New L.A. GUNS Album 'Sounds Amazing,' Says PHIL LEWIS

The current version of L.A. GUNS — which includes singer Phil Lewis and the band's co-founding guitarist Tracii Guns — is recording a new album for a tentative summer release through the Italian record label Frontiers Music Srl.

"It sounds amazing — I'm not exaggerating," Lewis tells Westword in a new interview. "It's so slick, and every song is so well crafted. Big choruses. It's really interesting, and I think people are going to be knocked out by it. We're gonna release it on CD and digital, of course, but we're gonna put it put on vinyl. We have enough to put it out on double vinyl gatefold."

L.A. GUNS' present lineup is rounded out by Shane Fitzgibbon on drums and Johnny Martin on bass with Michael Grant on guitar as a touring member.

"We have Tracii's drummer that he's been working with for the last year and a half," Lewis says. "With Johnny Martin on bass, that's just a great rhythm section. Tracii's been going out with those two and another singer doing L.A. GUNS stuff, and it's been perfectly adequate. But now we've got Michael Grant. It's back to two guitars, and it's fierce. They're doing a lot of damage."

The last time Lewis and Guns joined forces was back in 2000 with legendary producer Andy Johns for the making of what would become "Waking The Dead".

Regarding the decision to use the L.A. GUNS moniker for the new album, Guns told LA Weekly: "When you put Phil and I together, that's the sound of L.A. GUNS. There's no way around that. As much as I love certain other [former] members of the band, it's hard to say what their contribution to the overall sound of the band was — but Phil Lewis and Tracii Guns, the band's gotta be L.A. GUNS. It can't be anything else."

Back in December, Phil announced that he was leaving the L.A. GUNS version that included drummer Steve Riley.