Seb91

Roger's well and truly gone off the deep end these days sadly. I think it's probably more a case of his success over the last twenty years going to his head than a change of opinion or stance though. By all accounts he could be difficult to work with and has an ego the size of a multiverse but he did appear to be more humble and have mellowed with age post-Live 8. He's very much reverted to type these days though. It's a shame as he was my favourite artist as a kid and I got into his solo albums after seeing the Dark Side tour in 2006. Seeing him also made me interested in bass playing in addition to guitar playing. Seeing him go this way is crushing. The guy's just a mad bigoted idiot though. Seeing the way the Floyd guys have gone in later life re their relationship makes me happy that Guns got a happy ending. Slash and Axl friends again, playing huge venues and Axl seems to have really got himself together and mellowed and matured. I mean, there did seem to be a detente in the Floyd camp for a while. Back in 2011 when Gilmour guested at Waters' show Slash and Axl sharing a stage seemed an impossibility. Funny how things turn out!

I'm sure the shows will be great. As has been said, both Laug and Chaney are pros so I'm sure they'll slot in together without a problem and AC/DC's production is always top notch. Sure, it's less AC/DC than AXL/DC in terms of members who have toured and recorded with the band in the past but the main excitement I feel is Brian's comeback and this tour will probably be his victory lap. Sadly so many of the classic rock bands from the '60s and '70s aren't as complete as they once were. I have to say fair play to the band for the pricing for Wembley. Was expecting it to be double that and given even younger bands like Paramore are charging a hundred odd quid a ticket it seems like good value in the current climate where prices have gotten truly insane. Money wise this was always going to be a stretch though as I need a hotel these days and I've booked to go to several shows this year. I had a look for hotels not long after the announcement and they'd all gone bar the Hilton which was crazy money so that's me out. Hope people that are trying for tickets are successful and looking forward to hearing reports!

Yeah, Plant's always been a 'less is more' frontman. I loved the Saving Grace shows I saw last year, lots of banter with the crowd. I agree re Brian. Part of me thinks they should just do one pay per view show as a final farewell. No touring means Phil and Cliff could be part of the show and it would be a fitting farewell. I guess the thing is that Angus is a bit younger than the other guys and obviously still wants to get out there and play which is understandable. Shame no Duff but it does seem the rumour was just because of the Axl/DC thing and the guest spots Angus has done with Guns rather than any real evidence. Will be interesting to see if they do decide to go with a famous bass player. Hoping Brian does do one final tour even if it isn't with the classic rhythm section.

I think the Power Trip reviews were more goodwill to Brian and excitement over seeing him back in the band. That’s certainly why I enjoyed seeing the footage and whilst he was undeniably ropy in places, his voice was pretty much as I expected. To be honest, I can’t think of any hard rock guys in their 60s and 70s who don’t sound ropy these days to a greater or lesser extent. I mean, Axl’s vocals generate a lot of discussion here and he’s over ten years younger than Brian. I mean, I completely get why Robert Plant opted to quit whilst he was ahead re the heavier stuff and change genre to preserve his voice. Saw him live twice last year and he sounded amazing because he wasn’t straining to sing hard rock all night.

Yeah, I imagine they'd be keen for the main story to be Brian back for a tour again and having a big name and stage presence like Duff could detract from that. That being said, Cliff's out so having a big name bassist in the band like Duff would sweeten the deal for me. I think it's a shame that it seems what's likely to be AC/DC's final tour and indeed the first one with Brian in years will feature fewer members with a significant history with the band than Axl/DC (sure, Chris was on the Axl/DC tour rather than Phil but he was in the band for five years back in the day and played on The Razor's Edge). I feel extremely fortunate I was able to catch the classic Brian era band at Download during the Black Ice tour as a kid. Had no idea of the significance at the time. Still, I'd be up for this despite the lineup change as I love AC/DC and seeing Brian and Angus together on stage would be amazing. Would love Angus to do something with the GN'R folks if the end of AC/DC is nigh. It seems he's the main one that's keen to tour still. I think a Duff/Angus co-written album would be fun.

I was talking about his playing more widely. Yeah, that's an incredible song!

Slash's sloppiness isn't a big deal for me. I'd much rather see a guitarist fly by the seat of their pants and improvise than play the same thing night after night, even if that means there are ropey moments. I guess that's how he stays engaged playing live. That being said, I agree he's changed as a player. For me, the last great thing he did was the solo album back in 2010. Some great riffs and it was fun to see him live at Download which is the best I've seen him solo band wise I feel (Lemmy came on and did Dr. Alibi which was awesome). It was also fun to see him play GN'R stuff he hadn't played in years. I was underwhelmed by the shows I saw in 2012. Enjoyed the performance of Don't Damn Me and prefer Todd as a frontman to Myles. Maybe it's because he's got more of that punk energy. I was wowed by Myles' vocals at Download but found him lacklustre as a frontman in terms of a whole show when I saw Slash live in Birmingham in 2011. Interestingly, the festival sets I've seen I preferred and they were shorter. Myles has the pipes for sure but find him uninteresting as a frontman. It probably doesn't help that the other frontman plays with is Axl and he's obviously one of the best. It's why with hindsight I'm glad that the Zeppelin guys didn't end up touring with Myles as he's no Robert Plant either. I don't want to come across too harsh on the guy as I do love him in Alter Bridge. Just don't think he's best suited to classic rock shows. Love Slash and haven't been able to get to any GN'R shows post-reunion so was tempted by Wembley but with the added costs these days I have due to disability I decided against it. Will just hope Guns come around again next year and it'll finally work out for me date wise!

