Duff McKagan: China, Stray Dogs, and Where You Can Find Earth's Most Passionate Rock Fans

Posted Nov. 19 at 11:58 am by Duff McKagan

Making friends on the road. Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. He writes about what's circulating through his iPod every Monday.

​It seems there are so many things to write about this week that are all rather timely. Instead of picking one topic, then, I am going to give a short rundown of the things that have either piqued my interest and/or personal observations. Here goes . . .

South America

South American rock fans are bar none the best and most passionate in the world. Maybe it is because bands really didn't start going down there until the '90s, or maybe it's because their blood just runs a little hotter. For whatever reason, it's a place I always look forward to playing live.

I just returned from a Loaded tour of Argentina, Brazil, and Chile, and this was the first time that I actually was ever able to get out and see some things. Fans down there will surround the hotel that a band stays at and WILL follow you en masse if you decide to take a stroll anywhere. When I was there with VR and GN'R, a walk around town in South America was simply not doable. With Loaded, while we still have those over-anxious fans, we seem to be able to talk to them and calm them down . . . with the help of a translator, of course.

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I've Been Listening to Minor Threat, Flight of the Conchords, and Clutch (With a Knuckle Sandwich)

Posted Nov. 16 at 7:45 am by Duff McKagan

Flight of the Conchords

Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. He writes about what's circulating through his iPod every Monday.

​Clutch, "Mob Goes Wild": Clutch are the type of band that you need never worry about being a "late-comer" to. They simply play a timeless style of dirty boogie-rock that is fad-proof, if you will. "Mob Goes Wild" showcases these guys' marriage of killer groove and humor, all wrapped up in a knuckle sandwich!

Flight of the Conchords, "Too Many Dicks (On the Dancefloor)," (I Told You I Was Freaky): A couple years ago, I was introduced to the music of FOTC through their HBO series. I bought their first Sub Pop CD sometime later that year. With the release of this newest record, FOTC have somehow found a way to elaborate on the kooky style that they alone invented.

Minor Threat, "Betray," (Out Of Step): For those of you who are sick of it all and want to break the windows and smash the state, may I suggest this song by the most excellent Minor Threat. Enough said...

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Them Crooked Vultures and a Super Group of Dudes

Posted Nov. 12 at 7:43 am by Duff McKagan

Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. He writes about what's circulating through his iPod every Monday. Them Crooked Vultures play The Paramount on Saturday, November 21.

​When I first heard that John Paul Jones, Dave Grohl, and Josh Homme were forming a band last spring, I must say that I was jealous. Are you kidding me?! These three mega-talented and unique figures playing hard rock in a unified and focused group? I was excited, to say the least, from a player's perspective AND as a fan. Then came the inevitable "supergroup" tags.

Lazy journalists like to put a tag on anything they can in an attempt to sum up a whole genre or movement with a quick phrase that will make their job easier and take a swipe at a band in the process. You know, "stoner rock," "grunge," "indie," "hair metal," etc. "Supergroup" conjures a negative image in my mind, and we in Velvet Revolver had to deal with this label in our first year. Fans never called us a supergroup, mind you, only journalists. I've heard this title being bandied about in reference to Them Crooked Vultures, and I think it is a cheap way out.

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I've Been Listening to The Clash, Refused, and D.O.A., the Unsung Heroes of North American Punk

Posted Nov. 9 at 7:42 am by Duff McKagan

The Clash. Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. He writes about what's circulating through his iPod every Monday.

​The Clash, "Complete Control" (The Clash): This is a song that dominated the formula that was to become punk/pop or commercial punk or whatever you want to call it. Hey, I like Rancid and all, but listen to Complete Control and see if you can hear comparisons. I'm not sayin...I'm just sayin!

D.O.A., "The Prisoner" (single from 1977): This band is, bar none, the unsung hero of North American punk. Because D.O.A. hailed from Vancouver, B.C., I got to see them live on many occasion as a young lad. These guys were my KISS. I love D.O.A. and you all should check them out!

