When did the negativity for DJ start?

[RandallFlagg]

He hadn't even played a show yet and was whoring himself out as the GNR guitarist.

That told us everything we needed to know about the guy and what he was hoping to get out of the GNR experience.

Are there any clichés he hasn't ticked with this look?

The guy is maximizing his profit which is fair enough in terms of its a dog eat dog world where you starve if you don't tap into capitalism but still, this band means a lot more to many.

[rocknroll41]

I remember when he was first announced. I didn't know who he was so I looked up his Sixx AM stuff and saw how he played some interesting tremolo/ triplet type solos on a telecaster. I thought that was cool and could add new flavor to the GNR mix.

But then his first gig with GNR came, and there he was: wearing a black top-hat, playing Les Pauls, dangling a cigarette out of his mouth and trying to do low-tone bends and other Slash-isms that he just couldn't pull off quite right

I didn't mind it first, but as the years went by he seemed to be getting worse on stage, acting more like a douche, and saying more bullshit in interviews. Now it's just sad

EDIT: oh yeah and don't even get me started on TM, #ashbaswag, #unpredictable, #conquertheworld, #thedemented and whatever the fuck else he does

Edited June 2, 2014 by rocknroll41

[tomfriend]

Started lying in interviews, deciding he was a brand, showboating and playing worse almost simultaneously.

[themadcaplaughs]

I really had my doubts about DJ from the moment I saw him in that press release announcing he was in the band in 2009. Still, I was willing to give him a shot. I loved Buckethead prior to Guns N' Roses, and loved it when he joined the band, but was completely open to the idea that his appearance and "gimmick" might rub off the wrong way on GN'R fans. So, with that in mind, I was willing to give him a clean slate until he played with Guns N' Roses.

When he finally did in December 2009, I was literally in shock. The dude was not the right fit. Beyond butchering the big solos ("Better" and "This I Love" being prime examples) I just did not feel he had the chops necessary to be a lead guitarist in Guns N' Roses. Yet for those first few months, people were slobbing all over his knob. I honestly (and this is not exaggeration) remember people saying he was better than Slash and that the shows he was playing with the band were more exciting and better than shows from 1993. At this point, DJ still looked like more of a normal person (not a walking billboard) and his antics were not quite as ridiculous so I could understand liking the guy as a person, but I did not understand how people were willing to accept his shitty playing.

Then, it just became a downward spiral .He went from a relatively normal dude with a slightly goth look to a full on emo billboard for Monster Energy. We got tweets with hash tags like #nicotinecansuckmycock. We got Facebook posts about getting in fights with fans, hotel maid, and ordering thousands of dollars of liquor. We got guitar playing that not only did not improve, but somehow managed to get worse. We got DJ admitting to a fan that he was unable to play Robin's "This I Love" solo so he had to make a new one (which DJ still fucks up). We got DJ openly admitting in a chat that he is literally unable to play one Guns N' Roses song (Riad n' the Bedouins). And, of course, we got lies about :big surprises" and new music being imminent.

[tinyrobot]

I have never hated him. I don't love him either. I don't anything him.

Look, the reality is that I don't anything any of these guys other than Axl. He has never taken any sort of time to make me feel like I need to respect and value these people. These are nameless, faceless guys that can lift right out and be replaced by the next guy I am likely to form no attachment to.

I feel the same way. I don´t hate him because I don´t care. He is just a replacement of a replacement like most the current members. DJ and all the current members are guys performing with and for Axl Rose. I´m an Axl fan the same way I´m a fan of AFD line up. Those are the only guys I care about.

EXACTLY.

And, I dont see threads about a retard like FERGIE BUTCHERING SWEET CHILD AND PARADISE CITY. OMG IM LOOSING IT.

Bye

[parisrocks]

I didn't like him in GN'R from the very beginning because he wasn't Robin Finck. In the years since DJ has grown on me. He's quite capable and although he's a little too Slash-esque for me, he's a better guitarist than Slash. He's also a good person.

