In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, former Gun ‘N’ Roses drummer Matt Sorum was asked the following:
”You talk about Izzy Stradlin’s departure and what a problem that was since he wrote so many of the songs. Do you think his absence is a big reason why Guns N’ Roses have made just one album in the past 30 years?”
Sorum replied:
“I can’t say. Obviously, when I came into the band, there were four original guys. After we went out and became so big, the machine kind of took over. Obviously, we all made decisions that weren’t completely clear in our minds based on alcohol and drugs. If anyone was clean, it was Axl. He was always accused of being a worse drug addict than he was. He was actually just trying to steer the ship.
”Slash was very much the bandleader for the band guys. He was like, ‘If you’re going to party until 6 a.m., you have to be at rehearsal at noon. Don’t miss soundcheck.’ A couple of times, the wheels came off for me. I started f**king up too. It was just so much craziness going on. You just fell into it. It was part of the time. It was part of the makeup of the band and everything that was around it.
”As far as when Izzy left, I just don’t think he could be around it anymore at that level. It becomes this crazy rollercoaster ride that you really couldn’t get off. It almost felt uncontrollable. There was a Rolling Stone cover that just said, ‘Guns N’ Roses Outta Control.’ That’s kind of how it felt at the time. I wasn’t the decision-maker in that band. I was just sort of on this wild ride.”