Refused, "New Noise" (Shape of Punk To Come): When you're on tour - like I am right now — you always need to hear a song that kicks your ass and puts you in the right frame of mind to crush. New Noise is that song for me. I just listened to it a few minutes ago and my hotel room is trashed!

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No Duff Today

Posted Nov. 5 at 12:03 pm by Chris Kornelis

​Not to worry, Duff McKagan will be back here on Reverb on Monday to talk about what he's been listening to. And his regular column will be back here on Thursday, Nov. 12, which I can assure you will be a doozy. In the meantime, feel free to ruminate on all the good times he's delivered, such as ....

— Touring Around the UK Without My Vision Again

— My Story: Getting to LA, Getting Guns, and Getting Gigs

— This Is Punk Rock: From the Ramones to the Stiff Little Fingers

— You Can't Fall From the Floor

— Rock Has Changed My (Facebook) Friends

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I've Been Listening to Whatever My Daughter's Listening to: Pixie Lott, Plasticines, and Phoenix

Posted Nov. 2 at 10:07 am by Duff McKagan

Plastiscines

Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. He writes about what's circulating through his iPod every Monday.

​My oldest daughter, Grace, is now 12 years old and has become a major influence on the newer music that I find these days. I have always been an unapologetic fan of sometimes-cheesy pop music, and my ear will like things that others may find a little uncool. Oh, well. This week, take a trip with me into my daughter Grace's playlist, the newest and hippest stuff out there via YouTube:

Pixie Lott, "Boys and Girls"
I think this is one of Mark Ronson's new projects, as I saw this video a TON when I was recently in the UK. If you like Duffy and Amy Winehouse, Pixie Lott is a newer and perhaps poppier version of this ilk.

Plastiscines, "Barcelona"
Plasticines are a new all-girl rock/pop band with a knack for writing a good hook. This is really fun stuff that needs no high-brow critic to dissect them. Maybe like a cross between the Go-Gos and the Ting Tings. Check it out.

Phoenix, "1901"
"1901" was a song that at first listen did absolutely nothing for me. I remember thinking the same thing when I first heard the Strokes, though. But this single has grown on me to the point that I can't get the song out of my head now. Phoenix could be that next big thing.

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Duff McKagan: Surely There Is a Better Way in the Middle East. Even a Rocker Like Me Knows That

Posted Oct. 29 at 2:37 pm by Duff McKagan

Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. Check back on Monday when he writes about what's playing on his iPod.

​Many may scoff when they see I am writing a pseudo-political piece. Many, too, will likely proclaim that I have no right to take up a pen on a topic as lofty and complex as Afghanistan and Iraq. But I am a proud citizen of the United States and a member of a family that has sent seven of its members into war in just two generations. I am a student in this life, ever learning and interested in the things that happen now and have happened in the past. Here now are a few of my quick conclusions:

When I read that former Marine Captain Matthew Hoh had resigned his post in protest as a U.S. Foreign Service member in Afghanistan, I decided to finally write my direct opinion as to what and why we are over there.

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I've Been Listening to Iggy Pop, Iggy Pop, and Iggy Pop

Posted Oct. 27 at 6:53 am by Duff McKagan

This is Iggy. Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. He also writes about what's running through his iPod every Monday. Well, in this case, Tuesday.

​Iggy and the Stooges, "Shake Appeal" (Raw Power): I got myself into a bit of an Iggy phase this last week after reading Watch You Bleed (By Stephen Davis). "Shake Appeal" has one of the baddest riffs ever in the history of rock and roll.

Iggy Pop, "Sister Midnight" (The Idiot): Iggy has had many different phases of his career and his 'Berlin years' writing and recording with David Bowie stand out to me as probably the most drastic, and in a way, prolific. "Sister Midnight" is more a state of mind than a real song, but certainly showcases how ahead of its time this song was. The early use of synthesizer in conjunction with real drums and bass were to feed the imagination of a New Wave that was still six years away.

