Review: Slash – Self-Titled

Sergio reviews Slash’s self-titled effort.

Artist Name: Slash
Album Name: Slash
Year: 2010
Genre: Rock

The guitar legend has finally put down his revolvers, snakepits, guns and roses – and released his own solo project aptly titled as Slash.

Infused with bluesy licks and melodic guitar playing (as opposed to shredding), Slash is the album that we’ve all been waiting for, since the man born as Saul Hudson first announced he would be releasing a solo effort 3 years ago. Featuring guest appearances by the who’s who of the music world, the list of contributors is absolutely jaw-dropping – just to mention a few: Ian Astbury from The Cult, Ozzy Osbourne, Chris Cornell, A7X’s M Shadows, Lemmy from Motorhead, Kid Rock, and even former Guns ‘n Roses members, Izzy Stradlin, Duff McKagan and Steven Adler.

Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie even makes an appearance as she does her best Axl Rose impersonations on the track ‘Beautiful Dangerous’ – it’s possibly the best song she’s ever done, in my opinion. Yes, forget about her “humps” (snicker), Fergie could easily switch to rock any day.

With that being said, the decisive moment of the album has to be ‘Promise’, which features a heart-warming collaboration with Chris Cornell. Cornell belts his trademark passion-spiked octaves over Slash’s melancholic axe-work, as tears soak my eyes like a pregnant woman in a size 0 clothing store. Now why can’t Chris do this sort of stuff instead of that dreadful last solo album, Scream, with Timbaland? Eh, eh, eh, WTF!

Perhaps, Slash has also reignited the careers of a few of the contributors on the way…

After an extraordinary career spanning nearly 3 decades, Slash fittingly shows off his accumulated aptitude on guitar, as he transcends genres and conventions to present his magnum opus and crowning moment. If this proved to be his final work, it would justly be a grand send-off to a true guitar god.

Best Tracks: ‘Crucify the Dead’ (feat. Ozzy Osbourne), ‘Promise’ (feat. Chris Cornell), ‘Starlight’ (feat. Myles Kennedy), and ‘Nothing to Say’ (feat. M. Shadows)

80/100

- Sergio Pereira
sergio@musicreview.co.za
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