If Velvet Revolver had been any other band its debut album “Contraband” would have been phenomenal. However, the super-group features former Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland, Slash, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum of Guns N Roses fame and Dave Kushner from The Cult.
Most bands don’t have this type of pressure. It is hard to make the public forget your old image and even harder to make them accept the new one.
Two years ago Audioslave was faced with a similar situation — Chris Cornell from Soundgarden fronting the guys from Rage Against the Machine. Their album sold well, but the album reviews did not mirror the band’s collective talents.
Velvet Revolver will most likely suffer the same fate. Its album is very good, but it is not enough to satisfy the hunger of Guns N Roses fans who have been waiting patiently for the follow up to 1993’s lackluster “Spaghetti Incident?”
Like Audioslave, Velvet Revolver will gain a new following of impressionable teens . But even winning over the MTV brats is going to be a task with a band roster ranging in age from Weiland’s 36 years old to Sorum’s 43 years old.
“Big Machine” seems to ooze opiates and -no pun intended- there is
some real substance here. Weiland at least seems aware of the predicament he is in and is not oblivious to the world around him. Lyrics like “Gettin’ high, crashing cars and makin’ mistakes” from “Superhuman” seem sincere but it is still questionable whether the references to his own drug abuse are from the heart or just a marketing tool.
Go ahead and put “Slither” up on the mantle for friends and family to see. It’s the centerpiece of the album and deserves all of the attention. Weiland’s swagger is alive and well here but the real excitement is from the monster rock song his bandmates created. Slash’s guitar solo is predictable but far superior to any of the swill coming from today’s radio.