20 Questions with…

Murderdolls guitarist ACEY SLADE!

Who the fuck is Acey Slade? Well, he’s this guitar guy who used to play in Dope but now plays in Murderdolls, as well as doing vocals and guitar duties with his own project. Plus he just got off the road with Amen, who were recently opening for Brides of Destruction, so we were sure he’d have some good stories to share. Acey’s been a fan of Metal Sludge for quite awhile, and said he was down for 20 Questions any time, so we finally hit him up for it. He sent back his questions within a few days, so we hail him for not fucking around. Now, for your reading pleasure, we’re proud to present the long awaited 20 Questions with Acey Slade.

1. What are you currently up to? This is your one and only chance to plug your shit.

I am working on my new band, Trash Light Vision. I sing and play guitar in it. I’ve always been a singer and have no idea how I became a bassist or guitarist to be honest with you. I’ve been doing the ‘side guy’ thing for long enough now. I am starting to feel like a 2000 version of Robbie Crane or Kerri Kelli so I need to keep my commitments to Trash Light Vision and the Murderdolls. There are downloads on the Web-site, www.trashlightvision.com I would recomend “My Fuck U 2 U”. We are playing the east coast for the people in ‘Label Land’ and getting ready to go to the UK for our 2nd tour there. It’s no Bullshit punky rock n’ roll.

2. We heard you just got off the road playing with Amen on the Brides of Destruction tour. How did you end up with that gig, and how was life on the road with the Brides?

I became friends with Amen guitarist Rich Jones when I did this Guitar Clinic tour over in the UK back in Oct. of last year. When Rich couldn’t do the Brides tour, he suggested me to Casey (Amen Singer). It worked out perfectly as their tour started in NY (where I am at) and Trash Light Vision wasn’t quite off the ground yet. I’ve always believed in Amen’s music and message and the ‘go for the kill’ live attitude. I have been offered a few gig’s since Murderdolls have gone on hiatus but turned them down to focus on Trash Light Vision. This is the only one I could say, ‘Ok, this is bad ass. I’ll do it.’ Plus the commitment was for a very short time. And, I wanted to confront Brides of Destruction’s bassist for stealing Eric from the Murderdolls’ image. (I hope everyone knows I’m joking).

Life on tour with the Brides was great. The band and crew treated Amen amazing! Some of the crowds got Amen, some were kinda scratching their heads. I can’t tell you how weird it would be to look over at the side of the stage and see Nikki Sixx and Tracii Gunns watching you play. I felt like the kid in the ‘Smokin’ in the Boys Room’ video when Motley is in the Mirror and looking in on him, ha,ha…’When are they gonna see MY side of things.’ When I was like 17 LA Gunns did a show in Philly, my home town, but it was 21+. Tracii snuck me and my bassist for Trash Light Vision into the show. He was a cool motherfucker then, and still is now.

3. You basically replaced Tripp Eisen in Murderdolls after he went on to play with Static X full time. Have you ever spoken to Tripp afterwards, and was your taking his place an amicable thing? Or has he displayed any outright animosity towards you because you?re now wearing the shoes he used to wear? (Figuratively speaking, of course. Wearing somebody else?s smelly-ass old shoes would be kind of gross.)

You know, it’s funny you should ask. Tripp and I have been friends since I was….like 17 or something. We used to jam together a lot and so when we both ended up in Dope it was pretty cool to have an old friend with you. We used to paint houses together and talk about what it must be like to play arenas or Japan or day dream about making music our living. So when he was fired from Dope, he got the gig in Static, I was very happy for him. We stayed friends up until I joined Murderdolls. THEN, he calls me up and tells me where I can and can’t sign autographs. What guitars I can and can’t play. Then he trashed me here in his 20 questions and that was it. You have to remember that the whole time I was in Dope, Edsel would talk shit about Tripp and I would stand up for him! So I told him to go fuck himself and that was about a year ago.

I went to the Static X show last night here in NYC to flyer for my NYC show tonight (with the Throbs!) and go say hi to the Soil guys(great fuckin’ show by the way). I see Tripp out front and kind of nod heads and say ‘hi’. Then I see him before their show and he says “Hey man, I would love to iron things out. Let’s talk.” I said “Great man!” Because I have really been bummed over the fact that now we are both doing what we always wanted to and are not friends. THEN the show is about to start and he has their ‘people’ ask me to leave because I’m ‘ruining his vibe’. I miss the guy I used to paint houses with.

