Wolfgang Van Halen recently discussed opening for Guns N’ Roses in a new Rolling Stone interview.
“Oh man, I still can’t believe it. It’s insane. Slash texted me when it was ready to go, and it was like, ‘See you out there, man. Looking forward to it.’
“And even then it still didn’t seem real, so yeah, I’m freaking out about it, it’s going to be really fun, but damn, what a first tour. [Laughs]”
How well did you know those guys before this?
“I’ve known Slash for years just from seeing the shows, and [producer] Elvis did his last two albums, and you know Frank, his guitar player is in my band, and I know my pop was friends with him, and Duff, so yeah, we’ve been adjacent over the years.”
What’s your favorite GN’R stuff music?
“I really dig all of it – it’s just I think everything from, I was talking about it with my uncle that there’s some really great stuff on ‘Use Your Illusion,’ we brought up the song ‘The Garden,’ some deep cuts.
“But I think you can’t go wrong with the hits either. As overplayed as ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine’ and ‘Welcome to the Jungle’ are, it’s like people wouldn’t overplay them if they weren’t so great, they’re amazing.”
It’s going to be interesting and fun facing an audience that’s not necessarily there for you, but it’s not like you’re opening for Van Halen either, you’re doing the standard thing, you have to win over this audience who likes rock.
“I’m so excited to go out there and just prove myself, to let my own music stand up on its own two feet and prove it to everyone and just go for it.”
