Has this been posted?

[Nintari]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

It adds to the song.

I'll never get the people who hate synth on absolutely everything. Slash seems to be one of those types, but then again this is the same guy who didn't see anything of real value in Sweet Child O' Mine, which is what launched GN'R from the Sunset Strip. Slash is so fucking closeminded it's not even funny. Although, he's recently decided to hop on to whatever is current, the same thing he once criticized Axl for.

He plays generic sounding STP style grunge now, and it sucks. His solo CD, too, was generic.

Some people think hard rock should stay pure. Two guitars, one bass,one singer and one drummer. There's no need for fucking 80's synth in 70's hard rock (which is what AFD is). If someone wants synth, that's fine. Go start a fucking NIN style band, using computers etc. I like all kinda of genres but mixing them together is usually not a good idea imo.

A lot of "pure rock" bands have had keyboard and/or piano players.

See, for example, the Rolling Stones, who had two different piano players (Nicky Hopkins and Ian Stewart).

Even Led Zeppelin would add piano to some of their songs.

Even Slash used Dizzy on "Back and Forth Again".

I don't recall hearing Synth in Black Dog or When the Levee Breaks. Piano is one thing, synth is another. That's an artificial sound.

[Vincent Vega]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

It adds to the song.

I'll never get the people who hate synth on absolutely everything. Slash seems to be one of those types, but then again this is the same guy who didn't see anything of real value in Sweet Child O' Mine, which is what launched GN'R from the Sunset Strip. Slash is so fucking closeminded it's not even funny. Although, he's recently decided to hop on to whatever is current, the same thing he once criticized Axl for.

He plays generic sounding STP style grunge now, and it sucks. His solo CD, too, was generic.

Some people think hard rock should stay pure. Two guitars, one bass,one singer and one drummer. There's no need for fucking 80's synth in 70's hard rock (which is what AFD is). If someone wants synth, that's fine. Go start a fucking NIN style band, using computers etc. I like all kinda of genres but mixing them together is usually not a good idea imo.

A lot of "pure rock" bands have had keyboard and/or piano players.

See, for example, the Rolling Stones, who had two different piano players (Nicky Hopkins and Ian Stewart).

Even Led Zeppelin would add piano to some of their songs.

Even Slash used Dizzy on "Back and Forth Again".

I don't recall hearing Synth in Black Dog or When the Levee Breaks. Piano is one thing, synth is another. That's an artificial sound.

Ever listened to The Rain Song? No Quarter? In the Evening? Stairway to Heaven? Whole Lotta Love? Kashmir? Just a few examples.

All use synths or electronic or "artificial" sounds.

Edited January 11, 2011 by Indigo Child

[Nintari]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

It adds to the song.

I'll never get the people who hate synth on absolutely everything. Slash seems to be one of those types, but then again this is the same guy who didn't see anything of real value in Sweet Child O' Mine, which is what launched GN'R from the Sunset Strip. Slash is so fucking closeminded it's not even funny. Although, he's recently decided to hop on to whatever is current, the same thing he once criticized Axl for.

He plays generic sounding STP style grunge now, and it sucks. His solo CD, too, was generic.

Some people think hard rock should stay pure. Two guitars, one bass,one singer and one drummer. There's no need for fucking 80's synth in 70's hard rock (which is what AFD is). If someone wants synth, that's fine. Go start a fucking NIN style band, using computers etc. I like all kinda of genres but mixing them together is usually not a good idea imo.

A lot of "pure rock" bands have had keyboard and/or piano players.

See, for example, the Rolling Stones, who had two different piano players (Nicky Hopkins and Ian Stewart).

Even Led Zeppelin would add piano to some of their songs.

Even Slash used Dizzy on "Back and Forth Again".

I don't recall hearing Synth in Black Dog or When the Levee Breaks. Piano is one thing, synth is another. That's an artificial sound.

Ever listened to The Rain Song? No Quarter? In the Evening? Stairway to Heaven? Whole Lotta Love? Just a few examples.

All use synths or electronic or "artificial" sounds.

Yes, and alot of people think it's disgusting and corny. That's my point. There's a majority of rock people out there that have a belief that rock should be a certain way. There's nothing wrong with that just as there's nothing wrong with you thinking it's ok.

[Vincent Vega]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

It adds to the song.

