Arnuld

3 hours ago, Amir said:

@Arnuld @dude69 @DannyVinyard do any of you remember what Silkworms sounded like at this show? I found this review online which makes it sound like it was already closer to the 2018 leak/2021 release of ABSURD than the earlier performances in 2001:

http://www.gnrontour.com/sets2001/20011229reviews.html 

From what I can recall it was just like the HOB version from the year before. Maybe a bit more guitar. I remember bitching to someone at the show how weird I thought the song was. But I remember liking it live. It was worlds better than Absurd. It still had the bitch like you chorus. 

I was at the 29th show. It was insane 

4 minutes ago, ZoSoRose said:

1. Chinese Democracy
2. Shackler's Revenge
3. Better
4. Street of Dreams 
5. There Was a Time
6. Oklahoma
7. Sorry
8. If the World
9. Scraped
10. The General 
11. Monsters

1. Madagascar
2. Zodiac
3. State of Grace
4. Perhaps
5. Riad and the Bedouins 
6. Atlas Shrugged
7. I.R.S.
8. Absurd
9. Catcher in the Rye
10. This I Love
11. Prostitute

I can see something like that for a CD1 and CD2. That way a lot of the more basic- structured songs are interspersed with the more complex stuff. What do you think, @Sweersa?

That second album would need to start Hard Skool with the original long intro 

3 minutes ago, Sweersa said:

I wish people would stop perpetuating CD2 songs as "CD leftovers" to imply songs that didn't make the album were not good enough. It was said, by multiple members of the band, including Axl, that CD initially was going to be a double album or considered a double, and when they apparently scrapped that plan, it was going to be a follow-up "second part" of the 2008 album, to be released a year or so after the 2008 album.

CD is not a "best of" the 2.5 (or so) albums worth of material they finished by 2008.  Axl's conversation with Bach after he played him songs like The General and others further supports this, as him wanting certain songs on different albums (talking about three albums) because they fit other songs lyrically. 

The Village leaks also support this, as there are complete or nearly complete songs that were not placed on the first album that are better (somewhat subjective) than a majority of the songs on the first album. The 2000 mixes of Perhaps and Hard Skool alone are better than a lot of the songs on the first album, likely considered A-list by the band.

I always thought that the CD1 and CD2 were supposed to be like Radiohead’s Kid A and Amnesiac. Two Albums recorded during the same sessions both containing A-listed and B-listed songs and a few extra tracks not slated for either album. 

This probably will not happen but The Sphere in Las Vegas will be looking for legacy rock acts with Gen-X fan bases with money to pour out of their venue and into the casino to gamble at the Venetian. Venue is 18600 seats. I can imagine GNR could sell out at least 10 shows. I saw U2 twice there last month and it is by far and away the best concert experience on earth right now. If GNR does a residency there I might go for a week straight. Wishful thinking……

15 hours ago, Gordon Comstock said:

 

Do you think the whole thing sounds like NITL Axl?

I think Monsters was pretty obviously recorded in the early-mid 2000s, probably around the same time as songs like Better and Sorry, but The General seems earlier than that. I'd guess 2001-02, his clean voice is different and not as strong as 1999 or 2006, but it's close to how he sounded at some 2002 shows. It's been coated in effects like OMG (and to an extent, the other NITL singles) but it seems obvious to me that it's an early 2000s take...

Agreed. Soul Monster probably around 2004-2005. 
 

The General probably around 2002-2003

2 hours ago, Rovim said:

I don't understand why Axl is to blame for not wanting to reunite back then, especially since he invested so much of himself in Chinese and probably wanted his work to get the chance it deserved after all this time. Regardless of the chances of Chinese commercially, it was Azoff's job to do what Axl wanted him to do, and like I've said already, if you can't do it or you have different plans, then don't pretend that your goal is to satisfy your client when it isn't.

This is the power of denial. It was over in 2008. NO ONE cared about CD anymore except people like us. It was too late. But if a reunion had come shortly after the CD release Slash and Duff could have done the songs live, more people would have been aware of the album, it would have sold better and they would have made a boatload of money touring. Win. Win. Win. Why would a top industry manager placate you if they knew your choices were going to make everything less successful? GNR was almost at the theater/county fair level in the US by 2014.  So Axl was completely wrong in 2008 hence the 2016 reunion. 

2 hours ago, Mikey Whipwreck said:

In the world of music management your choice is basically Yes Men, such as Doug Goldstein and TB, or snakes, such as Merck and Azoff and basically any manager that can actually get things done at a high level. The music business is as dirty an industry as there is, you don't necessarily want your manager to be a nice person. 

