Trouble Within Velvet Revolver?

[Irish rose]

If VR cancel another gig here in Ireland im gonna flip! that'll be two in the last 6 months or so!

I have a feeling the rest of the band will continue the tour without Scott...I dont think it'll matter in Europe anyway...everyone is there to see the Guns guys

[Feel_The_Burn]

If VR cancel another gig here in Ireland im gonna flip! that'll be two in the last 6 months or so!

I have a feeling the rest of the band will continue the tour without Scott...I dont think it'll matter in Europe anyway...everyone is there to see the Guns guys

  With what singer?

To Jarmo , well I guess it is how it seems. I really dug VR , Libertad may have been a commercial flop but since when does sales mean good music? Contraband and Libertad were both solid rock albums , I'm sure they will all move on to bigger and better things.

[CheapJon]

I'm sure they will all move on to bigger and better things.

bigger as in STP reunion and better as in solo projects?

[Feel_The_Burn]

I'm sure they will all move on to bigger and better things.

bigger as in STP reunion and better as in solo projects?

I would guess so , never been a STP fan that much so I don't see the hype over the reunion..... But a Slash solo album really sounds just fuckin' cool , maybe throw izzy in with him for a couple sogns and 

[Falcon]

I'm sure they will all move on to bigger and better things.

bigger as in STP reunion and better as in solo projects?

I would guess so , never been a STP fan that much so I don't see the hype over the reunion..... But a Slash solo album really sounds just fuckin' cool , maybe throw izzy in with him for a couple sogns and 

The STP thing would go over well in the US, It'll happen sooner or later - it just makes sense.

Could care less about a Slash solo record, or A Duff solo record for that matter.

It'll be interesting to see how things shake out, nobody in VR seems to be on the same page.

A little rock n roll drama is always good, keeps things interesting..

[don_vercetti]

If VR cancel another gig here in Ireland im gonna flip! that'll be two in the last 6 months or so!

I have a feeling the rest of the band will continue the tour without Scott...I dont think it'll matter in Europe anyway...everyone is there to see the Guns guys

  With what singer?

Get in Mr Izzy Stradlin, they could do a medley of Izzy's solo stuff, a couple of VR songs, and a bit of old guns (14 years, dnb, brownstone).  That would be way cool. 

Realistically thought, I guess they'd have some trouble carrying on as VR without Scott.  But I reckon people are making a bit of a mountain out of a molehill for now, if he shows up for tonights gigs then I don't reckon anyone should jump the gun about VR breaking up just yet.  It is concievable he was telling the truth about the delay, after all. 

[Feel_The_Burn]

If VR cancel another gig here in Ireland im gonna flip! that'll be two in the last 6 months or so!

I have a feeling the rest of the band will continue the tour without Scott...I dont think it'll matter in Europe anyway...everyone is there to see the Guns guys

  With what singer?

Get in Mr Izzy Stradlin, they could do a medley of Izzy's solo stuff, a couple of VR songs, and a bit of old guns (14 years, dnb, brownstone).  That would be way cool. 

Realistically thought, I guess they'd have some trouble carrying on as VR without Scott.  But I reckon people are making a bit of a mountain out of a molehill for now, if he shows up for tonights gigs then I don't reckon anyone should jump the gun about VR breaking up just yet.  It is concievable he was telling the truth about the delay, after all. 

Even if they where , the fact that Slash is excited for a new record that Duff doesn't even know they will make is un easy , not to mention a front man who is talking about going gigs with his old band. Dave and Matt are just there......

[sexkitten]

Anyone going to tonights show? wish I was...

Front row, center.........................

Isn't it at the aragon where it's only GA???  Have an awesome time and keep us posted. 

[Alan]

STP were never big outside of the US.

i think the best thing for VR is for them all to do their own thing then come back and do their 3rd album as VR.

[FunkyMonkey]

Dear LAist, I Unexpectedly Rocked Out at Sundance with Velvet Revolver

Two days ago I was performing at a Sundance Film Festival event in Salt Lake City, UT. After my performance at Rose Wagner Theater, I began driving the 25 minutes it takes to get back up to Park City.