Now here’s the thing. I don’t belive in airing your dirty laundry to the fans. I don’t think you should ever make the fans chose between bands or band memebers. The whole time that the fude’s between Edsel/Tripp, Tripp/Murderdolls, Edsel/Murderdolls, what ever I’ve kept my integrity. But I cant understand why someone would come up to you and say, “Hey, let’s clear the air.” And then turn aound and try to have you thown out for NO REASON AT ALL.

Find Acey in the Murderdolls!

4. Rank the following guitar players on a scale of 1 to 10. 1 being a tone-deaf jabroni and 10 being a Ninja-like master of the fretboard.

Well first of all. I am not a fan of the ‘Ninja’ type players so though, Steve Vai is a 10 ninja. But, I would WAY rather be Johnny Thunders or Andy McCoy.

Slash = 9. One of my faves. That VR record fuckin’ rules!
Mick Mars = 7 Very underrated.
Tracii Guns =10. THE most under rated guitarist on the planet. Right up there with Dime from Pantera if you ask me. If you don’t believe me, go see him play with the Brides.
John 5 = 5 does some cool effect type stuff, but plays a Fender up to his fuckin’ neck. Points WAY OFF FOR THAT!
C.C. DeVille = 6 Again, very under-rated. Great song writer.
Ace Frehley = 8
Alex Kane = 8 Very under-rated. Amazing song writter and heart of gold.
Virus = 8 He is like the brother I never had. His talents have not been fully seen yet.
Brent Muscat = 7 FP Was always a ‘cool’ band. Great songs to fuck to.
Tripp Eisen = 7.5 Amazing performer and great at the Prong/Pantera right hand stuff.

5. What ?rock star? deserves a smack in the mouth and why?

I think Chino from the Defotones. We were booked to open for them in Australia on the one off for this festival tour down there. Everything was cool and The Murderdolls were doing in stores every day to promote for the shows. Once they saw what we looked like, they kicked us off. So every day when we did the instores, these kids would come up to us and say “Hey I only wanted to see you guys play now you’ve canceled and I’m stuck with this ticket.” When we confronted them they said ‘Oh we wanted a local Oz band on the bill.’ Funny. I don’t remember Sparta being from Oz. Anybody who fuck’s with the MD’s fans is on my shit list.

The good news is that Dave Grohl found out about this and put us on the Foo Fighters one off. Paid for all our gear, transportation and gave us 100 free tix to give out at the instore. THEN pushed back our set time to make sure the house was packed. Coolest motherfucker on the planet. Plus me and Chris (Foo’s guitarist) jamed on some old Hanoi and Dolls song back stage.

6. You?ve played plenty of shows during your tenure in Murderdolls. In your opinion, what one gig stands out as the best show you guys have ever performed together, and which one was the absolute worst?

Worst. For me was Tokyo Japan at Summer Sonic 2002. My tech was a fuckin’ moor-on. My guitars were out of tune, my amps were cutting in and out.

Best. I think headlining Brixton Academy in London. That’s pretty damn cool. Lots of history in that club. It was like the last show of ‘Brian Slade’ in Velvet Goldmine…only not gay.

7. We also heard you used to do a lot of drugs, but then basically quit doing them several years ago. But even the most sober of former users likes to reminisce about partying days long gone. Which leads us to ask: Which of the following substances have you done, and when was the last time you did them?

Pot = Oddly enough I never smoked Cigerettes, so pot wasn’t my thing.
Coke = At least 6 years ago.
Crystal = Same
Heroin = 7 years ago. At the Rainbow! With some stripper in the bath room. I then shit my pants. I was so high I didn’t realize the toilet was right next to me! ha,ha..
Acid = 6 years ago. I preferred Mushrooms. We would make tea out of it. Bad ass
Ecstasy = 8 years ago at the Limelight in NYC
GHB = Didn’t get popular till after I got sober.
Ritalin = Didn’t get popular till after I got sober.
Midol = Borrowed some from Chino from the Deftones 2 years ago.
Viagra = I hear it’s non addictive so I’m looking forward to giving it a try. Not yet though

I hate when guys in bands get sober and then become preachers. Fuck that. I had a great time getting fucked up. For ME, if I get fucked up all the music stuff goes out the window.

8. At what time did you wake up today, and can you describe the first 3 hours of your day for us?

11:30. Watched the NY 1 News to see if it’s still hot as fuck out. It is. So I made a pot of Hot coffee..ha,ha..Put on the Wildhearts CD and started working on Trash Light Vision shit. Like this.

9. Who?s the most overrated band today and why?

I guess that Ashley Simpson chick. At least her sister is hot. She’s just annoying.

