Gordon Comstock

They used their best footage for Perhaps, made this with the leftovers and filled it out with cheap AI animations...

Seems obvious it's a music video for The General. The album?

Yelawolf dropped another freestyle, I'm guessing he'll announce something soon. His double album has been done for a while, and some of his best albums have had 'lead ups' where he drops freestyles or collabs... he sounds great over this Metallica sample.

Calgary 2010 The best show I've ever seen. The set, the stage setup, the performance, everything about it was incredible. ITW, Shackler's, IRS, Better... Axl sounded fucking incredible and was surprisingly interactive with the crowd (telling stories and jokes throughout the show, even a little story/rant between CD and WTTJ). He had a lot of fun 'pranking' Bubbles with a lookalike. Las Vegas 2016 (Night One) This one ranks so highly just for the atmosphere, it was electric. I lost my fucking mind when the intro to Coma started. Seattle 2011 Duff opened this show which was really cool. 2011 gets a lot of shit because of Rio, but Axl sounded great at this one - Civil War was fantastic, Better was near 2010-level, the AC/DC covers were fun. Ron handed me his pick at the end of Whole Lotta Rosie, when he hung over the monitors and let the people up front strum his guitar at the end of the song. The 'dolphin bomb' during Estranged was pretty funny. I've got Loaded's setlist from this gig somewhere... Seattle 2016 Again this one ranks highly because it had a great atmosphere. Their first stadium run since the 90s (in North America, at least) and Axl was in top form. OTGM and Coma were definitely the highlights, it had one of the better performances of TIL, and we got Catcher which is kinda rare now... Las Vegas (6/6/2014) TWAT, Prostitute, Yesterdays, Marseilles... Axl sounded great, they played rare songs, and smaller venues are always better. Las Vegas 2016 (Night Two) I was front row for the first night, and 2nd-to-last row in the upper section for this show, which was a cool contrast. Technically this was the better show, but I had more fun at the first one. It was cool to see Baz join them, though. Las Vegas (6/7/2014) Last show of the 'CD era' and Axl definitely went all out for it. Another great setlist, and it was cool to see Nicolas Cage introduce them. Was fun hanging with Powerage, Black Sabbath, MSL, Sleeping Like An Angel and a few others at those 2014 shows. Vancouver 2011 The other show where Duff opened. Probably the only show in the last 15 years where Axl got pissed at an audience member and kicked him out of the show. It was a lot of fun, rowdy crowd, Ron handed my (at the time) gf his pick at the end of Rosie. Axl sounded noticeably tired from the previous night in Seattle but it was still good. Duff joined for YCBM and Civil War. Las Vegas (11/23/2012) 14 Years and Dead Flowers with Izzy, what more do I need to say? Typical late-2012 performance but half a dozen songs with Izzy was really cool to see. Las Vegas (11/24/2012) The last time Izzy and Axl performed together (at least publicly). Gorge 2017 Great venue, I'd wanted to see a show there for years so it was great to see them there. Ayron Jones was added as a last-minute opener and he killed it, he made me a fan that night. This show was definitely better than the previous one in Vancouver, but still the 2017 shows had a lot of bloat. The covers were actually highlights, they'd just started playing Wichita Lineman and I Got You. I never liked their version of Black Hole Sun but it got a good response from the crowd. Vancouver 2017 Like the Gorge show, I Got You was definitely a highlight. Nice versions of Nightrain, Catcher, and Wichita. The sound at BC is notoriously hit or miss though, and this show sounded pretty bad from where I was (front row). Vancouver 2023 It definitely sounded better than the 2017 show, but Axl sounded worse. It was great to hear songs like Pretty Tied Up, Bad Obsession, etc and it was my first time hearing 'new' songs since 2010. Unfortunately Axl's voice failed him a few times during the show, you could tell he was tired and really pushing himself but the voice just wasn't there at times. It probably should've been the last show of the tour, I'm surprised they added another half-dozen shows or whatever it was. It was nice to meet Amir at this show, too.

