speedking

Show still has not started yet.

Jesus...what's the local time there?

GNR Twitter: "Passport Control policies, procedures and people are just the BEST ever. Copps Coliseum Hamilton Place Hamilton Convention Centre we are SOOOOO close! see you in a few!"

They've been playing to mostly half empty arenas. I saw them at Target Center a couple of weeks ago...capacity is 18,000+, they sold about 8,000 on that one. Axl has some difficult decisions to make once this tour wraps. Does he keep pushing this version of the band? Does he go and do a solo album & tour? Or...does he reconcile with Slash, Duff & Izzy and do a reunion tour? IF they make it into the R&R HOF, my bet is on the latter.

Got two extra tickets I need to dump in a hurry. Free FedEx shipping.

Winnipeg

MTS Centre

Jan 13, 2010

8:00 PM

Section 326, Row 6, Seats 11-12

$80.00 for both tickets. Far below actual value.

Did I mention Free FedEx shipping?!?

Email me if interested: delsen66@gmail.com

Guys, this looks super legit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrQVG5hqTAI&feature=sub

It was even uploaded by AXL himself!

Holy shit... :xmasschef:

LOL!!!! why would someone waste their time making that

It's just an audience track over the studio. Boo, just like KISS

What do you mean "just like KISS"?

KISS is notorious for re-recording their live albums in the studio. The one that had the most re-recordings was Alive III, where pretty much only the drums and some of the guitar parts were left alone and the rest was touched up in the studio.

OK...I am a long time KISS fan and I thought you were referring to KISS possibly using taped backing tracks in concert. I saw them in Minneapolis in November and also purchased an instant live CD. They sound great! Paul's voice is starting to go, but otherwise the playing is right on.

Guys, this looks super legit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrQVG5hqTAI&feature=sub

It was even uploaded by AXL himself!

Holy shit... :xmasschef:

LOL!!!! why would someone waste their time making that

It's just an audience track over the studio. Boo, just like KISS

What do you mean "just like KISS"?

Got my tickets this morning...who else is going?

I took Axl at his word when he told John Norris backstage at the VMA's that "Chinese Democracy" will be out this year.

He still has a few weeks left and at this point I'd have to say that it's going to be a digital download via I-Tunes etc...

As for the current tour, I'll be seeing them in Minneapolis in a couple of weeks, but the words of David St. Hubbins keep ringing in my ears...

"There's no way to promote something that doesn't exist"

Ok Gang...

The conversation I had was indeed a friend of mine who orders for an large independant chain where I live.

He's been in the music retail business for about 25 years and knows his stuff.

He was merely trying to drive home the point that if the title isn't in the system, it's impossible to order...and if you can't order it, then how is it going to find it's way into retailers?

I was simply passing on the conversation as something to consider.

He may very well be wrong, but I doubt it.

And thanks for that.

But the manner in which you put it: "NO RELEASE FOR CHINESE DEMOCRACY 11/21/06"

At this crucial/delicate point in time where we are all as anxious as you are was truly not necessary.

Could've been put differently if it was you just passing us something to "consider".

But thanks.

So noted. I edited the subject line to reflect the content more accurately.

Ok Gang...

The conversation I had was indeed a friend of mine who orders for an large independant chain where I live.

He's been in the music retail business for about 25 years and knows his stuff.

He was merely trying to drive home the point that if the title isn't in the system, it's impossible to order...and if you can't order it, then how is it going to find it's way into retailers?

I was simply passing on the conversation as something to consider.

He may very well be wrong, but I doubt it.

And if it's being shipped under a false name?

Sorry, I did ask him about the false name thing. He said that idea was ridiculous because retailers would have no idea what they were ordering.

I spoke with a friend who does ordering for a major music retailer. Below is the transcript of our phone call conducted today (11/15/06) at 2:20pm Central Time.

ME: Hi, hear anything on Chinese Democracy?

RET: Nothing. It's not even in the system.

ME: So is it at all possible that CD would be in your store next Tuesday (21st)?

RET: No. It's impossible since I need to have info in the computer to actually order it and there is nothing.

ME: What about the rest of this year?

RET: The last reasonable date would be November 28th...after that, it kind of dries up.

ME: Are you suggesting that it won't be out this year?

RET: Anything's possible, but at this point, with nothing in the system showing any release date, the window is closing fast.

He also indicated that he orders new releases the Friday before the Tuesday release. So, for example, in order to have CD in stores by next Tuesday (21st) he would have to have something in his computer by tomorrow morning at the very latest.

I believe that if CD were coming out this year, the PR machine would have been ramped up a few weeks ago. The most telling thing is that AXL has made no reference to it's release at any of the concerts this fall.

We may be waiting a bit longer than we thought...

