Guns went on to achieve gold record status (500,000 million sales). Guns put out their 1988 self-titled debut album, “it sold 10,000 copies in the first day, and it just snowballed from there.” L.A. And it would be a fun year.” It quickly became apparent that things were going to turn out much better than that, though. “I thought with a bit of luck, I might have a year in Los Angeles. “Anyone who had that kind of confidence in me, well, I was inspired by that.”Įven though he was thrilled to get the job, Lewis recalls that his initial expectations were relatively low. Lewis says that he was later told the decision to hire him had actually been made before he’d even arrived in L.A., thanks to the reputation he’d already built in England. And Tracii looked up and he goes, ‘That’s it, you’ll do, you’ve got the gig!’ And that was it! I hadn’t sung a note. As a singer, there’s really not much for me to do: I just go up to the microphone and make sure that it’s on, the usual ‘check, check, one, two.’ Which I did. The next day, we were in the rehearsal room and going to knock out some songs. scene had just started bubbling,” Lewis says. “I was really, really interested because the L.A. Guns had formed in Los Angeles in 1983, but by 1997 they were looking for a new singer and invited Lewis to audition. In the early ‘80s, Lewis had begun his singing career in his native London, gaining notice for his work with various bands (including Girl, which also featured future Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen). Lewis recalls that the two of them clicked right from the day they met. It’s a little nerve-wracking but obviously it works.” “But nothing gets me nervous, gets my palms sweaty, like working with Tracii, because he just doesn’t mess around. “I’ve recorded with other musicians and it’s fun,” Lewis continues. He’s always working on ideas, working on songs, recording tracks. Guns went on to earn a reputation for being particularly hardworking band, and Lewis credits his longtime bandmate for keeping them on track. Just a couple of those was enough to teach me not to fuck around.” It costs a lot of money sitting around not doing anything. “But it’s a horrible feeling when you’re responsible for the entire production not going anywhere because you fucked your voice up and you’re going to need two or three days for it to recover. I mean, I blew it out at first, let me tell you!” he says.

“On those first tours, I didn’t know what I was doing. Lewis admits he wasn’t always this responsible. Of course, it’s really hard, because after the show you’ve got the adrenaline and everybody wants to hang out and have fun and party. Especially if you’ve got to do it the next four or five nights in a row. Not blow yourself out after a show,” he says. He says he’s been careful to make sure that this is the case. The end result sounds as powerful as anything Lewis has ever recorded, with his voice sounding as strong as ever. The pandemic prevented Lewis from recording his vocals in an actual recording studio, so instead, he built a full-fledged vocal booth under the stairs in his home in Las Vegas, then recorded his vocals on his own before sending them off to be placed into the final track. Writing “Let You Down” may have come easily, but actually recording it required quite a bit of work and discipline. Guns single “Let You Down” is available now I felt like the opening notes sequence is very space rock-ish.” The new L.A.

I’ve been telling Tracii how much I liked it and that I think he’d do a really, really good one. “The meandering pieces that sometimes can go on for hours. “I’m really big into spacey guitar rock at the moment,” he says. Lewis can pinpoint exactly what inspired the band to create this type of track. Guns have released a song, they’re expecting it to be a balls-out rocker. I was real excited about putting it out,” Lewis says. For the vocals, Lewis veers between languid, intimate murmurs and unrestrained howls, exuding damaged romance and danger. Starting with a sparse guitar part, the song builds with haunting atmospherics into an epic power ballad. It might even be argued that it’s one of the best singles in L.A. We don’t know what else to do with ourselves.” Their solution? “Let’s put a single out!”īut “Let You Down,” released on May 6, isn’t just some slapdash song. Guns singer Phil Lewis is amused as he describes how the band’s new song, “Let You Down,” came about after the current COVID-19 pandemic forced the band to cancel all their shows.

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