{"id":52403,"date":"2016-07-11T07:51:01","date_gmt":"2016-07-11T12:51:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=52403"},"modified":"2016-07-11T07:51:01","modified_gmt":"2016-07-11T12:51:01","slug":"interview-with-matt-sorum-of-hollywood-vampires","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2016\/interview-with-matt-sorum-of-hollywood-vampires\/","title":{"rendered":"Matt Sorum of Hollywood Vampires"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Steve Patrick<\/span>
\n– Sr. Columnist —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Any drinking club that featured the likes of John Lennon, Keith Moon, Ringo Starr, Harry Nilsson, the immortal Alice Cooper is certainly worthy of tribute. Thankfully musician-turned-actor-turned-musician Johnny Depp not only agreed with this sentiment but mentioned the idea of forming a band to honor the fallen members of the original Hollywood Vampires to Cooper himself. As a result, the band Hollywood Vampires as we know them today came into being. <\/p>\n

The Hollywood Vampires\u2019 current live lineup consists of Cooper, Depp, Aerosmith\u2019s Joe Perry, Depp\u2019s songwriting collaborator Bruce Witkin, Cooper\u2019s guitarist Tommy Henriksen, STP\u2019s Robert DeLeo on bass, and ex-Guns N\u2019 Roses\/Velvet Revolver drummer Matt Sorum. <\/p>\n

The Vampires are currently in the midst of a North American tour in support of the band\u2019s eponymous album released last year. Sorum took some time out of the band\u2019s marathon touring schedule to discuss his involvement with the Vampires, checking out Dracula\u2019s Castle with Tim Burton, his solo work, recent losses in his life, and his new band Kings of Chaos. Sorum even clued us in on his favorite Johnny Depp movie.<\/p>\n

\"Matt
Matt Sorum by Zack Whitford<\/figcaption><\/figure>HRH: Hey Matt, what are you up to today?<\/p>\n

MS: Sitting in the back of the tour bus.<\/p>\n

HRH: Very nice, that\u2019s a good place to be on a hot day like today.<\/p>\n

MS: Yeah we\u2019ve got good air on this thing. <\/p>\n

HRH: (laughs) Good. Well, let\u2019s talk Hollywood Vampires. I know you\u2019ve backed some big names on drums before but did you ever think that you\u2019d be in a band with Alice Cooper, Joe Perry, and Johnny Depp of all people?<\/p>\n

MS: Not in my wildest dreams. (laughs) You know I kind of look at my life like I turn a corner and there\u2019s an experience, like one after another. I\u2019m very, very lucky and honored and blessed and all those things put together to be playing with these guys. I\u2019m just having an experience, a life experience and being able to share it with the public \u2026 hopefully, they come into it and enjoy it and just rock out. Get out of their everyday troubles and listen to some rock n\u2019 roll and join the party, know what I\u2019m saying? So it\u2019s like, it\u2019s very, very cool to be here.<\/p>\n

HRH: Do you recall your first exposure to Alice\u2019s music?<\/p>\n

MS: Oh yeah. I mean I was in my early teens, not to give away his age, but everyone knows he\u2019s been around\u2026and uh, me and my buddy we packed up the station wagon and I believe we brought a 4 finger lid of marijuana, rolled about 20 joints, cooling up the highway kinda like Almost Famous, and went to see the Welcome to My Nightmare tour. I believe it was 1976 and sat in the 17th row. Somehow we got 17th row center. My mind was blown, you know. Opened the show with \u201cWelcome to My Nightmare\u201d\u2026the whole theatrical experience. I just remember, \u201cWow, I love this guy and I love the theatrics and everything he\u2019s about.\u201d You know, showbiz and the whole thing\u2026rock n\u2019 roll. The scary stuff was cool \u2018cause you\u2019re a kid. (laughs) The shock rocker!<\/p>\n

HRH: Next thing you know you\u2019re touring with Alice in his band and visit Castle Dracula with him and Tim Burton. <\/p>\n