I work in the TV biz and a friend of mine at the network level said that rumors around the office are flying that GNR will perform via satellite on that show next Tuesday (21st).

I checked the ABC website ( http://abc.go.com/specials/ama06.html) and so far no mention of GNR.

Have to admit that it would kick ass if the album was sneak-released on the 21st followed that night by a GNR performance on national television.

I think stores would be flooded with orders in the days following such an event.

Do you think Merck would be clever enough to hatch such a scheme?

We shall see...

November 01, 2006,

Guns N' Roses Rocks, Infuriates In Jacksonville

Jeff Vrabel, Jacksonville, Fla.

Even on a sticky Halloween night in Florida, with much of the crowd in costume and spooky holiday decor swinging from the rafters, nothing could quite out-weird the main spectacle: watching 1/8th of Guns N' Roses perform a batch of 20-year-old smashes -- as well as a few from a record originally slated for release during the first Clinton administration -- in front of, among other things, a large and inflatable Homer Simpson balloon.

Welcome to the jungle, kids. We've got fun and games.

Or, more accurately, welcome to whatever this is. Well, what do you call this ragged Frankenstein's monster of a band these days: GNR of the 21st Century? Guns Minus Everyone But Axl? The GNR Experience Feat. Mr. Rose And His Band Of Merry Pranksters? Or, in a time when nostalgia rock is about the only safe bet, when Queen can tour without Freddie and half of the Who is one of the biggest games in town, is 2006 Guns N' Roses merely another case of Hardly Authentic But Good Enough?

Needless to say, one puts up with a lot in catching the remnants of GNR these days (to be fair, it's actually 1/4th of the classic lineup, if you count keyboardist Dizzy Reed). There's the wacky stage time (a classically Rose-ian midnight on a Tuesday), the wearying wait for an alleged new record and the small matter of all the Guns exiles who don't come around anymore.

But maybe the strangest thing is that for all its some-assembly-required vibe, Rose's band knows how to tear up an arena show. Sure, these are hired hands, and Slash would be pleased to know that Rose requires three guitarists to replace/recreate him: ex NIN-ster Robin Finck, now a dead ringer for Matisyahu; journeyman Richard Fortus; and, replacing Buckethead, Ron Thal, who goes by Bumblefoot. You can't make this stuff up. But these guys bring the noise.

Moreover, Rose, impossibly, frustratingly, remains as galvanizingly watchable a frontman as you're likely to find anywhere. The charisma? Enviably intact. The vocals? Strained, but often thrilling. The drive is back, too -- sometime between Guns' aborted 2002 run and today, Rose relocated his give-a-damn, and he prowls the stage with an intensity and ambition that sometimes outweighs his reach, but is crazy to witness. When he's on and his voice is doing age-defying triple salchows on "Welcome to the Jungle" and "It's So Easy," he's cornrowed lightning.

And for about half of the two-hour set, that's all you really need. Tracks like "Jungle," "Mr. Brownstone" and even "Live and Let Die" are meteor impacts -- so much so, in fact, that Rose adhered almost exclusively to songs from about 1987. This night, he was solely interested in the most glorious of the glory days, bringing out the big, boozy, misogynistic WMDs from "Appetite" ("Nightrain," "Out Ta Get Me," "My Michelle") -- and only invited songs from the "Use Your Illusion" discs that originated in the "Appetite" era, like "November Rain" and "You Could Be Mine." He's consciously blacking out a decent chunk of catalog here.

But all the grand setup leads into a weird payoff. Because after a massive opening salvo, reality begins to creep in with "Better," allegedly the first single from the new album (the expensive-looking Eastern backdrop indicated Rose remains apparently serious about this "Chinese Democracy" thing). Chunky riffs aside, "Better," charitably speaking, ain't no "Brownstone." And due to lots of things -- that inhospitable stage time (for which a smirking Rose denied credit), his penchant for vanishing from the stage for long stretches (though it added to his enigmatic legacy, one begins to wonder if he's really up to this) and pacing issues, the show begins to grow cold and distant, despite the valiant efforts of its frontman.

Oh, and this keeps coming up, too: Who the hell are these people?

Rose's minions are dressed like a ragtag pomo art outfit: keyboardist Chris Pittman's in an ivory-white suit, Tommy Stinson rocks plaid pants, and Bumblefoot has the name Bumblefoot. All have creative Tomorrowland haircuts (it was hard to tell what was a Halloween costume and what wasn't). But Rose has them faithfully recycle songs and solos as recorded by another guy 20 years ago. He takes great pains to project a vibe of forward-thinking, then consents to a jarring cameo by cornball Sebastian Bach, who in his opening set performs a song called "Love Is a Bitch Slap" to emphasize all you don't miss about buttless-chaps metal.

