BobGuccioneJr

Frank is much closer to Adler than Sorum was. I don't mind him mixing up fills, especially since Matt just played literally the same fill on every song he recorded with Guns. Matt's tone was too over the top as well, way too much reverb. He couldn't capture the loose feel that Steven brought. I'd prefer seeing Steven but understand why he's not involved considering what a train wreck he is. Frank does the job.

6 minutes ago, IDonTNeedYourCivilWar said:

So theoretically, I can swap my field tickets I purchased during the Nighttrain presale for Pit 2 tickets now if I call Ticketmaster?

It just worked for me to get row 7. Pit is not available yet at 225 face value unless you pay over a grand for a package. 

2 hours ago, Inglorious said:

Wow. I hope this happens for the San Diego show.

Thanks to this tip I just called ticketmaster and swapped my floor seats for Section C row 7 (San Diego)! Clean exchange. You need the citibank password, if not the seats in row 7 are now priced at 325. With password they're now 250. I was Section D row 29 before... AWESOME. They put me on hold for a while but it was totally worth it. 

FYI-- ticketmaster will let you exchange your tickets for equal or greater value (you pay the difference). Just have to call customer service and listen to bad hold music for a while. 

30 minutes ago, Mendez said:

Well San Diego is a good 2 hour drive from Los Angeles on a regular day so there's that

10 hours ago, basher19 said:

Is San DIego a good place to base yourself  or would the advice be to stay in LA and travel down for the show like estranged_85?. Any suggestions welcome guys 

It can easily be 3-4 hours if you leave during LA or SD rush hour. If coming from LA I would leave by noon or 1 so you don't get stuck. North county traffic truly sucks between Oceanside and Del Mar. SD is an awesome city to visit, so much to do especially that time of year. Then again, I grew up here so I'm biased. 

My wife and I will be there -- Floor Section D. Can't wait. 

4 hours ago, Evan442 said:

They wouldn't let me.  I put it on eBay and Stub Hub at face value and no one is even biting!  I really hope I don't get stuck with a $261.75 ticket.  It's a deal compared to what scalpers are asking for! 

FYI -- while you've priced it to break even, Stub Hub has marked it up considerably. Listing price including fees is $343 for your ticket. Wait until the general sale or put it up on craigslist and you should hopefully move it sooner than later. 

Not a drummer, but I've played guitar for 30 years and teach high school music (haha)...

Steven played loose and reckless, lots of feel and groove that fit nicely with all the AFD tunes. He's the best GNR drummer by far. Not sure how he would have fit into the art rock ballads, but it's fun to imagine.

Matt was too stiff. More from the Neal Peart school in that everything was the same every show, right on the beat, like a human metronome that lacked that loose feel that Steven brought. Look at the ridiculous kit he schleped around in the 90's - a timpani drum? Gong? Seriously? Steven made way more with less. Early pics showed that he was playing clubs with just a floor tom, kick, and snare. Matt's repeated fills drove me crazy - you know the same one he recycled on Knockin on Heaven's Door, Don't Cry, November Rain-- "dah, dah, dah duh duh". Oh and don't get me started on "Gimme some reggae.." 

I saw Frank with nu-GNR in 2009 at Universal Amphitheater in LA. Loved it. He was closer to Adler but still had his own style and I thought the tunes grooved a lot more than I remembered from the UYI days. I don't care if he varies things up a bit - he's a musician, that's what he's supposed to do. I think he'll do great on the tour. 

As for Brain, I've only seen videos but he sounded awesome with GNR. That said, I saw him live with Primus in 98 right after he took over for Herb and he was terrible. Talk about changing signature fills around. Herb's crazy busy fills and double bass work was a huge part of Primus' sound and he simplified them all completely and played way more straight forward. 

Estranged. I was 13 and in 7th grade and begged my folks to let me see them in San Diego, January 1992. They weren't too keen, especially since it was a school night. Long story short, big sister was away at college but had a long distance boyfriend in San Diego and he offered to take me which my folks happily approved. It was my first concert. Soundgarden opened at 9pm, played 45 minutes, we sat and waited  while cameras went around the crowd trying to get hot chicks to flash their knockers. A few did. I was beyond stoked. Guns took the stage at midnight and played 3 hours. Still to this day the best concert I've ever seen. I was a super shy kid but had instant street cred when I rolled into school with my smoke stenched concert shirt the next morning. 

The reason I picked Estranged is because my "chaperone" opted to leave before the second encore since he had to work in a few hours. He was not into GNR and did me a massive favor so I'll always be grateful.  As we were walking to the car, the band kicked into Estranged and I always wished I talked him into staying a little longer as it was my favorite UYI tune. 

San Diego - Qualcomm