L.A. Guns, a straight-up, in-your-face rock- ’n’-roll band from Los Angeles, was formed and founded by guitarist Tracii Guns in 1982. Through the years, the band has included famed members as Axl Rose, Phillip Lewis, and Jizzy Pearl. Today, touring band members besides Tracii include Jeremy Guns on bass, Alec Bauer (aka Big Al) on guitar, Chad Stewart on drums, and the newest weapon in their arsenal, “Rock Star” Marty Casey on vocals. The band’s motto is: “Live By The Guns, Die By The Guns,” a slogan which this hard-working outfit fulfills year after year. All Access Magazine got the inside scoop on the latest doings of L.A. Guns in a recent interview with the band...
AAM (Debra Stocker): Hey, Jeremy, how’s it going?
Jeremy Guns: Were chillin’ up here in Canada, eh?
AAM: So you’re still up there in Canada?
JG: Yeah, we have the whole band up here.
AAM: Thanks for taking the time to give us a holler! Word has it that you’re up there recording a new album. I was doing some research and I noticed there has been a change in your line-up, right?
JG: There has? (Laughs with the band in the background)
AAM: Would you share with our readers what that is?
JG: Our line-up now is me, Jeremy Guns, on bass, Big Alec Bauer on guitar, Chad Stewart on drums, Marty Casey on vocals, and of course the legend, Tracii Guns, on lead guitar - or should I say, “The Icon!”
AAM: So what does this change mean for former singer Paul Black?
JG: We wish him the best, and hope everything works out for him.
AAM: On with the new?
JG: Yes, on with the new.
AAM: So if it’s true that you guys are off in Canada recording their new album, are there any thoughts of a title or possible release date?
JG: We have a whole new band and a lot of new songs. We haven’t titled the new album yet. Not until we sit down and really go through the songs, will we figure out what works best. We are targeting March of 2009 for a release date.
AAM: So you wouldn’t have a new album with you on your upcoming summer tour?
JG: No, but we’re going to be playing a couple of new songs, plus all the hits. We’ll give you a little taste of what will be coming out.
AAM : Will your new vocalist, Marty Casey, be on this new album?
JG: Of course!
AAM: Congrats on hooking up with your new label, Alexus. How will this change make things different from the way L.A. Guns has done things in the past?
JG: We are still a working band - with a lot of mosquito bites! Our new label will bring on the best marketing that’s out there and push it so the whole world can hear it, including a tour behind it.
Tracii Guns: Which means you’re going to be seeing a lot more of us!
AAM: Do you think Glam Metal is making a comeback?
Tracii: No, I think the bands are out there still working their asses off. Yes, maybe there might be kids who didn’t get to see it back in the day, who are curious and just checking out the bands, and spandex too, which I think is great. But, I don’t think you’re going to get the early 90’s era back again. I don’t think TRL is going play Enuff Z'Nuff again. No that’s never gonna happen again.
AAM: Rocklahoma is coming up here really soon. You were one of ONLY three bands asked back this year. How did that come about?
Tracii: We did a really good show last year, with a lot of great reviews, and they were kind enough to ask us back.
AAM: Last year there were about 30,000 people, right?
Tracii: But this year they are expecting 200 to 300 thousand!
AAM: Even with the economy the way it is?
Tracii: Yes! Pre-sale tickets for this year’s event went on sale the day after the show ended last year. And the VIP tickets are SOLD OUT! They were already 20, no 30 thousand tickets sold even before they officially posted the dates!
AAM: Rock-’n’-roll is all about having fun and Rocklahoma is all about the party. It looks like Rocklahoma has really affected the future of L.A. Guns, and we will be seeing a lot more of you, true?
Tracii: Yes, that’s right, I definitely think last year’s Rocklahoma played a huge part in the forward motion of our grand scheme of things. I think for us the movement is the respect for these old bands that didn’t really get the deserved respect for how big they were for how long the whole movement went on. It just ended very quickly, and now people are understanding that their music was like the soundtrack of their lives and they’re coming back to it. The music, like people’s lives, is about being re-born and having fun again. We are in a recession and people are really anchoring back to the best part of their life, with the music they grew up with, getting to do it again with these BIG festivals that are coming out, along with the challenge of making new art and new music. Their interest in music has been refurbished, recreated. So for us, bringing in the label and a new world tour is making the band stronger than it has been in the past 15 years.
AAM: What’s the best way to keep up with L.A. Guns news and touring info?
JG: Our websites are www.lagunslive.com and Myspace.com/losangelesguns. Also, check out MartyCasey.com. Marty blogs on there every day.
AAM: Is there anything else you would like to tell our readers?
Tracii: See you on the road!
All Access Magazine congratulates L.A Guns on their new singer, new label, upcoming world tour, and forthcoming album. AAM will see YOU at Rocklahoma!
L.A. Guns Tour Dates
06/27/08 Green Bay, WI Club Toxic
06/28/08 Sault Ste. Marie, ON Runway Park appearing with Skid Row
07/10/08 Pryor, OK Pryor Creek Festival Grounds- Rocklahoma
07/11/08 Dallas, TX Firewater South Texas Rock Fest
07/12/08 Boerne, TX Javelina Harley-Davidson
07/13/08 Houston, TX The Meridian
07/17/08 Raleigh, NC Volume 11 Tavern
07/18/08 Johnson City, TN Nashville Station
07/19/08 West Springfield, VA Jaxx
07/23/08 Schaumburg, IL Chicago City Limits
07/24/08 Green Bay, WI Club Toxic
07/25/08 Saint Paul, MN Station 4
07/26/08 Sioux Falls, SD Festival Grounds - Dakota Rock fest
07/30/08 Southbridge, MA Artist Development Complex
07/31/08 Farmingdale, NY The Crazy Donkey
08/01/08 Yonkers, NY The Haunt
08/02/08 Factoryville, PA Trailside Inn
08/07/08 Springfield, MA Stearns Square
08/15/08 Aurora, CO Illiff Park Saloon
08/16/08 Pueblo Of Acoma, NM Sky City Casino
08/19/08 Seattle, WA El Corazon
08/20/08 Portland, OR Hawthorne Theatre
08/22/08 Hermosa Beach, CA Saint Rocke
08/23/08 Las Vegas, NV Deep Rock Drive
