There are few band these days with the cache to make their Belfast debut at is biggest venue, 
The Odyssey. However Velvet Revolver are not just any band. David Roy spoke to bassist and
 living rock legend, Duff McKagan…

Slash. Duff. If you know about rock n roll, the mere mention of those names will set off the mental 
alarm reserved for the mere mention of genuine rock gods.
As lead guitarist and bassist respectively with Guns n’ Roses, one of the few big bands of the late 
eighties to remain big after Nirvana broke, the wrote (and then probably smoked) the rule book on 
debauched, crazy, rock and roll living.
of course times change. These days Axl Rose has turned Guns into a bad joke with a punch line that 
never seems to arrive. Slash and Duff are now running a new crowd, along with their old drummer 
buddy, Matt Sorum.
Thus, Velvet Revolver sees three fifths of the Use Your Illusion Gn’R line-up teamed up with former 
Stone Temple Pilots singer Scott Weiland and guitarist Dave Kushner (ex-Electric Love Hogs).
It’s a potent combo that takes its cues from the past while creating something new and vital. While 
they may play choice covers of favourite Gn’R and STP tunes, and there’s no denying the fact that 
Weiland’s vocals are as unmistakable as Slash’s between-the-lines solos, Velvet Revolver still 
somehow manages to be its own distinct animal.
Their best-selling album, Contraband, has grabbed both fans old and new, and the night the band 
roll into Belfast will mark the first anniversary of its original US release to glowing reviews.
Duff McKagan once partied so hard his liver exploded. These days he’s a more controlled character,
 but no less cool for it. Still it’s rather surreal to hear him say stuff like:
“Today’s going pretty good. I got up, had breakfast and worked out. You know, the usual.”

While there may be no more hitting the bulls eye every night for McKagan in terms of wild living, 
according to him the band are continually on target.
“We’ve been touring since last May and, knock on wood, we haven’t had one crappy gig yet,” he says.
“Last night in Cleveland was awesome. It seems like for us, the east coast is a lot better.
“For some reason they’re a little bit more uninhibited.”

This seems to fly in the face of conventional wisdom about tough New York crowds.
“No, New York crowds are the best, man!” enthuses Duff.
“I can remember the first time Guns played there I was thinking, ‘oh man we’re gonna get killed!’, but
 it was awesome. Kids come from all over to go to shows in New York, it’s like a meeting ground for 
all the outlying areas. That city is like a second home to us because we’re so welcome there.
“Recently we had a whopping four day break and me and Dave went to the Roseland Ballroom to see 
Weezer. All the security guys treated us like royalty!”

He continues: “LA is the real snooty town. The crowds there can definitely be standoffish. The don’t go 
crazy because the don’t want to mess up their hair-do or their new nose job.”

It seems the band are looking forward to coming back to play for the European audiences that have taken 
to Contraband so whole-heatedly.
“Europe is a whole different monster,” chuckles Duff.
“In America, everyone was so quick to tag us as a ‘super group’ when in fact we’re all just guys from L.A.
 Scott’s wife is best friends with my wife, Dave has known Scott for 16years, and Matt shared a room in
 rehab with him five years ago. It’s a small world you know? “This band came together organically. There 
were no record companies involved. We started this ourselves and I think the music we make speaks for
 itself. People in Europe, that’s all they take us for. They don’t give a **** about who was in what band
 before, they just wanted to rock.”

He adds: “Ireland, Scotland and England have really embraced us for some reason. It’s great. It already 
happened to me once with Guns, because we broke in the UK first, so for it to happen again with Velvet 
Revolver is a total blessing.
“To tell you the truth, I’d be happy to just tour there!”

Of course we’d be glad to have them, especially since Duff has Celtic roots. He has a great affection for 
Ireland both because of it’s heritage and the calibre of fans found here.”

“I have a lot of family from Ireland,” he explains. “my grandfather was from Cork. At age 14 he got the 
boat over to New York so he could enlist and fight in the first world war. They sent him to France to 
dodge bullets and mustard gas.
“When we played the Point in Dublin, it was like we could literally feel the crowd lifting us up on their 
shoulders, it was so awesome. I’ve never been to Belfast before, but I’m sure it’ll be the same. It think 
the closet we got with Guns was Slane Castle, so I cant wait to check it out.”

Though their debut record has only been out for a year, Velvet Revolver are already itching to get started 
on their follow-up.
“Our new single is from the soundtrack for Fantastic Four,” says Duff, “it’s a brand new song that we 
basically just wrote on the spot.
“We’re going to start pre production for the new album in July. We’ve been writing on the road since 
last May, so we have tons of material. Some bands need to be in one place to write songs, but not us. 
We’re a touring band, just like Guns used to be. I think we wrote all of the Illusion records while we 
were on tour.
“Not one of us has ever bought in a full song. The way we work is very collaborative and somehow the 
chemistry is good enough that we can also be prolific. We’re definitely the right five guys for the job.”

Velvet Revolver with Biffy Clyro and the Ga*Gas, The Odyssey Arena, Wednesday June 8. 
Tickets £30.00/£33.00 on sale from Odyssey Box Office and all usual Ticketmaster Outlets. 
Credit card bookings: 028 9073 9074 (Odyssey) and 0870 2434455.
 Internet Bookings: www.wonderlandpromotions.co.uk