After one of the finest gigs we had in de Verlichte Geest so far, we had the opportunity to sit down with Steven Adler. Here's what he had to say:

 

 

Can I just start off by saying what an honour it is to get you on stage here, as small as it may be.

 

Thank you very much, but you know, the stage is as small as the imagination. It felt like we were playing an arena show.

 

And that's how it felt for us as well, I'm sure.

So we did our job man, that's all I care about, because I love playing music, and especially the GN'R songs, along with the new stuff.

And it's going down well, people know the new songs, they sing along, know the lyrics, and we're hearing wonderful things about it. It's really exciting.

 

So how was your previous experience with Belgium?

I don't think I've ever been blessed to play here before, but I'm glad we finally did.

You know, American people are not very passionate about music and rock n' roll anymore, just because they have too much of it, while European people still have that passion.

 

How easy or hard was it to get a line-up of such notable artists together?

I've been playing with most of the guys for 7-8 years now: our singer's been with us for a year and a half now, and back in the day he fit in immediately, from the first rehearsal on it's been nothing but great.

Chip Z'Nuff is a superstar, and he's been a great rhythm brother to me without a doubt.

Michael Thomas, on lead guitar, is an amazing player and an amazing performer.

Our newest is Robo, on rhythm guitar, who's starting to come out on his own and show himself more, so we're in a good spot.

The fact that just about anyone in the band has Polish heritage, may have something to do with it as well, but we work together great.

 

Can we expect a full length out of the current Adler's Appetite line-up, or any line-up at all?

Oh yeah, we've got another three weeks of touring Europe, and then we're hitting the studio.

We've been working with Fred Coury, the drummer from Cinderella, and besides being awesome at drumming, he's a great producer and songwriter as well.

He's done a lot of stuff for Disney, and if you're working for them, you must be doing something right...

With him in control, it's all fun and no hard times, which is what I'm all about.

 

How important is it to move along with the modern line of rock n' roll, or to stick to your roots and do you own thing?

I don't really care about the music nowadays, because in the US we get a new band every week.

Put it this way: I come from the generation of rock n' roll, where it's supposed to be artistic, a show, but I see bands nowadays, where I'm thinking: didn't I just buy a hamburger at McDonald's off this guy? It's just incredible!

I'm a big fan of Kiss, Aerosmith, who put on a great show, so I don't want to see a guy who works a burger joint. Shave for god's sake!

When looking at my heroes, I'm looking at someone who makes me want to be him, who's above the rest, you know?

 

Coming from a band who didn't care about the contemporaries, I don't suppose there's any new bands you want to promote?

Not really, I love the Foo Fighters, I love Green Day, but those aren't new bands.

Looks like I turned into my grandfather, who said: what is that crazy haircut, what is that crazy music, what are you looking like, a bum? I'm like that, I'm thinking "pull your pants up, it looks like you pooped your pants".

I'm not down with that jail look, where they take your belt away, causing your pants to hang down. I've been there, it stinks. Who'd look like that? Give me a pair of jeans and a shirt any day.

 

What's the shittiest thing that ever happened to you, both on- or off-stage, regardless of the venue size?

I guess that was when playing with Aerosmith one night, in Indiana, with the crowd on all sides of the stage, I ate a banana and drank some milk before going on stage, and we were playing "It's So Easy".

All the time I was yelling at my drum tech: "Get me a bucket, get me a bucket"!

The second the song was over, I went BLAAAAAAAAAAAAH right next to the drum kit.

I did cocaine right before going on-stage, and I felt like every single member of the audience was watching (which actually made sense) and thinking: "this guy's fucked up". The stress was killing me.

 

As a lifetime Guns N' Roses fan, I feel compelled to ask: how do you feel about what happened/is happening to the band, both positively and negatively?

As long as the five of us are still alive, I feel there is still a chance to do this again. We owe it to ourself to get together and do something, because we owe it to the fans more than anything. They have stuck with us, even after 25 years of not playing together.

We're five brothers, and we do what brothers do best: fight with each other, but I strongly believe time heals all wounds, and I think it's time for something to happen.

 

You've been playing with some of the guys over the years, right?

I heard Duff played with Axl in England, and Izzy joined in on an occasion also. That made me very happy, they're all doing really great, because I care about my brothers.

We all make mistakes, but I love them all dearly.

 

Having accomplished quite a lot yourself, is there any milestone you feel you still have to take, to make it all complete so to speak?

Yeah, I've got my book out, and doing that was very healing to me. We were on tour in the US at the release time, and when I got home, I made a big fire and threw the book in, closing the book on my past so to speak.

I've been active on http://www.adlersappetiteonline.com/ and on Twitter as well. I started out doing this myself, getting real great reactions from the fans, but the load of reactions got too big and I couldn't deal with it personally anymore. Goes to show again how great our fans truly are.

What I still want to accomplish: I want to fulfill my destiny, and finish what I started with the GN'R guys. That's all I want, finish with these assholes.

 

Time for our question machine gun: drums or guitars?

Drums!

 

Home sweet home, or all around the world?

All around the world.

 

Favourite musical era?

70's, Queen, Pink Floyd, David Bowie, ...

 

Winning the lottery or working your fingers to the bone to get paid?

Working my fingers to the bone.

 

Vinyl or technology?

I love vinyl, but I'm a huge fan of the iPod as well. I've got over 50,000 songs, and I like about 50 of them... I love it as well, but I'm never gonna listen to all of them.