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Steven Adler Hasn't Heard Anything About Reunion, Talked To Slash


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Talking music, art, recovery and reunion with Steven Adler

November 4th, 2015

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and legendary Guns n Roses drummer Steven Adler was in town Sunday for a concert at Rams Head On Stage with his band Adler. He also brought with him his art collection entitled "50" to a showing he hosted at the Annapolis Collection Gallery in historic Annapolis, Maryland. Adler enthusiastically met with his fans, discussing the art work and how it is crafted from a new artistic medium called “Rhythm-on-Canvas.” Before the art show began, Steven graciously agreed to sit down for an interview.

Steven, who turned 50 years old on Jan. 22, 2015, said he’s celebrating by debuting his artwork and hitting the road with his band Adler. Steven is extremely thankful for all his success professionally. He said it is hard to believe sometimes everything that has happened in his life musically and remembers how amazing it was the first time he heard his song playing on the radio. He said it was the most incredible feeling ever. The same goes for playing with Guns n Roses. That, he says, was an incredible feeling as well and it is a feeling he longingly appears to experience again.

It is easy to understand what he means when he describes the certain magical chemistry that is formed when those particular band members are playing together. It is something that cannot be matched, if even just one of those unique pieces is out of place. It is alchemical. He said he has not heard anything about a Guns n Roses reunion and honestly he didn’t look like he ever expected too, which he says is sad because it would be awesome. There probably wouldn’t be anyone as excited as Steven if a reunion ever did happen. He loves that music and how he feels when he plays it. Getting to play it again with all the guys together would bring him immense joy. Adler is proud of his musical legacy and rightly so. In 2012 he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with his other Guns n Roses bandmates.

At times it may seem to outsiders that Guns n Roses band members only communicate through the media, but Steven says that is not so. He said he was just talking to Slash the other day about the art show and even sent him some pictures from the event. Adler said Slash was really happy for him and that the art show was so successful. The art show did so well as a matter of fact, Steven pretty much sold out everything.

Full interview: http://www.axs.com/news/talking-music-art-recovery-and-reunion-with-steven-adler-69437

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I find it so amusing that people on GNR forums consistently rubbish Adler yet people like Richard Fortus are legends.

No real disrespect meant towards Richard, but that guy has made a living playing other people's songs, Adler was a significant part of one of the best hard rock bands ever.

significant?

lol

he was your another sunset strip drummer

Nothing more, nothing less

He was good in 1987-88

After that, he literally did NOTHING good

Btw he has got as much song writing credit as 4tus, lol

That is why the band had to paid him some more royalties before he goes into full crybaby mode and fucked up another recording session

Edited by Strange Broue
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I find it so amusing that people on GNR forums consistently rubbish Adler yet people like Richard Fortus are legends.

No real disrespect meant towards Richard, but that guy has made a living playing other people's songs, Adler was a significant part of one of the best hard rock bands ever.

significant?

lol

he was your another sunset strip drummer

Nothing more, nothing less

He was good in 1987-88

After that, he literally did NOTHING good

Btw he has got as much song writing credit as 4tus, lol

That is why the band had to paid him some more royalties before he goes into full crybaby mode and fucked up another recording session

No other Sunset Strip drummer actually sounded like Adler. They were all playing on massive tanks and imitating Tommy Lee whereas Adler went back-to-basics.

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People aren't really mocking his drumming though...

You can be a great musician, a legend, and a complete tool at the same time.

However you care to analyse it, ''a complete tool'' would adequately describe just about every ''great'' and ''legend'' in the entire music industry.

What is he doing so wrong here, to make himself look a 'tool', as different from everybody else - least of all his former band mates? Somebody answer me this, please!

Is it 'heroin'? Izzy and Slash were hardcore junkies also; Izzy was a junkie years in advance of Adler. 'Booze'? Duff's exploding pancreas anyone? Slash's electronic heart thingy? 'Being a Sunset stripper hair rocker cheesy sort of guy'? Have you seen those early pictures of Guns N' Roses in Robert John's book: they are dressed as women? Guns N' Roses were basically five transsexuals in 1985, chicks with dicks!

In many ways Adler was the archetypical member of Guns N' Roses. He was ''Mr Guns N' Roses'' , a product of sunset strip addicted to smack and booze. All of his perceived 'vices' are affiliations of Guns N' Roses themselves, as celebrated by the band in their lyrics and lifestyle.

To criticise Adler over this stuff would be like, criticising Mike Hussey for obsessing about cricket.

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I find it so amusing that people on GNR forums consistently rubbish Adler yet people like Richard Fortus are legends.

No real disrespect meant towards Richard, but that guy has made a living playing other people's songs, Adler was a significant part of one of the best hard rock bands ever.

He's made a living playing in big bands, and used that living to finance his work with the Compulsions and the Dead Daisies, which are two great gritty rock bands. It's not his fault that Axl runs a business more than he runs a band. Fortus has done plenty of high quality original music, and the fact that it doesn't make him money isn't a knock on him.

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People aren't really mocking his drumming though...

You can be a great musician, a legend, and a complete tool at the same time.

However you care to analyse it, ''a complete tool'' would adequately describe just about every ''great'' and ''legend'' in the entire music industry.

What is he doing so wrong here, to make himself look a 'tool', as different from everybody else - least of all his former band mates? Somebody answer me this, please!