He adheres to a schedule of L.A. rock club ethics that doesn't so much apply in Jacksonville early in the week. And he grants all three guitarists interminable, momentum-killing solos; Fortus used his to jam on Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful," and you weren't sure what his intentions were, much like you're not sure what Rose's are.

Axl is capable of transcendent power: "Paradise City" seethed and roared, "You Could Be Mine" worked up a mighty head of steam and if there's a better way to open a rock show than with "Welcome to the Jungle," someone E-mail me about it. And Rose seemed to be alternately salivating at and resentful of the challenge of carrying this load on his shoulders.

But to what end? In the sense that anticipation is generally better than the experience (I'm looking at you, god-awful "Star Wars" prequels), the mystique of Rose's alleged "Democracy," if you're not bored of the entire episode in the first place, will spot-evaporate the day it's released. One wonders if Rose wouldn't be better served to leave it in the can until he's 60 and then bingo, it's "Smile."

In those glory days, Guns N' Roses was just about as good it got. But its hole card now is an album that might not exist, and once "Democracy" rises and falls, Guns N' Roses, which can now maintain a spooky sense of mystery, will be very likely trading the night train for the nostalgia train, whoever the hell's in it. But in the meantime, GNR still can rock your night, or early morning, with a primal power. Just bring a friend to help carry along the baggage.

Here is Guns N' Roses set list:

"Welcome To The Jungle"

"It's So Easy"

"Mr. Brownstone"

"Better"

Robin Finck solo

"Sweet Child O' Mine"

"Knockin' on Heaven's Door"

"You Could Be Mine"

Dizzy Reed solo

"The Blues"

Richard Fortus solo (includes "Beautiful")

"Out Ta Get Me"

"November Rain"

Bumblefoot solo (includes "Don't Cry")

"My Michelle" (with Sebastian Bach)

"Patience"

"Nightrain"

"Paradise City"

Well...I started this thread with a tongue-in-cheek premise.

Of course "Chinese Democracy" exists...we've all heard the various out-takes and demos from throughout the years.

The problem is that Axl is well aware of the "you are only as good as your latest release" philosophy.

Which means, the longer he can drag out the suspense and ride on wave of past glory, the better off he'll be.

The real test of both the artist's will and the fan's will be the days and weeks following "CD's" release.

But hey, no complaints here...besides, next summer the REAL Van Halen will be rocking a concert hall near you!

"There's no way to promote something that doesn't exist..."

Funny, but also true in the current state of GNR.

I think it's really inexcusable that the "Chinese Democracy" tour is underway with no new album having been released or even a solid release date.

Perhaps they should have waited on the tour until "CD" was actually released?

I'm still going to see them in Minneapolis, but the more this drags on, the more it plays out like a scene from Spinal Tap.

RELEASE THE MOTHERFUCKING ALBUM ALREADY AXL & CO.

Cheers.

Went to Best Buy this morning to pick up the new Paul Stanley album. Checked the GNR section just to be sure. No CD there. I asked the clerk and he said nothing is showing for upcoming releases. But he said, all they would need to have CD in-store would be about 2-3 days notice. So for example, if they got the notification of CD release on a Thursday or even a Friday, they would have it in-store by the next Tuesday.

So I guess the turnaround could be that quick.

~sk

p.s. The new Paul Stanley solo CD is excellent...well worth the 28 year wait!

SURPRISED MERCK HASN'T SHUT DOWN THE STREAM YET...

Always on the run...not heard that in a while.

so could this be the fully done Better that we might hear?

BETTER IS NEXT!

BUMP!

I told you all that the moment Axl looked into the camera at the MTV 2006 VMA's and said the words "October 24th", that not only would the tour start that day, but "CD" would be out that same day as well.

Maybe I should dig up the original thread I started where I was told I was full of shit for suggesting such a thing.

~sk

If you want an idea on how popular Axl's band is. Take the small town out of the whole tour. Of course GnR will sell out in L.A., Chicago, NY, Miami,....whatever. There is millions of people in those cities and all they need to really sell is around 20 - 25 thousand tickets. But take Ames Iowa. In 93 they sold out Iowa City in 20 minutes. That's the real deal. It's been over a week since Ames tickets have been on sale, and I'm still able to purchase the maximum amount of GA tickets. And that's 50.

Good luck Ax

Different band, different times.

Stop living in the past.

It might not sell out across the board, but sales for all cities of the tour are going quite well.

Cheers.

Gotta love the Chinese Democracy reference when he said:

"I know I don't wanna throw my money in the toilet...I know Universal is hoping they didn't!"

Priceless

Erin Burnett is hot.

mayeb they meant out before the end of october or w/e month that show is in

EXACTLY. It's going to be October 24th...as I stated in an earlier thread just after the VMA's where Axl accidently let it slip.