Ultimate-Guitar.com recently spoke to VELVET REVOLVER guitarist Slash about the band's new album, Libertad. The following is a brief excerpt from the interview:

Ultimate-Guitar: The new record really solidifies the sound of the band. It’s a huge leap forward from Contraband. What did you do different this time?

Slash: "It’s hard to explain. The first record is great and it was a cool opening statement and stuff, but it wasn’t an example of what everybody in the band was really capable of. But we just sort of all got together and, based on the excitement of finding just that unity, we just went in and did it really quick. We didn’t really sit down and explore. We were lucky to even make the first record because we did a show at the El Rey, and we had I think a 5 to 6-song set. We contemplated just going on the road and not even putting a record out. Then we thought, 'No, let’s slow down for a second. Let’s put a record together.' So we did.

I think that over the course of the last couple of years, from touring and just being together and being through a lot together and this and that and the other, the band actually sort of got seasoned a little bit. We did five shows, I think it was somewhere in July. We did five shows in California, and even at that point, the band had actually set. It actually felt really, really comfortable. I could look back and think how hard we were really trying when it first started. There was a lot of getting to know each other. I’ve known a lot of these guys for fucking ever, as a band getting to know each other. So at this point, we went in and just started writing songs. It was a whole different kind of environment."

Ultimate-Guitar: You described the last record as spontaneous. So whatever you’re doing, it’s working.

Slash. "Whenever I do a one-off for somebody else, you’re in a situation where you don’t really have time, nor do you want to embarrass yourself by spending a lot of time on just putting a solo down or a rhythm track. So when it comes to being able to put down your own material, it’s sort of the same kind of thing. It’s like I’m impatient. I can’t hang out for too long. Sometimes you get forced into a situation where you have to because the part is not done yet or they haven’t executed it. This was more like just natural and it just happened, so it was cool. I learned a lot in the sessions."

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