Is it 'heroin'? Izzy and Slash were hardcore junkies also; Izzy was a junkie years in advance of Adler. 'Booze'? Duff's exploding pancreas anyone? Slash's electronic heart thingy? 'Being a Sunset stripper hair rocker cheesy sort of guy'? Have you seen those early pictures of Guns N' Roses in Robert John's book: they are dressed as women? Guns N' Roses were basically five transsexuals in 1985, chicks with dicks!

In many ways Adler was the archetypical member of Guns N' Roses. He was ''Mr Guns N' Roses'' , a product of sunset strip addicted to smack and booze. All of his perceived 'vices' are affiliations of Guns N' Roses themselves, as celebrated by the band in their lyrics and lifestyle.

To criticise Adler over this stuff would be like, criticising Mike Hussey for obsessing about cricket.

To me it has less to do with his drug habit than with the terrible sense of desperation that transpire through most of his interviews.

He sounds like that desperate ex-boyfriend who has his life on hold and who keeps listing reasons why his girlfriend is going to come back any minute...

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I find it so amusing that people on GNR forums consistently rubbish Adler yet people like Richard Fortus are legends.

No real disrespect meant towards Richard, but that guy has made a living playing other people's songs, Adler was a significant part of one of the best hard rock bands ever.

significant?

lol

he was your another sunset strip drummer

Nothing more, nothing less

He was good in 1987-88

After that, he literally did NOTHING good

Btw he has got as much song writing credit as 4tus, lol

That is why the band had to paid him some more royalties before he goes into full crybaby mode and fucked up another recording session

No other Sunset Strip drummer actually sounded like Adler. They were all playing on massive tanks and imitating Tommy Lee whereas Adler went back-to-basics.

Thats only cuz Duff and Izzy stripped his kit when he wasnt around haha.

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Man I was really hopin they'd drag adler around if there was a reunion he really gave those AFD songs an awesome groove. And izzy seemed really upset after adler left the band so I wonder if izzy would want adler included

I would think he would but on the other hand, Izzy doesn't like drama, and he seems to stay away from people still dealing with addiction. (Says I, like I know the man, and I don't.) And he knows Steven very well, so I imagine he'd have an opinion.

Adler sounds like someone hanging onto sobriety by his fingernails. And that's not an insult - being sober by any means, for however long, is great. But if there were to be a reunion I wouldn't blame anyone for thinking Adler couldn't handle it. The difference between him and Izzy/Slash/Duff, who had horrible addiction problems of their own, is that they've been clean and/or sober for years and he hasn't. Any addict is vulnerable to relapse, but they haven't recently, and he has. And that's very very sad, but I think Adler might have been better off had he never been in GnR to begin with. This isn't a man built to withstand pressure and stress and temptation.

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If I were a betting man, I'd put the odds of Steven joining Axl, Slash, and Duff on-stage for any kind of tour as very low. I agree with he point made above that if those three want Izzy to join them from time to time that Adler likely wouldn't be invited.

Also, one wonders if money would play a factor. Not sure who would be more expensive, Matt or Steven, but if the idea was to make money off the project, having fewer classic members would mean more money for Axl, Slash, and Duff.

Moreover, if I'm wrong and Steven is the guy they'd go with for a tour, does anyone honestly think that they'd tell him until they were ready to announce? Highly doubt they'd let Steven break the news.

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If I were a betting man, I'd put the odds of Steven joining Axl, Slash, and Duff on-stage for any kind of tour as very low. I agree with he point made above that if those three want Izzy to join them from time to time that Adler likely wouldn't be invited.

Also, one wonders if money would play a factor. Not sure who would be more expensive, Matt or Steven, but if the idea was to make money off the project, having fewer classic members would mean more money for Axl, Slash, and Duff.

Moreover, if I'm wrong and Steven is the guy they'd go with for a tour, does anyone honestly think that they'd tell him until they were ready to announce? Highly doubt they'd let Steven break the news.

Yet Izzy has always been adamant that the band were never the same band again without Adler,

Adler's drumming made the band, he made a big musical difference. His sense of swing was the push and pull that gave the songs their feel. Afterwards, nothing worked
(Izzy Stradlin, Guitar World, November 1992).
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If I were a betting man, I'd put the odds of Steven joining Axl, Slash, and Duff on-stage for any kind of tour as very low. I agree with he point made above that if those three want Izzy to join them from time to time that Adler likely wouldn't be invited.

Also, one wonders if money would play a factor. Not sure who would be more expensive, Matt or Steven, but if the idea was to make money off the project, having fewer classic members would mean more money for Axl, Slash, and Duff.

Moreover, if I'm wrong and Steven is the guy they'd go with for a tour, does anyone honestly think that they'd tell him until they were ready to announce? Highly doubt they'd let Steven break the news.

Yet Izzy has always been adamant that the band were never the same band again without Adler,

Adler's drumming made the band, he made a big musical difference. His sense of swing was the push and pull that gave the songs their feel. Afterwards, nothing worked
(Izzy Stradlin, Guitar World, November 1992).

I'm sure Izzy in 2015 would still agree with that statement, but with Adler's sobriety in question, not sure if Izzy would feel comfortable with being in close proximity to him on a consistent basis twenty years later.

In any event, if a reformed GNR were to happen, my guess would be that it would limited to Axl, Slash, Duff and the random Izzy appearance.

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I don't see the problem with selecting Adler but having Sorum on reserve. Maybe have Sorum guest on three-four Illusion songs and if Adler relapses, as everybody seems to think will be the case, draft in Sorum full time. It is a win-win scenario as Adler gets his chance and Sorum is represented and involved.

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