MS: Now, you know, that\u2019s something I\u2019ve talked about which is just mind-blowing. You know you go through your life, you don\u2019t know what\u2019s coming next, you\u2019re just kind of like chugging along and next thing you know you\u2019re in Bucharest driving in a bus with Alice Cooper to Dracula\u2019s Castle\u2026turn around and up walks Tim Burton. I\u2019m like, \u201cWait a minute.\u201d (laughs) This is just bizarre! You know, it\u2019s just like\u2026those moments I always hold very dear to me and if I have any moment of getting down or whatever I go, \u201cHold on. Number one I\u2019ve played all over the world in some of the greatest venues with some of the greatest musicians. Now I\u2019m at Dracula\u2019s Castle.\u201d So, it just keeps on coming, you know? Couldn\u2019t be any luckier guy in the world. You know, I grew up a fan of rock n\u2019 roll and became a drummer, came to Hollywood in the late 70\u2019s, and fulfilled every dream and then some. All I wanted to do was be in a band, make records, tour, and it\u2019s really gone beyond my wildest dreams. I got into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame a few years ago. I never thought that would ever happen. You know all these unexpected, top of the heap Rock n\u2019 Roll stuff. I\u2019m out here on this journey with these guys, getting to know them better\u2026really cool, really cool, and I hope people come out to the show and see what we\u2019re doing up there because the whole idea of this is a tribute to our fallen brothers in rock n\u2019 roll. Alice\u2019s club the Hollywood Vampires from the 70\u2019s hosted guys like John Lennon, Keith Moon, John Bonham, Jimi Hendrix and it\u2019s really a tribute to rock n\u2019 roll. It\u2019s a tribute to these guys that created this legacy of rock n\u2019 roll music that really is a common thread through all of us. If you\u2019re a rock n\u2019 roll fan, there\u2019s no getting away from The Who, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, The Doors. You know, we just added David Bowie. Lost him this year, you know. And I say to people, \u201cWho\u2019s going to replace these guys?\u201d You know? Where are they? I\u2019m just glad that I\u2019m a part of it and be able to celebrate it. We just added a Mot\u00f6rhead song to the set. We just keep losing these guys along the way, but this is a celebration of their music. It\u2019s an uplifting thing, you know. It\u2019s like, \u201cLook at what they\u2019ve given us as a gift.\u201d It\u2019s super cool. <\/p>\n

HRH: Well you can\u2019t really go wrong with a set list like you guys are putting out there. I just watched a full set on YouTube the other night and it was great.<\/p>\n

MS: Oh and we\u2019re getting better every day too. I mean we\u2019re out here on the road. You know, we threw this band together obviously, so it takes a minute to fall into a stride. I think we really hit it the other night. I looked over and everybody was really feeling it. You know, we\u2019re only about 4 shows in and I said to Johnny, I said, \u201cJohnny, it\u2019s going to take us about 5 or 6 shows to really hit our stride.\u201d Then we\u2019ll just be sailing. We\u2019re getting ready to do 8 shows in a row here so Alice Cooper doesn\u2019t mess around. He just wants to go play rock n\u2019 roll. Maybe a little golf on the side. (laughs) <\/p>\n

\"Hollywood
Hollywood Vampires by Ross Halfin Photography<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

HRH: What is your favorite part of this set?<\/p>\n

MS: Well I like playing the Zeppelin stuff. When I get to play Zeppelin or The Who I can really take off and be\u2026the reason I became a drummer was these guys, you know? The Hendrix stuff has tricky beats\u2026 The Doors\u2019 stuff, John Densmore. Then I lay it down for some of the others like T. Rex, the Bowie, keep it steady for the boys to solo over, but I get to go nuts on The Who stuff and that\u2019s cool. Then obviously playing Alice Cooper songs with Alice Cooper. (laughs) And playing, you know, we throw a couple of Aerosmith ones in there\u2026obviously The Yardbirds\u2019 \u201cTrain Kept a Rollin\u2019\u201d and \u201cSweet Emotion\u201d which is super cool to play. Simple, but a groove, you know? Joey Kramer, I want to respect him and what he gave to the music and I try to play the songs representative of the originals and I want to do my own little spin on it. But I love playing the music, it still makes me a better musician to go back and study my craft. Study the greats, you know? <\/p>\n

