Double duty for Slash

Rocker Slash will be the DJ by proxy tonight at club Tao after he opens for Ozzy Osbourne at Mandalay Bay Events Center.

"I'm not necessarily playing DJ per se," he tells me. "But I am picking a lot of the music. So it will be regular Tao dance fare mixed with hard rock."

For Slash to host a nightclub party is rare.

"I'm not the big after-show party type," he says. "Contrary to popular belief, I've never been very social. So if I did hard-core partying, it was usually on my own."

He feels comfortable at Tao for the same reason many other celebrities appear there. It's not just to cash a paycheck. It's because of the reputation of marketing director Deb Grimmel, who has been enmeshed in the music world for years.

"I've known Debbie a long time because she used to run clubs in L.A.," Slash says. "She's not really a hustler. She gets the work done, but she's not a scammer."

Slash claims he has dodged more hustlers in Vegas than in Los Angeles.

"I have a lot of friends from Vegas, and they're pretty clever," he says and laughs.

Two other Vegans he trusts are his band's bassist, Todd Kerns, (who is in the Vegas band Sin City Sinners) and drummer Brent Fitz, a go-to player for rockers from Vince Neil to Alice Cooper.

Slash says traveling with them and friend Ozzy has made this a tour of camaraderie.

"Fans seem really happy about it," he says. "You don't get really good rock 'n' roll bills these days."

Tip: Slash goes on early, at
7:20 p.m. His Tao red carpet is scheduled for 11 p.m.

SIGHTINGS

Wyclef Jean performs Saturday at club Haze. ... Wilmer Valderrama celebrates a birthday at club Vanity on Saturday. He turns 31 . ... A party for the upcoming film "Ten Year" is Saturday at Tao, which expects Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan-Tatum, Chris Pratt, Justin Long, Anthony Mackie and Scott Porter. ... San Francisco Giants Sergio Romo, Aubrey Huff, Darren Ford and Thomas Neal meet kids from Boys & Girls Clubs today at Palms Lounge, then those Giants host at club Moon on Saturday.

Doug Elfman's column appears Sundays, Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays. E-mail him at delfman@ reviewjournal.com. He blogs at reviewjournal.com/elfman.