And I became friends with Metallica, I'm still very good friends with those guys, even after 20 years. We traveled all over the world.”
Wikimetal: Hello, Matt!
Matt Sorum: Hi, how are you?
W: Well, and you?
MS: Hey, Wikimetal?
W: We are very happy to have you on our program, thank you very much for your time, first of all.
MS: Sure, no problem.
W: So, just so you know, Wikimetal is the biggest Heavy Metal and Hard Rock podcast in Brazil. Let me ask you, at the beginning of your career, when you decided to become a drummer, who were your main influences?
MS: Well, when I was little I saw a band called “The Beatles” on TV. So I told my mom, “Mom, I want to be a drummer, like Ringo.” And that was it, I saw Ringo Starr and wanted to be a drummer, so I started listening to Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath and Deep Purple – one of my favorite bands was Deep Purple – and I moved to Hollywood as soon as I finished high school and started playing in some bands here. I think the first big band I joined was The Cult in the late 80s. And in 1990 I joined Guns N' Roses . I went back to The Cult for a tour where we came to South America in 2000, 2001, and I played drums. And then we formed Velvet Revolver in 2004. I came to South America in 2007 with Velvet Revolver.
W: Any memories you'd like to share with our listeners about the Sonic Temple Tour with The Cult? I love that album, how was the tour?
MS: That was my first big tour. I was new to it, playing in big stadiums. My first leg of the Sonic Temple Tour was opening for Metallica in the United States and Canada. And I became friends with Metallica, I'm still very good friends with those guys, even after 20 years. We traveled all over the world. You know, it was an incredible time for me. If Guns N' Roses hadn't come along, I would have continued with The Cult, but the good news is that I'm going there with the Rock N' Roll All Stars and Billy Duffy from The Cult is going to join me, so it's going to be really cool, we're going to play some The Cult songs and we're going to play a little bit of all my bands: Velvet Revolver, Guns N' Roses, The Cult, we're going to play a lot of good music.
W: I was going to ask you this later, but since you mentioned it, what can Brazilian rock fans expect from this reunion? And how will it work, will you be on stage the whole time? Will there be any changes to the lineup, how will that work?
MS: Basically, what's going to happen is: Duff McKagan will play bass, I'll be on drums, Guilby Clark on guitar, and Steve Stevens will be our lead guitarist, who's incredible, he's from Billy Idol's band, he's one of the greatest guitarists in the world, I think. And he'll be the main guitarist. Then Sebastian Bach will sing four or five songs with us, he'll sing some Guns N' Roses and Skid Row songs, then Glenn Hughes will come on stage. At that point, Mike Inez will play bass, from Alice in Chains and Ozzy Osbourne. And we'll play a bunch of Deep Purple songs, and at that point Mike will continue on bass and Billy Duffy from The Cult will join us, we'll play some The Cult songs. Then Ed Roland from Collective Soul will appear and we'll play Billy Idol and Collective Soul. Then, at that point, Duffy will go back to bass and we'll play Def Leppard with Joe Elliot on vocals. So it's going to be a rotating stage, but we'll be switching it around, it's going to be a long show. Joe Elliott will come on and we'll play Def Leppard, some cool Def Leppard songs, and then at that point Gene will come on, Gene Simmons, he'll come on at the end of the show. Gene Simmons will play bass. Duff will play guitar, Billy Duffy will play guitar, we'll have all the singers, singing the harmonies. So everyone will be on stage at the end, we'll play four or five Kiss songs, and we'll probably close the night with the great Guns N' Roses anthem: "Paradise City". "Rock N' Roll All Night" and "Paradise City". It's going to be incredible.
W: I'm so excited to hear that, just imagine being there, it's going to be a memorable show. Have you guys played together before? Is this something that will happen often or just for the festival?
MS: I think this is going to be a once-in-a-lifetime thing. I think we're going to do this South American tour and, I don't know, it's so hard to get everyone together, with everyone having their own bands. This South American experience is going to be a one-time thing. You know, Gene's going back to Kiss for two years, Joe has Def Leppard, everyone's working so… This particular time I managed to find the right moment for everyone to go, so I hope people come to the show, because this is probably the only time you'll be able to see us playing together like this.
W: Do you think Guns N' Roses could ever get back together? There are rumors that you're going to play at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but I know that's not going to happen. But do you think it's possible someday?