Honestly it's pretty cool that he brought out a 'prop' that Buckethead gave him probably 20 years ago...

Yea, this album is the most interested I've been in new Slash music for years. I couldn't care less about more SMKC albums, but a blues-oriented Slash & Friends 2 should be really fucking cool. The GNR singles have all been mediocre... but what did you think of Monsters?

I'm sure they all read the 'early' version of Matt's book, so I can't see him ever joining them onstage again. But they're still cool with Brain, and he's the better drummer anyway, so I hope if they ever need a replacement they'll call him first... The age excuse is such bullshit. Nobody here expects him to come back singing like he did even 10 years ago, nevermind 20-30 years ago. What people should expect is for a professional singer to act like a professional. For the majority of his career, Axl's voice was so powerful that he could get away with using the first shows as a warm-up. But that hasn't been the case for years now, and he still seems to think it's 'rawk n fn roll' to wing it. He's wrong. Singing your new singles like shit because you don't want to rehearse them isn't 'cool'. Having fun onstage and playing long shows isn't the same thing as passion, just because he enjoys his job doesn't mean he takes it as seriously as he should. I don't like everything Slash releases, but there's no doubt that music is his passion. I can't say the same for Axl.

I didn't realize it came across that way, I definitely wasn't trying to imply Izzy is prolific, but he seemed to write quickly and would fit the role of a songwriter for this lineup. But like I said, I doubt Izzy would even be interested now...

The original post you quoted was about new music. I'm not denying that they try to put on a great show every time they hit the stage, they're passionate about trying to give the crowds their moneys worth, but Axl obviously doesn't seem passionate about being creative. He enjoys performing, and wants to do a good job... but it's just his job. Slash and Duff are passionate musicians, but Axl is a performer. There's definitely a difference. As far as other bands - the Peppers never played very long shows, their current sets are long for their standards (though I agree they should play more for the prices they charge). They get credit for changing their sets up every night though, and playing a decent amount of their new songs. Godsmack and Billy Joel had the decency to tell people not to expect any new music. They haven't been telling their fans for years that they're hoping to release new stuff, only for it not to happen.

I get a laugh when people say they should call Matt or Steven. Even in the very low chance that Frank leaves, they'd call Brain or someone else before bringing either of those guys back. They've kinda shot themselves in the foot with the Izzy situation - Axl doesn't seem to have much to write about, but he seems too proud/stubborn to hire songwriters. The obvious solution would be to use 'friends of the band' like they did in the early days, but I doubt Izzy would even be interested at this point. So Slash and Duff can write as many riffs as they want, but there's nobody to really tie the songs together. If they ever do try to release a 'new album' I'm sure it'll have CD leftovers and mid-90s stuff, which is the only way I think we'll see Izzy credited on new stuff...

That's really not the same thing. Obviously they still enjoy performing for thousands of people who love their songs, cheer them on and say how great they are, and they get paid of ton of money for it. Who wouldn't enjoy that? 3-hour shows have been their standard for almost 15 years at this point, but I really don't think many people would complain if they trimmed the shows down a bit. They little music they've actually released in recent years comes across as the opposite of passionate, though. Poorly Frankensteined songs that have been chucked out with no real push from the band, they're fun for a week but have zero impact.

The first 55 seconds are unnecessary, but some orchestration leading into a heavy intro would've been cool. I like the intro they used in 2006-10 for shows, but a long intro with lots of pauses would be awkward. CD, Rhiad, SOD, etc were all better with shorter intros. The way the released version suddenly starts/stops, it would be interesting to know how it originally fit into the CD2 track list.

I'd put The General in the same tier as Absurd and HS - the production sucks, it's repetitive, soaked in effects... it obviously didn't (and couldn't) live up to the hype. The General had more 'potential to be great' than the other singles, but it ended up sounding unfinished. Perhaps is the best single they've released so far, but Monsters is by far the best re-recorded song we've heard. It actually did live up to the hype. The fact they're sitting on songs like Monsters and have songs like SOG in the vault, but they're releasing these weaker songs, is ridiculous.