They needed a heavyweight who had the clout and ability to negotiate a release strategy that was amenable to UMG and the band. Given the mess that the process had been and the amount of money that had been spent, options were limited. In the end, Azoff got it done. 

You want the Azoff type. A highly educated pit viper who knows everything, everyone, and who everyone owes a favor. CD was DOA no matter what. It was just too late. 2006 was the last point it had any chance of truly being successful. Azoff knew this but I’m sure Axl was probably in denial. Thank God he was there to negotiate that BB deal or maybe CD never happens. And he could read the tea leaves that a reunion was inevitable and the only way GNR was going to be a successful rock act again. But Axl is stubborn and it took another 8yrs for what Azoff knew was inevitable. 

2 minutes ago, Jwalker19 said:

I'll be refreshing Apple Music at midnight.

Wouldn’t it be midnight est? Which it is now

I’ll never understand why they would wait till the very end of the tour to break this out

33 minutes ago, gunsfanoldie said:

He sings Absurd every night with the line "pussy full of maggots". Clearly, they do not care what casuals might think and haven't for 2 years.

True. But pussy full of maggots is not the same as “Daddy Don’t” I mean I think it’s an awesome song but I’m pretty surprised they are potentially playing it live

21 minutes ago, Skamos66 said:

Surprised they are soundchecking The General, Axl singing those lyrics live makes me worried for him.

If they do play it live, I hope it's not similar to this:

 

It is a very delicate subject. I feel like when he starts that daddy don’t stuff the casuals are going to be looking at each other going WTFF is happening right now

2 minutes ago, GNR 1991 said:

How disappointed would people be if they played The General tonight but not “Monsters” lol

I’m not sure he can handle that bridge on soul monster live 

5 minutes ago, AxlRoseCDII said:

Impulsively bought a $30 ticket for tonight haha, riding the Uber right now.

So Jealous 

I debated so hard about hopping on a plane to this show. Would have had to re-arrange my entire week to do it. Decided against it. If they debut the General tonight I’m going to be having massive regret

3 hours ago, alfa75 said:

To my ears, Monsters sounds more recent, a bit better mixed/mastered, and has Slash on guitar.  TG seems like it could date further back, muddier mix and maybe, just maybe has someone else on guitar.

This is what I was thinking as well. Monsters just has a cleaner more polished sound. I guess we will know soon enough 

After listening to these two tracks a bunch it’s obviously Slash on Soul Monster. But I’m not sure about the general. The more I listen to it it sounds more like Robin and then Bucket on that outro. Is anyone else thinking the same? 

10 hours ago, Coma16 said:

I can't listen to HS live because of his vocals on it.... the Monsters Bridge will be butchered live. 

We need a Time Machine to 2006 to retrieve 2006 Axl just to do that bridge live. 

21 minutes ago, Miden34 said:

we will see negative nancy 

also i've got ass to eat. 

I’m not negative just been going through this since 1999 and incredibly realistic. I still think it’s a miracle that CD ever got released 

45 minutes ago, Miden34 said:

i really think state of grace is being saved for the new album, along with devious bastards and atlas.

There is no album. Slash said he wanted to cut a brand new one but he’s on the road all next year. It’s just gonna be more singles or nothing 

The Bridge in Monsters……The Slash lick into those vocals….goosebumps every time……that’s the Axl Rose OG shit we have been waiting for since 2008…..GNFR….

Soul Monster is so so good. (Isn’t it much more enjoyable to refer to it as its original title that we have all been obsessing about since 2008 but I digress) I love the bridge and Slash’s outro. But TWAT is the best piece of Music Axl has released since 1991. It’s an almost perfect Axl Rose song. It has so many elements that it should not work and yet it does. It’s modern and classic at the same time. I do not prefer buckethead to slash at all (great guitar player but what a fucking weirdo) but his outro solo on TWAT is an absolute banger. TWAT is on about the same level as Civil War but not quite on the level of Estranged. I would say Soul Monster is about the same level as The Garden which I personally love and wish they would bring back to the set at some point. 

18 minutes ago, evader said:

Holy shit, it just occurred to me that the cellphone guitar solo could have been Ashba. I may need to phone a friend on this one. @Voodoochild?

I bet the 2010 version CD2 has some Ashba. Just got douche chills

1 hour ago, Rindmelon said:

Shacklermyrye

I enjoyed your work piecing together that rehearsal with the cell phone clip from a few months back. Who would have thought it was soul monster! 

Slash is definitely on The General. I would bet anything that little riff at the beginning of the song was not there on the original recording. That sounds like something that he would have added to me. 
 

Per some feeling the potential hidden track being spoiled. When your releases happen on schedule the chance of this happening drop dramatically. Look at CD- Even if it had come out in late 2006 the vast majority of it had not leaked in any form yet.