Guitarist Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal wishes Scott Weiland had called him to discuss supergroup Art Of Anarchy before labelling the project a “scam from the beginning.”
The ex-Stone Temple Pilots frontman spoke out after the band was announced in January, also featuring Disturbed bassist John Moyer.
And despite appearing in a video alongside the rest of the lineup, he insisted he “didn’t even know what their names were” and that “it was something I did when I wasn’t doing anything.”
Asked if Weiland was aware that Art Of Anarchy was aiming to be a fully-fledged band project, Bumblefoot tells About.com: “Well, we thought it was.
“It’s complicated, and it also has to do with contracts and all that, so I probably shouldn’t talk too much about it – that could get in the way of whatever.”
But he adds: “I don’t want to throw anybody under the bus, but contracts were worded clearly. We all knew what we were getting into, and thought each other knew what we were getting into.
“Even when we announced the existence of the band, camps were in touch with each other, approving the bio and all those things, so that nothing was a surprise.
“Even things that we didn’t need to be in touch about, – like, ‘Here’s what I’m going to say on Twitter, just so you know’ – out of courtesy, so that nothing rubbed the wrong way.”
The guitarist says he and Weiland were only in direct contact during 2014, and the rest of their conversations were conducted via the singer’s manager.
Bumblefoot adds: “It was disappointing. I would have much preferred if Scott had called me and said, ‘Can we find a different way of doing this’ or something that would be less damaging.”
He still hopes Art Of Anarchy has a future. “I figured the world would decide what the fate of it should be,” he says. “If people want us to hit the road, if there’s a demand for it, then we would cross that bridge and see what everybody wants to do.”
His position in Guns N’ Roses remains in doubt after he said he’d been asked to keep quiet on the subject even though it placed him in a “very awkward position.” He’s discussed how he never felt fully comfortable in Axl Rose’s band. He released solo album Little Brother Is Watching earlier this year.
