Born: November 19, 1960

Hometown: Venice Beach, California

Instrument: Drums

Bands before GN'R include: The Cult (from February 1989 to summer of 1990)

Joined GN'R: Summer 1990

Played in (amongst others): Jazz ensemble, marching band and movie things

Sideprojects: Slash's Snakepit and Neurotic Outsiders

Matt Sorum joined Guns N' Roses in 1991, after Steven Adler was fired. Matt's first gig was "Rock in Rio II" in Brazil -91.Which he exclaims was a very nerve racking moment for him; playing with GNR for the first time in front of thousnads.

After Adler was fired a replacement was not immediately apparent: Adam Maples from Sea Hags had already filled in temporarely, while Martin Chamers from Britain's Pretenders was briefly considered.
The permanent answer to their prayer, however, was to be found in the shape of Matt Sorum, American drummer with another British group named The Cult. Slash had been down to the local Universal Amphitheater venue to see the band, which the Gunners had once supported, and was impressed enough by their sticksman to put in a transfer bid. Who could refuse the call? "They liked me for what I was doing - rock solid drumming," commented the newcomer before revealing a trade secret. "When I was recording with Guns, Slash would get me to play quicker... they like me up-beat, aggressive and energized."
As for Axl, "The fact that Matt could play and fit in is what saved us. If we hadn't found somebody it would ultimately have been the demise of the band.
Matt's been capable of keeping up with it, if not enhancing it totally, and bringing new stuff to it."

Matt also enjoys GN'R's unique way of keeping their live shows fresh. "We don't have a set list," he explained. "Rather we have a pick list. Sometimes it'll be 30 seconds before we go on-stage when Axl calls out whatever he thinks he can sing first. The second number is set because I go into it - "Mr Brownstone" - I play timpani. I hated this was of working at first", he admitted, "but I love it now 'cos it's fresh, especially when you're on a two-year tour. And we're so at ease with playing on big stages now. So if Axl throws out a song we haven't played for six months it might be a little shaky, but we're not freaking out about it. There's an andrenalin rush every night."