Excerps from Close-Up #666

[jarmo]

Here's some parts of the big interview that appears in the latest issue (#666) of Swedish magazine Close-Up. April/May 2004 issue. I translated all of these so the quotes aren't exact quotes..... And this is not the whole thing, the whole thing is about seven pages.....

--


The first part of the article is about Scott and Stone Temple Pilots.
Scott  wanted to break new ground and wanted to make the last STP album a double album. The rest of the band wanted to make a new "Core".

Then the article moves on to start talking about VR's history, Randy Castillo tribute with Josh Todd and Keith Nelson.

Some interesting parts:

Josh was fired in July 2002, because his style didn't fit the sound.

In September they put ads in various publications which said:
"Unnamed artist looking for singer-songwriter somewhere in the realm of early Alice Cooper/Steve Tyler, the harder-edged side of McCartney and Lennon."



During October 2002, Slash gave Scott Weiland a tape of material they'd been working on. Nothing happened because Scott was still in Stone Temple Pilots.


Mike Patton was invited for an audition by Slash in January 2003, but he declined the offer.


Scott got a tape of ten songs, only four interested him. The rest were too classic rock orientated for his taste and they sounded too much GN'R.


The Swedish journalist shows the band his interview schedule. It states that he's gonna talk to Slash, Matt and Izzy. Yes, THE Izzy Stradlin who left Guns N' Roses in 1991 during their world tour.

The guitarist has been involved in Velvet Revolver, that might explain the record company's mistake.

Izzy showed up when they had just started to work with Dave. The band wanted to go all the way with this band, Izzy didn't. As soon as the band mentioned they wanted a singer, Izzy didn't seem interested. There was talk about going on tour wit the band they had at that point. Both Duff and Izzy said they could sing, but Slash said no. Matt was in the middle but thought they should get a singer.

According to Slash, since they got this far, they should go all the way and get a singer. One day they were working on a demo and that night Kelly Shaefer was gonna record his vocal track. That was the last time they saw Izzy.

Later on they played with him at a show.

When asked if the fact that all of GN'R minus Axl were together in the same room scared Izzy, Slash said no. He says Izzy isn't ready to do everything you have to in order to keep your head above the surface in this business. He mentions the way Izzy records and releases his albums as an example of this. Records them quickly and releases them online, Izzy in a nutshell.

Scott's arrival ended an eight month talent search which was documented by VH1. They judged more than 200 people per week says Slash. They tried a tenth of them and liked maybe one or two.

Worse than American Idol says a smiling Matt.

VH1 wants high ratings and I can imagine how the producer was cheering "Yes, this guy sucks and Velvet Revolver are laughing at him, we'll show that!".

Slash nods his head in agreement:

- VH1 has their way of seeing things and we have ours. The reason the show hasn't been shown yet is because we haven't come to an agreement on how things are going to be portrayed.

The channel wants their little comedy show, but it's our lives says Matt. If they wanted to portray what really happened, they should've had a camera in our car when we were driving home from, the auditions, frustrated and screaming "damn, we won't find anybody!".

Every day we started at 2PM full of confidence, and it always ended with us
being ready to hang ourselves Slash sighs.


Scott stuff....

Scott says he looks up to Duff and that he's learned a lot from him.


As long as Scott can work, I don't care what he does Slash says. As long as it doesn't affect his performance. I'm not an angel, but I try not to expose myself to things that prevent me from reaching the goals I have set up. That's the only time I judge a person, if he does something that affects his job in a negative way. Everybody in this organization thinks that way.


The kind of music that we play, loud thrash-rock'n'roll, I don't know if people are ready for it says Scott. I don't know if the timing is right, if people want this.

It's about the songs. This is not about patting my own back, but  my honest opinion. I think we have written a song that will be considered a classic in the next thirty years. It's called "Fall To Pieces" and it will cross over from the rock genre and hit home with people.

If that happens, I'll be happy, because it's the only thing I want, regular people to appreciate what I create.


Duff part, he talks about how he likes the Swedish band The Refused and how their album "The Shape Of Punk To Come" is among his ten favorite albums. "Illegal I" is influenced by The Refused.

