Slash: Rock got boring

ICONINSIDER — Slash thinks rock music has been “dull and boring” for the last decade.
The Guns n’ Roses guitarist believes commercial forces had a negative impact on the genre as bands were pressured into making their songs radio friendly rather than doing something new and exciting, prompting fans to find what they’re looking for in other genres such as rap and hip-hop.
He told Billboard Radio China: “When Velvet Revolver came out, there was definitely a movement that started in the early to mid-’90s that held up all the way through the end of that decade and went into the millennium. And so we came out and there was tons of new rock and roll bands. And they weren’t ‘nu metal’ and they weren’t indie bands, but there was definitely this kind of indie-esque feel to them.
“And I think one of the reasons that Velvet Revolver was as successful as it was had a lot to do with [singer] Scott Weiland, because he was still a holdover from that kind of thing, with Stone Temple Pilots, that came from the ’90s and blah blah blah. Anyway, but it was all cool.
“And then, as we got down the line, it seemed that rock sort of got… More than anything, the commercial approach to rock and roll that the industry forces on bands, or forces people to think that this is how they have to go about it to succeed, and it just turns into this generic mishmosh that manages to get on the radio but doesn’t really turn anybody on, and it’s just dull and boring and people start looking elsewhere.”
However, the 53-year-old rocker thinks things are starting to change and he’s excited to see how some new “hungry, young” bands fare in the coming years.
He added: “And I think that was, really, what happened to the industry, as far as rock and roll is concerned, after 2006 up until just recently. But it seems to be turning over a new leaf right now. So I’m really interested to see where it goes over the next few years, ’cause there’s a lot of really hungry, young, rock and roll bands getting together right now that I’m aware of.
“And, obviously, Greta Van Fleet have done amazingly well and made everybody perk up and go, ‘Oh, wow!’ Now there’s people out there looking for young, teenage rock and roll bands to sign. So it’s interesting.
“If you watch everything as it develops in real time, it’s really, really boring and s**t takes what seems like forever. But if you’re not paying attention, all of sudden, you’ll turn around and go, ‘Oh my God! Something just changed.’ And it’s just a constant state of ebbs and flows of rock and roll in this business.”

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