The Voice...

[maynard]

I think it all surrounds confidence. You see him in 2010 showing his face and showing some aggression. same with 2006 and 80s and 90s. Now he seems to lack self confidence and aggression which may be delaying inspiration in his voice. I still believe Axl has the greatest rock n roll voice nowadays and there is no point in bashing him further.

i wouldn't say anybody is bashing him. his voice is bad and people can't ignore this fact and many of them express it around here.

[Philly Guns]

I think it all surrounds confidence. You see him in 2010 showing his face and showing some aggression. same with 2006 and 80s and 90s. Now he seems to lack self confidence and aggression which may be delaying inspiration in his voice. I still believe Axl has the greatest rock n roll voice nowadays and there is no point in bashing him further.

i wouldn't say anybody is bashing him. his voice is bad and people can't ignore this fact and many of them express it around here.

+99

Yea I never get why people think we are "hating" on him when we criticize his voice. I love Axl, but we are being honest, and its not just an opinion, its fact, his voice isn't where it could be.

Like I said before its either his voice or weight, people are trying to blindly defend those issues. "Oh he is definitely getting thinner", "oh its that dam youtube messing with how he sounds "

[maynard]

I think it all surrounds confidence. You see him in 2010 showing his face and showing some aggression. same with 2006 and 80s and 90s. Now he seems to lack self confidence and aggression which may be delaying inspiration in his voice. I still believe Axl has the greatest rock n roll voice nowadays and there is no point in bashing him further.

i wouldn't say anybody is bashing him. his voice is bad and people can't ignore this fact and many of them express it around here.

+99

Yea I never get why people think we are "hating" on him when we criticize his voice. I love Axl, but we are being honest, and its not just an opinion, its fact, his voice isn't where it could be.

Like I said before its either his voice or weight, people are trying to blindly defend those issues. "Oh he is definitely getting thinner", "oh its that dam youtube messing with how he sounds "

so true...

"oh i hear 3 seconds of rasp"

come on, the standards should be higher.

[Un42nutzly]

I think it all surrounds confidence. You see him in 2010 showing his face and showing some aggression. same with 2006 and 80s and 90s. Now he seems to lack self confidence and aggression which may be delaying inspiration in his voice. I still believe Axl has the greatest rock n roll voice nowadays and there is no point in bashing him further.

i wouldn't say anybody is bashing him. his voice is bad and people can't ignore this fact and many of them express it around here.

+99

Yea I never get why people think we are "hating" on him when we criticize his voice. I love Axl, but we are being honest, and its not just an opinion, its fact, his voice isn't where it could be.

Like I said before its either his voice or weight, people are trying to blindly defend those issues. "Oh he is definitely getting thinner", "oh its that dam youtube messing with how he sounds "

so true...

"oh i hear 3 seconds of rasp"

come on, the standards should be higher.

It's not all about rasp, that's what some of you don't seem to understand. He's obviously trying, and learning, how to use both falsetto and the rasp without screwing his vocal chords, which is good. I love the rasp but that don't mean i am going to just nay say every single performance of his until I hear that adequate amount of 'rasp'. Edited May 28, 2013 by GNRFan53

[Nosaj Thing]

Nobody said it's only about the rasp. The "Mickey Mouse" term is to describe awful, weak, plain and clean vocals from Axl. I know how Axl's clean vocals sound like and Mickey Mouse is just an awful, weak version of that and it's exactly what' he's been doing since Rio 2011. He's also out of breath, every 5 seconds you hear his voice crack.

I agree with the comments "He's still got it" and "He hasn't lost yet" but then I'd like to hear real Axl Rose, and I don't think anyone is expecting him to sing and/or sound like he did in the early 90s. He will NEVER sound like that, we all know he's old now but come on, 51 years old and he sounds like shit. 48 in 2010 and he sounded great. Why would 'age' be an excuse now? He's so damn fat, that gives me the idea that he's not takin' care of himself.

I mean, I wouldn't "bash" (which is not the right word, I'd say I'm always criticizing him) Axl if he at least gives me the impression that he's trying his best but he's definitely not. So sorry, but I will continue to be honest and realistic of what I see and hear and if I see and hear a fat Axl Rose singing like shit, I will say it. The day I see and hear an Axl Rose full of energy killing a song, I will say it as well and believe me, I'll be more than happy to share that opinion on this board.