I checked my voice mail and there was a frantic message from my friend Jenna Lynn. "Mattie Moon, it's Jenna", she said. "Call me back, it's urgent, urgent, urgent, urgent, about tonight", she continued, tension in her otherwise smooth voice, "come play with Velvet Revolver, come sing...we need somebody who can sing..call me..bye." If you are not familiar, Velvet Revolver is a rock band comprised of rock n? roll icons, Slash, Duff McKagan, and Matt Sorum from Guns N? Roses, Dave Kushner, and Scott Weiland from Stone Temple Pilots. I looked at my traveling companion, Kooze, and said...,"dude..I think they want me to sing with Velvet Revolver tonight." My stomach began to turn.

I received a text 5 minutes later that said.."Wanna play vocals for Velvet tonight?" I looked at Scott and we both started laughing hysterically. ?Hell yeah!?, I texted back. Apparently, Velvet front man, Scott Weiland, had missed his flight from LA and would not be able to make the gig. We jetted up the mountain as fast as we could. While we were driving I began downloading lyrics off the Internet from my Blackberry. I had never even heard a Velvet Revolver song before!

When we arrived I was escorted backstage to meet the band. I walked in, said hello, and took my guitar out....

We began mapping out a game plan. Duff asked me if I knew any Stone?s covers and I told him I knew Honky Tonk Woman. I started jotting the lyrics down on a piece of paper. Soon after, Donovan Leitch, son of legendary singer, ?Donovan?, arrived and began learning songs. Then came a singer named Cisco (Whitstar). He was accompanied by an actress named E.G Daily, known for her role in the cult-classic movie, ?Valley Girl?. We ran through the song in an empty stairwell and then made our way to the stage.

My song was not until second from last, so I stood and watched as Donovan and Cisco sang ?Rock N? Roll? by Led Zeppelin. Right before their song was about to finish, I noticed Paris Hilton making her way to the front row. I actually thought about running! Could there be any more pressure than this?

Then Paris jumped on stage and made her way over to where we were standing. I took the mike from Cisco?s hand as drummer Matt Sorum started the legendary cowbell count-off that signifies the beginning of one of the best Stone?s songs ever. When the time came, I began to sing, ?I met a gin soaked, barroom queen in Memphis?. The whole crowd was singing along! Everyone was grooving! Then Cisco and E.G joined me on harmonies. It was AWESOME. The band was so friendly and cool. There was something very serendipitous about Sundance this year.

-Matthew Moon

Photos: http://laist.com/2008/01/24/dear_laist_i_un.php

[ben9785]

VR are a great band, I really enjoyed seeing them in Australia, and "Contraband" is one of my favourite albums. "Libertad" was solid, but not as good as the first one.

A "Stone Temple Pilots" reunion tour/album would, however, be a dream for me as a longtime fan who never got to see them live.

I have no doubt also that Duff and Slash and Matt would always regroup and come up with something just as great as VR.

But it's a shame how its turned out as VR genuinely at one point seemed like they were in for the long term.
If things are so messy though, especially with a pending tour which primarily consists of rescheduled dates for previous cancellations, then they should just cancel all their forthcoming commitments and work out where they stand before they get back out on the road.

[ShotgunBlues1978]

If VR cancel another gig here in Ireland im gonna flip! that'll be two in the last 6 months or so!

I have a feeling the rest of the band will continue the tour without Scott...I dont think it'll matter in Europe anyway...everyone is there to see the Guns guys

  With what singer?

To Jarmo , well I guess it is how it seems. I really dug VR , Libertad may have been a commercial flop but since when does sales mean good music? Contraband and Libertad were both solid rock albums , I'm sure they will all move on to bigger and better things.

