When it comes to the biggest bands in rock history, Guns N’ Roses definitely reside in the top tier. Their albums have collectively sold over 100 million copies and their music has been featured in several horror movies, such as End Of Days, Warm Bodies, Cape Fear, and, of course, Terminator 2: Judgement Day.

We had the chance to chat with lead guitarist Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal about his love of horror and also his solo projects and upcoming projects. While we didn’t learn anything about GnR, it’s still really awesome to hear about the work that he’s involved in, especially knowing that he’s a strong proponent of working with charities and supporting children by being a patron for the Witney’s Witchwood School of Rock in Oxfordshire.

Check out our exclusive interview below.

You’ve been a part of a few horror movies now, not just as a composer but also as an actor. Do you find that doing one influences how you approach the other?

Acting and performing live musically both require immersing yourself in that moment and having that part of yourself take over and be all of yourself. Ahhh, but composing, hmmmmm. I would compare script writing to composing, acting to playing live. Now I’m *far* from a seasoned experienced actor – those who devoted their lives to it and have bled for it are actors. I’ve done that with music, but at this point for me it’s more of ‘non-musical performing’ than acting, as I haven’t earned the title of being called an actor. So does one help the other? Absolutely. All your experiences are drawn from in whatever you set out to do. So singing and memorizing lyrics helped with acting and memorizing script lines. And acting in a horror movie will absolutely help you get comfortable with ‘letting go’ when you sing & play.

The movies you’ve been a part of have been low budget independent films. If offered the chance to work on a large studio production, what kind of horror subgenre would excite and inspire you the most?

I find with music that artistic value and budget don’t always coincide, and I don’t discriminate based on budget. Talent outweighs budget. In music I’ve heard masterpieces done on a laptop that blow away multi-million dollar albums. Same with film, I’m into underground B movies as much as polished big-budget movies. I love ’70s/’80s classics like I Spit On Your Grave (1978), The Funhouse (1981), the Hellraiser series, psychological films like Wicker Man (1973) and Silence of the Lambs (1991), Saw series, The Cube series as well as more recent Euro-shockers like Martyrs (2009) & Srpski (2010). Used to watch lots of ’80s Troma films as well…! I’m open to anything and everything, I try not to live within a comfort zone, haha. But working with actor/writer Keith Collins and the “Clean Cut” movie team, they make it easy. They’re all super-talented, supportive, and I’m blessed to call them friends.

What are some of your favorite horror scores? How about composers?

Ahh, don’t really have a favorite horror composer, but one of the first ones I really took notice of was from Scanners (1981), very ominous and stayed in my head. Of course the big hit music from The Exorcist, Halloween, Elm Street, Psycho, The Omen…

What movie do you credit with getting you into the horror genre?

The Omen. I was pretty young when I saw it – I was so spooked by it, I wouldn’t go up the stairs in my house if the lights weren’t already on up there for about two years, haha, serious. A few years later I was seeking out the thrill.

Talk to me about your solo albums. Does your love of horror weave into those at all?

I have 10 albums over the past 20 years, and that horror feeling absolutely was a building block in there. On the latest album “Little Brother Is Watching” (iTunes) there’s a song “Cuterebra” with that creepy circus feel… the previous album “Abnormal” (iTunes) has a song “Objectify” with a section inspired by old monster movies… The opera I put in my songs surely stems from hearing the score of The Omen as a kid, I’ve always put pieces of dark opera vocals in my music.

What music projects are you currently working on and when can we expect them to be released?

The latest release is the album “Little Brother Is Watching”, just released in February (iTunes, CDs) In early June will be the album release of the band “Art Of Anarchy” (iTunes), an album I produced and played on that has John Moyer from Disturbed on bass, and Scott Weiland on vocals. I’ve also been producing and playing on a rap-metal collaboration of DMC (from Run DMC) and metal band Generation Kill (with former Exodus singer Rob Dukes), we’re putting on songs throughout the year. Been doing guest guitar solos for upcoming albums from artists such as “Madame Mayhem” produced by Billy Sheehan and “Next To None” produced by Mike Portnoy. Very happy about all the music coming out this year.

What else does the future hold for you that you can share?

We just released the first music video for the title track “Little Brother Is Watching” and I’m hoping to release more music videos throughout the year. Keith Collins from the Clean Cut movie plays the ‘mystic’ in the video… I’m hoping to expand the line of hot sauces as well, and keep doing lots of charity work. I’m in India now meeting with members of Round Table organization, checking out the site of a school being built. They’ve built over 1000 schools here. I’m going to continue doing what I do, and take every chance to put it towards a greater good.

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