I'll never get the people who hate synth on absolutely everything. Slash seems to be one of those types, but then again this is the same guy who didn't see anything of real value in Sweet Child O' Mine, which is what launched GN'R from the Sunset Strip. Slash is so fucking closeminded it's not even funny. Although, he's recently decided to hop on to whatever is current, the same thing he once criticized Axl for.

He plays generic sounding STP style grunge now, and it sucks. His solo CD, too, was generic.

Some people think hard rock should stay pure. Two guitars, one bass,one singer and one drummer. There's no need for fucking 80's synth in 70's hard rock (which is what AFD is). If someone wants synth, that's fine. Go start a fucking NIN style band, using computers etc. I like all kinda of genres but mixing them together is usually not a good idea imo.

A lot of "pure rock" bands have had keyboard and/or piano players.

See, for example, the Rolling Stones, who had two different piano players (Nicky Hopkins and Ian Stewart).

Even Led Zeppelin would add piano to some of their songs.

Even Slash used Dizzy on "Back and Forth Again".

I don't recall hearing Synth in Black Dog or When the Levee Breaks. Piano is one thing, synth is another. That's an artificial sound.

Ever listened to The Rain Song? No Quarter? In the Evening? Stairway to Heaven? Whole Lotta Love? Just a few examples.

All use synths or electronic or "artificial" sounds.

Yes, and alot of people think it's disgusting and corny. That's my point. There's a majority of rock people out there that have a belief that rock should be a certain way. There's nothing wrong with that just as there's nothing wrong with you thinking it's ok.

Those songs I've listed are some of the most praised songs in rock history....

A vocalist, two guitars, a bass and a drum can get very boring after a while. I like when bands try different styles. I loved listening, for example, to the Beatles evolve with each record. I loved the Stones' experiments in Funk, Reggae, Disco, New Wave, and Dance music. Same thing with Zep; With Queen, With Sabbath; etc. I hate bands like AC/DC, or Slayer, who try to make the same record over and over. It gets repetitive. If I could find the right people who were open minded, I'd have a different sound for every record (I have several records worth of lyrics).

Minimalism has it's perks with some bands (Sex Pistols, The Stooges, etc), but I also love shit like ELO. And I always saw Guns as more ELO than The Sex Pistols; As more Led Zeppelin than AC/DC. I love the Illusion records as much if not a little more than AFD because there's so much variety.

That's why my biggest wish Guns wise is for the '97-00 or thereabouts Industrial and Techno flavored Guns' record come out. Then I'd want the '94-'96 rehersal tapes Axl mentioned which is apparently just blues based rock. I love it all.

Edited January 11, 2011 by Indigo Child

[Nintari]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

It adds to the song.

I'll never get the people who hate synth on absolutely everything. Slash seems to be one of those types, but then again this is the same guy who didn't see anything of real value in Sweet Child O' Mine, which is what launched GN'R from the Sunset Strip. Slash is so fucking closeminded it's not even funny. Although, he's recently decided to hop on to whatever is current, the same thing he once criticized Axl for.

He plays generic sounding STP style grunge now, and it sucks. His solo CD, too, was generic.

Some people think hard rock should stay pure. Two guitars, one bass,one singer and one drummer. There's no need for fucking 80's synth in 70's hard rock (which is what AFD is). If someone wants synth, that's fine. Go start a fucking NIN style band, using computers etc. I like all kinda of genres but mixing them together is usually not a good idea imo.

A lot of "pure rock" bands have had keyboard and/or piano players.

See, for example, the Rolling Stones, who had two different piano players (Nicky Hopkins and Ian Stewart).

Even Led Zeppelin would add piano to some of their songs.

Even Slash used Dizzy on "Back and Forth Again".

I don't recall hearing Synth in Black Dog or When the Levee Breaks. Piano is one thing, synth is another. That's an artificial sound.

Ever listened to The Rain Song? No Quarter? In the Evening? Stairway to Heaven? Whole Lotta Love? Just a few examples.

All use synths or electronic or "artificial" sounds.

Yes, and alot of people think it's disgusting and corny. That's my point. There's a majority of rock people out there that have a belief that rock should be a certain way. There's nothing wrong with that just as there's nothing wrong with you thinking it's ok.

Those songs I've listed are some of the most praised songs in rock history....