[magisme]

Nobody said it's only about the rasp. The "Mickey Mouse" term is to describe awful, weak, plain and clean vocals from Axl. I know how Axl's clean vocals sound like and Mickey Mouse is just an awful, weak version of that and it's exactly what' he's been doing since Rio 2011. He's also out of breath, every 5 seconds you hear his voice crack.

I agree with the comments "He's still got it" and "He hasn't lost yet" but then I'd like to hear real Axl Rose, and I don't think anyone is expecting him to sing and/or sound like he did in the early 90s. He will NEVER sound like that, we all know he's old now but come on, 51 years old and he sounds like shit. 48 in 2010 and he sounded great. Why would 'age' be an excuse now? He's so damn fat, that gives me the idea that he's not takin' care of himself.

I mean, I wouldn't "bash" (which is not the right word, I'd say I'm always criticizing him) Axl if he at least gives me the impression that he's trying his best but he's definitely not. So sorry, but I will continue to be honest and realistic of what I see and hear and if I see and hear a fat Axl Rose singing like shit, I will say it. The day I see and hear an Axl Rose full of energy killing a song, I will say it as well and believe me, I'll be more than happy to share that opinion on this board.

[Un42nutzly]

Nobody said it's only about the rasp. The "Mickey Mouse" term is to describe awful, weak, plain and clean vocals from Axl. I know how Axl's clean vocals sound like and Mickey Mouse is just an awful, weak version of that and it's exactly what' he's been doing since Rio 2011. He's also out of breath, every 5 seconds you hear his voice crack.

I agree with the comments "He's still got it" and "He hasn't lost yet" but then I'd like to hear real Axl Rose, and I don't think anyone is expecting him to sing and/or sound like he did in the early 90s. He will NEVER sound like that, we all know he's old now but come on, 51 years old and he sounds like shit. 48 in 2010 and he sounded great. Why would 'age' be an excuse now? He's so damn fat, that gives me the idea that he's not takin' care of himself.

I mean, I wouldn't "bash" (which is not the right word, I'd say I'm always criticizing him) Axl if he at least gives me the impression that he's trying his best but he's definitely not. So sorry, but I will continue to be honest and realistic of what I see and hear and if I see and hear a fat Axl Rose singing like shit, I will say it. The day I see and hear an Axl Rose full of energy killing a song, I will say it as well and believe me, I'll be more than happy to share that opinion on this board.

Understood. All I am saying is that when he sings with the falsetto, in my opinion, it sounds great. All i am saying is that I think he lacks self confidence, well and aggression of course, which may be playing a role in the missing energy.

[sweetness]

Age and he doesn't take good care of himself, age isn't much of an excuse though. He was definitely doing something different in 2010, his voice had much more behind it, most likely because he was rehearsing regularly enough keep his diaphragm strong. Wish he still did this

[maynard]

Nobody said it's only about the rasp. The "Mickey Mouse" term is to describe awful, weak, plain and clean vocals from Axl. I know how Axl's clean vocals sound like and Mickey Mouse is just an awful, weak version of that and it's exactly what' he's been doing since Rio 2011. He's also out of breath, every 5 seconds you hear his voice crack.

I agree with the comments "He's still got it" and "He hasn't lost yet" but then I'd like to hear real Axl Rose, and I don't think anyone is expecting him to sing and/or sound like he did in the early 90s. He will NEVER sound like that, we all know he's old now but come on, 51 years old and he sounds like shit. 48 in 2010 and he sounded great. Why would 'age' be an excuse now? He's so damn fat, that gives me the idea that he's not takin' care of himself.

I mean, I wouldn't "bash" (which is not the right word, I'd say I'm always criticizing him) Axl if he at least gives me the impression that he's trying his best but he's definitely not. So sorry, but I will continue to be honest and realistic of what I see and hear and if I see and hear a fat Axl Rose singing like shit, I will say it. The day I see and hear an Axl Rose full of energy killing a song, I will say it as well and believe me, I'll be more than happy to share that opinion on this board.

perfect post, hopefully the worshippers will understand us now.

