Contraband

by Velvet Revolver

Overview

Contraband features Slash, Duff, and Matt Sorum (as well as additional guitarist Dave Kushner) cranking out an updated version of Guns N' Roses swagger behind Scott Weiland's glammy, elastic vocals. With STP's vocalist and such a high percentage of ex-Gunners, Velvet Revolver really is a supergroup. "Went too fast I'm out of luck and I don't even give a f*ck," Weiland spits on "Do It for the Kids," and a peel from Slash's arsenal backs him up. Maturity has clearly come at a price for both parties. Weiland still mugs and sings like a florescent lizard king. But his appetite for the spotlight has somehow become more voracious even as he fights cynically against it, and longs for an escape. For their part, Slash, Duff, and Co. like stirring up their old demons -- check the explosive entrance on "Set Me Free" to get things a-tingling like the old days. But they're not running a nostalgia show, so there are new tricks and sounds, too, and plenty of choruses that shift into STP-style layering and vocal phrasing. The bass-heavy throb of "Big Machine"'s verses surges into a hard-charging '90s alt. rock chorus; "Headspace" alternates representative chunks of both bands' sounds with veteran skill; and "Superhuman" rants about illegal substances in language everyone can understand. Overall, Contraband sounds pretty much like you'd expect of such a collaboration. Lead single "Slither" is an immediate highlight, its gasoline-drinking cocaine strut staining it as the offspring of "Big Bang Baby" and "Nightrain", while the album's detours -- "Fall to Pieces", the gorgeous "Loving the Alien" -- are painted in dusty reds and browns, like idealized fever dreams of escaping to the desert with the one you love. These mediations point to the pain behind Weiland's cynical veneer, and perhaps the entire band's veteran hope for a head-clearing open space. Remember, between them they've probably seen it all. With Contraband, Velvet Revolver pull off something tidy - their music manages both hedonism and maturity. ~ Johnny Loftus

Product Details

Release Date:	09/13/2024
Label:	Sony Legacy
UPC:	0196588970214

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Velvet Revolver   Primary Artist
Duff   Guitar (Bass),Vocals (Background)
Scott Weiland   Vocals,Voices
Slash   Guitar,Vocals (Background)
Duff McKagan   Guitar (Bass),Vocals (Background)
Matt Sorum   Drums,Vocals (Background)
Douglas Grean   Keyboards,Co-Producer
Dave Kushner   Guitar

Technical Credits

Velvet Revolver   Audio Production,Producer
Josh Abraham   Audio Production,Producer
Joe Perry   Composer,Lyricist
Scott Weiland   Composer,Lyricist
Slash   Composer,Lyricist
Andy Wallace   Mixing,Mixing Engineer
Steven Tyler   Composer,Lyricist
Keith Nelson   Composer,Lyricist
Kurt Cobain   Composer,Lyricist
Duff   Composer,Lyricist
Duff McKagan   Composer,Lyricist
John Lydon   Composer,Lyricist
Robin C. Hendrickson   Art Direction
Chris Young   Assistant Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Brett Kilroe   Art Direction
Ashley Newton   A&R
Dan Winters   Photography
Rocco Guarino   Engineer,Assistant Engineer
Saul Hudson   Composer
Paul Thomas Cook   Composer,Lyricist
Stephen Philip Jones   Composer,Lyricist
Roger Waters   Composer,Lyricist
Ryan Williams   Engineer,Mixing Engineer
Rick Nielsen   Composer,Lyricist
Matt Sorum   Composer,Lyricist
Nick Raskulinecz   Producer
George Marino   Mastering,Mastering Engineer
Brandon Belsky   Assistant Engineer
Gene Grimaldi   Mastering Engineer
Douglas Grean   Engineer,Producer,Vocal Producer,Mixing Engineer,Associate Producer
Dave Kushner   Composer,Lyricist
Paul Cook   Composer
Steve Jones   Composer