Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready and Guns N’ Roses’ Duff McKagan Form New Supergroup
Mike McCready of Pearl Jam, Duff Mckagan of Guns N' Roses and Barrett Martin of the Screaming Trees have formed three-fourths of a rock supergroup that will rely on a cast of vocalists to finish their debut album. As of now, the group doesn't have a name but that hasn't dammed their inspiration.
Martin is the group's lynchpin, as he works with McKagan in the Walking Papers, and previously played with McCready in the mid-90s group Mad Season. Ideas come from both of those projects, and then their time together in the studio.
"Mike and I were putting together this Mad Season collection," Martin tells Billboard, referring to the re-release of the band's 'Above' album. "Duff and I and Jeff Angell were starting the Walking Papers album which we asked Mike to play on."
"I had a whole bunch of song ideas and Mike had a whole bunch of song ideas and Duff had a whole bunch of song ideas that were not making it into Walking Papers. We decided that we would go into the studio and record them."
McCready adds that some of the songs come from the unreleased Mad Seasons demos for an album called 'Disinformation. He and McKagan are in charge of finding singers. "We're talking to Jaz (Coleman) from Killing Joke and I've been trying to find some singers to work on some of that stuff," McCready says.
"As the different singers finish their songs and turn them in, that will determine when they get put out," Martin adds.
The album will be released on McCready's own Hockeytalkter Records (inspired by how his three-year-old son says "hellicopter"). He says he'd also like to put some of the music out on vinyl.
Around this project the guitarist will be working with Pearl Jam to finish their new album, expected this year. The band will also tour in the fall, according to Rolling Stone.