A vocalist, two guitars, a bass and a drum can get very boring after a while. I like when bands try different styles. I loved listening, for example, to the Beatles evolve with each record. I loved the Stones' experiments in Funk, Reggae, Disco, New Wave, and Dance music. Same thing with Zep; With Queen, With Sabbath; etc. I hate bands like AC/DC, or Slayer, who try to make the same record over and over. It gets repetitive. If I could find the right people who were open minded, I'd have a different sound for every record (I have several records worth of lyrics).

Minimalism has it's perks with some bands (Sex Pistols, The Stooges, etc), but I also love shit like ELO. And I always saw Guns as more ELO than The Sex Pistols; As more Led Zeppelin than AC/DC. I love the Illusion records as much if not a little more than AFD because there's so much variety.

That's why my biggest wish Guns wise is for the '97-00 or thereabouts Industrial and Techno flavored Guns' record come out. Then I'd want the '94-'96 rehersal tapes Axl mentioned which is apparently just blues based rock. I love it all.

That's all fine by me. Whatever you're into, you're into. Just don't get to the point where you start thinking that's the only valid way to like music. Some people like the 100 track epics. Other people like 5 track, striped down shit.

[Graeme]

Appetite was never stripped down to five tracks in its life... it was clearly a pretty meticlously made record. The production and the sound are extremely slick, it's only the actual content of the songs which give things that rough, garage-y feel.

[seely]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

It adds to the song.

I'll never get the people who hate synth on absolutely everything. Slash seems to be one of those types, but then again this is the same guy who didn't see anything of real value in Sweet Child O' Mine, which is what launched GN'R from the Sunset Strip. Slash is so fucking closeminded it's not even funny. Although, he's recently decided to hop on to whatever is current, the same thing he once criticized Axl for.

He plays generic sounding STP style grunge now, and it sucks. His solo CD, too, was generic.

Some people think hard rock should stay pure. Two guitars, one bass,one singer and one drummer. There's no need for fucking 80's synth in 70's hard rock (which is what AFD is). If someone wants synth, that's fine. Go start a fucking NIN style band, using computers etc. I like all kinds of genres but mixing them together is usually not a good idea imo.

Exagerrating much?

One, a whole ONE small synth line at the start of one song is hardly going to make a whole album turn from hard rock into an 80's synth/pop one. It's just a small little line that adds to the start of the song, and IMO it works fairly well.

[FuddMckagan]

Good read, thanks for posting.

[AxlRose14]

Really cool article...unbiased and shows both sides. Provides facts and backs it up. Even Axl surely cannot hate on this, can he?!

[Liquor & Whores]

Of course, no one mentions the passive-aggressive Slash (who is, as always, ready to contribute to an article which paints Axl negatively) quote where he says that the beginning of the end was the synthesizer on Paradise City. I find his Fergie songs more offensive than any Paradise City synth.

I noticed that. It's funny that Slash thought that synth in PC was the beginning of the end of GNR, but then he recorded a PC version with rappers from Cypress Hill and pop singer Fergie and put in on his solo album to promote it, despite not being in GNR for 14 years. So from the marketing & promotion point of view, Slash did not end his connections to GNR.

Too much money to lose.

Synth in PC was bothering him, but rappers and a pop singer in PC - not at all. Ridiculous.

Edited January 11, 2011 by DrDrei

[Greg Miller]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

I can't imagine PC without it.

[w6a6x6l6]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

I can't imagine PC without it.

+1

[snooze72]

Has this story been posted anywhere else?

[STARABOSTES]

cool article,

but not that news, as we got all this infos before, and long ago.

but the article is just, is telling as it was and not trying to make the reader to eat up the writer's opinion about it, as it's just gives info. this is what journalism is about, the real one. as we can make up for ourselves what went down.

yes it was on Axl. who deny it?!

I like the part were it's written that Chinese Democracy was to complex for radio!

fucking aye!

that's what a rock album should be! fuck radio friendly!

I meant that people will deny that the lateness of the record was because of Axl, you joke.

I don't. I didn't.

you joke you....

[moreblack]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

I can't imagine PC without it.

Listen to enough AFD era shows where it's not played, and you'll notice how little you notice it not being there. Slash has been doing the song on tour and again, no Synth, no problem.

[Vincent Vega]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

I can't imagine PC without it.

Listen to enough AFD era shows where it's not played, and you'll notice how little you notice it not being there. Slash has been doing the song on tour and again, no Synth, no problem.

There's also no problem with the synth.

