Zeppelin

Dizzy is the real manager of GNR.

Good thing we have that album to look forward to.

Fernando is a weak source regardless of what is said. I think we all knew, even when reading that, that there wasn't going to be an album out within 6 months of that date.

I feel like it should be pretty clear by now that there is no album. GNR is a touring machine, and has been for quite some time. There's nothing inherently wrong with that. It would've been nice if they had taken advantage of the pandemic/lockdown situations to bang out some original tracks, maybe an EP. But they chose not to. Instead, we get a couple of half-assed re-recordings. Better than nothing, I guess.

There are plenty of bands who have done the same thing, and will continue to do the same thing as long as touring makes more money than music sales, which we all know to be the case.

Chinese Democracy

Civil War

TWAT

Don't Damn Me

14 Years

Coma

Locomotive

OIAM

Musicians are assholes. That's really not news. Axl is one of them, too. Anyone who acts like Rose is a saint needs to stop sniffing paint fumes. But yeah, everyone knows Hetfield and Ulrich were massive dicks back then. Fortunately, they seem to have matured since those days, as have many others. It's human nature.

Cancel culture itself is pretty stupid. The girl on TikTok proclaims that she isn't surprised by this behaviour of four white men from the 80s. Trying to combat racial epithets, nazi salutes, etc., with generalization based on race? Oookay then. Cancel yourself while you're at it then.

15 hours ago, Bono said:

I still don't believe they are ever gonna release a full album

 

This is correct.

On 8/3/2022 at 7:22 PM, SoulMonster said:

The GN'R discography has plenty of crude lyrics. I don't get the reaction to Absurd.

Yeah, and they're all ridiculed, and rightfully so. I don't hear anyone praising One In A Million's lyricism that often. Or Get In The Ring's, or My World's. Or insert whichever other song has crude and/or awful lyrics. I'm sure Absurd fits into that category as well.

Other songs have crude lyrics and are labeled that way. Absurd included. The reaction is fairly normal.

2 hours ago, StrangerInThisTown said:

You don't have to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out it was not GNRs comeback single but just a track. There was no real video, no promotion or interviews, and most importantly no album its from. If you want to see what a comeback single with a reunion looks like, Black Summer by RHCP was exactly that. And when its time (if ever there will be a time) that's exactly how GNR will do it. There is not even a comparison if you look at what went into both and compare the two, Absurd is clearly just a track GNR released.

Then why release it at all? I keep hearing about how it had to release in order to drum up renewed interest for the tour, but that's just a random guess as to why they would release something that was reworked from 20 years ago.

I could understand your logic if we're going back to the release of OMG. But the circumstances are completely different here.

11 hours ago, Free Bird said:

I prefer it as well to songs like Catcher and SOD, Scraped and some others.

It's not weird to like an unpopular song, it's weird to have to explain it on a forum.

This is fair. I see absolutely no redeemable qualities in Absurd, and would have no issue placing it at the bottom of the GNR pile.

But if other people enjoy it, they enjoy it. Can't argue with that.

12 minutes ago, metalavenger99 said:

And I can't argue with the fact that ABSURD'S lyrics are horrendously hilarious, and yes I am aware that most people hate that song, but anyway, I just don't think that a reworked 20 y/old song we've all heard a long time ago it's the worst disgrace of the band's history or something like that.

Fair enough! Just wanted to make sure the lyricism wasn't the selling point at least.

22 minutes ago, Legendador said:

Why everybody hates ABSURD, but never talked that bad about SILKWORMS?

Aren't we acting out just a little too much just because the band is no-show for real new music?

The song is recycled, I get it! It's a bummer, but it's not a bad song.

I think it's the opposite. I think the only reason people give a shit about Absurd is because the band has been a no-show for new material. If that song was on CD, it would be scraping (pun intended) the bottom of the album.

43 minutes ago, metalavenger99 said:

You ain't the first? You can be rocking to a seriously heavy fucking hard rock - metal tune (Perfect Crime) but then it ends and you suddenly feel like you are a 350lbs old man driving a truck on a Mississippi road? sorry but I'll take Absurd over that song any day.

I mean, if Perfect Crime makes you feel that way, I can't argue with that. But I still cannot fathom how Absurd's lyricism would make you feel any better. You'll have to explain that one to me, because the lyrics are infantile.

29 minutes ago, SoulMonster said:

Why should we leave My World out of it?  My point was that Absurd isn't such an outlier from a band that has released such highly variable songs over the years; it makes no sense to exclude songs because they are universally disliked, that's my very point.

