Bono

17 hours ago, Bono said:

The Joshua Tree is U2's "crown jewel" so to speak amongst the general public and casual fans. It's the album that shot them into super stardom. Having said that Achtung Baby is their "Appetite" for purposes of this thread. It's the album that showed U2 was capable of pretty much whatever they wanted to do. I may be biased but I don't think there has ever been a band who changed their sound and image to such a drastic degree from one(or two if you throw Rattle and Hum in there) album to the next. Not only did they not alienate their fanbase with these changes, they grew it exponentially. It was a massive risk and it paid off huge and they pulled it off with such authenticity it's pretty incredible really. I don't think they get enough credit for that or for the album in general among the casual listeners and general public. Achtung Baby regularly wins polls among hardcore U2 fans as their best album. Joshua Tree is for the public and Achtung Baby is for the fans. 

I'm gonna quote myself here to add to my point. 

Achtung Baby unlike the overwhelming vast majority of albums ever created, including AFD ends even stronger than it starts. The 3 song set to close out the album (Ultraviolet, Acrobat, Love is Blindess) is the best three song set to close an album I've ever heard. Not only are the songs incredible but they pull the album together in an almost perfect summation. In fact there's a legit argument to be made the entire second half of Achtung Baby is better than the first half which actually features 4 hit singles off the album. Achtung Baby also features in my opinion Bono at his best in terms of lyrics and it's one of the few albums where The Edge actually contributes real guitar solos on a  regular basis. The album from start to finish is much more dynamic and interesting than Joshua Tree but just doesn't have that same weight to it for whatever reason when people discuss these types of topics. 

2 hours ago, ZoSoRose said:

Going to arena and stadium shows are becoming unbearable. It isn't even about simply high prices, its the shady distribution and BS "platinum" and VIP packs that are just an excuse to mark up the same seats from the source. 

I am grateful I have seen almost all big acts I really want to because its becoming worse every year

I agree. This isn't even just a  U2 issue. I tried to get tickets in a Foo Fighters presale today. Same shit. Logged on exactly at the time and found there were no prime seats available in the lower bowl. Such an absolute disgrace. What the fuck is the point of a presale if you're gonna purposely prohibit the diehard fans from buying the prime seats? Is it because they think the diehards are stupid and will just scoop up the less desireable nosebleed and back of venue seats so that the general public think fuck yes amazing seats in the general sale? I can't be bothered with flying thousands of miles to a show t sit i the upper decks or at the back of the venue and I'm sure as shit not doing floor seats if they are assigned seats and 9/10 I don't wanna bother with GA. I want the prime seats in the sections just out to the front/side of the stage in the lower bowl. Otherwise these bands can fuck off. 

The Joshua Tree is U2's "crown jewel" so to speak amongst the general public and casual fans. It's the album that shot them into super stardom. Having said that Achtung Baby is their "Appetite" for purposes of this thread. It's the album that showed U2 was capable of pretty much whatever they wanted to do. I may be biased but I don't think there has ever been a band who changed their sound and image to such a drastic degree from one(or two if you throw Rattle and Hum in there) album to the next. Not only did they not alienate their fanbase with these changes, they grew it exponentially. It was a massive risk and it paid off huge and they pulled it off with such authenticity it's pretty incredible really. I don't think they get enough credit for that or for the album in general among the casual listeners and general public. Achtung Baby regularly wins polls among hardcore U2 fans as their best album. Joshua Tree is for the public and Achtung Baby is for the fans. 

41 minutes ago, Black Sabbath said:

Hoping I can get tickets for MSG. It was my second choice after DC and I love seeing my favorite bands at that venue. 

I've seen them at MSG and it was pretty amazing. the vibe of the crowd was fantastic. 

Given I had zero intention of ever seeing them again but then decided to make a drunken purchase and decided to see them in LA on November 25th I can't really see myself seeing them ever again regardless of what they do unless they happen to be playing a city that I'm already in at the time. As it stands I need to fly to see them no matter where they play so that's not likely gonna happen again. I've learned to never say never but let's be real. I was all but done and then this one off idea came up while having drinks with  a buddy who has never seen  them and  wanted to. We had a few pops, bought tickets on whim. Now how do you top Saturday night in Los Angeles, their home town? I mean it's not like flying to Edmonton or Chicago is gonna be any cooler now so I think this is actually it for me. 

Yeah it is fucked and the Vegas show proved it because when you clicked on "select section" all the sections came up except the 4 middle sections on the side in the lower bowl. So yeah they literally held back the best seats in the house so the diehard fans could not purchase them/ They just assumed we all wanted GA which is stupid. 

I did GA for the last tour as well and it was cool but I just don't want it this time around. Was set on sitting middle section lower bowl and when I realized those weren't even available for purchase I thought fuck this. To m that's a slap in the face to fans. Like thanks for being a subscribed member for 16 years, thanks for verifying, thanks for renewing your subscription early Buuuuuuuut sorry these seats are not for you. Not a cool move at all. I guess I just didn't care enough this time and when I saw that take place I thought I'm not spending money on something I don't want so....... 