[tinyrobot]

I don't hate Ashba at all.

Not that I adore him either, but I couldn't be bothered with haunting every little thing he makes a mistake at, like some people here. That is a fucking waste of time and energy hating on someone who's way more successful than any of us would ever dream to be.

Yes, I know he's a bit annoying, has a big ego and imitates Slash, but I just don't pay attention to his side-projects. If you ask me what Ashbaswag is, I have no damn clue. I have never listened to whatever he recorded before GNR, and I don't intend to. I accept him as a guitarist in my favorite band and that it. I guess that's the only healthy way to go with this.

Great answer. I'm right with you.

The litany of problems we have in this band, and we are going to spend our time criticizing how he stands on stage? Really? Does that even make our top 10 problems with this band in 2014?

No, to be honest: this is just a nostalgia act, so we shouldn't complain the TOP problees, because this ship sinked a long long time ago It doesn't really matter at this point

But: the guy has tattoed on his finger the word: DEMENTED Thi alone enough to "hate" (aka laugh) at him with a passion

I dont have any problem with this band. If I was their manager, a bandmember or the boss at the record company, MAYBE. But I'm a powerless fan and I'm thankful with what GN'R has given to me and I am thankful that Axl is still alive and kicking, unlike Cobain, who is 6-feet-under and his fans will never hear from him ever again.

I couldn't care less about Ashba, Stinson and the other hired-hands. "lovers come and go", exactly like that. I dont get attached to any of these guys and I dont waste my energy hating them because thats immature. See how much I care about Ashba that I had not noticed the "demented" tattoo (I did see he had something "painted", LOL, but I couldnt bother reading what it was).

People who explore every inch of artists bodies have some sexual problem.

[bacardimayne]

His TIL solo in Taipei.

[Daedalus]

When he put the top-hat on.

[Broskirose]

I hated DJ before it was cool. #trendsetter

[Ana_1991]

i think when he was born

[Jordan Rose]

I was indifferent until the truly awful performances from SA this year.

I'm indifferent to this band as a whole because the new band was Axl, Bucket, Brain and Robin for me. But as long was we get the rest of their songs unmolested I can live with whoever playing them.

Actually, now I think about it, I think I could feel far more affinity for this band if DJ was replaced with someone respectable like Fortus. The chance of Bucket even guesting, let alone returning, is about 1% in which case, BBF deserves to get the spotlight.

[Silent Jay]

The hat, nobody likes it.

I liked him in 2009-2010. When he was the new guy, now he just think he's the more prominent and talented member of this band.

[Jordan Rose]

When you hear his guitar playing, but somehow thrown into the GnR mix, he works wonderfully well and does have some of that charisma with the crowd that Finck and Bucket lacked. BBF lacked this as well at the beginning, but I feel he's accepted as well (and not for his image but for how he plays!)

Although appreciate, to an extent, those old Guns fans who just will never relate to Bucket, I don't agree about the lack of charisma. He had something. Every single crowd around the world roared, literally roared, at the crescendo of Big Sur Mon in 2002. Whether it was London, Tokyo or a festival crowd.

Just listening to Evader's IRS/Star Chaser mashup makes it so clear that Axl and Bucket fit like a hand in a glove. The tone of Axl's voice and the tone of Bucket's guitar melt like butter and Bucket's melodic sensibilities compliment Axl's melodies perfectly.

At this stage, given how so little of the original NewGNR dream has come to fruition, I wish Axl had just started a new band with Bucket and Brain and worked their way up playing small venues and mid-card slots at festivals, playing 2/3 new stuff and 1/3 Guns stuff. If they'd started doing that 14 years ago they'd be headlining festivals today. Look at what Dave Grohl's done with the Foos and as good as he is he ain't Axl and he ain't Bucket.

I don't dislike DJ. I cringed when he butchered the SCOM intro at GG (may be the guitar tech's fault, but anyway) and when he acted all stupid when BBF did the Don't Cry intro in SA (I think, I know it was a show with Duff, don't remember exactly which show),

What did he do?