Iggy Pop, "Butt Town" (Brick By Brick): Why "Butt Town"? It has a great sense of humor. And, hell, Slash and I played on it!!

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Chloe and Me...and Buckley, Too

Posted Oct. 22 at 12:34 pm by Duff McKagan

Duff McKagan

Buckley, the well-traveled dog. Duff McKagan's column appears every Thursday on Reverb. He also writes about what tracks are making their way through his iPod every Monday.

​At this moment I am sitting on a train awaiting departure from Glasgow, Scotland, south to Newcastle. My wife just left this morning, heading back home. The rest of the band is already in Newcastle, as they chose to have their day off down there while I stayed up here. Yes, yesterday was a much-coveted rest day, a day to let the bruises heal and the various joint-swellings recess a bit.

Yesterday, I finally watched Marley and Me. I had read the book when it came out, but had resisted actually seeing the movie as the subject matter hits a little too close to home for me. You see, I had a yellow lab in my adult years who was a LOT like Marley except that she was a girl named Chloe.

To me, the parallels of the Marley story to my life are almost uncanny. I write a column, as does John Grogan, the author of Marley and Me. Chloe was a naughty and mischievous girl in her youth, as was Marley. Chloe chewed up anything and everything . . . so did Marley. Chloe helped us raise our daughters, and would know beforehand when one of them was going to be sick or otherwise out of tilt. Chloe would help nurse us back to health without expectation of reward. Chloe loved us without condition, and she in return became the love of our lives. When she got sick with liver cancer at the age of 13, we nursed her back and did anything and everything to ease her pain. When the stairs at our house became too much of a hurdle for my girl, I would carry her up so that she could sleep with us, her family.

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I've Been Listening to ABBA, Sweet, and Nirvana's "Negative Creep"

Posted Oct. 19 at 9:01 am by Duff McKagan

Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. He writes about what's circulating through his iPod every Monday.

​ABBA, "S.O.S." (ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits): For some reason, whenever I travel to the more northerly parts of the UK and/or Europe in Fall and Winter, ABBA starts creeping into my musical mind frame. You just can't say no to ABBA.

Sweet, "Set Me Free" (Desolation Boulevard): Sweet were the hard rocking edge of sugary pop back in the 70s. Where they may have "sold out" with songs like "Love is Like Oxygen" and "Wig Wam Bam," they more than made up with songs like "Sweet F.A." and "Set Me Free."

Nirvana, "Negative Creep" (Bleach): 20 years ago, Nirvana released a little-known record called Bleach. I remember Kim Warnick sending me records from Seattle by TAD and Soundgarden. When I heard "Negative Creep" I seemed to all at once, understand Nirvana.

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Touring Around the UK Without My Vision Again

Posted Oct. 15 at 8:50 am by Duff McKagan

Justin Dylan Renney

Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. He writes about what's circulating through his iPod every Monday.

​A couple of weeks back I finally got Lasik surgery for my eyes, and it was like magic. Where before I could not see up close or far away without glasses, after the surgery I could suddenly see all without the assistance of eyeglasses. Cool! However, in these first few weeks, I was forewarned that from day to day, my vision may get blurry and/or sharpen up. Today it is completely blurry.

This week, I feel as if I have nothing really to write about, so I will just sort of let the words flow and see what happens. It's not as if I haven't been doing anything, though. I am on a rock tour through the UK, and therefore have been in a different city every day. As I write from the top lounge of our tour bus this morning, I am looking out over the English Channel from Portsmouth. Portsmouth is where the D-Day attack was launched on June 6, 1944. I am a WWII fanatic, so this is pretty cool. Later today, after my two hours of phone interviews to Brazil, I will try and visit the war museum here before soundcheck.

