Ex Guns N' Roses guitarist says Axl Rose doesn’t deserve his negative press
He's a good guy really
Former Guns N’ Roses axeman Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal has leapt to the defence of the much-lambasted Axl Rose saying he has a “big heart.”
Bumblefoot, who was a member of Guns N’ Roses from 2006 to 2014, claims that Axl is a very different person to how he’s portrayed in the media.
“He’s a human being and he has a big heart,” Bumblefoot told XS Rock. “The press doesn’t give him the same consideration that they would some other people.
“You know, they try to hold him to a different standard, where he’s always supposed to be happy and smiling, nothing should ever be wrong and he’s always supposed to be in a good mood and do the right thing and that’s stupid.
“It’s bulls***. It perpetuates a lot of negativity and incites a lot of negativity that isn’t deserved. He’s dealt with a lot of that. I had a great, great time working with him. Is everything perfect? No. I’ve probably pissed him off more than the other way around, but he’s just a human being.”
Bumblefoot also confirmed that he walked from Guns N’ Roses and wasn’t forced out: “I was really burned out. I felt like I had contributed everything that I possibly could as a performer, but my heart was in more things where I was creating, writing, producing and teaching. All of things that I was doing before the heavy touring of GNR.
“I really felt that it was definitely time for me to go. I felt like I had taken it as far as I could and I was reaching a point where I was stressed and unhappy. And that’s not good for me and it’s not good for them.
“So in early March of 2014, we were rehearsing for the next 3 months of touring. The first thing that I told the band when I walked in was that this is going to be my last run. I finished out the shows and I did try to recommend people to take my place. I didn’t want to stop them from moving forward or anything like that.”
Bumblefoot was conducting the interview to promote the new Art of Anarchy album ‘The Madness’. The hard rock supergroup also features Scott Stapp, who replaced the late Scott Weiland, and Disturbed’s John Moyer.
Guns N’ Roses play two massive shows at London Stadium this summer. Standard tickets are still on sale for their Saturday 17th June show from Kerrang! Radio Tickets now.