[chevelle]

I think the abuse he put it through during the UYI tour, not singing in a touring capacity for nearly a decade after that, and his singing style all added up to totally fuck up his voice. At this point he'd just be better off writing and singing songs in his natural lower register (as long as he doesn't do the Dracula shit).

[GNR123GNR456]

That's the thing, alot of us want Axl to succeed. We know he can be much better than he is today, more fitter, better vocals, more inspired. We all saw Axl during the 2006 and 2010 tour, that was a man on a mission, a frontman who I was proud to say I am a fan of. The fact is we have a seemingly uninspired Axl Rose with a gut doing nostalgia shows with deteriorating vocal chords. That's not that Axl Rose I want to see. I want to see him moving around on stage without being out of breath, I want to see Youtube comments and comments on here about how good his sounds (and not just from the Axl worshippers). I want the rasp, the power, the intensity. And most of all I want to him to move this band forward.

The video's of Rock In Rio 2011 and The Bridge School show paint a different look of Axl than we are use to seeing. And that's what the masses on Youtube will see, the "Axl Rose Disaster 2011" and "Axl Rose Disaster 2012," video's. With a out of shape, clearly unprepared lead singer forgetting the lyric's to song's he sang for 25 years.

Sure, Axl's 51. Sure, he's older. But he's also a rockstar, a celebrity. And their held to a different standard to us average joe's. When you have dozen's on musician's that are at Axl's age and are in better shape than he is (some even older than Axl) than age shouldn't be an excuse.

I don't want to see comment's like "well, he used the rasp from 2:00-2:06." I don't want overzealous poster's saying how "he look's thinner," when it's clear that he probably didn't do anything for months. He's seemingly lost the passion, the drive, the determination to be a big band. He's now a nostalgia act going through the motion's. It's a shame too, because he was once such a great vocalist and songwriter, but it seem like whatever fueled his fire years ago is gone. And the worst part is, he hasn't changed the perception of him. People make fun of him of here, on other websites, and he doesn't do anything but add more fuel to what their saying. I would love for Axl to shut up as the naysayers (including me) and put out new music, get in better shape, and tour the globe kicking ass like he did in 2010 and 2006 I would love for Axl to be on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, to be in commercials and talk shows. Just to be popular again in the mainstream world.

Maybe he's going through a mid-life crisis, maybe he's on new medication, maybe he just doesn't give a fuck anymore? Who knows? Hell, it would be cool if he atleast get us some insight as to why he's seemingly holding back his raspy vocal's, or maybe even new music.

I just wish that he could try to be the best he can be, not a shell of a once great frontman.

[Stro]

Is his voice shot because of the '87-93 era, because he's old or because he doesn't take care of himself? Watching (youtube) this Rocklahoma shit it's embarrassing.

I would say so. He really abused of his voice when real Guns was around. He spent YEARS doing nothing, that also contributed to his voice being horrible nowadays.

That said, he sounded great in 2010, I don't know what the happened in few months, all the horrible, awful, weak vocals started in Rio 2011.

It started creeping in at the end of the 2010 tour. The last couple shows that year had people worried that he'd blown his voice out and that the Mickey Mouse stuff was back. And then RiR11 confirmed it. But the mini tour between RiR and the UCAP shows had him sounding much, much better than he did last year and this year. It's all pretty weird.

[maynard]

That's the thing, alot of us want Axl to succeed. We know he can be much better than he is today, more fitter, better vocals, more inspired. We all saw Axl during the 2006 and 2010 tour, that was a man on a mission, a frontman who I was proud to say I am a fan of. The fact is we have a seemingly uninspired Axl Rose with a gut doing nostalgia shows with deteriorating vocal chords. That's not that Axl Rose I want to see. I want to see him moving around on stage without being out of breath, I want to see Youtube comments and comments on here about how good his sounds (and not just from the Axl worshippers). I want the rasp, the power, the intensity. And most of all I want to him to move this band forward.

The video's of Rock In Rio 2011 and The Bridge School show paint a different look of Axl than we are use to seeing. And that's what the masses on Youtube will see, the "Axl Rose Disaster 2011" and "Axl Rose Disaster 2012," video's. With a out of shape, clearly unprepared lead singer forgetting the lyric's to song's he sang for 25 years.

