HE’S ALREADY PLAYING WITH FASTER PUSSYCAT, DOROTHY AND BUDDERSIDE, BUT WE GET THE FEELING THIS L.A.-BASED GUITARIST COULD SQUEEZE A FEW MORE BANDS INTO HIS SCHEDULE
By Andrew Daly
AT 28, SAM Bam Koltun is an odd juxtaposition alongside the elder statesmen he pals around with. But that’s no bother. “It’s not too weird,” he says. “I came up as a kid playing in bars when I was 12, so even then, the guys I played with were older. I’m conditioned to working with older musicians.”
That’s good news for him, as Koltun is an integral part of Faster Pussycat, which featured guitarists Brent Muscat and Ace Von Johnson before him. “Ace is one of my best friends,” Koltun says. “He was with Faster, but when Tracii [Guns] recruited him for L.A Guns, Ace asked if I wanted to join Faster in 2019. Five years later, here I am!”
For the Les Paul-slinging Koltun, Guns, a fellow single-cut devotee, is of note, as he and Koltun have become friends. “Tracii has been so important. I’ve always loved his playing, and when Ace got sick in 2022, he asked me to fill in with L.A. Guns. Tracii and I became close; I’m extremely grateful [to have] him as a mentor.”
Old guard aside, Koltun makes time for musicians his age — specifically with hard rocker Dorothy [aka Dorothy Martin], whom he’s toured and sometimes recorded with. “Dorothy and I connected on Instagram,” he says. “She message