Talks about Scott and how he's honest. The lyrics will be printed in the booklet and Duff says it's like opening a book.


Stuff about Duff getting sober...


Here Duff talks about concerts that changed peoples' lives:

Duff mentions seeing The Clash, Iggy Pop and Led Zeppelin.

He mentions the Ritz show in New York in 1988 that MTV taped. It was shown on a Saturday night and he thinks it changed many peoples lives. When they got back to Los Angeles after the tour, people were wearing the same kind of
clothes they wore.

Duff hasn't had any contact with Axl since he left in 1997 and he doesn't want to comment on any of the plastic surgery rumors. Because he doesn't know what or if Axl has done anything to his body.

The article mentions how the journalist visited Duff's house in Hollywood Hills in August 1996. Duff had played him a tape of a new Billy Idol album they just had finished. It sounded like punkrock, Billy's manager thought it was too raw and it was never released.

Neurotic Outsiders mentions. The record companies started bidding at
$300000 and it ended at $1 million.

Loaded... School stuff...



Looking back now, don't you think you wasted your talent with Slash's Snakepit?

Wasted it? What do you mean? Slash wonders.

The singers by your side were boring.

Slash doesn't want to judge the singers since both bands were put together fast just so that he'd have something fun to do.

His intention was never to spend as much time on finding a singer as he did with VR. He just wanted somebody good enough.

Snakepit was an escape. Slash says he needed to go out and play clubs. The albums sold a million copies, but in the end he didn't make any money since he financed most of it himself.

When he returned to GN'R after the tour, he knew what a rockband was. That was probably what made him leave GN'R.

The thing with Slash's Snakepit was that it was his baby, he had to learn after always being part of a democracy....

A kind of democracy says the journalist.

Yes, with a crazy dictator says Slash with a grin.

He had always felt like a part of the machinery. Even thought he was responsible for the record contract and most other things, he saw Snakepit as a band. All members got their voices heard.

The second incarnation of Snakepit was a bit more complicated and he got aware of the situation he was in. Everybody wanted to be rockstars and have the lifestyle GN'R was famous for. It's never something I strive for, not then and not now, and I was surrounded by people with superficial ideals. Snakepit was really a solo project in which I gave others too much control, and it ended in chaos.

After that adventure I did sessions here and there. When he started working with Duff and Matt, he could put some of the load on their shoulders. They could be equals. With Scott in the picture it was a serious commitment and they wanted to take it as far as it goes. They're collectively strong and can trust each other, that's why he's ready to "expose" himself to this again.

Stuff about leaving GN'R, his image...


The article ends by Slash saying how he used to say a GN'R reunion will never happen, now he says not in the next few years, that's for sure.

It would be stupid to say it will never happen, but don't count on it happening.

---




/jarmo

[Booker Floyd]

Thanks for posting that, Jarmo...

A lot of interesting stuff in there, from the STP split information to the VH1 special.  I hope that VH1 does steer away from turning it into a corny comedic thing and presents it as the reality it actually was.

The lyrics will be printed in the booklet and Duff says it's like opening a book.

Im glad to hear this, as I was wondering about it the other day.  

Duff had played him a tape of a new Billy Idol album they just had finished. It sounded like punkrock, Billy's manager thought it was too raw and it was never released.

Found this cool, too.  Id never heard about this, has anybody else?

Snakepit was an escape. Slash says he needed to go out and play clubs. The albums sold a million copies, but in the end he didn't make any money since he financed most of it himself.

 

Ive always wondered about Snakepits sales, but I doubt its a million, let alone plural...hes probably speaking worldwide, which could very well be true.

[Doc Emmett Brown]

wow... that was a very informative article, hidden in a Swedish article no less!  Thanks Jarmo.

The Snakepit quotes were interesting... in my mind I see it as him wanting to just take it easy for a while after the crazy GNR days.  He just needed some time away from the spotlight.  But now he's ready to be more 'exposed' again as he says.  Both Slash & Duff seem to be eager to be visible once more.

I dearly wish to see their singer/frontman tryouts.  I wonder if many of the participants tried to be like Axl for them?   There can only be one Axl.

So if they settled on Scott after going through hundreds of people, Scott must really be impressive.   And... (I gotta end this with a groaner):

Scott  wanted to break new ground and wanted to make the last STP album a double album.

