SLASH
SLASH comes to Slash's Snakepit 2000 with
years upon years of experience. His first big band was a monster, Guns
N'Roses! SLASH was Lead Guitarist for GNR. During a lengthy GNR hiatus,
he was invited to a blues festival in Hungary. He put together SLASH's
Blues Ball which went on to tour playing cover songs. As GNR continued
its hiatus, he started playing in his home studio, working up some songs
with GNR drummer Matt Sorum. They were joined by Mike Inez (Alice In
Chains) and Gilby Clarke (GNR rhythm guitarist). SLASH found Eric Dover
for his singer, and the original SLASH's Snakepit was born. The band's
new songs were recorded on 1995's It's Five O'Clock Somewhere. The band
roster had to be altered, but Snakepit went on to tour five countries
playing mostly clubs. When the tour was over, SLASH went back to GNR but
wasn't interested in the techno-industrial music they were playing.
SLASH has always been a rock and roller at heart. He split from GNR and
continued doing things he enjoys, guest spots on albums and jamming in
L.A. clubs. Deciding he wanted to form another band, SLASH put Snakepit
together using a roster of talented musicians. SLASH's Snakepit's album
Ain't Life Grand will debut October 2000.
ROD JACKSON
Rod Jackson is lead vocalist for SLASH's
Snakepit. Rod was previously in a regional band out of Richmond,
Virginia called Rag Doll. Rag Doll started out rehearsing in a
mini-storage in the West End of Virginia and gained a solid local and
regional following. When Rod left Rag Doll, he came to L.A. hoping to
link up with a rock band looking for a strong vocalist. SLASH had all
the band members in place before he found Rod. SLASH auditioned many,
many singers, but he liked the way Rod could rock with a blues
undercurrent that matches the way SLASH plays guitar. Rod is a real
asset on stage! He's got a friendly, rocking personality and is good to
watch as well as hear! Rod sites Marvin Gaye, Al Green, Robert Plant,
Stevie Wonder and Steven Tyler as some of his main influences.
KERI KELLI
Keri Kelli plays guitar in SLASH's
Snakepit. He is a very talented guitarist with a long list of onstage
performances. Keri plays rhythm to SLASH's lead but does some lead
guitar work, too. He comes to Snakepit most recently from the band Dad's
Porno Mag, (DPM); but he is probably best known for his work with the
bands Ratt and Warrant. The guys in Warrant are Keri's buddies, and he
did a three month tour with them. Ratt was the band Keri considered to
be his main band till he joined up with SLASH. In Ratt, Keri played lead
guitar/rhythm guitar. DPM was a side project for Keri, and he played
lead guitar there. Keri started out in the L.A. glam scene with Big Bang
Babies and Pretty Boy Floyd. He's also played with the Newlydeads. Tamie
Downe from Faster Pussycat was in the Newlydeads; and that band toured
with GNR. It's a very small community of rock musicians and there are
links all over the place. Keri was also with a band called U.S. Crush,
and his work can also be found on some compilations including the GNR
tribute album. US Crush has a CD out on Virgin Records that Keri
contributed to. The CD came out in May, so it is available right now.
Keri wrote the single "Bleed" on this album and played and cowrote three
other tracks. Check these out!
JOHNNY G
If you were one of the lucky people to catch
SLASH's Blues Ball on tour, then you saw Johnny Griparic. Johnny G.
played bass for Blues Ball and now for Snakepit. He's accustomed to
SLASH's style, and he's one of the best bass players around. He also
plays bass in Teddy Zigzag Andreadis' band, The Screaming Cocktails.
They have a regular berth on Tuesday evenings at The Baked Potato in
West North Hollywood. Johnny's a really nice guy, friendly with the
fans, and very talented. And we'll now refer to him as Johnny Blackout.
