Cute Alert: Slash Teams with Dora the Explorer
Wednesday, March 10, 2010 at 12:01AM I love me some Slash. The guy is all over the map when it comes to his career - and I mean that in a great way. He's creative to the enth degree and not afraid to take risks. He also uses his celebrity to help all sorts of charities and I love that - I mean, we should all give back but celebs can usually make a huge impact in whatever cause they approach. So what's Slash up to now? He's designing backpacks with Dora the Explorer. Well, sort of. Obviously, Dora the Explorer is a fictional character, but her brand is huge and kids love her. So, Slash is working with Dora to design a backpack for auction this summer. Television network Nickelodeon will hold the auction. Other celebs are involved too, including Shakira and Selma Hayek.
The backpacks will be auctioned in the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Canada, Spain, the Netherlands, Greece, Australia, New Zealand and Israel.
In America, proceeds will benefit the Children's Defense Fund.
Reader Comments (20)
Slash is cool, as much as I think he's a boring generic knock off hybrid amalgamation of Joe Perry and Jimmy Page when it comes to his guitar playing, he is still a talented musician and artist.
And I think this Doro thing is funny and but it's also awesome, as it's for a good cause.
Al is right. He is all over the lot and is not worried about his profile.
And it seems like he's livin' more in the moment these days, as we all should strive for, though I'm just speculating.
And he's into all kindsa stuff, like Al says.
I mean, c'mon, here's a guy that confessed in an interview with Rolling Stone several years ago that he's obsessed with The Food Network in general and "Iron Chef", specifically and has been known to watch the channel for hours on end in bed with his python. And he doesn't even cook!
He was probably asked to do this by someone he cares about and it's for charity!
So what's the big deal?
He ain't worried about his profile, dude, if that's related to your concern that he's sellin' out all the time. I don't think he's aiming to "sell out", he's just into doing a lot of different things.
Any selling out he was privy to in G'n'R or Velvet Revolver was probably not that intentional and just the result of him setting out to make some great Rock and Roll for all to enjoy and coming up short due appeasing fellow band members (Scott Weiland and Axl Rose) and the pressures from the record machine to always be turning in platinum.
I mean, is he really a sell out? I haven't seen to much of that and I'm someone who is obsessed with Television in general and Cable News specifically and about the only thing I ever saw him sell out on was G'n'R toward the end and the whole Velvet Revolver thing, which for me, seemed like such a borefest to begin with and I saw 'em twice.
Once was in Orlando and once in Tampa, point blank. Proof of how boring it was, they played Orlando first and Tampa just a few weeks later and the arena in Tampa was over half empty.
This whole Doro thing is out of left field.
Who cares? He doesn't. He just wants to do something for a good cause that seems like fun. And who knows, the bag probably looks really cool.
Like I said, he ain't worried about the profile, man.
And he's just in for something fun for a good cause, plain and simple.
And if that "Making Of" clip of his new album is any indication, he took some risks, as Al says he likes to take, and it's gonna pay off in spades.
I almost feel like his forthcoming album will be a kind of redemption for him, intentionally or not, and will kind of rectify the uninspired and "mailed in" stuff he did for over half of Use Your Illusion I & II and all of the Velvet Revolver stuff.
Kudos to Slash for all of his generosity toward the various charities he's involved in.
And to his spirit for being a little self depracating and just plain wanting to do something fun!
And I tried listening to both CD's when they came out back in the day and never made it through either of 'em awake.
But back on Slash at Limelight, which I actually had the privilege of experiencing twice when he was in town a couple times.
One of the coolest things I saw Slash do was jam with Bang Tango at Limelight when they played there...
But the best moment...
...was actually seeing what happened shortly before Bang Tango came on and the opening band was actually really lettin g loose...
When he joined this great New Jersey band on stage, I felt sure they was gonna get signed but unfortunately couldn't before the Pendleton Plaid Flannel Army came in...
