If thereโs one guitarist who clearly didnโt get the memo about slowing down, itโs Slash.
The top hat. The Les Paul. The curls. The wah pedal getting absolutely battered.
More than four decades into one of rockโs most recognisable careers, Slash is having an absolutely ridiculous 2026 โ bouncing between his love of the blues, a mammoth Guns Nโ Roses world tour and plans for yet more music once the touring circus finally rolls to a stop.
And somewhere amongst all of that, thereโs the increasingly exciting prospect of genuinely new Guns Nโ Roses material.
Not another archival release.
Not another reworked track from the vault.
Weโre talking about the possibility of Guns Nโ Roses properly getting together and making a new record.
Cโmon mun. ๐ฅ
๐ธ Slash Has Still Got the Blues
One of the most fascinating chapters of Slashโs recent career has been his return to the music sitting underneath much of his playing from the very beginning โ the blues.
His Orgy of the Damned project saw Slash dive headfirst into blues classics alongside an outrageous collection of guests including Brian Johnson, Iggy Pop, Billy F Gibbons, Chris Stapleton, Paul Rodgers, Gary Clark Jr., Beth Hart and Demi Lovato.
Rather than sounding like some polite heritage project where everyone sits down and discusses vintage amplifiers over a cup of tea, Slash approached the blues exactly how youโd expect.
Turn the amp up.
Plug the Les Paul in.
And give the bloody thing some welly. ๐ธ๐ฅ
The project subsequently developed into the S.E.R.P.E.N.T. Festival, with Slash bringing together blues artists while also using the shows to support charitable causes.
S.E.R.P.E.N.T. stands for Solidarity, Engagement, Restore, Peace, Equality Nโ Tolerance, and the original touring festival featured names including Warren Haynes Band, Kebโ Moโ, Christone โKingfishโ Ingram, Samantha Fish, Eric Gales, ZZ Ward, Jackie Venson and Larkin Poe.
It demonstrated something weโve always loved about Slash.
Underneath the stadiums, fireworks, leather trousers and rock-star mythology is simply a bloke who really, really loves playing guitar.
Give him a stage, an amplifier and six strings and heโs happy.
๐ค Meanwhileโฆ Guns Nโ Roses Are Absolutely Everywhere
As if his blues adventures werenโt enough, Slash has spent much of 2026 doing his other little side job.
You know.
Playing guitar in Guns Nโ Roses.
Casual.
The band have embarked on another enormous world tour during 2026, taking them through South America, North America, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
And British rock fans got a particularly massive dose when Guns Nโ Roses headlined Download Festival 2026 at Donington Park on Saturday 13 June.
Watching Slash stalking across the Download stage with a Les Paul hanging around his neck remains one of those sights that just feels right.
Rain?
Mud?
Thousands of metalheads?
Slash playing guitar?
Thatโs basically British summer sorted. ๐๐ค
The bandโs 2026 touring schedule remains absolutely massive, with North American dates continuing through September before Guns Nโ Roses head towards Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
The current run is scheduled to finish at Eden Park in Auckland on 17 December 2026.
And thatโs where things become VERY interesting.
๐จ Slash Has Another Album Ready To Go
Because apparently Slashโs calendar wasnโt already ridiculous enough.
A new album from Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators has already been completed.
Slash revealed earlier this year that the record had been recorded and mixed, but rather than releasing it while heโs busy touring with Guns Nโ Roses, the plan is to unleash it once the Guns tour finishes.
More recently, Slash indicated that the album is expected in February 2027.
And then?
Theyโre going touring.
Again.
Of course they bloody are. ๐
Slash has suggested the following tour could take the band around the world for the better part of a year.
So the rough Slash calendar currently looks something like this:
- ๐ฉ Tour the planet with Guns Nโ Roses
- ๐ธ Keep the blues alive
- ๐ฟ Release another Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators album
- ๐ Tour the planet again
- ๐ฅ Somehow find time for Guns Nโ Roses music
- ๐ด Sleep approximately sometime around 2034
Absolute machine.
๐น But What About a NEW Guns Nโ Roses Album?
Now weโre getting to the spicy bit.
Because Slash has repeatedly indicated that Guns Nโ Roses have been writing material.
Earlier in 2026, he explained that the band already had a significant amount of material written and that the next major step would be getting everyone together, going through those ideas and deciding what actually becomes a Guns Nโ Roses record.