10. Among the following, which do you prefer and why:

Red or Black Licorice = Black. They have this ice cream in Scandinavia thats Vanilla ice cream coated with Black Licorice shell and salt. It sounds disgusting, but it’s so fuckin’ good.
Marilyn Manson or Alice Cooper = Alice always props for the originator.
Dean Markley or Ernie Ball = Dean Markley for sure. They are all I have ever played.
Warrant or W.A.S.P. = WASP. Basicly, if your band start with a W in the 80’s you sucked. Winger, Warrant, Whitesnake, Ect. ect. Unless you were WASP
Long John Silver?s or Kentucky Fried Chicken = Long John Silvers cuz I’m so burned out of KFC.
Guns N? Roses or Motley Crue = Tough one. Motley was like the gateway drug into GnR. I still think that Vince would have kicked Axl’s ass.
He-Man or the Thundercats = Thunder, thunder, thunderCATTTSSS! He-man was kinda gay.
Nightmare on Elm Street or the Nightmare Before Christmas = Duh. Nightmare before Christmas. I can just relate to that way more. Jack is a better dresser then Freddy.
Vanilla Ice or Marky Mark & the Funky Bunch = Vanila Ice…cream. Ummmmm
Mushroomhead or Mudvayne = I’ll say Mudvayne because they are nice guys.

11. Alright, what?s the deal between Murderdolls and Dope? We heard there?s some kind of feud. We know Edsel?s a little ?out there,? but why the beef between the two bands? Can?t you ghouls all just get along?

I think all that is in the past. I don’t have a problem with Edsel anymore. I didn’t agree with the way I was being treated so I quit. I left that situation with so much more than I had going into it and I’m very grateful for that. Being in Dope is like living in Fla. It’s a great place to visit but the hurricanes will drive you out. When you leave that band you will be smarter and a better live musician. I think it’s great that Edsel has managed to keep his business together.

12. We also heard you front your own band called Trashlight Vision. What is that, like a weekend warriors kind of thing? Who are the other players in that project, and what are you guys all about?

Nahhh…this is my full time gig. One of the coolest things about working with Joey is that he reminded me that the way to be successful is to be true to yourself. He doesn’t care if his bands sell 2 million albums or 200. BUT THAT’S WHY BOTH HIS BANDS HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFUL. So I’m doing the same with Trash Light Vision. I listen to a lot of old bands and a lot of new bands. So our influences range from Iggy to GnR to Rancid. I don’t think about who my ‘demographic’ is ‘radio’ when I write. I just do songs that I like. Roger Segal and I used to work at a store selling Lip Service type clothes. We used to sneak into 21 + clubs and get wasted. He’s the bassist. Steve Haley is the guitarist. Best cheekbones since Michael Monroe, plays guitar like Mick Ronson on crack and we got sober together. Lenn Thomas. Now remember I’ve played with some bad motherfuckers on drums. Preston Nash, Racci Shea, Joey, the Ghoul…and he is right up there with these guys. Hard fuckin’ hitter.

Acey Slade with Trashlight Vision

13. Out of all the bands that Murderdolls have shared the stage with, which ones were the coolest to work with, and which ones were the biggest bunch of jackasses you?ve ever met?

Well Dave Grohl is the coolest for sure. See the above. I’d say the Deftones but we never played with them. Ummmm Papa Roaches CREW hated us. Not the band, they were very cool. Their stage manager, used to fuck with my tech every day. He was a kid I met in Kansas City that always wanted to be a tech so I gave him a shot. He was kinda green and this guy used to fuck with him EVERYDAY…then it spread to the rest of the our crew. The thing I don’t get was this guy used to wear nylons…like pantyhose…and would walk around like a Nazi.

14. Yes or No, has Acey Slade ever:

Nailed a fat chick = How do you think I got Drugs?
Flipped off a cop = Not that I can think of……
Barfed in a urinal = Fuck yea!
Grown a Chia Pet = Only when I was in Dope
Had sex in a port-a-potty = Nahhh…I’ve had sex WITH a port-a-potty though..
Shopped in a Goodwill store = Last week!
Whistled the theme song to ?CHiPs? = I may have! I was whisteling the theme to something the other day and we couldn’t figure it out….
Been flashed on the subway = Yes.
Shared a beer and a sandwich with Tracii Guns = Well I don’t drink. But I went to Starbucks with Nikki and Tracii. If you knew my Starbucks lust you would understand how cool of a moment this was in my life..ha,ha…
Touched another man?s penis = Who hasn’t?

15. For what amount was your biggest music-related check, and what did you do with the funds?

Well…..that would be just humiliating. But I’ll say it was in the 5 digits.