I decide to say fuck this tour when it became very clear, very quickly that they did not make any of the prime lower bowl seats available to fans in the presale. I was part of the Experience group on the 14th. I was logged in ready to go right as tickets went on sale for MSG and there wasn't a single regular ticket available in the side sections in the lower bowl.  Sure if you wanted to pay $665 for VIP packages no problem but fuck that shit. I tried Chicago and Nashville too and it was the same shit. When the west coast shows went on sale in LA and San Jose the exact same thing. The prime seats in the side sections oin the lower bowl were not available. The most telling thing about all this was when I logged in to buy in Vegas I literally had my number of tickets and select section clicked within 5 seconds and they didn't have the sections I wanted available. It pissed me off so fucking much that they're actually hold back the prime seats from the fans in the experience group. Those are the fans who were not only verified, but who had renewed their subscriptions early for this AND who have kept their memberships current since 2004 without allowing them to expire at any point. There is literally no fucking way the seats I wanted were all sold out within a minute at each place I tried. The fact is they never made those seats available. Such a disgrace.  I secured GA and upper level tickets no problem but that is NOT what I wanted so I said fuck it and bought a $25 ticket to see Soul Asylum in Minneapolis instead. 

here's an example of the seats I wanted. This is Madison Square Garden. The side sections with the black strike through them. NONE of these types of seats were available in NYC, Nashville, Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Jose. So disrespectful to fans in my opinion. This will be the first tour I've missed since becoming a fan in 1996

1 hour ago, AxlRoseCDII said:

At this point I don’t mind if a mod wishes to close this thread as it seems to be the butt of another CD bashing thread. I have no problem with different opinions but come on guys, we’ve discussed this hundreds of times. We get it- you don’t consider it a Guns album and you think it’s dogshit. What more is there to be said that hasn’t already?

Holy fuck. The exact point of the thread is asking if people's opinions have changed and you're pissed of that the majority of the people commenting are saying no, they still don't like CD? Your original post is literally asking for opinions and you feel only those who's opinion has changed or hasn't changed but are in favour of CD regardless should comment. 

I guess it really pains some of you that CD never did grow on people the way so many claimed it would. I remember laughing so badly at people back in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014 etc etc etc who continually claimed that over time CD would gain appreciation and gain cult like status and finally be considered a legendary album after all the initial hate died down.  Hate that people claimed wasn't genuine and was only fueled by Slash not being in the band. Must suck to realize this is never gonna happen and that the vast majority of people who have listened to or ever will listen to CD think it fucking sucks. 

Reality is a bitch. If you don't wanna hear opinions on CD then don't fucking start threads asking for opinions on CD. Or at least throw up a disclaimer stating only those expressing an opinion which glorifies the word of your Lord and saviour Axl Rose are permitted to comment. I mean for god's sake. You start a thread asking if people's opinions on CD have changed now and then get bent out of shape when the answer is no and ask for the thread to be locked? GTFO. 

2 hours ago, Tom-Ass said:

Ugghhh.. I think Better is the one of the worst of the bunch.. That song is freaking cringe worthy.. I think the title track is OK even though the intro always annoys me.. It is too short to take a piss break and it fits in pretty good where they play it. Madagascar has potential and good elements but sounds terribly outdated with all those effects and Sorry is OK once in awhile...  But all that other garbage is just fucking brutal. There was a point in my life when I thought it was impossible for Axl to write a bad song.. Then CD happened... 

Better and CD get the benefit of setlist placement and timing. Also the new intro to Better sucks people in and CD is placed really well in the set.... unlike the god fucking awful encore bullshit they got going on. 

No. The songs aside from CD and Better are still the designated piss breaks of the show. Even more so than the covers. At least people know the covers. 

Only the lyrics are sampled from Volcano. The guitar riffs and chorus melody are identical to their song Glastonbury which was never released and clearly now, never will be. 

A studio version of Glastonbury would've been cool. This guy does a cover of it and it sounds pretty good. Closest we'll get to a studio version of it now though

6 hours ago, axlslash said:

SmackDown spoiler

 

  Reveal hidden contents

AJ VERSUS BROCK AT SURVIVOR SERIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I just watched that. I actually HATE this idea. I mean for  fuck sakes that's a WM storyline that should have an awesome build. Not some match that shoehorned in for no good reason. It's like how they rushed the Cena/Roman feud although that build was good despite the quickness of it. Rushing Brock vs Braun was horrible. Now this.  It's a waste if you ask me. It will be cool to see but a waste. 

LOL at the people saying if Bono did that he'd be well within his rights. They'd be the first in line to scream from the rooftops that it's not really U2 and Bono is a douche for doing it. They know, I know it, we all know it. Why people have to be so fake on here is beyond me. Stop putting on a  show for Uncle Axl. he doesn't give a  flying fuck what you think or say. 