Scott seems a lot like Axl in this quote.  Now he just needs to grow out his hair  

[Freya]

Scott got a tape of ten songs, only four interested him. The rest were too classic rock orientated for his taste and they sounded too much GN'R.

See, this is why Weiland kind of bugs me.  I know they didn't want to do a GnR redux but, I just hope the Slash signature sound isn't too messed with on the album.  

[Captain Obvious]

- VH1 has their way of seeing things and we have ours. The reason the show hasn't been shown yet is because we haven't come to an agreement on how things are going to be portrayed.

The channel wants their little comedy show, but it's our lives says Matt. If they wanted to portray what really happened, they should've had a camera in our car when we were driving home from, the auditions, frustrated and screaming "damn, we won't find anybody!".

Honestly, what is wrong with these people? What happened to the most genuine, authentic band I have known? MTV reality show? This is disgusting.  What next? Velvet Revolver Lunchbags?

[Booker Floyd]

Honestly, what is wrong with these people? What happened to the most genuine, authentic band I have known? MTV reality show? This is disgusting.  What next? Velvet Revolver Lunchbags?

What are you talking about?

VR let VH1 cameras film their auditioning process...is there a difference between that and Making F@#king Videos or the proposed UYI tour footage?  Mat t specifically says the reason it hasnt been shown is because they want it to be authentic and genuine...

[billsguy]

The article ends by Slash saying how he used to say a GN'R reunion will never happen, now he says not in the next few years, that's for sure.

It would be stupid to say it will never happen, but don't count on it happening.

---




/jarmo

Well thats the first time I've heard that... sounds more like he knows he's currently committed to VR, but a few years is probably only the life of that band.  Sounds like when VR is over, it might be a possibility... wow...

Mike

[starchild_666]

wow! Billy idol album with Duff...  

[matt88]

Nice read

[Voodoochild]

Thanks Jarmo, it's indeed a nice read!  
It's a shame that Izzy is hidden in this nutshell... I wish I could hear his guitar works with Slash in early VR...  

[jarmo]

Parts of the Scott interview:

--

Scott tells about how he had lived in a bungalow at the Chateau Marmont in Hollywood, CA (where the interviews are done) for three weeks in 1995. He'd been a neighbor with Courtney Love.

The first time the journalist met Scott was in September 1993 in Stockholm,
Sweden when he did a TV-interview with Scott. It was never broadcast because the camera guy forgot to put a tape in the camera!

During that interview Scott was drinking red wine and he seemed absent.

Their next meeting was in Nottingham, England in October 1994. The journalist was living in London but because of the success of "Plush", "Core" and "Purple", the band was hot and an interview in London was impossible to get. So they decided to do one in Nottingham a few days later.

He arrived at Rock City and Scott was only scheduled to do that interview. The tour manager said the interview was going to start in a little while. Time went by and soon the opening act Redd Kross was on stage. The journalist was in the dining room talking to Dean and Robert DeLeo, Erik and Scott's wife Jannina.

Scott was in his dressing room and refused to come out. He was said to be feeling sick. STP went onstage and it was said the interview would happen after the show.

Time went by, and finally the reporter told the tour manager that the last train to London was leaving soon. The tour manager said he suspected this was going to happen and that he'd stop all interviews from that day on since Scott was too unreliable.

Then Scott appeared. He was high, grabbed the journalist's hand and dragged him to the bar. There he confronted a black haired guy with a pentagram around his neck and told the teenager "you think you're so fucking evil, you fucking idiot".

Many drinks were consumed before the journalist managed to convince Scott to return backstage to do the interview.

Scott tells him how he was harassed by some rugby players the day before in Glasgow, Scotland. He says that for $5000 he could get somebody to fix them.

May 15th 1995, Scott is arrested in Pasadena, CA when he was trying to buy heroin and cocaine.

Visits to rehabs and jail (which killed the promotion for Tiny Music...).

STP took a break, Scott did a solo album, Talk Show did an album.

Their next conversation was in 2001 in Stockholm, Sweden. STP had reunited  in 1999 and released "No. 4" and now Scott and Dean were in Sweden to promote "Shangri-ladee da".

