See Also: Scott Weiland, Stone Temple Pilots And Velvet Revolver Lead Singer, Dead At 48
Rock star frontmen are a little bit messy. This quality comes with the territory as a bit of an occupational hazard. Scott Weiland tends to take that requirement to an extreme. He’s not functionally messy either, as his recent marble-mouthed “Vasoline” performance demonstrates, and he has a long history of issues that contribute to said messiness.
Yet one could expect Weiland to be privy to some inside Guns n’ Roses information. As the Velvet Revolver singer, Weiland rubbed elbows on the tour bus with Slash, Duff McKagen, and Matt Sorum. I’ve always described Velvet Revolver as “the home for wayward Guns n’ Roses members” because once Axl’s notorious antics became too much, his former bandmates fled to seek refuge. Did the guys commiserate to the level where they’d feel comfy continuing to reveal intelligence to Weiland to this day? Perhaps. There’s always the possibility that Weiland conjured some “knowledge” in his own mind. Perhaps he also knows the nostalgia still rides at peak level for the band that captured the zeitgeist of diss-track excellence.
Here’s what we know so far. In May, Slash uttered a “never say never” message when asked about a Guns n’ Roses reunion. In August, he admitted that he and Axl had a long-overdue reconciliation, which presented much excitement from fans. Fred Durst tried to claim credit for the renewed friendship, but no one listened to him. Will people listen to Scott Weiland? He told Alternative Nation what he remembered about his 2006 feud with Axl (revolving around rumors of a Guns n’ Roses reunion), which wasn’t much, but he dropped this nugget:
“I remember a little bit about it. There was a little going back and forth between the two of us at the time, but I think that Guns N’ Roses are getting back together.”
When I pressed Weiland on how he knew, he responded: “I just heard that.”
“We’ve heard rumors,” Weiland’s Wildabouts bassist Tommy Black added.
Weiland goes on to say that Slash is much more famous than Axl now because Slash is a “brand.” He’s the “hat” that everyone recognizes, which is absolutely true. Slash has participated in a variety of settings and ensembles, whereas Axl has continued to toil away (for many years, only to release Chinese Democracy) under the Guns n’ Roses title. You can’t replace Slash with a Buckethead and expect the same results, so yes, Slash carries a greater level of rock and roll prestige.
The question remains — is Weiland correct with his claims of a Guns n’ Roses original-lineup reunion? Matt Sorum didn’t say anything while dissing Foo Fighters, but Sorum was not an original member. Someone needs to get Steven Adler on the line, stat.
If you haven’t seen our Guns n’ Roses mini-docs, check out the whole series.
(Via Alternative Nation)