MS: I don't know, I wish I knew. I get asked that question every day.
W: I know, I'm sorry to ask again, but I have to ask this question.
MS: I know that, I just wish I had an answer for you. But I'm not the right person to answer that. If you asked Slash, even he wouldn't know. The problem is that they don't talk anymore: Slash and Axl especially.
W: And you?
MS: I'm relaxed, I'll do anything. I'd play with them, I'd play with Slash, I don't care. I'm happy to be in the band in the first place and I'm happy to be here for them. I'm going to play at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I'm going to be honored, so I'll be ready, I'll have my drumsticks in my back pocket. Steven Adler and Duff McKagan are going, so we'll all be there. We don't know yet what's going to happen, we'll see.
It was a crazy time, we were one big traveling party. There were so many celebrations and we were living life to the fullest.”
W: Changing the subject, Matt, we have a classic question on our show that we ask everyone we interview. Imagine you're driving your car or in the shower listening to your iPod on shuffle, and a song starts playing that you completely lose control of. What song would that be so we can hear it on our show right now?
MS: I would probably say "Running with the Devil" by Van Halen.
W: “Running with the Devil” is a great choice. Now let's listen to “Running with the Devil” on Wikimetal.
W: Do you remember how the invitation to join Guns N' Roses came about?
MS: The invitation came about… Slash and Duff came to see me play when I was in The Cult in 1989 in Los Angeles, and soon after they called me and asked if I wanted to do a jam session with the band. We got along really well, they were happy with me on drums, and they asked me if I wanted to join the band, so I said, “Of course.” And my first show was Rock in Rio in 1991, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
W: I was there, it was amazing.
MS: That was my first big show with the band, and it was an incredible experience. Looking back, that time was crazy. Crazy.
W: You've always seemed like a very calm and down-to-earth guy, what was it like being in a band like Guns N' Roses when they were on top of the world? Can you give us a perspective on what the world looks like from the top?
MS: It was a crazy time, like I said, we were one big traveling party. There were lots of celebrations and we were living life to the fullest, you know? It was a decade of Rock N' Roll bands and we were pretty wild back then, but we definitely enjoyed every minute. We had incredible experiences, everyone knows the story. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world because, despite being crazy and often turbulent, I think nothing could be better than that. I think no other band in the world, except the Rolling Stones, lived the way we did.
W: I can imagine. Changing the subject again, what was it like playing with Motörhead?
MS: Well, it was… For me, playing with Motörhead was phenomenal. I mean, being part of Motörhead, being asked to play in Motörhead was a real honor. Lemmy is a great friend, we became very close. The fact that he called me was a great honor for me. There were many drummers he could have called, but the fact that he chose me was a great tribute and an honor for me. That experience of being on the road with Motörhead was classic. I asked Lemmy to come on the Rock N' Roll All Stars tour this time, but that band, Motörhead, they work all year round, they travel the world, so he was busy. But I love those guys. It was a very good experience.
W: Do you agree that you were probably primarily responsible for bringing Cherrie Curry from The Runaways back to the rock scene? And what was the recording project with her like?
MS: It was great, we finished the album last year. Actually, right before talking to you I met with the head of Black Hearts Records, Joan Jett's label, and we talked about releasing the album this year. So we're deciding on the best time, because with the music industry being so tough, I want to make sure people hear this Cherrie album. It's a really good album. It has a really cool guest appearance from the Smashing Pumpkins, and Slash plays on it, Duff too, The Veronicas and Brody Dalle from The Distillers, there are a lot of cool people on this album. So I want Cherrie to make sure this album gets heard and that it's well distributed around the world. I'm looking forward to the release, I hope we can release it in the summer, late summer.
W: Have you guys finished recording yet?
MS: Oh, yes, it's been finished for a while now. We've already mixed it, we haven't finalized it yet, but we've mixed it. Maybe we'll change some of the mixes and we'll finalize it to release it soon, I hope.
W: In your opinion, what was the highlight of your career, if you had to choose one?
MS: Well, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will be the high point. But I would say that winning a Grammy was probably a great moment. As a musician, it's a great honor to win a Grammy, that happened with Velvet Revolver. I've had many high points, everything from Rock in Rio to the Live Aid Concert in Hyde Park, playing with Elton John, playing with Jeff Beck, playing with the guys from Queen. I've played with so many great artists, Motörhead was a high point. I've been very lucky, I've had many incredible experiences, a great career.