MATT LAUG
Matt was born in Ft.Lauderdale, Florida
on 3/17/68; and when he was 4, his family moved to Florence, South
Carolina. In 1975, Matt got his first drum kit and taught himself to
play by playing along with his favorite albums. In 1986, Matt graduated
high school, and two weeks later, he left for LA. Since he arrived in
LA, Matt has toured with a number of bands (including a stint with
SLASH's Blues Ball) and has recorded albums for artists such as Alice
Cooper (A Fistful of Alice), Alanis Morissette (Jagged Little Pill - six
tracks including the mega hit "You Oughta Know"), The Corrs (Talk on
Corners), The New Radicals (Have You Been Brainwashed, Too?), Beth Hart
(Screaming For My Supper) and South Park (What Would Brian Boitano Do?
#2). Matt has all kinds of background that made him SLASH's choice for
being the drummer of Snakepit!
. : : BIOGRAPHY ON: IT'S
FIVE O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE : : .
ERIC DOVER
On January 19, 1967, the world was blessed with the arrival of Eric
Dover. He's the typical quirky middle child of 3, having an older sister
and a younger brother. He grew up in Jasper, Alabama (on a map look for
Birmingham and go from there). His birth date falls on the
second-to-last day of the zodiac calendar for the sign of Capricorn.
Being a Goat in the astrological sense is ironic because in the Chinese
calendar, he was born in the Year of the Sheep. Sorry, but you'll have
to come up with a better line than asking him "Hey Baby, what's your
sign..." I suggest trying "Who's Sextus?" instead.
At
an early age, Eric realized he had been smitten with music. His sister
had brought home such now-a-day classics as Alice Cooper's
Greatest Hits, Bad Company's
Running with the Pack, and also
introduced him to Good-bye Yellow Brick
Road. These musical talents, Eric says, started him on the path.
At age 11 he picked up the guitar and the rest is history Well, it will
be after you have seen the rest of the site. If you don't see it here,
it isn't worth knowing.
Eric
is an artist through and through. You can easily hear it in the music
and lyrics that he writes. Not only does he use his incredible voice in
lead and backing vocals, he plays several instruments. Guitar, bass, lap
steel, reverb, mandolin, drums (that's right, I said drums...see his
endorsement), and he also has a good ear for the recording process.
There's
a little known fact about our Subject of interest. Eric holds the
Guinness Book of World Records for the largest mouth span of any singer
on the planet (and yes, that includes Sir Jagger and Mr. Tyler).
According to Eric, some pretty weird measurements were taken to deem him
worthy of this title. But, unfortunately, he has yet to elaborate on the
medieval torture devices they used on him, along with any feats of
maxillary and mandibular agility they may have tested.
MATT SORUM
Real Name: Matt Sorum (Drums)
Date of Birth: 19-November-1960
Place of Birth: Venice Beach, California
Before the Gn'R: IQ, Y Kant Tori Read, The Cult (fevroya'rjos 1989 -
kalokaj'rj 1990,.1999 -)
Entered the Gn'R in: Summertime 1990
Left Gn'R in: 1997
GILBY CLARKE
Real Name:
Gilby Clarke (Rhythm guitar)
Date of Birth: 17-August-1962
Place of Birth: Cleveland, Ohio
Entered the Gn'R in:
In November 1991
Left Gn'R in:
In January 1995
Before the Gn'R: Kill For Thrills,
The Blackouts kaj Candy
Other groups: The Starfuckers, Col.
Parker, Blues Mafia
MIKE INEZ
Mike Inez was born on May
14, 1966 in California. Mikes first instrument was the guitar. He
started playing bass when his band needed a bassist. Mike occasionally
plays guitar for AIC (on JOF and "Killer Is Me" unplugged). He
also has an associate's degree in music, for saxophone and keyboard.
What does Mike do when hes not playing bass? Scuba Diving of course!
Before becoming
bassist for AIC, Mike used to play bass for Ozzy. Mike was one of fifty
bass players trying out. Mike didnt think he would get the job. Weeks
later he got a call telling him he would be playing with Ozzy at Wembly
Stadium. Thats was Mikes first big break.Mike uses two old Warwick
basses and also uses a Fender fretless bass. His backline is Ampeg.
