Loving the Alien (Contraband - Velvet Revolver)

Member Name: Andy.mack

Product:	Contraband - Velvet Revolver
Date:	07/12/04 (334 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Excellent album with some fantastic tracks, Like GNR but only in small doses, sounds brilliant, Slash

Disadvantages: None I can think of

When I was a lot younger, about 12 years younger to be precise I was just starting to get into music. I came across this band who on the same day had released two albums. I bought the blue one and within a month I was completely taken with Guns ‘N’ Roses. I was about 10 at the time and was really discovering music and Use Your Illusions 2 was the first album I bought. I was quite disappointed when GNR split up as it seemed to be a real shame. Now fast forward to this year and three members of GNR are back in a different guise.

While Axl still clings onto the name Slash, Duff and Matt Sorum have teamed up with the former Stone Temple Pilots front man Scott Weiland. The resulting band, Velvet Revolver, managed to record and release an album in a 1/6 of the time it had taken Axl and the new look GNR. Since departing from GNR Slash had formed and disbanded Slash’s Snake pit and Duff and Matt had pursued various other music routes. In the mean time Scott had decided it was time for Stone Temple Pilots to call it a day.

They came into existence after Slash, Duff and Matt got together to play a tribute gig for Randy Castillo in 2002. There still seemed to be a buzz there and so they linked up with an old friend of Slash’s, Dave Kushner. Then to find a lead singer they held open auditions, which weren’t really going to plan. At the same time Duff was spending time socially with Weiland. After another fall out with STP Weiland left the band and joined Velvet Revolver.

It seems like a great idea on paper but would and could the concept of Velvet Revolver really work. On the one hand you’ve got the key members of one of the best bands of the late 80’s early 90’s. The other side provides a vocalist with a wide range of talent, who can certainly write a decent track. The answer is that Velvet Revolver works, it works very well. I first heard them with a cover of “Money” on The Italian Job soundtrack last year and instantly I wanted to hear more. So when the debut album came out in June it was another of those must haves.

They headed into a New York studio with Limp Bizkit producer Josh Abraham to see what the result would be. It was with slight reservation I put the album on for the first time. Gladly it didn’t disappoint and within 2 or 3 tracks I knew I was going to love it. There is something about Velvet Revolver that really stuck with me. The old Guns sound is certainly in evidence and with Slash, Duff and Matt it was always likely to be. That’s only a small part of it as VR have a sound all of there own. Without the obvious links to their previous bands this album would have stood up just as well on its own without all the history.

It’s very much a heavy guitar orientated, with Slash in the band it would be criminal if it were anything else. The guitars compliment each other well with Duff on bass and Slash and Kushner leading with the guitars it creates a nice harmony. Added to that is Sorum’s drumming, which is as good as ever. He keeps the tracks together with a solid backing beat that allows the others to create something rather special. There are tracks where Sorum leads the way and this provides a good mix within the album and gives it a fresh sound. The big draw though is the numerous Slash solo’s all of which sound totally fantastic.

With the addition of Weiland’s vocals and excellent writing skills it seems to give the band a sense of direction. I’ve always felt both he and previous band Stone Temple Pilots have been under rated and within this album it just seems to show even more. With Weiland writing the lyrics and contributing to the musical writing process then Velvet Revolver really can be a huge band and eclipse what ever Axl has planned for another new look GNR.

It is musically a superb album and I really cant think of one song I don’t actually like. For me though it has a couple of tracks that really stand out and make the album so good. My favourite would probably have to be “Slither”. It has a very dark opening that suit’s the track quite well. It slowly builds into a rather fantastic track. The drums really highlight what the albums all about while the guitars and vocals seem to work fantastically well together. As a track for me it really sums up the album and the direction the band are taking.

There was always going to be a worry that Velvet Revolver would fail miserably. Thankfully that isn’t the case and Weiland and the boys have done a fantastic job. I’m hoping I’ll get a chance to see them live next year although I think the tour in January has now sold out. It’s an excellent album and not at all what I expected, it’s a lot better. A superb album that I’d certainly recommend to anyone and I cant wait for album No. 2.

Cdjungle.com: £7.99

Summary: