L.A. Guns guitarist Tracii Guns is also credited as being a founding member of Guns N’ Roses, which was launched in 1985. Guesting on The Bad Decisions Podcast With Scott Nathan, Tracii looked back on living and working with frontman Axl Rose during the singer’s formative years, and his decision to leave G’N’R only two months after the band formed.
Tracii: “He was a great roommate. The interesting thing about Axl is he really knows right from wrong. Let’s just start there. He’s smart, he’s responsible, he is not afraid to ask for help when he needs help, he’s always ready to give help; a really solid person. We really had a great friendship. We were inseparable for a few years. The thing that changed – and I had known; he had told me – he had manic depression. And I would have never known, until the one day. And the one day was, he was off with a junior high school friend of mine. He had taken some ecstasy and we didn’t see him for, like, a week, and he showed up at this gig and he was just like a completely different person. I was, like, ‘Whoa. Who are you? Who’s this guy?” That’s when the other side of that kind of kicked in.”
“I couldn’t deal with that. I loved him on the one side – the person I knew, and we were creative together, we were funny together – but at that time, he really wanted to take control over everything around him. And that’s when we were getting really popular. Before that, he was more aware and taking in information and kind of sorting out what we were doing and how this is going, and all that stuff. But once we knew, once he knew that we were locked, that Guns N’ Roses was going only one direction… sometimes he would talk for 40 minutes out of a 60-minute set on stage, stuff like that. I would look at Izzy (Stradlin / guitar) and he would be very passive about it. I’d be, like, ‘Fuck that, man. I’m here to play guitar.’”
It was almost 40 years ago that L.A. Guns established themselves as the undisputed sleaze kings of the Sunset Strip, and, eventually, the world. At this point in time, most bands in their position would be content to lay back, rest on their rock ‘n’ roll laurels and trot out the hits on endless repeat for the fans.
Instead, L.A. Guns, in true down ‘n’ dirty form, are grinding with the April 4 release of their 15th studio album, Leopard Skin, on Cleopatra Records. The mouthwatering first single, “Taste It,” was released today on all digital outlets. Pre-orders for the album are available now in digital format here. CD/vinyl pre-orders can be placed at this location, and the Jason Wisch-directed video can be found below.
“There’s the saying, ‘a leopard never changes its spots,’” founding guitarist Tracii Guns says. “But even so, they have a million different spots. And they’re all unique. It’s the same with L.A. Guns. We can’t shed our Leopard Skin, but there’s a lot of different spots in this band.”
Those spots run the gamut from early anthems like “Electric Gypsy,” “Rip And Tear” and “Over The Edge,” to indelible ballads like “It’s Over Now” and “The Ballad Of Jayne,” to more recent classics like “Speed,” “Cannonball” and now, the ten tracks that comprise the new album.
Not only is Leopard Skin hot on the heels of 2023’s Black Diamonds album, but is also their fifth studio effort in seven years, since the core team of guitarist and band founder Tracii Guns and singer Phil Lewis reunited in 2017. Leopard Skin, like the last few L.A. Guns records, reconvenes the tight-knit lineup of Guns, Lewis, bassist Johnny Martin, guitarist Ace Von Johnson and studio drummer Adam Hamilton, but beyond that it is its own unique beast. True to form, it’s a hard-and-heavy, tough-as-nails L.A. Guns set. But the music also presents the band at their funkiest, rowdiest, most classic-rock-worshipping best. And it’s clear they’re having a helluva lot of fun playing it.
Explains Tracii, “When we started doing records again in 2017, I wanted to be really aggressive. We hadn’t put out anything new in a lot of years, and we needed to be focused to have an impact. This one was a different approach. Musically, it was more about James Brown and soul music, with some ’70s sensibilities – things like Joe Walsh and the Rolling Stones and the New York Dolls. And the process was more organic. It was, ‘Here’s a riff, go for it. Let’s see how many riffs we can build after this riff, and then going into the next riff.’”
The results speak for themselves. You want a four-on-the-floor AC/DC-style stomper? Cue up anthemic opener “Taste It.” Slippery funk-rock? Try out “Lucky Motherfucker” or “Don’t Gimme Away.” Rollicking ‘70s-style glam? Drop the needle on “If You Wanna.” Swampy, slide guitar-laced grooves? Crank up the Zep-tastic “The Grinder.”
Where does that position L.A. Guns in 2025? Tracii returns to Leopard Skin. “The song title ‘Lucky Motherfucker’ kinda says it all,” he says. “Because I don’t know how many other bands that have been around almost 40 years are still out there not just touring consistently, but putting out records consistently, and the thing just keeps getting bigger and bigger from year to year.”
He continues. “So the work ethic is yielding what it’s supposed to, you know what I mean? The fans stay excited, we stay excited, and we keep making records. And as long as we have that opportunity and there’s a place for this music in the world, there’s no reason to ever stop.”
Tracklisting:
“Taste It”
“Lucky Motherfucker”
“The Grinder”
“Hit And Run
“Don’t Gimme Away”
“I’m Your Candy Man”
“Runaway Train”
“Follow The Money”
“The Masquerade”
“If You Wanna”
“Taste It” video:
Tour dates:
March
10-15 – Miami, FL – Monsters of Rock Cruise
April
22 – Warrendale, PA – Jergels
23 – N. Tonawanda, NY – Riviera Theatre
25 – Derry, NH – Tupelo Music Hall
26 – New Bedford, MA – The Vault Music Hall
27 – Millersville, PA – Phantom Power
29 – Annapolis, MD – Rams Head on Stage
30 – Ardmore, PA – The Ardmore Music Hall
May
1 – Leesburg, VA – Tally Ho Theater
2 – Hopewell, VA – The Beacon Theatre
4 – Virginia Beach, VA – Elevation 27
6 – Atlanta, GA – City Winery Atlanta
9 – Fort Myers, FL – Buddha Live
10 – Dania Beach, FL – The Casino’s Stage 954 @ Dania Beach Entertainment Center
11 – Mount Dora, FL – Mount Dora Music Hall
13 – Largo, FL – Central Park Performing Arts Center
15 – Jefferson, LA – Southport Music Hall
16 – Cedar Park, TX – The Haute Spot
17 – Dallas, TX – Granada Theater
18 – Houston, TX – Warehouse Live Midtown
23 – Omaha, NE – Barnato
24 – Denver, CO – The Oriental Theater
July
18 – West Hollywood, CA – Whisky a Go Go
19 – West Hollywood, CA – Whisky a Go Go
26 – Beaver Dam, KY – Beaver Dam Amphitheater
(Band photo – Joe Schaeffer)
Source: bravewords.com