They could find a replacement singer if necessary, there are plenty of singers out there who could replace him at least in a live setting and people would still go to the shows

The best case scenario would be for VR to get a singer more suited to what VR proclaims to be about.  Scott and the DeLeos are a perfect match stylistically, I never felt VR had that much songwriting chemistry between the vocalist and the instrumentalists, in that their strongest suits as musicians do not necessarily mesh.  Apparently the songs that ended up on Contraband were mostly written musically prior to Scott's arrival, and that album had its flaws but one thing you could say about it was that it had some balls and some attitude.  The second album it sounded like Scott dominated the musical direction, though Scott sounded more at home the music just sounded neutered and lacked punch, with the exception of 3-4 tracks it ended up sounding in my estimation like a bunch of lower-level STP songs with Slash solos pasted in on Pro Tools.  I have no doubts that they enjoyed recording Libertad and are proud of the effort but to some extent, both albums sound like members trying to conform with what the others are good at, Contraband was Scott trying to conform with what the other guys are best at, Libertad was the other guys trying to conform to what Scott is best at

[Smoking Guns]

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

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DB_B6F610LQ

this was all i could find.  two short clips of slash tearing it up.

[LunsJail]

If VR cancel another gig here in Ireland im gonna flip! that'll be two in the last 6 months or so!

I have a feeling the rest of the band will continue the tour without Scott...I dont think it'll matter in Europe anyway...everyone is there to see the Guns guys

  With what singer?

To Jarmo , well I guess it is how it seems. I really dug VR , Libertad may have been a commercial flop but since when does sales mean good music? Contraband and Libertad were both solid rock albums , I'm sure they will all move on to bigger and better things.

They could find a replacement singer if necessary, there are plenty of singers out there who could replace him at least in a live setting and people would still go to the shows

The best case scenario would be for VR to get a singer more suited to what VR proclaims to be about.  Scott and the DeLeos are a perfect match stylistically, I never felt VR had that much songwriting chemistry between the vocalist and the instrumentalists, in that their strongest suits as musicians do not necessarily mesh.  Apparently the songs that ended up on Contraband were mostly written musically prior to Scott's arrival, and that album had its flaws but one thing you could say about it was that it had some balls and some attitude.  The second album it sounded like Scott dominated the musical direction, though Scott sounded more at home the music just sounded neutered and lacked punch, with the exception of 3-4 tracks it ended up sounding in my estimation like a bunch of lower-level STP songs with Slash solos pasted in on Pro Tools.  I have no doubts that they enjoyed recording Libertad and are proud of the effort but to some extent, both albums sound like members trying to conform with what the others are good at, Contraband was Scott trying to conform with what the other guys are best at, Libertad was the other guys trying to conform to what Scott is best at

That was probably the best criticism of VR that I've heard.  It seems (with maybe the exception of "Slither") that they are always pushing things in directions that aren't natural for half the band.

[COMAMOTIVE]

92.3K Rock in NY just reported that Duff made a recent statement along the lines of " If Scott gets back with STP, then good for him. I never had long-term expectations with this band. It's just the way the business is etc. I love this band, I love playing live together but if it ends, it ends. It doesn't define me. "   -

Excuse me if some is wrong, I just heard it 1/2 hour ago and am going on memory here

[Grouse]

think you mean this one:

On the Sundance Festival:
?I sang It?s So Easy and I Wanna Be Your Dog and then we were panicking a bit over what to play so Matt [Sorum] got up and sang Patience, Matt?s a great singer, he really is. Why wasn?t Scott there? Scott missed his plane, yeah, let?s say that, Scott missed his plane??

On Stone Temple Pilots re-forming:
?That?s the rumour that I?ve heard too, good for him. You can?t plan ahead in this thing and if you do you?re going to be disappointed. Don?t get me wrong, I love playing live and we love this band, but I don?t have expectations any more. This is a great band and I?m proud to be a part of it, but it doesn?t define me any more

* edit to add that this came from classic rock

[Bodhi]

If VR cancel another gig here in Ireland im gonna flip! that'll be two in the last 6 months or so!

I have a feeling the rest of the band will continue the tour without Scott...I dont think it'll matter in Europe anyway...everyone is there to see the Guns guys

  With what singer?