It doesn't even have to be new songs, I still think a covers album would be one of their best options...

A few of my favourite artists are releasing music this year and I'm way more excited about that than some Frankensteined GNR singles. Yelawolf is releasing a double album, VOLA are working on a new album, and one of my favourite new bands Mac Saturn are releasing an album in a couple weeks. 'New music' from GNR just isn't exciting, the songs have zero impact when they're released 1-2 at a time every couple years. The clusterfucks surrounding the releases provide more entertainment than the actual songs. Monsters is a good song but by the time they actually get around to releasing it, nobody will care.

Quiet year - Slash will do the 'Slash and Friends 2' album and tour cycle after the SMKC tour. We'll hear the Michael Schenker song at some point. Maybe some GNR shows at the end of the year, but not in support of anything. Monsters and another song next year, probably.

Slash too... but keep it quiet, nobody knows.

Couldn't find some of my favourites on youtube, so I put them on streamable. Danville 88 was only a few shows before the legendary Felt Forum show, but this YC is even better... LALD https://streamable.com/2pws0g You're Crazy https://streamable.com/7zy1cq edit: since it seems kind of relevant to what's being discussed elsewhere on the forum... Axl's parents were at the Danville show.

I almost said Pittsburgh '02 for LALD... it was a highlight in 01/02 and Pittsburgh is a standout. Orchard Park is a pretty standard '92 LALD performance, but the acapella intro makes it special. Kinda like when Axl fucked up the end of Madagascar in Budapest '06, it's a cool moment and really works for the song.

Live And Let Die - Orchard Park 1992 You're Crazy - Danville 1988 One In A Million - Limelight, NY 1988 Reckless Life - Boston 1993 Breakdown - MSG 1991 (3rd night) Locomotive - MSG 1991 (3rd night) Catcher In The Rye - L'arc 2010

It was incredible. Great timing too, it happened at the perfect moment for Axl, for a second he was back at the top of the rock world. He killed it and rode that high through the GNR tour. I hope someday we get an official recording of one of those shows... Atlanta was probably my favourite but they were all great. But I don't know how people still think those shows didn't fuck up his voice. The constant NITL touring didn't help, but Axl himself said Hells Bells is the hardest song he's had to sing, if you don't do it correctly you'll damage your voice, etc. He sounded great throughout both legs of that tour, but it seems obvious that's where his voice really started to deteriorate - consistent voice cracks near the end, and each year of NITL worse than the previous... it's not just his age, not his singing style, it's not like 2002 or 2011, or whatever excuses people throw out. The AC/DC tour and following years show a steady and obvious decline.

It's not about style, we agree that CD has plenty of styles and influences, but the singles feel unfinished. Silkworms was never a great song but at least it had a decent structure, then they re-structured it into Absurd and repeated the same verse throughout the song. It's boring, and nothing on CD feels as half-baked as the singles. Hardschool is on the same level as Scraped or Rhiad but the production brings it down. Perhaps could've been a great song but it doesn't go anywhere. Maybe they would've worked better in the context of CD2 but I can only judge them as leaks or standalone releases because that's all they are.

I've seen a lot of people says things like this and honestly, it's bullshit. Soul Monster was definitely the most 'mythical' song after The General, and most here seem to think it lived up to the hype - it's a great song. The General just isn't very interesting though, it's another very repetitive, simple song, with production that does it no favours. But even as a simplified Slash/Duff version with NITL production, Monsters is awesome, there's a big jump in quality between it and the other singles. Seven, Cuban Skies, etc. might also be repetitive and mediocre... but we know he's got songs like Monsters and SOG up his sleeve, it's weird that they keep releasing weaker songs

Whoever mixed it did Axl plenty of favours on Rocket Queen