HRH: Will there be a Hollywood Vampires sophomore record?<\/p>\n

MS: Well, you know it\u2019s been talked about. Johnny\u2019s always throwing out songs. I mean, he wrote \u201cBad As I Am\u201d with Tommy (Henriksen) and Bruce (Witkin) and he put that together for the Grammys. I think it will be kind of one step at a time. I mean, maybe the next thing will be an EP. Who knows? You know, it\u2019s all about timing and we\u2019ve got some characters in this band. You know what I mean? But it\u2019s great, that makes great rock n\u2019 roll. You never know what you\u2019re gonna get.<\/p>\n

HRH: Are you filming or recording any of these shows for some kind of live release?<\/p>\n

MS: Well, you know what, I hope we do. I\u2019ve been talking to some guys about getting a show captured. There\u2019s no reason why we shouldn\u2019t, you know? I mean we\u2019ve just got to find the right venue along the way. We\u2019ve got about 15 shows to go, so it\u2019s going to be a good run\u2026this next batch of shows. <\/p>\n

HRH: Well I look forward to catching one of those shows in Ohio hopefully next week. <\/p>\n

MS: Thanks, man. Awesome. <\/p>\n

HRH: Let\u2019s talk a bit about your solo work. You put out an album a few years ago as Matt Sorum\u2019s Fierce Joy (2014\u2019s Stratosphere<\/em>)\u2026<\/p>\n

MS: Yeah, the Fierce Joy record, yeah. That was a real different experience for me because I love a lot of music, right. I\u2019m a singer\/songwriter as well, but my style is I would say more in the Tom Petty meets The Beatles meets Wilco. Bands I really like I just\u2026you know, with music being independent these days, I don\u2019t have to go and hustle a label to try and believe in you, you just make music and put it out. Similar to how I and Izzy Stradlin just did a song (called \u201cF.P. Money\u201d). Recorded it and put online, you know? That\u2019s kinda\u2026 it\u2019s the new model of music in general. So, I did that album and I really loved the experience of making the music for the music\u2019s sake. It wasn\u2019t about any monetary gain or anything but total self-satisfaction as far as being an artist and wanting people to see that I was a songwriter. I\u2019ve done 2 albums. I did another record called Hollywood Zen and I\u2019m a singer. I\u2019ve always been a singer. I\u2019m going to sing a song tonight for the kids\u2026a little \u201cAce of Spades\u201d. I\u2019m the lead singer on that one. Alice and I sing it together. That\u2019s a first time for me ever in my career\u2026to be a lead singer in a band of this caliber. So that\u2019s kinda crazy. I\u2019ve seen Taylor Hawkins do it a bunch in Foo Fighters and always liked when he jumps out. It\u2019s cool. It\u2019s fun. You go, \u201cWow, the drummer can sing too!\u201d Roger Taylor from Queen used to sing and I always liked that. I always thought that was an interesting thing to see, you know\u2026different. So that\u2019s been fun and I\u2019ve got my band Kings of Chaos that I\u2019m gonna launch in the fall. It\u2019s a super group of its own. Billy Gibbons, Robin Zander, Billy Duffy from The Cult, Steve Stevens. We\u2019re going to start touring around, doing some stuff. I mean, people think we\u2019re throwing it together to obviously get more attention and that\u2019s obvious. We want people to come to the show. We want people to recognize it. As performers and entertainers, you want a full house. As you go through your career you\u2019ve got to keep reinventing. You want to keep the people coming. You know, \u201cWhat\u2019s exciting?\u201d So, that\u2019s what I\u2019m doing next. That\u2019s my band. Kings of Chaos. I don\u2019t know what the future holds for Hollywood Vampires, but hopefully, I\u2019ll be a part of it. It\u2019s all good.<\/p>\n

HRH: You mentioned that the Vampires pay tribute to Alice\u2019s old buddies\u2026 the ones that are no longer with us. I think he affectionately calls them his \u201cDrunk Dead Friends.\u201d Can you not help thinking about Scott Weiland when Alice starts talking about people that we\u2019ve lost along the way?<\/p>\n

