“I never would have approached anything associated with suicide for a song, but after I heard about Chris Cornell’s passing I wrote that lyric”: Bon Jovi guitarist Phil X digs deep on his new album

Phil X is having a great run as the guitarist in Bon Jovi, but says that he remains equally committed to his other band, the Drills.

As he tells MusicRadar: “My passion, man, you’re gonna see it. It’s the look on my face.

“I get that from Eddie Van Halen. Edward was a huge inspiration to me.

“Aside from his playing, his stage presence and writing, when I see a photo of him, it’s always with that big, joyous look on his face. Man, that’s me because I get to do this.”

The new album from Phil X & The Drills is titled Pow! Right In The Kisser, and as the guitarist says, it’s been a long time coming.

“I was doing The Drills before Bon Jovi and during Bon Jovi,” he explains. “It took me ten years to make this record because of Bon Jovi records, Bon Jovi tours, and life stuff - I became a dad for the second time.

“When you become a dad, you just want to be a dad. So, that took a lot of time, and it changed my songwriting a bit.”

He adds: “It added a lot of depth to the way I approach songwriting. I’ve interpreted things more tongue-in-cheek with The Drills.

“There’s been a situation where a fan would walk up and go, ‘What did you mean by these lyrics?’ I’d be like, ‘What do you think I meant?’ They would tell me something completely different and, sometimes, even cooler than what I was thinking! That made me want to be more interpretive.”

However, there is one song on this new album where Phil has taken a really serious approach to lyrics. The song is called Broken Arrow and was written after the suicide of Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell.

“Almost immediately after I heard about Chris Cornell’s passing, I wrote that,” Phil says.

“Years before, I never would have approached anything associated with suicide for a Drills song. I would never, ever do that. But I was at a point in my life where I wanted to get a little deeper and more introspective.

“You never know what’s going on in someone’s head, no matter how successful, or what kind of life they had. We just don’t know. So, that made me go down that path.”

Phil recorded this new album with bassist Daniel Spree and an all-star lineup of guest drummers including Tommy Lee (Mötley Crüe), Ray Luzier (Korn), and Tico Torres (Bon Jovi).

Phil says he has no problem switching between the Drills and Bon Jovi.

“I was a session guy in LA back in the mid-2000s when people still had huge budgets,” he says. “I became a chameleon because one day, you’re recording with Avril Lavigne, and the next, you’re recording with Alice Cooper.

“You don’t play the same way. It’s a different palette of paint, different feel, different vibes. So, being able to go and do my thing and then being able to do Bon Jovi has become natural for me.”