W: Absolutely. And not just because you were lucky, but also because you're an excellent drummer and professional. So you deserve all of this. Could you choose a song that you're very proud to have been a part of?
MS: A lot of people like “You Could Be Mine” by Guns N' Roses. That song is very representative for me as a drummer; it was my first single with Guns N' Roses and it kind of told the world, “This is Matt, our new drummer, blah blah blah.” “Slither” was a big hit for us; Velvet Revolver won a Grammy for it, so it’s an amazing song for me. “November Rain” is a very, very good song. There are a lot of good songs on The Cult’s album “Beyond Good and Evil,” and I really like that album.
W: It's not easy to choose just one, is it?
MS: It's difficult to think of just one.
W: You're right. Well, let's listen to "You Could Be Mine," since you said it's so special.
MS: Yes, "You Could Be Mine" by Guns N' Roses is coming soon!
When I was little I saw a band called The Beatles on TV. So I told my mom that I wanted to be a drummer, like Ringo.”
W: How will you choose the setlist for the Metal Open Air Festival? Will you get together to rehearse, or will you exchange emails? How do you choose the setlist and how do you meet up?
MS: Gene Simmons and I talked a lot about this. Gene and I said, “Let’s do this show for the fans,” which Gene likes to call his bosses – our bosses. And it’s going to be a lot of fun for us because we’ll be able to play songs from other bands that we’ve always admired. I’ll play songs by Def Leppard, Kiss, Deep Purple. Obviously, we’ll play The Cult and Guns N’ Roses, Skid Row songs. We’ll play Collective Soul. Duff McKagan will play guitar on Kiss, on Def Leppard. So it’s going to be fun for all of us, it’s going to be different from our usual lineup. There will be different interpretations of the songs. But we’ll play the hits, of course, we’ll play the classics, we’ll play some covers too, lots of interesting songs. We’ll play famous Guns N’ Roses songs: “Welcome to the Jungle,” “Paradise City.” We're going to play songs that Gene sings from Kiss, he'll sing "Rock N' Roll All Night," we'll play "Pour Some Sugar On Me" and "Animal" by Def Leppard. And "Fire Woman" by The Cult, "Highway Star" by Deep Purple. It's going to be incredible, these songs are sensational. It'll be hit after hit all night long for two hours non-stop.
W: I can imagine. All the songs you mentioned are incomparable. What would you say to a kid who's starting to play drums and thinking about forming a band?
MS: I would say: go for it. Music is the greatest gift. If you have any musical talent, I would say: don't hesitate, go for it. If you like it and it makes you feel good, just play. It's the best feeling in the world, you don't need to use drugs, you don't need to consume alcohol, you can just play music and you'll feel good. I think everyone should play. Music is the greatest gift we have, we listen and everyone comes together, it's a universal language, it's amazing.
W: Good words, Matt. I really enjoyed it and I think the listeners will love it too. So, before we finish, I'd like to thank you for your time. This was one of the best interviews ever, you were very kind and I'm sure all the Wikimetal listeners will really enjoy hearing your opinions and thoughts. But before we finish, could you leave one last message inviting all Heavy Metal and Hard Rock fans to the Metal Open Air Festival and to see this great gathering of people that we can't miss?
MS: Yes, hi Brazil, I'm Matt Sorum from Rock N' Roll All Stars and I want you all to come to the Metal Open Air Festival in Brazil, in São Luís, okay?
W: Yes, São Luís is correct.
MS: São Luís. I want you all to come, we're going to have a phenomenal show, we have an incredible lineup: Gene Simmons from Kiss, Joe Elliott from Def Leppard, Duff McKagan, Dilby Clarke from Guns N' Roses, Billy Duffy from The Cult, Mike Inez from Alice in Chains, Ed Roland from Collective Soul, Sebastian Bach from Skid Row, Glenn Hughes from Deep Purple and Black Sabbath… Can it get any better than that? I don't think so. So come and enjoy the Metal Open Air Festival with us, see you there. Thank you!
W: Thank you! You're right, Matt. You guys are going to melt in São Luís, I feel a little sorry for you because it's so hot there, but it'll be good for the music, and it'll be great. We'll definitely be there. I really enjoyed the interview, and whatever you do, you particularly, if you want to promote anything, you can always count on us. Thank you very much!
MS: Thank you, Nando!
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