MS: Not at all. I mean, that was very much \u2026 a very tough part of last year. On top of that, I lost 7 other friends, a couple due to drugs and alcohol and a couple to cancer. Very close friends. <\/p>\n

HRH: I\u2019m sorry to hear that.<\/p>\n

MS: I couldn\u2019t believe it. It just kept hitting me. It kept hitting me, kept hitting me. And then when Scott died, not long after that Lemmy died and it was just like, \u201cOh God.\u201d You know, we all have loss in life, and we\u2019ve all lost people along the way, but it just kept coming. It was like a domino effect. So it was a tough year and then 2016 came and in the first few months obviously we lost Bowie, we lost Glenn Frey. Luckily I haven\u2019t lost any other close friends along the way this year. It makes you kinda wake up and call people and try to be more in touch with family. The message is to kind of like enjoy these people while they\u2019re here. Work out your differences, whatever those are, and be good to one another. I think that\u2019s what the world needs right now, you know? It\u2019s Ringo Starr\u2019s birthday and Ringo Starr today is at Capitol Records promoting peace and love. It\u2019s as simple as that. The idea of the rock n\u2019 roll experience and a rock n\u2019 roll show is for people to come out, let go, get out of their head about their job, or their finances, or what\u2019s going on in the world\u2026whatever\u2026and just relive your life through rock n\u2019 roll and the music and the songs that you love and maybe the characters on stage. You leave that experience with a memory and it\u2019s something that you can always tap into. I think that\u2019s what we do as entertainers. That\u2019s what we\u2019re here to do is to give people happiness and we\u2019re very grateful and appreciative that they\u2019re here to support us in the same right. For me, I call myself a musical vagabond. I just move around and wait for the next thing. I always look forward. I think that\u2019s what\u2019s been great with this experience. You know, here I am playing with guys that I grew up with and it\u2019s right where I\u2019m supposed to be right now, right? Couldn\u2019t ask for a better career. So far so good. <\/p>\n

HRH: You definitely can\u2019t complain. (laughs) Okay, Matt, I\u2019m going to throw a few quick questions at you to wrap up. Just say the first thing that pops into your head. We\u2019re in the heat of the summer, so what\u2019s your favorite ice cream?<\/p>\n

MS: Oh, Ben & Jerry\u2019s toffee crunch \u2026 Heath Bar\u2026Heath Bar Crunch! (laughs)<\/p>\n

HRH: The weirdest thing that a fan has ever given you?<\/p>\n

MS: Moonshine with a rattlesnake in it. <\/p>\n

HRH: (laughs) I think that qualifies.<\/p>\n

MS: (laughs)<\/p>\n

HRH: Lastly, since you\u2019re in a band together, what\u2019s your favorite Johnny Depp movie?<\/p>\n

MS: Oh, Edward Scissorhands<\/em>. <\/p>\n

HRH: Classic. Nice job working the Tim Burton in there too. <\/p>\n

MS: (laughs)<\/p>\n

HRH: Well Matt, it\u2019s been an absolute pleasure, thanks so much for doing this again. We all look forward to catching the Vampires out on the road this summer.<\/p>\n

MS: Okay man, right on. Thank you!<\/p>\n

For more information on the Hollywood Vampires, please visit www.hollywoodvampires.com<\/a>. For more information on Matt Sorum, please visit www.mattsorum.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Steve Patrick – Sr. Columnist — Any drinking club that featured the likes of John Lennon, Keith Moon, Ringo Starr, Harry Nilsson, the immortal Alice Cooper is certainly worthy of tribute. Thankfully musician-turned-actor-turned-musician Johnny […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":52406,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13653],"tags":[8930,12488,12491,12485,203,6411,12487,12381,12490,12489,12486],"class_list":{"0":"post-52403","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcint2016","8":"tag-alice-cooper-2","9":"tag-castle-dracula","10":"tag-edward-scissorhands","11":"tag-hollywood-vampires","12":"tag-interview","13":"tag-joe-perry","14":"tag-johnny-depp","15":"tag-matt-sorum","16":"tag-matt-sorums-fierce-joy","17":"tag-stratosphere","18":"tag-tim-burton"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52403"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52403\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52406"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}