artist.artist

L.A. Guns

L.A. Guns is an American rock band whose music is frequently associated with the L.A. glam metal scene which grew up around the Sunset Strip in the 1980s, in particular the sleaze rock subgenre. Guns N' Roses, which once featured three of the original L.A. Guns members, was the most prominent exponent of this subgenre, generally preferring an anti-social image to elaborate make-up and costumes. L.A. Guns was formed in 1983 by guitarist Tracii Guns and drummer Rob Gardner. Over the next couple years it would evolve into what became the original version of Guns n' Roses. Tracii Guns would depart that band in 1985 and launch a new version of L.A. Guns. Throughout the years, a large number of musicians would pass through some version of the band (of which, at times, there have been two) and no single member would be consistently present at all times. The band's longest-serving and best-known members are Tracii Guns, drummer Steve Riley (who joined the band in 1987 and is the closest thing to a constant member, having been in the band from 1987 until 1992, and again from 1994 until 2016), and vocalist Phil Lewis. The L.A. Guns name was owned by both Tracii Guns and Steve Riley and both musicians have led their own versions of the band. Riley and Lewis led L.A. Guns from 1999 until 2016 while Guns had a second version of the band from 2006 to 2012. In 2016, Lewis and Guns formed a new version of the band, while in 2018 Riley announced he had his own version (Riley's L.A. Guns) which included one-time bassist Kelly Nickels. In 2020, Lewis and Guns filed a lawsuit against Riley over the trademark to the L.A. Guns name after which a settlement was reached in which Tracii Guns and Phil Lewis would retained ownership of the L.A. Guns name while Steve Riley would use the name "Riley's L.A. Guns" (Riley passed away in October of 2023 but his version of the band would continue until February 2025).