Slash feat. Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators - World On Fire
On September 15, 2014, "World On Fire", Slash's third solo album and his second with "Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators", was released worldwide. It followed in North America the next day.
Two years earlier, "Apocalyptic Love" had shown that the connection between Slash's guitar and Myles Kennedy's voice was far more than a temporary collaboration. Bassist Todd Kerns and drummer Brent Fitz completed a lineup that sounded and felt like a real band. After months on the road, the four musicians knew one another well, so some of the ideas for the next album emerged naturally during the tour.
This time, production duties went to Michael Baskette, who replaced Eric Valentine and already knew Kennedy well through his work with "Alter Bridge". Baskette gave the album a broader, heavier sound and, more importantly, made room for all four musicians in the mix. Slash remained at the center, but the bass and drums were more than accompaniment, while Kennedy sounded like part of a cohesive band rather than a singer brought in to perform over finished riffs.
Most of the album was recorded at NRG Studios in Hollywood, with the aim of preserving the energy the lineup had developed onstage. The bass and drums sit prominently in the mix, the guitars are heavy without sounding overpolished, and Kennedy moves easily between a rough-edged delivery and the soaring high notes associated with his voice. The band was not chasing the fashionable sound of 2014. It was simply playing direct, bluesy hard rock, built on large riffs and solos allowed enough room to develop.
The song "World On Fire" opens the album without wasting time. The riff is sharp, the pace is relentless and the chorus was made to carry across an arena. The lyrics celebrate life without restraint, although beneath the party lies the sense that everything could spin out of control. Slash's solo extends the song's momentum instead of interrupting it. The single reached number one on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart and quickly became a regular part of the band's live set.
The song "Shadow Life" brings a darker atmosphere to the album, driven by a creeping riff and lyrics about living beside someone only to realize that you do not truly know them. "Automatic Overdrive" immediately raises the pace again, while "Wicked Stone" is one of the album's strongest tracks. It begins with considerable weight, grows more menacing as it unfolds and reaches a long solo in which Slash develops one idea after another instead of settling for a display of speed.
The song "30 Years To Life" tells the story of a single decision that carries a lifelong cost, set against a dirty groove with a Southern edge. Kennedy sounds angry and remorseful at the same time, while the band moves between sections without losing its weight. It is followed by "Bent To Fly", the album's major ballad. Kennedy wrote it after saying goodbye to his mother before leaving on the road, and the struggle between wanting to stay and needing to leave can be felt in every line. The acoustic guitar and gradual rise in intensity prepare the solo well, allowing it to arrive at exactly the right moment.
The song "Stone Blind" returns the band to heavy, blues-based rock, while "Too Far Gone" pushes ahead with one of the album's most direct choruses. By contrast, "Beneath The Savage Sun" is darker and more ambitious. Kennedy wrote the lyrics after watching footage of elephant hunting and the ivory trade, and his anger is clear even without knowing the story behind the song. Slash adds layer after layer until the track takes on an almost cinematic scale.
As the album progresses, its main weakness also becomes clear. Seventeen tracks spread across more than an hour and fifteen minutes are slightly more than the material requires. "Withered Delilah" and "Dirty Girl" offer strong riffs, but within such a long sequence it becomes difficult for every song to receive the attention it deserves. "Battleground", by contrast, benefits from slowing the pace. Its atmosphere is more reflective, and the guitar leaves open spaces instead of filling every second.
The song "The Dissident" is fast and rebellious, with a touch of punk. "Safari Inn" is a colorful instrumental that brings Slash back to the blues and 1970s rock. The album closes with "The Unholy", one of its heaviest and most unsettling tracks, in the best sense of the word. It addresses abuse and institutional silence within religious organizations, so the music offers neither a celebratory nor a comforting ending. The tension is still hanging in the air when the album stops.
The artwork was created by Ron English, and it suits the music well: colorful, crowded and provocative, filled with figures celebrating while the world burns around them. It makes no attempt to be pleasant to look at. Instead, it presents a grotesque image of a society addicted to consumption, entertainment and excess. Like the album itself, the cover is impressive because of its abundance and occasionally weakened by it.
Upon its release, "World On Fire" entered the Billboard 200 at number ten, reached number seven in the United Kingdom and number four in Canada. It later earned a silver certification in the UK. The more important achievement was artistic: it established the lineup as a stable band rather than a project led by Slash with a guest singer and backing musicians. That partnership continued across subsequent albums and tours around the world.
The album would have benefited from stricter editing and a shorter track list. Even so, at its best it is difficult not to be carried along by the band’s energy. "World On Fire" captures four musicians who know one another well and understand when to push forward and when to leave room for the guitar or the voice. It does not reinvent hard rock, but it plays it with passion, confidence and a very generous amount of fire.
For listening: Spotify, Apple Music
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