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I've Been Listening to Fountain of Youth, The Subways, and Hot Legs

Posted Oct. 12 at 12:00 pm by Duff McKagan

Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. He writes about what's circulating through his iPod every Monday.

​Fountain of Youth, (Self Titled Demo): When on the road, oftentimes an artist will receive many unsolicited demo CDs from aspiring bands and the like. Most of the time...they are not so good, but I still listen. Mike and I were doing an in-store signing for our amp company at a music store in Birmingham, UK, recently, when we were approached by a 12-year-old kid and his Dad. They gave us a CD in hopes of us having the kid's band, Fountain of Youth open for us on our next trip through...yeah right. We popped in the CD on the bus later that night. These kids are like the new Subways!!! They'll get the gig for sure.

The Subways, "Rock and Roll Queen," (Young For Eternity): Fountain of Youth reminded me of how cool the Subways are. If you don't know them, check out this one song and you will be hooked.

Hot Leg, "Cocktails," (Red Light Fever): A great and cocky (I couldn't resist) English rock band fronted by Justin Hawkins, formerly of the Darkness. Killer song and he says 'cock' six times alone in one chorus!!!

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Saying Goodbye, Pete Doherty (Naked), and a Good Book or Two

Posted Oct. 8 at 1:55 pm by Duff McKagan

Justin Dylan Renney

New Loaded drummer Isaac Carpenter. Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb. McKagan writes about what's circulating through his iPod every Monday.

​As I stated last week, my band Loaded is back on tour and back in the UK, where we have been reasonably well received this year. We have a new drummer, Isaac Carpenter, who has never been to Europe or the UK...cool.

I knew there was something I liked about Isaac other than his incredible musicianship. I flew here from L.A. while the rest of the band flew in from Seattle. (I arrived hours after them.) I asked Isaac how his first transatlantic flight was, and he replied that he was teary the whole flight because he watched It's a Wonderful Life and Good Will Hunting on the trip. It's a Wonderful Life is my all-time favorite movie, which in itself probably speaks volumes about my imagined romantic ideals. We are on a ferry now from Scotland to Northern Ireland, and Isaac and I are unashamedly discussing the pros of The Notebook.

On Isaac's first morning in London, he noticed a naked and blanketed drunk man falling off a tour bus down near where our gear was to be picked up (a semi-famous rehearsal and storage facility named John Henry's). The naked man then got into a cab with two ladies. Isaac realized it was none other than Pete Doherty. A good first day in England, I would say. Definitely something to write home about.

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Photos: Don't Mess With McKagan

Posted Oct. 8 at 10:43 am by Chris Kornelis

Justin Dylan Renney

Watch a slideshow of Reverb columnist Duff McKagan and his band, Loaded, play Chop Suey on October 3.

​

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Duff McKagan: I've Been Listening to Gutter Twins, Spiritualized, and Visqueen's Message to Garcia

Posted Oct. 5 at 8:50 am by Duff McKagan

Justin Dylan Renney

Visqueen played The Salmon Bay Eagle, Saturday, as part of Seattle Weekly's Reverb Festival. Duff McKagan is on Reverb every Monday and Thursday.

​Visqueen, "So Long" (Message To Garcia): I listened to this CD last week on a drive through the mountains with my band of four grown men. "So Long" is an epic ode to heartbreak and heartache that silenced a car full of over-caffeinated men and perhaps drew a tear or two. Rachel Flotard and her band have written one of the best records that I have heard in a while. Period.

Gutter Twins, "Stations" (Saturnela): A great Sunday morning song or call to arms for humankind. Sorry if I seem a tad grandiose when writing on the Gutter Twins, but Mark Lanegan and Greg Duli evoke one to think and imagine beyond one's self.

Spritualized, "Ladies and Gentlemen, We Are Floating Through Space" (Ladies and Gentlemen, We Are Floating Through Space): This is a great groove piece to just sort of mellow yourself out with. I will put this song on if and when things get a little too hectic in life.

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