Sure, Axl's 51. Sure, he's older. But he's also a rockstar, a celebrity. And their held to a different standard to us average joe's. When you have dozen's on musician's that are at Axl's age and are in better shape than he is (some even older than Axl) than age shouldn't be an excuse.

I don't want to see comment's like "well, he used the rasp from 2:00-2:06." I don't want overzealous poster's saying how "he look's thinner," when it's clear that he probably didn't do anything for months. He's seemingly lost the passion, the drive, the determination to be a big band. He's now a nostalgia act going through the motion's. It's a shame too, because he was once such a great vocalist and songwriter, but it seem like whatever fueled his fire years ago is gone. And the worst part is, he hasn't changed the perception of him. People make fun of him of here, on other websites, and he doesn't do anything but add more fuel to what their saying. I would love for Axl to shut up as the naysayers (including me) and put out new music, get in better shape, and tour the globe kicking ass like he did in 2010 and 2006 I would love for Axl to be on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, to be in commercials and talk shows. Just to be popular again in the mainstream world.

Maybe he's going through a mid-life crisis, maybe he's on new medication, maybe he just doesn't give a fuck anymore? Who knows? Hell, it would be cool if he atleast get us some insight as to why he's seemingly holding back his raspy vocal's, or maybe even new music.

I just wish that he could try to be the best he can be, not a shell of a once great frontman.

your lifez dont ownz u your personNalL haappy endingz lol - typical answer from an axl fanatic.

[Snowmass]

It's gotta be a combo- laziness, food (out of shape), drugs/alcohol, age and not caring. Plenty of other singers of his status don't sound this bad. EX- Dickinson, Tyler, Neil, Jovi, Jagger, Springsteen, Plant..... Yes- I know none of them are close to prime, but none (Neil is worst) are as embarrassing as Axl.

[Nosaj Thing]

All i am saying is that I think he lacks self confidence, well and aggression of course, which may be playing a role in the missing energy.

I can agree with this.

"This I Love 2010"

"This I Love 2013"

__

Forget about the rasp, there's a BIG FUCKIN' DIFFERENCE between those two videos. The only thing I find the same is the fact that Axl seems to forget the first sentence.

Now, tell me, do you consider the 2013 video a good performance? Do you consider that Axl sounded great? Come on.

[Patience 4 Axl]

There's no denying Axl's voice was a large part of what separated Guns from other bands of their day. Along with Slash's riff's and solos, they stood out from the likes of Crue, Poison, and Whitesnake for example. If Axl sang falsetto back in the 80's and early 90's and never used rasp, would the band have achieved the same level of success? I don't know.

I think especially now that all the old members are gone, and Axl is the only connection to the original band that everyone knew and loved, it's disappointing that he can't deliver his part of what made them so great. Saying he can sing but chooses not too, if true, (and I somehow doubt it) really is a disservice to the fans, the band, the legacy, and to the man himself.

[Snowmass]

All i am saying is that I think he lacks self confidence, well and aggression of course, which may be playing a role in the missing energy.

I can agree with this.

"This I Love 2010"

"This I Love 2013"

__

Forget about the rasp, there's a BIG FUCKIN' DIFFERENCE between those two videos. The only thing I find the same is the fact that Axl seems to forget the first sentence.

Now, tell me, do you consider the 2013 video a good performance? Do you consider that Axl sounded great? Come on.

Incredible- 2010 version is "epic" VS 2013. Wow.

[Nosaj Thing]

That's the thing, alot of us want Axl to succeed. We know he can be much better than he is today, more fitter, better vocals, more inspired. We all saw Axl during the 2006 and 2010 tour, that was a man on a mission, a frontman who I was proud to say I am a fan of. The fact is we have a seemingly uninspired Axl Rose with a gut doing nostalgia shows with deteriorating vocal chords. That's not that Axl Rose I want to see. I want to see him moving around on stage without being out of breath, I want to see Youtube comments and comments on here about how good his sounds (and not just from the Axl worshippers). I want the rasp, the power, the intensity. And most of all I want to him to move this band forward.