Agree it's disappointing news about Cliff. Was pleased that he did the album and Power Trip and completely get his reasons for not wanting to tour. Feel extremely lucky that I got to see them at Download as a kid with Malcolm, Phil and Cliff. It seems things are still very much rumbling in the background for 2024 so hope that something is happening. In spite of the lineup changes I'm still tempted to go and see Brian and Angus back on stage together. If they get a bass player I'm a fan of that would sweeten the deal for me (like when Axl filled it for Brian) - wonder if Duff would be up for it Seriously though, still hoping this happens. Wonder if they'll be doing Hyde Park as a London date as the BST lineup isn't out yet.

On the upside, it cemented that the song's still growing on me and having been very meh when it first dropped I'm thoroughly enjoying it now. Love Slash's shreddy solo at the end. Plus, I'm finding the chorus a surprising earworm. However, in terms of the video, yeah it's not too great. I'm finding the band's aesthetic these days in terms of art and logos (see also Hard Skool) is the sort of thing I'd have found cool when I was 12/13 in the 2000s but it seems super dated now. That being said, I did like that it was something other than a live compilation video and it was fun to see all the band members in it. Wasn't expecting any GN'R activity whatsoever in 2024 so it's nice that there's still some limited activity. What it really hammered home though was how god-awful the mix is. The vocal track sounds pretty rough especially. Still, as has been said, hoping that some decent memes come out of this

I think Atlas/Monsters would continue the format of one more traditional sounding GN'R song with a more experimental song on the flipside. After that, who knows? State of Grace would work as a B-side if Oklahoma ever got vocals as that would be another traditional and experimental pairing.

It's odd to think that (IMO anyway) Axl sounded better on it live this year than on the recording made way back when.

I think we're definitely heading to a point that a compilation album will be viable as we know Atlas and Monsters are viable (and the latter's already been done by Slash and Duff) so we'll be up to six after the next release. Just leaves four gaps to bring it to ten. If they're that pushed for material then Eye on You and/or State of Grace could be dusted off or just get Slash and Duff to work their magic on Oh My God. I mean, I'd even be up for a Slash/Duff version of Better (given DJ did a version of it back in the day) or another Chinese song. I'm hoping there are some unheard songs with Axl's vocals in the vault though. Given Tommy did two songs and Ron added stuff to the new OMG, it's mad to think that they could have put another album out around the 2010 era if they wanted to. HS, Absurd, Perhaps, The General, Ten Percenter, Going Down, Atlas, Monsters, OMG, State of Grace, Eye on You. Sure there's some filler there but they could have put some singles out at the least and this was the era that the Pumpkins and other bands were just putting singles out.

Watched the live performance again and think the song packs way more of a punch live. The band are all super into it and Axl sounds great. Agree that the mix let the studio version down.

2006 when I was 14/15. I had been interested in Guns and was a VR fan. Got into rock music in a big way around 2005 when I was 13 and would watch Kerrang on the TV. This was peak Axl going off grid and I thought he'd retired or something had happened. Was then surprised to find out that there was a version of Guns around even if nothing seemed to be happening. Then the big 2006 comeback happened and I was very sceptical. My friends at school were very much in the 'it isn't Guns N' Roses camp' but I was still interested. Heard some live bootlegs and thought the band sounded incredible and loved the new material so was fully sold on NuGuns. Won tickets to the one of the shows at Wembley but my Dad ended up booking a holiday then so couldn't go. Ended up downloading the Rock AM Ring bootleg and playing that non-stop as a consolation. Was a full on GN'R nerd by then. Heard the leaks and was blown away then Chinese was actually announced. Remember being ridiculously stoked when Shackler's dropped (even if my friends were like 'what the hell is this?!' ). Met Bumble at a signing at Rough Trade at the end of 2008 and then finally in 2010 would see GN'R twice (Reading and Birmingham). Deep diving on Guns also got me into Bucket and Bumble's solo stuff and The Replacements.

I'm finding that The General is really growing on me. It's not a lost epic but it's interesting nonetheless. I agree with the comment that it's more an album track than a single. I think expecting something more like Monsters due to the phone leak and the mythical status The General's taken on over the years didn't help. Still, hope that it's still in the set when the band resurface in a couple of years. Hope that I'll actually get to see them next time around! Think it's cool that we had a completely unheard song though for the first time since 2008! Hoping there are more in the vault.

For all my criticisms of the track, I've had the chorus stuck in my head for a few days so it's obviously doing something right! Dodgy mix aside, alongside Monsters it seemed like more of an epic but on its own it lacks impact. I went back and listened to the cell phone leak as I remember that being better than the track and it's interesting that what we thought was The General for years was actually Monsters so I imagine that explains a lot of the reaction as well. The guitars in the leak sound incredible as well. Hope a Bucket/Robin version does leak at some point.