To Jarmo , well I guess it is how it seems. I really dug VR , Libertad may have been a commercial flop but since when does sales mean good music? Contraband and Libertad were both solid rock albums , I'm sure they will all move on to bigger and better things.

They could find a replacement singer if necessary, there are plenty of singers out there who could replace him at least in a live setting and people would still go to the shows

The best case scenario would be for VR to get a singer more suited to what VR proclaims to be about.  Scott and the DeLeos are a perfect match stylistically, I never felt VR had that much songwriting chemistry between the vocalist and the instrumentalists, in that their strongest suits as musicians do not necessarily mesh.  Apparently the songs that ended up on Contraband were mostly written musically prior to Scott's arrival, and that album had its flaws but one thing you could say about it was that it had some balls and some attitude.  The second album it sounded like Scott dominated the musical direction, though Scott sounded more at home the music just sounded neutered and lacked punch, with the exception of 3-4 tracks it ended up sounding in my estimation like a bunch of lower-level STP songs with Slash solos pasted in on Pro Tools.  I have no doubts that they enjoyed recording Libertad and are proud of the effort but to some extent, both albums sound like members trying to conform with what the others are good at, Contraband was Scott trying to conform with what the other guys are best at, Libertad was the other guys trying to conform to what Scott is best at

I couldnt agree more..that is the best description of Libertad i have seen....stole the words right out of my mouth....same with Contraband..i LOVED Contraband even though it wasnt perfect...but Libertad for the most part is unlistenable....sounds like b-sides off of old STP albums....and their best song "Messages" doesnt even make it on the album!!

[FunkyMonkey]

Slash: Weiland Playing With STP This Summer

January 25, 2008, 11:30 ET

After Velvet Revolver wraps a spring tour in support of its second album, "Libertad," frontman Scott Weiland will rejoin his former bandmates in Stone Temple Pilots for a handful of summer reunion shows, guitarist Slash tells Billboard.com.

STP broke up in late 2002; the band's last album was the previous year's "Shangri-La Dee Da." No other details have yet been revealed about STP's plans.

In the meantime, Weiland and his Velvet Revolver bandmates are still plugging away in support of "Libertad" with dates that run through early April. There's also the hope that recording for album number three could begin in the spring.

"I don't think anybody knew the second one came out," Slash admits. "We didn't promote it, for one. The first record I remember going out for three weeks on the road and just promoting, with (bassist) Duff (McKagan) and myself going to Europe, Japan and the States.

"This time around we actually went on the road way before the album came out. It's just a different kind of promotion," he continues. "People are just going to a concert, and you're not necessarily drilling into their head about the new album. So I think that had a lot to do with it. All things considered, it doesn't matter to me. It's still just a really good record."

On the current tour, which plays Milwaukee tonight (Jan. 25), Velvet Revolver has added additional Guns N' Roses and Stone Temple Pilots covers it hadn't performed previously.

"There was a point there where I thought that we felt like we were sort of obligated to do them, like people really, really were expecting that," Slash says. "And once we got a bigger catalog by putting out another record, there was a feeling like we don't necessarily have to do any Guns N' Roses and Stone Temple Pilots songs."

"It was more like Pete Townshend feeling like he didn't have to smash his amps every night," he continues. "So for a second there, that was the plan, but then we personally started missing it. They were like the easiest cover songs for us to cover because we wrote them, so we just sort of got over that."

Speaking of Guns N' Roses, Slash admits he has no contact with Axl Rose, nor has he heard material from the long-awaited "Chinese Democracy." But any silence between the camps is bound to end come 2012, when the influential hard rock act becomes eligible for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Slash, McKagan and drummer Matt Sorum experienced firsthand what could be in store based on the drama that ensued last year around Van Halen's induction into the Rock Hall. With Eddie Van Halen in rehab and David Lee Roth refusing to attend after a set list squabble, Velvet Revolver ended up jamming with Michael Anthony and Sammy Hagar.