The video's of Rock In Rio 2011 and The Bridge School show paint a different look of Axl than we are use to seeing. And that's what the masses on Youtube will see, the "Axl Rose Disaster 2011" and "Axl Rose Disaster 2012," video's. With a out of shape, clearly unprepared lead singer forgetting the lyric's to song's he sang for 25 years.

Sure, Axl's 51. Sure, he's older. But he's also a rockstar, a celebrity. And their held to a different standard to us average joe's. When you have dozen's on musician's that are at Axl's age and are in better shape than he is (some even older than Axl) than age shouldn't be an excuse.

I don't want to see comment's like "well, he used the rasp from 2:00-2:06." I don't want overzealous poster's saying how "he look's thinner," when it's clear that he probably didn't do anything for months. He's seemingly lost the passion, the drive, the determination to be a big band. He's now a nostalgia act going through the motion's. It's a shame too, because he was once such a great vocalist and songwriter, but it seem like whatever fueled his fire years ago is gone. And the worst part is, he hasn't changed the perception of him. People make fun of him of here, on other websites, and he doesn't do anything but add more fuel to what their saying. I would love for Axl to shut up as the naysayers (including me) and put out new music, get in better shape, and tour the globe kicking ass like he did in 2010 and 2006 I would love for Axl to be on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, to be in commercials and talk shows. Just to be popular again in the mainstream world.

Maybe he's going through a mid-life crisis, maybe he's on new medication, maybe he just doesn't give a fuck anymore? Who knows? Hell, it would be cool if he atleast get us some insight as to why he's seemingly holding back his raspy vocal's, or maybe even new music.

I just wish that he could try to be the best he can be, not a shell of a once great frontman.

Great post. It sums up everything very well.

Like you said, some of us didn't want Axl to fail.

Incredible- 2010 version is "epic" VS 2013. Wow.

I know, and that's not the best 2010 performance of This I Love, so go figure bro.

[Snowmass]

Imagine 1993 Axl singing SOD live....or most of CD....with that same passion and intensity.

[IncitingChaos]

To be fair I think he sounded great in San Antonio the other night.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5EQzaXeo-A

Especially after the intro.

Edited May 29, 2013 by IncitingChaos

[magisme]

To be fair I think he sounded great in San Antonio the other night.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5EQzaXeo-A

Especially after the intro.

To me he sounds just ok after the intro. The rest is really bad.

[Nosaj Thing]

To be fair I think he sounded great in San Antonio the other night.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5EQzaXeo-A

Especially after the intro.

lol he sounded great

If that's your opinion I respect it. I think he sounded damn awful in the video you posted.

[IncitingChaos]

Yea I think we all have our expectations for Axl's voice. Some realistic and some who demand the absolute best. We all know he is capable of producing some of the best vocals in rock. In my opinion the vocals in this leg of the tour are improving over the last leg, and it was really great to hear some power in his voice on This I Love in San Antonio. If you think the vocals were awful then thats fine, you just hold Axl to a higher standard right now. I hope he reaches that standard one day again, but I know it won't happen over night, so for now it's been great to see a little improvement after each show.

[maynard]

Yea I think we all have our expectations for Axl's voice. Some realistic and some who demand the absolute best. We all know he is capable of producing some of the best vocals in rock. In my opinion the vocals in this leg of the tour are improving over the last leg, and it was really great to hear some power in his voice on This I Love in San Antonio. If you think the vocals were awful then thats fine, you just hold Axl to a higher standard right now. I hope he reaches that standard one day again, but I know it won't happen over night, so for now it's been great to see a little improvement after each show.

i watched to many videos from these last us shows and i don't hear any improvement.

[IncitingChaos]

Yea I think we all have our expectations for Axl's voice. Some realistic and some who demand the absolute best. We all know he is capable of producing some of the best vocals in rock. In my opinion the vocals in this leg of the tour are improving over the last leg, and it was really great to hear some power in his voice on This I Love in San Antonio. If you think the vocals were awful then thats fine, you just hold Axl to a higher standard right now. I hope he reaches that standard one day again, but I know it won't happen over night, so for now it's been great to see a little improvement after each show.

i watched to many videos from these last us shows and i don't hear any improvement.

I meant the shows earlier this year. But all the same I'm sorry, it must be really hard for you to be a fan right now.