Gin Gypsy
These guyz were killer. It was like watchin' Billy Gibbons had he gone Hair Metal instead of Beard Metal back in the day. I guess this was before Tango's "Dancing on Coals" so maybe that will help with the year. And I got to witness a little Rock and Roll History, too, though I've never seen one thing on 'em that captured anything quite like Slash and that guy just cranked up to 11 on stage.
Anyway, Gin Gypsy were kinda like a cross between AC/DC but also, just ever so slightly Southern Fried stuff, sorta ZZ Top meets AC/DC but even less rednecky.
"Ever so slightly" probably meaning the Jersey Shore but with Cowboy Boots bought on 8th Street.
Ever so Slightly Southern Sauteed might be the better words to describe their brand of non-BS straight up AC/DC meets Dicky Betts kinda sound.
The guitarist kinda looked like Angus, overlong Jagger haircut and all, but trading out the school boy outfit for a pair of jeans and a 2 dollar short sleeve dress shirt that his girlfriend probably bought him at Antique Boutique before anyone knew to call sumthin' like that shirt, "Vintage".
And this dude just cranked. I think Slash was so blown away by him, he just got out there unplanned and surprised those guys and they just tore the steeple off the place!
If anyone can tell me if they ever saw Gin Gypsy or know anything about 'em and where the original members might be, I would greatly appreciate it.
As for Gin Gypsy, singer Kevin Blois put out an EP with his band Beljar ( http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/beljar ) in 2008. Adam Bronner was the bass player for Gin Gypsy, and he is now in the band Poois planning to release a full length album this spring. Matt Fass was (maybe still is?) working on a project called Logan ( http://www.myspace.com/logannyc ).
Slasher no Slashing! HA!
This isn't a political website, but it is mine and I stand up for what I believe in...so please, refrain from calling Planned Parenthood "creepy." The organization is very important to me and millions of other women AND men. People have no idea the services Planned Parenthood provides to communities all across America.
Considering how much time (and money) I've given Planned Parenthood over the years, I just can't stand for the organization to be taken here in a bad light - especially when so-called "women's issues" are probably the thing I am most passionate about in this world.
- Allyson
I apologize.
Exactly how many talented musicians has Axl burned through over the years? When push came to shove, where did Duff and Matt Sorum (yeah I know he isn't the original drummer) end up setting down the suit cases? While Slash is "whoring himself out" for publicity, Axl is punching photographers in airports (for publicity?)There's one common thread throughout this, and sooner or later it doesn't take Sherlock Holmes or Lieutenant Columbo to figure out that Axl, despite having a great voice, is pretty much a paranoid, psychopathic douche bag that can't get along with anybody.He took 20 years and about 75 band members to finally release a mediocre at best new Guns Disc.How is that saving their legacy?
Great anology about Slash being A Perry/Page hybrid.He doesn't really tread new water, but the man can write some big old, hook laden, rip your face off riffs!
Axl burned some musicians ? Who ? Buckethead - great work on Chinese Democracy, they parted ways in friendly way ( Axl was wearing Buckethead t-shirt during recent tour) Finck ? Axl showed they Finck isn't just NIN touring member. Duff and Sorum ? Sorum is the worst drummer Guns N' Roses ever had - Brian runs circles over him & Adler had his style full of energy. Duff - one of the coolest guys ever but as a musician , songwriter and bass player Tommy Stinson is better.
I loved Gin Gypsy too. I still have their unreleased A&M debut on cassette. The lineup at that time was:
Matt Fass - Drums
Zack - Guitar
Drew Stiles - Bass (writing music for films, tv)
Virgil Drescher - Guitar (Passed away in LA sometime in the late 90's)
Kevin Blois - Vocals
Gin Gypsy played their last performance around late 93 early 94 after it became clear that the A&M recording would not be released. Rumor was that their A&R rep had been fired, leaving the band unrepresented at the label. Zack formed his own band "the pride" with his sister on vocals. Drew Stiles and Virgil Drescher formed the band "Yummy", which seemed poised for success before the untimely death of Virgil. Matt Fass played drums for "Johnny Bravo" which released a record produced by Ric Ocasek on A&M
There was also a Phillip Rogers who recorded with the band around 1990.
www.numberonemusic.com/kevinbloisbeljar