Personally, though, I find My World more interesting than Absurd. As for which songs I find worse than Absurd, the list is quite long, but again, my point wasn't to talk about my own highly subjective preferences but point out the absurdity of people hating on Absurd when the discography is full of songs of objectively variable quality. It would be a wonder if people like everything from GN'R (sand My World) but hated Absurd. That people would like Since I Don't Have You, Bad Obsession, Anything Goes, If The World, Oh My God, You can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory, Attitude (just to name a few not based on my preferences because they are so varied in terms of genre and amount of working going into them) but for some reason hare Absurd. In my highly personal and subjective opinion, Absurd, is a mediocre but not actively repugnant song...it is okay I suppose, in contract to many songs from the discography that I actively dislike and that I find to be redundant, derivative cock rock songs with few redeeming qualities. At least, Absurd seems to push the envelope somewhat. I would argue that someone who finds GN'R entire output stronger than Absurd is quite likely to be biased on different reasons than the song's actual quality, and if I am to be a bit rash I would think that a lot of people are judging it based on what the expected from a new single from Axl and Slash and not on the song's quality. Again, not at all saying Absurd it a great song (I find it to be mediocre), but I think all this hatred stems from unresolved expectations more than a rational assessment of the song.

While I would agree that expectations of a song can hurt the overall opinion of a song, I don't think someone who prefers GNR's entire history over Absurd is somehow biased. Especially considering that a lot of fans on the forum would know that it's a reworked version of Silkworms, and not an Axl/Slash original piece. And a lot of those same fans would say that it's an awful song.

The only reason I wanted to leave My World out of it was because it's pretty universally panned. So, I was expecting to see some more interesting choices for songs that may have been placed under Absurd in their entire history. Even for those that enjoy My World, I'm assuming it's still fairly low in their ranking of GNR's songs (I would hope, for the love of all things music).

13 minutes ago, SoulMonster said:

No, it's not. There is nothing bizarre about people liking a little ditty that is somewhat subversive, punkish, "joke" song but still rocks. It doesn't deviate much from the discography of GN'R, a band known to release all kinds of music of all kinds of quality. Fans who expect every new song to be a cerebral epic like Estranged might not like it, but they forget all the mediocre songs this band has released. In many ways it is similar to It's So Easy and how that song was perceived back in 1987 (expect that ISE has great vocals) - still it was controversial, edgy and most people hated it.  

As a genuine question, which mediocre GNR songs are worse than Absurd? And let's leave My World out of it, because we all know it's terrible.

32 minutes ago, Legendador said:

But did they use the song to announce to the world that they were back? FIVE YEARS after the first reunion concert?

To me was like a "let's get it out of our systems and by some time with the die hards and maybe win new fans with something different, ops, that didn't work so here's Hard Skool" type of thing.

We think too much, but I think it is simple, not a big deal.

But GNR has a dilluted (30 years spam) and small catalogue, so anything they release will sound different, or bizarre, or out of place.

Current GNR has bigger problems than just a song, the Ferrer's drum sound and style, for example, it's not a power house like Matt's or as groovy as Steven, thus making the band sound non-cohesive and with no punch.

I agree!

Well, this is GNR we're talking about. I'm okay with them buying some time if a freshly recorded album was even thought to be in the works. But I think that dream is dead by now. It actually would've been awesome if they had been working on a newly recorded reunion album, released Absurd to troll everyone, and then unleash an entirely new album. Now that would've been worth the shitter that is Absurd. Outside of HS' release ages ago, it's been radio silence since.

51 minutes ago, Gordon Comstock said:

Of all the stupid decisions this band has made, releasing Absurd as the comeback single 5 years into the reunion might be the most retarded thing they've done.

This is also what bothers me about the song. It's bad enough on its own, but this is what they use to announce to the world that they're back? This song?!

Even in the upside down, bizarro GNR world, this decision is baffling. And it completely obliterates any argument that GNR doesn't want to release an album in this age because it won't live up to their past work (which was already a stupid argument to begin with). If that were the case, this song would've never made it beyond the mid-2000s.

I really think the song is indicative of the thirst of the GNR fanbase for wanting something new. They could've put out any slop and just had people feast on it, and that's pretty much what they did. What's worse is that they followed it up with HS, which is the better song, but still passed like a fart in the wind because of how bad Absurd was and how it was the first thing the reunited lineup decided to unleash to the public. At least with HS, you could hear it and say, "Yeah, okay. This sounds close enough to GNR in the 2020s," and that would've been perfectly fine. And sane, for that matter.

1 hour ago, Rovim said:

I'm convinced. Thank you for making me aware it's not really that fun of a song. 

you say that is about opinion but it's obvious from your post that you think it's objectively bad. It's not.

Eh, I guess. But I would say My World is considered objectively bad. I've never really heard a good thing about it. Silkworms was a running gag on this forum for the longest time, and now people take a liking to a worse version?

I mean, if you like it, then great. It's about as close to a bad GNR song as we're likely to get, though.

34 minutes ago, Rovim said:

why? because you don't like it and think it sucks? but I like it. It works for me as is and I'm glad it got released. Is it a masterpiece of a song? no, not imo but it's a fun little rock song, nothing wrong with that.