Thatโs important.
Since Slash and Duff McKagan returned to the band in 2016, Guns Nโ Roses have released songs including โAbsurdโ, โHard Skoolโ, โPerhapsโ and โThe Generalโ.
But those songs have roots stretching back into material developed during the Chinese Democracy era.
What fans have been waiting for is something different.
A record created by the modern Guns Nโ Roses.
Axl Rose. Slash. Duff McKagan.
Writing.
Recording.
Creating something genuinely new together.
And Slash appears increasingly confident that itโll eventually happen.
๐ฅ The Material Is There
The interesting problem doesnโt appear to be whether Guns Nโ Roses have ideas.
Itโs sorting through them.
Slash has suggested that plenty of writing has already taken place and that the challenge is getting everyone focused on turning those ideas into an actual record.
Anyone familiar with Guns Nโ Roses history will probably be laughing at the phrase โgetting everyone focused.โ
This is Guns Nโ Roses weโre talking about.
Chaos isnโt a bug.
Itโs basically part of the operating system. ๐
But Slash has also explained that once the band reaches the point where everyone commits to making a record, things can move quickly.
That leaves us with one enormous question.
๐ฟ Could We Finally Get the Guns Nโ Roses Album Fans Have Been Waiting For?
Potentially.
But donโt start camping outside HMV just yet, butt.
There is currently no confirmed release date, album title or official announcement of a brand-new Guns Nโ Roses studio album.
What we do have is something arguably more encouraging than another vague rumour floating around the internet.
Slash himself has confirmed that writing is happening and that the band intends to eventually sit down, sort through the material and begin properly putting things together.
Considering the reunited Guns Nโ Roses line-up has now spent around a decade touring together, the prospect of them finally turning that chemistry into a full record is incredibly exciting.
Because imagine it.
Axlโs voice.
Duffโs bass.
Slash plugging into a Marshall.
A completely fresh Guns Nโ Roses riff kicks in.
Tell us you wouldnโt immediately stop whatever you were doing.
๐ฉ Slash Simply Doesnโt Stop
Perhaps the biggest takeaway from Slashโs 2026 is just how absurdly productive the bloke remains.
He could quite comfortably spend the rest of his career playing โSweet Child Oโ Mineโ, โParadise Cityโ and โWelcome to the Jungleโ to stadiums around the world.
Nobody would blame him.
Instead heโs diving into blues music, curating festivals, making records with Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators, touring relentlessly with Guns Nโ Roses and continuing to write.
Thatโs what separates musicians who simply have legendary careers from musicians who seemingly need music in their bloodstream.
Slash still looks happiest when thereโs a Les Paul strapped around his shoulders and an amplifier somewhere nearby being pushed towards dangerous levels.
๐น 2027 Could Be Even Bigger
Thatโs the mad thing.
For everything Slash has done throughout 2026, 2027 could become another monster year.
A new Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators album is expected in February.
A world tour is planned to support it.
And once that cycle eventually wraps up?
Attention could turn once again towards Guns Nโ Roses and all that material apparently waiting to be developed.
Whether that ultimately becomes singles, an EP or the full-length Guns Nโ Roses album fans have wanted for years remains to be seen.
But something is definitely stirring inside the Guns camp.
And if Slash eventually walks into the studio with Axl and Duff and they properly start building a new record?
The entire rock world is going to pay attention.
Until then, Slash will presumably continue doing what Slash does.
Touring.
Recording.
Playing blues.
Destroying Les Paul strings.
Wearing a top hat in temperatures where any normal Welshman wouldโve melted into the pavement.
And somehow making it all look ridiculously cool.
2026 belongs to Slash. ๐ฉ๐ธ๐ฅ
And judging by whatโs already lined upโฆ
2027 might belong to him as well.
๐ค The Riff Report Verdict
Slash isnโt surviving on nostalgia โ heโs still moving forward.
Between Guns Nโ Roses, his blues adventures and another Conspirators record waiting in the wings, heโs operating at a pace that would flatten musicians half his age.
But the biggest prize remains tantalisingly out there:
a genuinely new Guns Nโ Roses album built by Axl, Slash and Duff.
Will it finally happen?
We bloody hope so.
Because rock โnโ roll could always use another dangerous Guns Nโ Roses record.
Proudly Welsh. Proudly Loud. Zero Apologies. ๐ค๐๐ฅ