"I never even thought about it until we had to do that," Slash says. "Somebody asked me, 'Do you think you guys will be able to show up for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (induction ceremony) in five years?' I was like, 'Oh, I guess we're eligible.' It never dawned on me before then. If this comes up, I'd hope we'd be mature enough to get up and do that, but I have no idea."

When asked what his gut feeling is about Rose and the other original members coming together, Slash says, "My gut doesn't count because it's not just about me. It's about everybody. And if it was easy to predict, we probably wouldn't have had so many hassles in the first place."

http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003702045

[chineseblues]

After Velvet Revolver wraps a spring tour in support of its second album, "Libertad," frontman Scott Weiland will rejoin his former bandmates in Stone Temple Pilots for a handful of summer reunion shows, guitarist Slash tells Billboard.com.

STP broke up in late 2002; the band's last album was the previous year's "Shangri-La Dee Da." No other details have yet been revealed about STP's plans.

In the meantime, Weiland and his Velvet Revolver bandmates are still plugging away in support of "Libertad" with dates that run through early April. There's also the hope that recording for album number three could begin in the spring.

"I don't think anybody knew the second one came out," Slash admits. "We didn't promote it, for one. The first record I remember going out for three weeks on the road and just promoting, with (bassist) Duff (McKagan) and myself going to Europe, Japan and the States.

"This time around we actually went on the road way before the album came out. It's just a different kind of promotion," he continues. "People are just going to a concert, and you're not necessarily drilling into their head about the new album. So I think that had a lot to do with it. All things considered, it doesn't matter to me. It's still just a really good record."

Click here to find out more!
On the current tour, which plays Milwaukee tonight (Jan. 25), Velvet Revolver has added additional Guns N' Roses and Stone Temple Pilots covers it hadn't performed previously.

"There was a point there where I thought that we felt like we were sort of obligated to do them, like people really, really were expecting that," Slash says. "And once we got a bigger catalog by putting out another record, there was a feeling like we don't necessarily have to do any Guns N' Roses and Stone Temple Pilots songs."

"It was more like Pete Townshend feeling like he didn't have to smash his amps every night," he continues. "So for a second there, that was the plan, but then we personally started missing it. They were like the easiest cover songs for us to cover because we wrote them, so we just sort of got over that."

Speaking of Guns N' Roses, Slash admits he has no contact with Axl Rose, nor has he heard material from the long-awaited "Chinese Democracy." But any silence between the camps is bound to end come 2012, when the influential hard rock act becomes eligible for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Slash, McKagan and drummer Matt Sorum experienced firsthand what could be in store based on the drama that ensued last year around Van Halen's induction into the Rock Hall. With Eddie Van Halen in rehab and David Lee Roth refusing to attend after a set list squabble, Velvet Revolver ended up jamming with Michael Anthony and Sammy Hagar.

"I never even thought about it until we had to do that," Slash says. "Somebody asked me, 'Do you think you guys will be able to show up for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (induction ceremony) in five years?' I was like, 'Oh, I guess we're eligible.' It never dawned on me before then. If this comes up, I'd hope we'd be mature enough to get up and do that, but I have no idea."

When asked what his gut feeling is about Rose and the other original members coming together, Slash says, "My gut doesn't count because it's not just about me. It's about everybody. And if it was easy to predict, we probably wouldn't have had so many hassles in the first place."


http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003702045

I could be wrong, but wasn't libertad pretty heavily promoted? They were on the late night shows, in magazines etc. So how was it not promoted as much? 

[Falcon]

I could be wrong, but wasn't libertad pretty heavily promoted? They were on the late night shows, in magazines etc. So how was it not promoted as much? 

You're not wrong, right on the money in fact.

I'm so fucking sick of artists/fans blaming "lack of promotion" when an album tanks, especially when it's just not the truth.

VR were all over TV, the net, mag articles, released singles, made vids, toured extensively etc..

Libertad just didn't catch on, it's that simple.  Just own it for cryin' out loud.

This isn't VR specific by any means, it's a universal fucking excuse.