English, baby!

Velvet Revolver

Date: Oct 15 2007

Themes: Music

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

Members of bands that break up often disappear in obscurity. But it’s always cool when ex-members of well-known bands join forces and form a supergroup. Or it always seems like it will be cool, anyway.

Velvet Revolver is former members of Guns N’ Roses playing with Scott Weiland, who used to be the singer for Stone Temple Pilots. Their new album, Libertad, is doing well all over the world, but Kevin and Beren seem a little apathetic when it comes to Velvet Revolver.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Kevin

Beren

Kevin: So what do you think about this Velvet Revolver crowd?

Beren: Like, the fans or the band?

Kevin: Like the band.

Beren: Are you into ‘em?

Kevin: Not really…no.

Beren: Really? I can understand. But the pedigree...it’s so rock ‘n’ roll.

Kevin: It’s not my style.

Beren: Half of Guns N’ Roses...

Kevin: It’s more Guns N’ Roses than Guns N’ Roses, right?

Beren: Yeah totally! But it’s better than new Guns N’ Roses, so you get the best of both worlds. The only thing I don’t like really is Scott Weiland.

Kevin: Why not?

Beren: I don’t know, like he…Well for one, from everything I’ve heard, he’s a complete ego maniac. Not that affects me personally, but I can see it in the videos, he always rips off his shirt and is dancing around.

Kevin: It’s all kind of annoying, right?

Beren: Yeah, he’s kind of abrasive in a way. I don’t know, I guess I would say he’s abrasive. The music’s decent...like, it’s better than Audioslave, that’s another like…

Kevin: Yeah, that’s true.

Beren: It’s better than Audioslave. I don’t have any albums. If I got a free ticket to a show, I’d go.

Kevin: I mean, I would go if the ticket were free, but I wouldn’t spend money on the album.

Quizzes

Go Super to take Quiz

Lesson MP3

Go Super to download full lesson MP3

Go Super to Ask Ebaby! teachers your questions!

The iTEP^® test

Sponsored by

Schedule an iTEP^® test and take the official English Practice Test.
Take Now >

Discussion

When Kevin asks Beren if she likes Velvet Revolver, he calls them a “crowd.” Since that’s an unusual way to refer to a band, she’s not sure if he’s talking about the band or their fans.

She says she’s not a big fan of the band, but she has to admit they have an all-star lineup. There are more members of Guns N’ Roses in Velvet Revolver than there are in the newest lineup of Guns N’ Roses.

Beren says the only member of Velvet Revolver she’s not into is Scott Weiland because she’s heard he’s egotistical. She and Kevin agree that while their music isn’t great, Velvet Revolver is better than Audioslave, another hybrid band, featuring members of Rage Against the Machine and Soundgarden.

If you could assemble an all-star band out of musicians from other bands, who would you choose?