For the last seven years, guitarist Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal has been one of Guns N’ Roses’ guitarists. And while there’s no indication that that’s about to change any time soon, in a recent interview with Chilean station “Radio Futuro,” Thal, touring there as a solo artist, gave an ultimatum of sorts, stating that GN’R’s constant unpredicatability in their touring schedule has forced him to cancel tours for his solo work, and he’s not going to continue to stand for that:
Also, the rest of humanity tends to plan things in advance where Guns N’ Roses tends to plan things the day before. So it’s really tough. We could be planning something [for my solo project] for next April, and then Guns will book something March 31 for April, and all your plans are just… Suddenly you’re in this situation where you have to choose. And I’m actually trying to work out something with management now so I don’t have to choose. Because if I do have to choose — and I’m saying it here first — I’m choosing my own life; I have to. If I’m gonna be painted into a corner where I have to choose between being in Guns N’ Roses and the entire rest of my life, and if they’re not willing to help me keep the two functioning well together, then I’m out. So hopefully they’re willing to do that. And I’ve reached out a few days ago and I’m just waiting to hear back.
The interview goes on to say that he’s had to cancel tours because of GN’R tour dates that wound up not happening, and that there are plenty of people that don’t even know that he does anything outside of Guns N’ Roses. When asked if he knows what GN’R are up to in the near future, he states that he doesn’t know, and he hasn’t gotten any response from anyone when he asked. And he’s not happy at all about the band’s near-constant late start times. That said, it’s not all trash talk about his main source of income. He says that Axl Rose is a “fun and welcoming” person. At the end of the day, he can’t really complain all that much. If he goes back to life as Bumblefoot the solo act, he’ll be doing it on his own terms, but he’ll be trading in arenas for small clubs. And for every Slash that’s able to have a hugely successful solo career outside of the band, there’s an Izzy Stradlin or Gilby Clarke that has gone on to, well, not much. After Blabbermouth wrote about the interview, the guitarist responded via Twitter, stating ‘We’ll work it out.”
[translation via Blabbermouth]
