L.A. Guns found their way to the Seboeis Stream Campground in Howland, Maine, Saturday night, and brought with them their brand of 80’s leather-clad hard rock. It was good to know that the band still believes, you can’t have too much sleaze and decadence in your life.
Howland, ME
Before we go any further, here’s a little history lesson for some – L.A. Guns was formed in 1983 by guitarist Tracii Guns. The original lineup included singer Axl Rose who eventually would leave the band to form his own band, Hollywood Rose, which broke up in ‘84. Rose rejoined L.A. Guns, and after a brief reuniting of Hollywood Rose, it was decided to merge the bands thusly naming them Guns N’ Roses. Tracii Guns was later replaced by Slash, and Guns reformed L.A. Guns. The current touring lineup of L.A. Guns does not include its namesake, as Guns left theband in 2002 to concentrate on a side project.
The current lineup consists of original singer Phil Lewis on vocals, Steve Riley (previously with Keel and W.A.S.P.) on drums, Stacey Blades (previously with Roxx Gang) on guitar, and Scott Griffin on bass.
Howland, ME
Waiting for the show to start, I had the opportunity to chat with the band members, and I must say these are down-to-earth great guys and true professionals. They made me feel very welcome backstage, and they had a few questions – “Where exactly in Maine were we?” “What is a Mud Run?” We even chatted about the previous week’s escapades of “Wild” Mick Brown, drummer for Ted Nugent, at the Waterfront Pavilion in Bangor. Stacey shared with me that he had once ridden in a golf cart with Mick, and it was as wild and crazy of a time as was had the previous weekend in Bangor. Thank you guys for making this old rocker feel welcome backstage in the presence of some of music’s finest!
Howland, ME
L.A. Guns finally took the stage around 10:40 and hit the ground running with a fan favorite “Over the Edge” from their third album, Hollywood Vampires. The first thing I noticed was that Phil’s voice sounds just like it did 25 years ago when I listened to their self-titled first album, L.A. Guns. They took control of the stage for the next 75 minutes playing favorites, “Sex Action,” “Never Enough,” “Sleazy Come Easy Go” and more. They added two songs from their latest album, Hollywood Forever, released June 5th, “You Better Not Love Me” and “Sweet Mystery.” Both were well-received by the diehard crowd. They closed out their set with “Electric Gypsy,” “Ballad of Jayne,” and finished it off with “Rip N Tear.”
Howland, ME
I had a blast getting to photograph one of the bands that helped shape music history through the 1980s and ‘90s – and they are still recording today. Musically, L.A. Guns turns it out hard and without flaw, bringing back to life the sound that so many of us remember and love. This music isn’t getting old, it’s just proving its longevity, and that we can still rock’n’roll. Showmanship? Phil and Scott kept the entertaining one liners flowing as they gave the folks at Sebois a great show. It’s wonderful seeing these guys making a living doing what they always wanted to do and doing it just like they did when they started.
Set List: Over the Edge – Sex Action – Never Enough – I Wanna Be Your Man – You Better Not Love Me – Sweet Mystery – Revolution – Hollywood’s Burning – Sleazy Come Easy Go – Drum & Guitar Jam – Electric Gypsy – Ballad of Jayne – Rip N Tear