar... the other looks like a fan who won a contest

Scott ain't Michael Jackson of anything. He's good but not great. Same goes with Corey but I would like to see him in VR rather than Myles+Slash shit or "unknow talent".

And that link vs. link thing is just stupid because anyone who has seen Corey with Slipknot or Stone Sour knows that that guy can perform a lot better than that.

Scott has a range, a small range, but in that register he fucking owns....  However, that "range" limits VR/Slash to the kind of music they want to do...  I am not saying Myles is perfect, he is not, but he is the CLOSEST thing to that sound Slash has found.... 

And that just sad. And the fact that he rejected Sebastian Bach.

you guys just proved my point...thank you.  Every one of those songs is the same Scott Weiland voice.  He doesn't have incredible vocal range for hitting high notes, everyone of those songs he is singing the exact same way with a different style of music behind him, that doesn't make him versatile.

Versatile is a guy like Corey Taylor where when you listen to Stone Sour you would never know he was also the singer of Slipknot.  Scott Weiland is not branching out, he is being Scott Weiland on all of those songs.

I like Scott Weiland, but I'm not blown away buy the dude.  His stage presence is better than most, although a little feminine for my liking.  I already said that STP and NIrvana were my favorite bands to come out of that era, and STP does hold up better than Nirvana.

I guess we have differing opinions on what it means to be versatile then...  When I think of versatile artists I think of David Bowie or Jeff Beck.  Both of those guys  have distinctive "voices" which means you immediately know who they are when you hear them, BUT they fit in perfectly, regardless of the genre they are attempting.

I mean when I listen to the vid you posted....I can see your point.  I would never know who that singer was because he sounds like a million other singers.  If being versatile means being able to sound like every other male singer out there, then yeh, I would say Corey is pretty versatile.

I'm not trying to knock your taste in music (you can enjoy whomever you want, God knows I listen to music that most people would find repellent), but to say Corey is more versatile than Scott seems patently absurd, at least to my ears.     

I'm willing to get educated on this tho.  If you have more vids to illustrate your point, please do post them. 

See to me, scott in vR doesn't sound like scott in STP

maybe thats just me though

I think Scott is one of those special talents... Corey to me is no different than the Chester Benningtons of the world... talented for sure but doesn't blow me away... .can't tell no difference in him and the dude from Seether or Staind or those other bands in that vein

At the risk of pissing you both of... you're both so lame.

Part 2 of this interview with Matt has been posted:

Lokaos Rock Show entrevista Matt Sorum - 2? parte (2/2)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9xbOp1xZ08

This is a really great interview.  Matt is really candid about GNR and tells some great stories.  He has a different perspective from being "the new guy."   He does an Izzy impression twice that is pretty hilarious. 

It is a good interview, the most likable I've seen Matt in a long time. :)  Matt talks about playing with GN'R for the first time in Rio.  And I didn't know that Nikki Sixx asked him to join Motley Crue...more than once.