Slash’s Snakepit

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It’s about damn time we get to talk about Slash’s Snakepit. Just a quick little background story. The name Snakepit came from the fact that they recorded the demos for the actual album in the room that’s right next to the snakepit in Slash’s house. The first album It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere happened when Guns went under a long hiatus and was just about done. The name for the album was chosen because when Slash was in England with Guns, he went to a bar at ten o’clock in the morning and asked for a jack and coke. The bartender looked at him dead in the eye and said, “It’s five o’clock somewhere.” Slash claims that this is what the album is all about, “It’s five o’clock somewhere, give me a ******* break.” Slash decided to use the demos that Axl rejected and release this beautiful solo album. He took Guns’ guitarist, Clarke Gilby and drummer Matt Sorum to his side project. I’m so glad Eric Dover was recommended to Slash through a friend of Gilby because his voice next to Slash’s guitar playing is unreal. This duo is unreal, it reaches the level of an Axl/Slash or Myles/Slash level. 

The song recommendations for this album will be the following:

“Beggars & Hangers-On” 

“Good To Be Alive” 

“Lower” 

“Neither Can I” 

“Back And Forth Again” 

“Monkey Chow”

Trust me, the riffs in these songs are so good I can’t believe it. The lyrics themselves are mesmerizing. I’m not much of a lyric guy because I suck at memorizing lyrics. But for “Neither can I,” it talks about suicide and it’s not really sad as it is interesting to read and listen to. “Beggars & Hangers-On” is the only song that I know thoroughly and that is because it truly is, although very damn hard to choose, the best song of the album. Please, do try them out.

Unfortunately, Slash went back to Guns as did the rest of the members to their own bands. They were a really good band. I wish they would’ve recorded at least one more album with this same setup. A couple of years later around 1998, Slash wanted Snakepit to come back to life. In 2000, the album called AIn’t Life Grand was released. The album didn’t do nearly as well as the first one. I have to admit I had my doubts about the new singer the very first time I heard this album. All in all, Rod Jackson is a good singer. But is he a perfect choice to be alongside Slash? That’s up to the fans. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the album but it is mostly because of Slash’s jamming. I have to give it to Mr. Jackson because he grows on you, but it takes some time. At the time of writing this vlog, I’m currently watching a 2001 Snakepit concert. Don’t worry, the video is right below this paragraph. I’m really liking Rod Jackson. He is a good frontman and knows how to give a show. At this exact moment, I’m really liking Ain’t life grand. There’s a lot that you can notice from listening to a studio version song to watching a live performance. Personally, I love watching Slash play live. When it comes to singers, you can see the talent especially in live performances. They can sound amazing in the recorded studio version because they had many tries to get it but it’s another thing when it’s in front of thousands of people. If they impress you on stage it’s because they are very talented. 

I will only be recommending only one song from this album because I know that this is a very good one. Obviously, after trying out the songs from It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere, you should try “Back To The Moment.” Beautiful song, beautiful voice. Check out that solo. It’s nasty!