Pretty much, yeah. It's not really that fun, it has horrendous lyrics, and is poorly produced. It really doesn't have a lot going for it. Again, this is a band that released songs like Locomotive and November Rain. Even Axl released songs like TWAT and Better under the GNR name, if we wish to count latter-day songs that are much more competent. A fun little rocker would be Chinese Democracy from that era. Absurd is something a 12-year old would feel proud of at a public school talent show.

I mean, sure, it is about opinion. But I still think My World is less of an offender when comparing the conception of both songs. Both are terrible anyway.

On 7/30/2022 at 12:14 PM, smokingarthur said:

I would take My World all day over Absurd. Consequently I would take HS over My World but by the smallest of margins. My World being my least favorite GNR track that has ever been released is still infinitely better than Absurd. 

Couldn't agree more. At least My World only has one offender. Absurd actually took time, was in the oven for twenty years, worked on by different iterations of GNR, and then finally officially released when it was deemed good enough for an official release.

It is baffling that the song ever saw the light of day as a "comeback" single. People can say they're glad GNR didn't try too hard all they want. At the end of the day, they should've been trying a lot harder than Absurd.

45 minutes ago, fabrph5 said:

why wouldnt we expect music?  I am not sure what you are saying?  its not difficult as we see  bigger and smaller bands doing it with ease.  IMO, its just a matter of wanting to or not wanting to.  They obviously do not want to.  Thats the only logical explanation.  

That is what I'm saying. They don't want to. I'm just saying that some fans tend to classify this band as being different from every other band out there, in order to make excuses for them. I agree that they have an unorthodox way about them (which is not a good thing), but the fact that they've released two "new" songs means they're still attempting to be active. However, they end up going on another indefinite musical hiatus out of nowhere, with whispers of an album floating in the wind during interviews.

The band knows how to play the fiddle with the fans. I just wish they would know how to also fiddle with some of those studio knobs to create more music at this point.

16 hours ago, SoulMonster said:

Maybe. But Guns N' Roses is not an average band. For anyone remotely informed it is bonkers to expect Guns N' Roses to release music in the near future. It speaks of either not knowing your history or letting hopes and dreams overrule your sense of logic. 

I disagree. There's no such thing as an average band. Things change for literally every band. GNR isn't some special case. They've just decided that they're fine with not releasing an album. Which would be perfectly fine. I don't think the band owes anyone anything. But in reality, they should just come out and say that there's no album. But they don't. They just let it hang out there for the fans to decipher clues over and over again. Which is why this thread is gong to reach 2000 pages before we get any hint of an album release, if we ever do. So then, some will argue there is an album, but that it's still being worked on, still waiting for the endless tours to be over, the band isn't average, Axl is a perfectionist, etc. Excuses. If all of those things were even remotely true, then the two singles released would've never seen the light of day. When they were released, people changed their tune on how GNR released music overnight. Now we're back to making excuses because it's been cricket noises for quite a while... again.

For a band that's been together, that's actually sitting on already "completed" material, you'd think they'd be able to throw a bit more together. I was hoping they'd actually record brand new music as well, but I'll at least label myself naïve for thinking that would ever happen.

History doesn't exist for GNR. If it did, the reunion would've never happened. It's quite clear that there were motivating factors that have enabled GNR to take the stage again after so many hateful remarks over the years. If that slate can be wiped clean, then GNR can also wipe clean their atrocious history for releasing new music.

I always find it funny that we continuously revolve back around to the point where some fans cross their arms and thumb their noses at people for expecting more new music. "Well, you shouldn't expect new music from this band based on its history, so you're only disappointing yourself!"

Why are we making excuses for a band that's still active? Wasn't the whole point of releasing singles to release this shit more often, and not continuously drip-feed over years and years of waiting? If anything, the release of two "new" songs should've gotten the engines fired up a bit more, especially considering that would only heighten anticipation. Honestly, they should've either gone all out with an entire album, or left it alone. This strange idea that some fans don't understand, or that they're somehow deluding themselves, is lame. It's perfectly normal to expect an active band to release music. Everyone knows how this band operates, but the expectation is still going to remain, and the band have only themselves to blame for that, constantly dangling carrots in front of fans for years. If they came out and said, "You know, we're just a touring band now," and fans still expected new music, then I could see calling out the fanbase for expecting something beyond what they've said. But that's not the case, and we all know it to not be the case.

I truly hope people aren't expecting miracles after a few days. I'm hoping his voice is better, but let's temper expectations a bit.

That was certainly a video of GNR performing in 2022.

17 hours ago, pincolino said:

Do you think it's easy to make great music? And if they make you an album, because people like you always ask to make an album and this sucks, what will you say about it? When they were at the height of their inspiration they always gave priority to quality and not quantity. What good is an album with a good song or two just to shut the mouth of idiots like you? 

lol