Are Slash and Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose no longer estranged?
The 50-year-old guitar legend left the group in the mid '90s after the peak of its fame amid a feud with the iconic singer, one of the most famous disputes in rock 'n' roll history. Slash, who toured Europe last month, was asked about a rumored reconciliation in an on-camera interview with the Swedish outlet Aftonbladet TV, posted online on Saturday.
"I've heard that you made friends with Axl Rose again. How was that possible after all those years?" a reporter asked him.
"It was probably way overdue, you know, but it's, it's, it's, you know, it's very cool at this point, to...dispell some of that negative stuff that was going on for so long."
Rose, 53, who had famously called Slash "a cancer" in a 2009 Spinner interview, has not commented.
Fans of the original Guns N' Roses took to Twitter to express their excitement.
I thought this day couldn't get any better, but then I heard that Axl Rose and Slash are buddies again. #WelcomeToTheJungle #OfBrotherlyLove
? Widdly Field (@HopefullyAPoet) August 22, 2015Slash & W. Axl Rose have allegedly reconciled. My brain is effectively short circuiting.
#GunsnRoses #axlrose #slash
? RomTankin (@RomTankin) August 22, 2015I literally died when i found out that @Slash and @axlrose are back on talking terms. #GunsnRoses #AxlRose
? Regan Steer (@regan_steer) August 22, 2015Rose is the sole remaining original member of Guns N' Roses, which rose to fame in the '80s with hits such as "Sweet Child of Mine," "Paradise City" and "Welcome to the Jungle," and performs nowadays with a new lineup. Earlier this year, guitarist DJ Ashba, 42, left the group after six years, citing commitments to his family and other band Sixx:A.M.
In 2012, Guns N' Roses was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Rose refused to attend the ceremony. Slash and fellow former group members Steven Adler, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum accepted the honor and also performed together at the event.
So if Slash and Axl Rose are pals again, how about a stage reunion?
When asked if the original Guns N' Roses members would ever perform together again, Slash told Aftonbladet TV, "Oh, I couldn't answer that one, no...all right, let's get off the subject."