Scott explained his behavior in Nottingham with "bad amphetamine", he also talked about being manic depressive. But now everything was as  good as it could be. The minibar in the hotel was locked and Scott declared that he was clean (drug free).

He said he runs ten kilometers per day.

Present day:

When asked about what happened then, he gets a little annoyed. The journalist mentions how he said that the future for STP looked bright and that he was clean in 2001.

He says he never was 100% clean, drugs and rock 'n' roll go hand in hand. At that point in time, he was drinking and getting high occasionally. On that  promotion trip he drank beer and smoked some weed.
 
When asked if he's sad that STP ended the way it did, he says no. The last tour was painful. Horrible atmosphere and he got to a point where he just couldn't work with the guys. They didn't evolve as artists which Scott found painful.

He had to manipulate the band in order to get them to broaden their horizons. It felt like they had been stuck in a track and the musicians were satisfied with staying in the same zone. Scott was unsatisfied about what happened musically. There was a lot of self-denial in STP.

The individuals and their demons. What happens is that they concentrate on the person who's identified as the devil (Scott Weiland) instead of deal with his own problems. What happened is that the whole unit remained sick and there was no chance of recovery since nobody was willing to confront their own problems.

Scott mentions how they started as friends and it was something beautiful at one point. But it became something he feared. As soon as they started work on a new album and did pre-production he got depressed. Deeply depressed. He wanted to break new ground and make the last STP album  a double. His idea was "to hell with the idea of trying to recreate past feats and to do a great rock album" but that was exactly what the rest wanted to make, a new "Core". Scott wanted to show people how they'd grown as songwriters and he thought that they didn't have to try to gain back the commercial success they had.

He wanted to make a double album because they had so many ideas. But when it was time to do it, there were no ambitions. Only fear. This applied to the whole unit and he didn't want to mention any names. He says he was disappointed with the whole process.

Then he talks about the tour which he says was a shame. He says the "No. 4" tour was probably their best one in regard to their level of playing. He says that musically it was almost at the level of performance art.

As soon as the "Shangri-la Dee? tour started he knew it was over. They hated each other and it ended with him and Dean got into a fist fight. They didn't talk for months.

--



/jarmo

[loretian]

Thanks for taking the time to tanslate and type of the interviews, jarmo!  

I'm not trying to start any arguments or anything, but the bit where Scott talks about the end of STP sounds so familar.  I guess Axl isn't the only lead singer with those kinds of complaints.

[jarmo]

I'm not trying to start any arguments or anything, but the bit where Scott talks about the end of STP sounds so familar.  I guess Axl isn't the only lead singer with those kinds of complaints.

Yeah, Scott wanted to change their sound, like Axl.... Then he goes and joins the guys who didn't want GN'R to change. Funny.

 

/jarmo

[Doc Emmett Brown]

Yeah, Scott wanted to change their sound, like Axl.... Then he goes and joins the guys who didn't want GN'R to change. Funny.

Funny, funny Mr Jarmo  

But I did find Scott's statements interesting as well....   I think (for both Axl & Scott), the issue is less about members resisting change, as they claim, and more about just needing a break from each other.  After several albums of creative output together as a band (either STP or GNR), it has just run its course... for now.  

"In time, I want to be your best friend."   Am I making sense?  dunno.

[blues_rock_axeman]

Scott seems a lot like Axl in this quote.  Now he just needs to grow out his hair  

He has done! Go check VR's official site  

[liquidvirus]

The article ends by Slash saying how he used to say a GN'R reunion will never happen, now he says not in the next few years, that's for sure.

It would be stupid to say it will never happen, but don't count on it happening.

---




/jarmo

Well thats the first time I've heard that... sounds more like he knows he's currently committed to VR, but a few years is probably only the life of that band.  Sounds like when VR is over, it might be a possibility... wow...

Mike

that sounds nice...recently lottsa reumion rumours have been sparking
with izzy ready (i think) and matt/duff/slash already in a group and axl havin problems wit CD
in the words of spiderman - this is my gift,it is my curse...who am i?...ok forget the last part

[MAD at NASCAR]

those words about falling to pieces has got me excited.