Velvet Revolver’s Matt Sorum is glad he settled his differences with Scott Weiland before his death last week.
And even though the band’s 2008 split with the frontman was acrimonious, the drummer regards their five years together as the highlight of his career.
Weiland’s body was discovered on his tour bus on December 3, shortly before his band The Wildabouts were to perform in Minnesota. Bassist Tommy Black was later arrested for drugs possession after cocaine was found near the body.
Sorum tells SiriusXM: “Duff McKagan called me at about 7.30 – I think we found out pretty close to when things happened. We decided to go have something to eat, just to discuss what we were going to do, and just sort of capture our thoughts.
“I don’t know how I felt initially. I can’t say I was in shock, but I wasn’t expecting it. I felt like Scott was going to be here longer than this.
“It’s like you lived a lot of life together. It was a big chunk of life, as Duff said in the post that he put out for the band.”
The drummer describes Weiland as “like a family member you didn’t get along with great, but you still loved them.”
He continues: “I started to reflect on the beginnings of the band, and that’s when I started to get emotional. We did great things together. We travelled the world together. Scott made the music come to life.”
Sorum, whose career includes stints with The Cult and Guns N’Roses, admits that Velvet Revolver were aware of Weiland’s addiction issues when they invited him to join.
But he reflects: “Of anything I’ve done, that was the highlight for me. I think it’s because it was something we all built together. The odds were against us. Scott came in and really put the icing on the cake, and all of a sudden, boom, we were off.”
And he has proud memories of a meeting he had with Weiland again a few years ago. “He apologised, I apologised,” Sorum says. “We made amends. We were able to say, ‘Hey, man, let’s move forward – let’s just let the old stuff go.’
“In the end, I just want the world to know that I feel like I made my peace with him.”