[moreblack]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

I can't imagine PC without it.

Listen to enough AFD era shows where it's not played, and you'll notice how little you notice it not being there. Slash has been doing the song on tour and again, no Synth, no problem.

There's also no problem with the synth.

true, it could either be there or not. It doesn't really matter. And the song won't be affected

[Vincent Vega]

Synth on PC was unnecessary.

I can't imagine PC without it.

Listen to enough AFD era shows where it's not played, and you'll notice how little you notice it not being there. Slash has been doing the song on tour and again, no Synth, no problem.

There's also no problem with the synth.

true, it could either be there or not. It doesn't really matter. And the song won't be affected

Would you agree then, that Slash saying the synth in PC was the beginning of the end of Guns, was a tad ridiculous, or petty?

Edited January 12, 2011 by Indigo Child

[moreblack]

Would you agree then, that Slash saying the synth in PC was the beginning of the end of Guns, was a tad ridiculous, or petty?

the synth issue opened a door that let the creeping malaise set in on the band, he's not necessarily wrong.

[Vincent Vega]

Would you agree then, that Slash saying the synth in PC was the beginning of the end of Guns, was a tad ridiculous, or petty?

the synth issue opened a door that let the creeping malaise set in on the band, he's not necessarily wrong.

Man, Slash is so sensitive if a fucking few second synth on one song was such a big issue to him.

I mean, really? Dramatic much?

But then again, same guy who saw nothing in Sweet Child. The guy really has no vision. He'd make the same record over and over if he could.

Edited January 12, 2011 by Indigo Child

[moreblack]

Would you agree then, that Slash saying the synth in PC was the beginning of the end of Guns, was a tad ridiculous, or petty?

the synth issue opened a door that let the creeping malaise set in on the band, he's not necessarily wrong.

Man, Slash is so sensitive if a fucking few second synth on one song was such a big issue to him.

I mean, really? Dramatic much?

It wasn't so much that instance, but what that instance started. It only got worse from there and looking back with the decades of memories in tow, you can say that was the start of it.

[Vincent Vega]

Would you agree then, that Slash saying the synth in PC was the beginning of the end of Guns, was a tad ridiculous, or petty?

the synth issue opened a door that let the creeping malaise set in on the band, he's not necessarily wrong.

Man, Slash is so sensitive if a fucking few second synth on one song was such a big issue to him.

I mean, really? Dramatic much?

It wasn't so much that instance, but what that instance started. It only got worse from there and looking back with the decades of memories in tow, you can say that was the start of it.

I can never understand people who are utterly minimalist like Slash.

I mean are synths really that much more offensive than Rappers and Fergie and shit?

Even Kurt Cobain had cellos and whatnot on In Utero.

It's almost like Slash will say anything not in favor of what Axl does just because.

[Bumble's Bridge Pickup]

I think the brief synth adds a bit to the song. Of course I like PC without it too, but it's just a cool little bonus

[moreblack]

I can never understand people who are utterly minimalist like Slash.

I mean are synths really that much more offensive than Rappers and Fergie and shit?

Even Kurt Cobain had cellos and whatnot on In Utero.

It's almost like Slash will say anything not in favor of what Axl does just because.

I don't think it's about understanding, you either like a person's music or you don't. It really depends on what the musician is going for in a particular project. Cypress Hill and Fergie on PC were there because this was not a replica of the AFD version. It was a rap/rnb themed re-mix, and as such they don't sound out of place there.

AFD version was a badass hard rock song with the catchiest of choruses, but as such it didn't really need a synth part, and hearing it live without it proves that.

[Vincent Vega]

I can never understand people who are utterly minimalist like Slash.

I mean are synths really that much more offensive than Rappers and Fergie and shit?

Even Kurt Cobain had cellos and whatnot on In Utero.

It's almost like Slash will say anything not in favor of what Axl does just because.

I don't think it's about understanding, you either like a person's music or you don't. It really depends on what the musician is going for in a particular project. Cypress Hill and Fergie on PC were there because this was not a replica of the AFD version. It was a rap/rnb themed re-mix, and as such they don't sound out of place there.

AFD version was a badass hard rock song with the catchiest of choruses, but as such it didn't really need a synth part, and hearing it live without it proves that.

Music isn't about "what's needed." It's about what sounds good.

Guns didn't "need" two guitarists, as Slash himself once felt, but they were better for it, no?