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axl, slash, and company 80s hair/look change


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I have been wondering what caused the gnr members to go from glam to the "traditional guns n roses" look. Axl used to wear his hair like the typical 80's glam band hair doo's. Why and exactly when did he decide to wear his hair straight, and with a full can of hairspray in his hair? From what i have seen, he wears his hair glam until late in 1987.

I read in slash's book that he was into the glam look for a short period of time. I have seen pics of him in full glam attire. I do not recall him saying what specifically made him not want to look "glam". At least i can find some info on Slash, but none on Axl's hair and look change in the 80's. Am I the only one who wonders about this???

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I think at first the whole big hair and makeup thing had a Hanoi Rocks, New York Dolls slightly punk-y image that probably appealed to them as young up-and-comers. Then MTV hit big. Hair/Glam Metal was uniquely suited to that visual genre- and it started to seem corporate and banal. Plus Poison vs GNR was a real thing on the Strip in those years. They would have wanted to differentiate themselves from that shit. 

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Most likely their taste changed as they progressed. I read that it was actually due to Steven's eyes hurting because the sweat caused the make-up to run into them during shows but there's probably more to it. Most likely they realised how ridiculous they looked.

With how sensitive Axl is someone probably laughed at him or called him something that struck a nerve so he responded by changing the entire image of the band. :anger:

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1 hour ago, Stoymatic said:

I have been wondering what caused the gnr members to go from glam to the "traditional guns n roses" look. Axl used to wear his hair like the typical 80's glam band hair doo's. Why and exactly when did he decide to wear his hair straight, and with a full can of hairspray in his hair? From what i have seen, he wears his hair glam until late in 1987.

I read in slash's book that he was into the glam look for a short period of time. I have seen pics of him in full glam attire. I do not recall him saying what specifically made him not want to look "glam". At least i can find some info on Slash, but none on Axl's hair and look change in the 80's. Am I the only one who wonders about this???

I think Niven and Izzy had a lot to do with this 

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2 hours ago, AlexC said:

Most likely their taste changed as they progressed. I read that it was actually due to Steven's eyes hurting because the sweat caused the make-up to run into them during shows but there's probably more to it. Most likely they realised how ridiculous they looked.

With how sensitive Axl is someone probably laughed at him or called him something that struck a nerve so he responded by changing the entire image of the band. :anger:

Yeah. Because no one laughed at the cornrows for 6 years.

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16 hours ago, soon said:

I think Niven and Izzy had a lot to do with this 

how so? do you think they both saw the band as different so they wanted the rest of the band to look different as well?

17 hours ago, -W.A.R- said:

 

cool find....i clearly didnt look hard enough or use the right words when i searched lol

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18 hours ago, AlexC said:

Most likely their taste changed as they progressed. I read that it was actually due to Steven's eyes hurting because the sweat caused the make-up to run into them during shows but there's probably more to it. Most likely they realised how ridiculous they looked.

With how sensitive Axl is someone probably laughed at him or called him something that struck a nerve so he responded by changing the entire image of the band. :anger:

Would a sensitive person wear these?

axl-rose-assless-chaps-6.jpg

P.S the curtains seem to match the carpet :lol: 

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40 minutes ago, Stoymatic said:

how so? do you think they both saw the band as different so they wanted the rest of the band to look different as well?

Yeah, to some degree.  Its only a perception based on a few did bits.  

Izzy was less glam and transitioned to his classic look first.  And his look, imo, was kinda the touchstone of the bands collective look.  But of course thats not proof I understand.  

In this quote from duff, the word "vision" I think includes look and vibe, but I could be wrong:

"The perception in popular culture is that the singer and the lead guitar player are generally the artistic brain trust of any band. In our case, Izzy was probably the most significant force—without his initial vision and his songwriting cues, there would have been no Guns N’ Roses."

I cant find reference but I do recall reading that Izzy would have the band over to his apartment in early days before shows to put together every ones outfits.  I know I read it but i don't know if its true.

And about Niven, I know that Slash had been playing the BC Richs and the super strats and glammy Jacksons until Niven suggested him the sunburst les paul.  Which is a more classic rock vibe.  

Basically I just have the perception that Izzy and Niven were kinda an influential duo in early days and they both give little suggestions, imo, that they had a vision for a more classic look and feel.

I know this is flimsy at best, but its just an impression i have

EDIT: and how Niven wanted to create the Uzi Suicide label to make them look like a bad ass indie group not a group that went straight to major label.  I think he wanted to distinguish them form the pre fab 80s rock thing.  And a fake live album with screaming fans.  I think Niven wanted to cultivate the bad ass vibe.  I believe this would include fashion

 

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WRT to Axl's change from glam hair to straight natural hair, my theory is that he probably notice it was beginning to thin and did what he could to try and save it or prolong the process. I can't imagine the gallons of aqua net and blow drying are great for thinning hair.

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1 hour ago, soon said:

Yeah, to some degree.  Its only a perception based on a few did bits.  

Izzy was less glam and transitioned to his classic look first.  And his look, imo, was kinda the touchstone of the bands collective look.  But of course thats not proof I understand.  

In this quote from duff, the word "vision" I think includes look and vibe, but I could be wrong:

"The perception in popular culture is that the singer and the lead guitar player are generally the artistic brain trust of any band. In our case, Izzy was probably the most significant force—without his initial vision and his songwriting cues, there would have been no Guns N’ Roses."

I cant find reference but I do recall reading that Izzy would have the band over to his apartment in early days before shows to put together every ones outfits.  I know I read it but i don't know if its true.

And about Niven, I know that Slash had been playing the BC Richs and the super strats and glammy Jacksons until Niven suggested him the sunburst les paul.  Which is a more classic rock vibe.  

Basically I just have the perception that Izzy and Niven were kinda an influential duo in early days and they both give little suggestions, imo, that they had a vision for a more classic look and feel.

I know this is flimsy at best, but its just an impression i have

EDIT: and how Niven wanted to create the Uzi Suicide label to make them look like a bad ass indie group not a group that went straight to major label.  I think he wanted to distinguish them form the pre fab 80s rock thing.  And a fake live album with screaming fans.  I think Niven wanted to cultivate the bad ass vibe.  I believe this would include fashion

 

makes a lot of sense. if what youre saying is kind of what happened, then niven mustve saw how these guys were in real life and decided to make the band resemble their attitudes, look, etc. its actually really smart of him to do so since they were basically one of a kind when compared to every other band of that generation.

their sound had changed a bit too before appetite was recorded. not long after appetite came out, the music matched the look. the "i dont give a crap about what you think of me i will do what and say what i want" look and sound was there. niven wouldve had to have steered gnr in the direction

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12 minutes ago, Stoymatic said:

makes a lot of sense. if what youre saying is kind of what happened, then niven mustve saw how these guys were in real life and decided to make the band resemble their attitudes, look, etc. its actually really smart of him to do so since they were basically one of a kind when compared to every other band of that generation.

their sound had changed a bit too before appetite was recorded. not long after appetite came out, the music matched the look. the "i dont give a crap about what you think of me i will do what and say what i want" look and sound was there. niven wouldve had to have steered gnr in the direction

Yeah, I think thats a really good point, that if Niven did have anything to do with the image and the image change, he wasnt just creating it outta nothing; it was what the band actually was and he encouraged them to represent that and not feel the need to be on trend.

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i just saw an interview with slash and duff when they were in australia in 1992. slash said that the "bad boy" image was the labels decision/creation. he said that this was not any band members choice

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