Holy fuck was that segment with Smackdown taing over RAW ever stupid. Like we're supposed to believe they all hate each other because they're on opposite shows. The animosity is that of WWF vs WCW. Seriously fuck off WWE

They gotta fix the fucking encore. They literally have the worst encore in music. Why on earth is Guns N' Fuckin' Roses closing their shows with 4 slow songs in a row followed by a shit cover nobody cares about, likes or even knows. It's horseshit. Their encore is absolutely horrid. The set should look like this using Washington as a guide.  I took out all the bullshit covers that are not GnR staples and I eliminated CITR and Madagascar because nobody gives a fuck. This I Love was only allowed to stay cause Axl loves it and it's not ever gonna leave the set list I'm sure.  I'd have added Don't Damn Me but that's NEVER gonna happen so..... The setlist below is THE fucking setlist they should go with because it kicks major fucking ass. 

1. It's So Easy
2. Mr. Brownstone
3. Out Ta Get Me
4. Chinese Democracy
5. Double Talkin Jive
6. Don't Cry
7. Estranged
8. Better
9. Live and Let Die
10. You Could Be Mine
11. New Rose
12. Pretty Tied Up
13. This I Love
14. Civil War
15. Coma
16. The Godfather Theme / Sweet Child O' Mine
17. Rocket Queen
18. My Michelle
19. Wish You Were Here / Layla
20. November Rain

ENCORE:

21. Welcome to the Jungle
22. Nightrain
23. Patience
24. Knockin On Heaven's Door
25. Paradise City.
 

5 hours ago, DieselDaisy said:

Star Wars is standing on the precipice. I can envision it being completely buggered through constantly diminishing sequels and spin offs. We've seen this with so many American films from that (New Hollywood) era - Jaws, Terminator, Alien - that were all buggered up the arse, Indiana Jones just entering that course with his fourth outing. Star Wars managed to avoid that until the Disney takeover because of the holistic nature of Lucas's 'envisioned' sextology, and the simple fact that Lucas works 'Axl Rose hours'.

I think there is only Back to the Future left! (don't tell them!!).

Yeah Except The Force Awakens was fine, Rogue One was great so, so far they're 2 for 2 in NOT buggering it up. By all accounts The Last Jedi is going to be great. The idea of doing a Han Solo movie is a joke that they even chose to do it and nobody wanted it but by the time that comes out there's a very real chance the franchise is 3/3 in quality films in the post prequel era. So maybe the Solo movie will be good. How about we stop bitching like a bunch of assholes over movies that haven't even come out yet. The Obi-Wan movie has potential to be awesome and there's still Episode 9. So maybe pump the breaks on the overly cynical pessimism. 

Wouldn't it be great if at TLC the Shield was about to lose to the  Miz & Co.... because well 5 vs 3 but just as that was about to happen PAIGE came running out and hit someone with a chair or something and the Shield won and had it's first female member in Paige

On 10/15/2017 at 11:22 AM, ZoSoRose said:

I was front row center in Detroit on the rail. Couldn't even see the Duff/Richard half of the stage lol. Didn't matter (and I saw everyone just fine when I was a little further back in the pit in Chicago) since Axl, Slash, and Duff moved around so much and came to the front a lot. It was an AWESOME experience, even though I couldn't see a good half of the stage because it was so high! 

 

I think my plan will be to hang back a bit fro the stage and just chill and enjoy it. The pits in these arena shows have limited space so they can only allow so many people into them and worst case scenario is I get pushed back to just in front of the front row of the actual seated rows. If I can squeeze to the front for a song or two I will but I won't be too worried about it.  I'll find the best view and stick with that. 

20 hours ago, axlslash said:

Non-title, just for brand supremacy / bragging rights. So not even a unification match to get rid of the fruit roll up. 

That is stupid. So basically Brock going over for no reason and Jinder looking like a chump and the RAW brand being elevated for no apparent reason but to do it. No way they put Jinder over Brock

6 hours ago, axlslash said:

Rumor is Brock vs Jinder is on the table for Survivor Series. So we either job Brock out to Mahal and ruin the build for his Mania match, or we see Mahal lose like the non-credible champ he is accused of being. Talk about lose-lose. 

title vs title?

5 hours ago, janrichmond said:

Pit 2 is the best you hardly see Fortus 

I picked it cause it's Slash's side for sure. 

7 hours ago, Screamin' Demon said:

Hey Bono I know that this is off-topic, but you actually live in Whitehorse, Yukon? I'm going to Yukon next year to do a 3 week Yukon River canoeing trip from Whitehorse to Dawson as well as a log-cabin stay a few days after! That place must be amazing.

I do and I have done the trip you're talking about. We took our time and it took 15 days total on the river. I think most people tend to take about 10 days or so. 3 weeks is  along time. It would be awesome but you'll have to plan your food obviously a lot better if you're gonna be on the river for that long. I have a buddy who did it last summer in just under 72 hours. That's a race though called The Yukon River Quest. Fuck that shit haha! I'd much rather take my time and enjoy it. 

In reality I was not gonna go see them again but get together with a buddy you haven't seen in a long while, add some beers, then add him saying he really wants to see GnR before it's too late, add the fact I can easily swing the days off add ease of access to the internet to buy tickets and suddenly in the drunkeness of it all we've got tickets to see GnR in LA. 

I woke up this morning thinking Hmmmmm.... well I guess that's happening