The Dandy Warhols have tapped up by Slash for a guitar solo on their latest single, I'd Like To Help You with Your Problem and, unsurprisingly, he’s blown them away with his contributions.
“The first time we heard it back in our studio we just stared at each other with our mouths open,” says guitarist/vocalist Courtney Taylor-Taylor.
“What he played on the track is amazing. I’ve never heard him play quite like that, but what is so fascinating to me is that it is clearly him playing, as recognizable as a familiar human voice.”
Though underscored with some ever-favored wah pedal flavors, Slash’s playing sinks into the mix, giving his fizzing licks a psychedelic veneer.
As opposed to being given a 16-bar phrase to go ham over, the band let the Guns N’ Roses man slither throughout the song, weaving in and out of sleazy harmonized vocals with lines that wail with wonderful, screaming overtones.
“The song has a real Vietnam-era acid rock sound,” Taylor-Taylor expands. “We wanted that kind of guitar playing on it, but we don’t have anyone in the band who can do it.
“Once we began discussing it, it became apparent that there wasn’t really anyone else whose hands we could put it in, so thus the Hail Mary to try and get Slash to play on it!”
It’s the third single to be taken from the Oregon alt-rocker’s 12th studio album, Rockmaker – which is set for a March 15 release – and showcases the band's darker, moodier side. The track follows the puntastic Danzig With Myself, which saw the band recruit alt-rock hero Frank Black.
The feature follows on from the release of Slash's first signature Magnatone amp in December. Slash ft. Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators also helped launch Gibson Films, which sets about documenting bands and their music via free-to-watch mini-documentaries.
To pre-order Rockmaker, head to Sunset Blvd Records.