Yeah, it's pretty crazy really. Mad to think that for most of my life Axl’s been working on Chinese stuff. I mean, I started to get into rock music properly when I was around thirteen and that's when it was radio silence from Axl. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that GN'R were still a thing and then when the 2006 comeback happened became a massive fan. Played the Rock AM Ring show on repeat pretty much. Never got to see the tour that year unfortunately but considering Axl was coming on late my Dad would probably have dragged me away before the band came on anyway

At this point I'd just like the rest of the Chinese leftovers put out in one go so a line could be drawn under that whole era. It's mad to me that I was seventeen when Chinese dropped and I'm now thirty-two and Guns are still putting out stuff from that era and I could be forty and still waiting for stuff

I don't think it's hurt their reputation at all. This isn't a song that's had a lot of marketing around it, it's a B-side that's been released to little fanfare and I imagine most folks will just see it as a curio, like a lot of B-sides are. Perhaps was the main single, IMO it's a better song and it got a fun video and was marketed well (bar the initial jukebox drama!). I think the main thing is that most people haven't hyped up this song for over a decade and been waiting for it that long. I imagine it's the same for the other singles. I kind of get how some people who were underwhelmed my Chinese felt now. I got into GN'R massively when I was fifteen, CD dropped when I was seventeen so I didn't have a long wait at all. I did however have a long wait for The General, hyped it up and was over-optimistic about how it would sound. I think context is key here really. Ultimately, all the singles just serve the purpose of being promo for a tour and that wasn't the main aim of The General. I imagine so long as they stick to the more mainstream and fleshed out leftovers then there won't be any damage done and besides, so long as they still play the hits, people will still go regardless.

Hope that Monsters comes out when the band get back together for the next round of touring. I think vocal range wise Axl would sound good on most of it (bar the screamy bit) live and there's some great Slash guitar work so could see it going down well during the shows. To my ears it's a much better song than The General and more what I was expecting from The General sonically. In typical GN'R fashion one of the strongest songs put out in recent years (IMO anyway) doesn't actually have an officially release

Yeah, still haven't heard anything either.

I agree that the Chinese era needs a line put under it. I think what we've seen from the locker leaks and official releases is that there wasn't some epic lost album waiting to go and that on the whole what made the cut for Chinese was the best stuff available. The song I think would have made sense to include in 2008 is Hard Skool as it's a classic GN'R style rocker that would have a good single. Absurd whilst fun due to Slash's guitar work (bro did the impossible and polished a turd there) was probably best left off and when it wasn't on the record in 2008 I assumed it was just because it wasn't that good. Hard Skool is a fun track and the best of the bunch so far I feel and Perhaps is a decent ballad. The least said about The General the better (I never thought I'd be saying that!). However, none are really up there with the best of Chinese in my view. Out of the songs we've heard Going Down, Oklahoma and Me & My Elvis are the strongest I feel. The first will never get put out there for obvious reasons and who knows if vocals were ever recorded for the others. If the latter two have vocals then I think they should just put them out and be done with it. The thing is even if Oklahoma and Elvis are in a position to be put out, I can see why they went with this drip feeding approach. An album of these leftovers would have been a massive flop as expectations would have been super high and they can put a couple of songs out whenever they're on tour and keep up the pretence that they're actually a creatively active band like the wording in the Perhaps press release implied.

Listening to it again and I feel it's the weakest of the songs released so far. That being said, I do really like the chorus. With some more work on it writing/structure wise and better production it could have been decent. It really feels (and sounds!) like a rough demo which is odd as a lot of the 'demos' from earlier eras could have just been put out and were higher quality. Like Slash's shreddy solo at the end but yeah, this song certainly isn't up there with the epics. I feel this is what happens when you wait twenty years to put songs out, nothing will ever live up to expectations after that amount of time. I also haven't had as long to wait as other GN'R fans as I only really got into NuGuns as a kid in '06 and then found out about the other potential songs around 2010 time. The poor quality artwork is another disappointment really, after the Perhaps video I was hopeful things were on the up!

I think it's a decent enough song but nothing like the track we were expecting. If anything, I'm reminded of the first time I heard Atlas Shrugged, having built it up in my mind for so long I was underwhelmed when it was just a decent enough GN'R song. The General seems a bit undercooked as a song to me and I feel some more work probably should have gone into it for it to reach its full potential. I agree it's a shame Monsters wasn't included. Although it seems apt that in GN'R land the song a lot of folks think is better is still a leak and yet to be released! Still, it's trippy that it's finally out there! Hope my vinyl and merch finally comes soon, seems ages ago I pre-ordered that!

I always wondered what role the Mats reunion played. Duff filled in for Tommy and that created some buzz in the music press. It seems the Mats went into the studio but nothing came of it but it did look as though it was going to be more long term at one point so I wouldn’t be surprised if Axl did ask Duff if he’d be up for rejoining properly if the Mats were back full time as it were. Then Bumble hands in his notice and Axl needs a guitar player and Duff is the connection to Slash.