Axl Rose vs Slash and Duff

Guns N' Roses frontman W. Axl Rose has issued a press release intended as his "official response" to a federal lawsuit filed against him by former Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash and bassist Duff McKagan. Slash and McKagan contended in their suit that Rose had switched the publishing company for Guns N' Roses without their consent and collected more than his fair share of the band's royalties as a result. Rose filed a counterclaim on Friday (March 3rd) in which he asked a federal court to "confirm his ownership of his own creative works," according to the press release.

Axl's statement goes one step further, however, claiming that in October of 2005, Slash visited Axl's house at 5:30 one morning and said he wanted to "end the war" with Rose. Rose alleged that Slash tore into his current bandmates in Velvet Revolver, calling singer Scott Weiland a "fraud," saying that he "hates" drummer Matt Sorum and describing McKagan as "spineless."

The press release states, "It would have been Axl's preference to resolve disputes with Slash and Duff in private...However, Axl could no longer sit quietly and allow the continuing dissemination of falsehoods and half-truths by his former bandmates."

Rose has claimed that the publishing dispute was the result of a "clerical error" on the part of ASCAP, the songwriting society that collects royalties based on broadcast airplay.

McKagan and Slash, whose real name is Sol Hudson, have also sued Rose for allegedly stopping Guns N' Roses songs from being licensed to movies. Rose has countered that he has taken "great care" to avoid licensing Guns N' Roses music for "potentially embarrassing projects."

The press release called Slash's actions "a complete betrayal across the board of his alleged friendship and business relationship with Axl and the so-called brotherhood and band loyalties that are supposed to have existed."