[smokingarthur]

http://www.mercuryne...ws/15574554.htm

[odecom5]

article quoted so you don't have to click

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Guns N' Roses comeback not bad, but not nearly good enough
By Tony Hicks
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
Axl Rose has a lot to make up for. How he's going to do it is still a mystery, even after seeing the singer and his band, Gun N' Roses, at the Warfield in San Francisco Wednesday night.

If you don't want to hear comparisons to the old GNR, stop reading now. That's what's going to happen when a one guy hijacks the name of a legendary band, doesn't tour or make records for a decade, then comes back resting squarely on the deeds of years past.

Rose has hired a stage full of musicians to play under the moniker that so many people still know and love. No Slash to play guitar anymore? No problem. Rose hired three great players who look and sound like superstars -- though three was probably a bit of overkill.

, leading one to the obvious conclusion as to the identifiable sound and skill level of the old guys.

No Duff on bass? No problem. Rose hires Tommy Stinson, the bassist from the Replacements, one of the greatest alt-rock bands to ever grace the planet.

No Matt Sorum on drums? Rose gets Brian "Brain" Mantia, the excellent drummer of the Bay Area's own Primus.

That's a lot of credibility with which Rose has armed himself to take Guns N' Roses into its new phase. Well, at least the touring version of the new phase. We're still waiting (more than a decade) for the release of GNR's infamously oft-delayed "Chinese Democracy" record.

So the question is this: What was Rose trying to accomplish Wednesday night? Is it truly a new Guns N' Roses he's shaping, or is he trying to replicate the feats of the old band while nudging the current lineup into new territory?

It wasn't clear. Rose may not realize that without a new record, and playing with an ever-shifting line-up of non-household names, fans can only judge the new GNR on the old GNR. As far as that goes, they sounded fine. They played all the old stuff during a late-running set that, while a nice trip down memory lane, still fell short of expectations. That's what happens when a legendary band lets four out of five original members leave and waits more than a decade to do anything.

While Rose is still a dynamic frontman with a unique voice, so much of GNR used to depend on the laid-back coolness-that-could-explode-at-anytime vibe of the former members. It's hard to even call the new GNR anything but an Axl Rose solo band, featuring some nice backing players.

Looking better and more lively than what he's shown on scarce TV appearances in the past few years, Rose himself fought through sound problems to attack the stage like the Axl of old.

From opener "Welcome to the Jungle," through "It's So Easy," "Mr. Brownstone," "Live and Let Die," "Sweet Child O' Mine," and "You Could be Mine," everything sounded good and looked good, except for a couple of minor hiccups on "It's So Easy." At least, everything was as right and good as possible with so many unidentifiable faces on stage.

That's the thing -- guitarists Robin Finck, Ron Thai and Richard Fortis are all very good players (though we could've done without three guitar soloists taking up so much of a 21/2-hour set). All three try damn hard, running about, striking the right rock poses, sneering ... all the standard stuff from Rockstar 101. But that in itself was strange, as GNR never had to try so hard. The new guys are doing their best, but when it comes down to it, they painfully lack by comparison. It takes three guys bashing about to equal the absolute coolness of Slash and Izzy, who never had to resort to punching strings and doing windmills to make a point.

The few new songs scattered about the set were short of memorable, lacking the band's former and very-underrated natural groove. Some songs dragged ("Knocking on Heaven's Door,") and some were appropriately epic, like "November Rain," though Slash was dully missed. The crowd didn't seem to care who was up there playing under the GNR banner, with monstrous sing-alongs all night, especially during "Patience."

Maybe old fans need to get over the fact that it's a new century for GNR. But until Rose and his new crew can forge an identity with a new record one of these years, Guns N' Roses won't be able to escape the shadow of its former greatness.

[feconroses]

"It's hard to even call the new GNR anything but an Axl Rose solo band, featuring some nice backing players."

i totally agree with that...and with many things said in that articule.

[Kesseli]

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But until Rose and his new crew can forge an identity with a new record one of these years, Guns N' Roses won't be able to escape the shadow of its former greatness.

he got that right!

[busngabb]

Thats a great write up.

At this stage it is ALL about the album. Axl still pi$$ing about with the old material is not going to gain one ounce of respect for himself or the band.

Sure they can play the old songs well, but so could about 10,251 other bands if they had Axl on vocals.

They need to stop the messing about and release the album. Tour with that material and at least they can be judged on what they have created and performed rather than suffering in comparison with the old band simply because they are different people.

[Patience 4 Axl]

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If you don't want to hear comparisons to the old GNR, stop reading now. That's what's going to happen when a one guy hijacks the name of a legendary band, doesn't tour or make records for a decade, then comes back resting squarely on the deeds of years past.

Correct!

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While Rose is still a dynamic frontman with a unique voice, so much of GNR used to depend on the laid-back coolness-that-could-explode-at-anytime vibe of the former members. It's hard to even call the new GNR anything but an Axl Rose solo band, featuring some nice backing players.

Correct Again!

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That's the thing -- guitarists Robin Finck, Ron Thai and Richard Fortis are all very good players (though we could've done without three guitar soloists taking up so much of a 21/2-hour set). All three try damn hard, running about, striking the right rock poses, sneering ... all the standard stuff from Rockstar 101. But that in itself was strange, as GNR never had to try so hard. The new guys are doing their best, but when it comes down to it, they painfully lack by comparison. It takes three guys bashing about to equal the absolute coolness of Slash and Izzy, who never had to resort to punching strings and doing windmills to make a point.

This guy just scored a hat-trick!

[Vincent Vega]

Wow, when I first read the title to this I thought it was a Kaneda post...
Then I realized it's pretty much the same thing, except the author is different.
Same shit, different day, diferent author

[Funeral]

who wrote this, a fucking third grader?

whining and bitching like most of the Slash fans in here!



No Slash? ....oh my GWAD....this three guitar players cant come closer to coolness that is Slash!

[The Sandman]

What wasn't so good about it? The fact Slash wasn't there?

BIASED

[Cjc1706]

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That's the thing -- guitarists Robin Finck, Ron Thai and Richard Fortis

Love the last 2 names, Ron THAI ( ) and Richard Fortis ( )

lol Atleast get the names of the guys right lmao

CJ

[Patience 4 Axl]

Funeral, on Sep 21 2006, 04:25 PM, said:

No Slash? ....oh my GWAD....this three guitar players cant come closer to coolness that is Slash!

I know, I know. Sometimes the truth hurts...

[Vincent Vega]

Here we go again....
Old Band vs. New Band, round 10,560

[axlsend]

Mr. Miser, on Sep 21 2006, 09:30 PM, said:

Here we go again....
Old Band vs. New Band, round 10,560

I know.......

[JONEZY]

I think we're gonna see a lot of these types of reviews until Axl finally releases the album. Get used to it.

[Patience 4 Axl]

Mr. Miser, on Sep 21 2006, 04:30 PM, said:

Here we go again....
Old Band vs. New Band, round 10,560

The guy explains in the 4th sentence why there are comparisons, and I think he makes a valid point.
Anyway, the review is pretty accurate. It's not really about Slash not being there, or Duff or Izzy, it's about the guys who ARE there.