Slash paid a visit to Los Angeles’ famed Amoeba Music on Wednesday to play a stripped-down acoustic set in support of his new blues covers album, Orgy of the Damned.
You can see UCR’s exclusive photos from the event, watch footage of the performance and see the set list below.
Accompanied by singer/guitarist Tash Neal and singer/keyboardist Teddy Andreadis, Slash performed a nine-song set that drew largely from Orgy of the Damned. Neal and Andreadis traded vocals on covers of Howlin’ Wolf’s “Killing Floor,” Fleetwood Mac‘s “Oh Well,” Elmore James’ “Shake Your Money Maker” and more. At the end of the performance, Slash said it was the “first Blues Ball gig since nineteen ninety-fuckin’-nine.” (He was close: According to setlist.fm, the group, which also featured Andreadis, played its last show in January 1998.)
READ MORE: Hear Slash and Chris Stapleton Cover Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Oh Well’
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Orgy of the Damned features souped-up renditions of various blues staples, with different guests vocalists on each track including Brian Johnson, Billy Gibbons, Chris Robinson, Iggy Pop, Paul Rodgers and more.
“The most important thing about it was just having fun with it,” Slash told UCR about making the album. “When we’re playing the songs through, [we’re] not trying to emulate them. … But you keep the integrity of the main throughline and make sure that the riff, melody and all of that stuff stay intact. So you’re not trying to have too much artistic license and it’s not too self-indulgent. You want to make sure that you’re respecting the original to some extent.”
Slash will promote Orgy of the Damned on this summer’s inaugural S.E.R.P.E.N.T. (“Solidarity, Engagement, Restore, Equality N’ Tolerance”) festival, which features a variety of supporting blues and rock acts on each date. The trek begins on July 5 in Bonner, Montana, and concludes on Aug. 17 in Grand Prairie, Texas.
Watch Slash’s Unplugged Set at Amoeba Music on 5/29/24
Slash, 5/29/24, Amoeba Music, Los Angeles
1. “Killing Floor” (Howlin’ Wolf cover)
2. “Key to the Highway” (Booker T. & the MG’s cover)
3. “Oh Well” (Fleetwood Mac cover)
4. “The Pusher” (Hoyt Axton cover)
5. “Crossroads” (Robert Johnson cover)
6. “Hoochie Coochie Man” (Muddy Waters cover)
7. “Shake Your Money Maker” (Elmore James cover)
8. “Awful Dream” (Lightnin’ Hopkins cover)
9. “Built for Comfort” (Howlin’ Wolf cover)
Slash at Amoeba Music, May 29, 2024
Guitarist played unplugged set to promote blues covers album ‘Orgy of the Damned.’
Gallery Credit: Alex Kluft