16. Give us your fondest memory or recollection from the following years:

I am so bad with years…
1979 = I think Star Wars came out.
1982 = I remember hearing ‘Live Wire’. ‘Heart of the young running free…’ I sang that line all the time. I had no idea who it was or what it was I just know it was bad ass.
1985 = Ummm the year after Van Halens 1984 came out?
1988 = Started singing in rock bands. I was a fat kid growing up and found out that girls like guys in bands. This was the only way I was ever going to get laid.
1990 = Moved to Philly. Heard Hanoi Rocks for the first time.
1993 = This was probly when my using and abusing started to get bad, but still kinda fun.
1995 = As Iggy says, “No Fun”
1999 = Moved to NYC. Toured and toured and toured.
2001 = Lived in LA for a few month’s. Seeing the towers come down. Not a great year.
2003 = Lot’s of touring with the Dolls.

17. For $250,000 in cash:

There is a red button in front of you. If you push it, 10 random homeless people, all at different locations throughout New York City, will suddenly erupt into flames right there on the street in broad daylight. As their flesh chars, hair singes, and internal organs liquefy and boil, passers-by will stop, stare, and watch the homeless victims die a slow, agonizing death, and nobody will do a damn thing to help them. No fire extinguishers, no throwing blankets over them, nothing. They?ll just burn and die right there in public. BUT, you get to keep a big suitcase full of a quarter million in unmarked bills! Besides, none of those homeless people will be related to you or anyone you know. What do you say there, Acey? Would you do it?

I would consider BEING one of the homeless guys…ha,ha. Hey…is this the catch: That I am one of the homeless guys? So it’s some sort of Sludge Karma I always hear about?

18. The Last of Acey Slade:

Last new CD you purchased = The new Eighteen Visions
Last concert you actually paid to get into = The Cult ‘Beyond Good and Evil’ tour. Fuckin’ ruled.
Last movie you saw in the theater = Van Helsing with the Brides and Amen guys.
Last song you sang in the shower = Night Train by GnR getting ready to go to see Static X. That’s just one of the best CD’s when you are getting ready to go out.
Last celebrity or rock star you shook hands with = Tripp Eisen or Shaun Glass (soil)
Last vintage 80?s metal t-shirt you wore = (Mega points..) VAIN, No Respect. The problem is that 80’s shirts are becoming trendy….
Last time you appeared on television = 2 weeks ago for Summer Sonic in Japan with Amen.
Last time you looked in your kleenex after blowing your nose = Every-time. I keep looking for a Mtv logo in my snot.
Last time you had anal sex = ..like for money? Your not gay if it’s for money…OHHHHH you mean giving it to a girl!!!!???….few monthes ago.
Last time you shit yourself = The PSS. Industry lingo for Pre Show Shit, just to let you civilians know…I thought it was a fart but it was a PSS right before our show with TLV. I touched cotton, but it wasn’t a full dump. That’s the closest since I shot junk.

19. This is your chance to ask yourself your own question! Come up with any question you want and then answer it. Have at it!

God…I have no idea.

Q: Why didn’t you start writting the new Trash Light Vision stuff sooner?
A: I was busy writting new Murderdolls stuff.

I know that’s lame. I can’t think of anything…I already know the answeres.

20. Time for Metal Sludge?s Word Association. We mention a name, and you give us your thoughts.

Gene Simmons = Disappointment. I mean, the whole Ace/Tommy make up thing?
Axl Rose = In his prime ruled. We played Japan with the new band. He sang great!
Taime Downe = One of the best Rock Stars of all time.
Preston Nash = Nobody knows how fuckin’ good this guy is. He’s a Josh Freeze waiting to be discovered. His chicks always come up short though….except his wife.
Tim Burton = My idol. Brilliant
Nikki Sixx = One of the coolest mother fuckers on the planet. A pleasure to have as a friend.
Joey Joridson = One of the purist talents out there. No BS. He just does it. Again, pleasure to work with and have as a friend.
Dee Snider = My first concert! Ruined my life..ha,ha..
Edsel Dope = What can I say. He’s like a cockroach that will never die.
Wednesday 13 = I had more fun with that guy then anyone. Funny and talented motherfucker. Can’t wait to get the Trash Light Vision album done, then work on the next Murderdolls album. I always have a good time with him.

Rock Like fuck,
Acey

Props to Acey for putting some effort into answering all of our ridiculous questions. If only all our interviewees did that, we’d be happy as shit.

For more information on Acey Slade and his latest endeavors, go to www.trashlightvision.com. If that’s not enough to satisfy your Acey fix, you can always visit www.aceyslade.com and of course the official Murderdolls site at www.murderdolls1.com.