"MATT'S A MONSTER FRONTMAN"
Guitarist Michael ‘Padge’ Paget on being besties with Matt, headlining Download Pilot and meeting Axl Rose
FIVE MINUTES BEFORE YOU WALKED ONSTAGE AT DOWNLOAD PILOT, WHAT WAS GOING THROUGH YOUR MIND?
“It was absolutely terrifying. I was anxious, nervous, scared in case anything went wrong. We hadn’t done it for so long. I was just so worried in case my head got to me and it stopped my fingers working. But everything was perfect in the end.”
WAS IT EMOTIONAL?
“It was. Especially two or three songs from the end, because I knew we had to stop again after this, and we didn’t know for how long it’d be. But, you know, we finally headlined Download!”
YOU’VE KNOWN MATT SINCE YOU WERE KIDS AT SCHOOL. WHAT WAS HE LIKE THEN?
“He hasn’t changed. He’s always been very determined. He’s quiet – he doesn’t like attracting attention. I think he’s shy, but then he turns around onstage and he’s a monster frontman. Me and Matt have been through many ups and downs, some really hard times, but we’ve stuck together and we’ve got through it. We both realise how important it is to us, this band. Nothing must get in the way.”
WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE MEMORY OF BEING IN BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE?
“Getting onstage with Metallica in Estonia and just seeing this sea of blond hair singing along with us. Then when we did our own show in London, we had an aftershow, and Metallica turned up with Machine Head. It’s like, ‘How the fuck did that happen?’”
YOU TOURED WITH GUNS N’ ROSES EARLY IN YOUR CAREER. DID YOU GET TO MEET AXL?
“I did, and it was weird. I went to this party in this bar in New York. Axl Rose was there, Fred Durst, Mickey Rourke, Lenny Kravitz. Mental. At some point, our manager pulled Axl over and goes, ‘This is the opening band.’ He was really quiet, but I’m like, ‘Axl Rose, fucking hell, happy days, man.’”