[Silent Jay]

Bucket was the Randy Rhoads.

[tinyrobot]

When you hear his guitar playing, but somehow thrown into the GnR mix, he works wonderfully well and does have some of that charisma with the crowd that Finck and Bucket lacked. BBF lacked this as well at the beginning, but I feel he's accepted as well (and not for his image but for how he plays!)

Although appreciate, to an extent, those old Guns fans who just will never relate to Bucket, I don't agree about the lack of charisma. He had something. Every single crowd around the world roared, literally roared, at the crescendo of Big Sur Mon in 2002. Whether it was London, Tokyo or a festival crowd.

Just listening to Evader's IRS/Star Chaser mashup makes it so clear that Axl and Bucket fit like a hand in a glove. The tone of Axl's voice and the tone of Bucket's guitar melt like butter and Bucket's melodic sensibilities compliment Axl's melodies perfectly.

At this stage, given how so little of the original NewGNR dream has come to fruition, I wish Axl had just started a new band with Bucket and Brain and worked their way up playing small venues and mid-card slots at festivals, playing 2/3 new stuff and 1/3 Guns stuff. If they'd started doing that 14 years ago they'd be headlining festivals today. Look at what Dave Grohl's done with the Foos and as good as he is he ain't Axl and he ain't Bucket.

This.

It's incredible how Dave Grohl emerged from the drums to frontman of a very successful band. If it wasnt for Cobain blowing his brains, Foo Fighters would be way bigger than Nirvana. I never expected that from Grohl.

I wish Axl had given up on GN'R and gone that way. If he had worked that hard people would be laughing at Slash and loving Axl all over

[ZoSoRose]

I started out pissed

Then in 09 when the tour started he won a lot of people (including me) over. He didn't dress nearly as retarded as he does now, didn't go nuts with ashba swag crap, and played the material well. He impressed me with the show I saw in 2010. Then after 2010 he started dressing stupider (wife beaters, horrible graphics, monster logo) and promoting his crap more. He was really good admittedly during the 2011 show I caught and he was fine for the UCAP show I saw but yeah, 2011 is where he really started acting like a dork.

I still don't hate the guy. I even met him at a meet and greet for some event a few years ago and he was nice enough. Its just his taste in things and antics are really bad. That's all fine, its just that he is in GNR and it ends up being really distracting. His playing has gotten sloppier and sloppier too. It isn't Fink bad, but it is getting worse.

I would say in 2010 he was a welcome addition to the band and exactly what they needed. Hopefully his ego calms down a bit but I doubt it.

Edited June 2, 2014 by ZoSoRose

[Silent Jay]

When in this community, Finck's shoes are as big as Slash's.

[Jordan Rose]

When you hear his guitar playing, but somehow thrown into the GnR mix, he works wonderfully well and does have some of that charisma with the crowd that Finck and Bucket lacked. BBF lacked this as well at the beginning, but I feel he's accepted as well (and not for his image but for how he plays!)

Although appreciate, to an extent, those old Guns fans who just will never relate to Bucket, I don't agree about the lack of charisma. He had something. Every single crowd around the world roared, literally roared, at the crescendo of Big Sur Mon in 2002. Whether it was London, Tokyo or a festival crowd.

Just listening to Evader's IRS/Star Chaser mashup makes it so clear that Axl and Bucket fit like a hand in a glove. The tone of Axl's voice and the tone of Bucket's guitar melt like butter and Bucket's melodic sensibilities compliment Axl's melodies perfectly.

At this stage, given how so little of the original NewGNR dream has come to fruition, I wish Axl had just started a new band with Bucket and Brain and worked their way up playing small venues and mid-card slots at festivals, playing 2/3 new stuff and 1/3 Guns stuff. If they'd started doing that 14 years ago they'd be headlining festivals today. Look at what Dave Grohl's done with the Foos and as good as he is he ain't Axl and he ain't Bucket.

This.

It's incredible how Dave Grohl emerged from the drums to frontman of a very successful band. If it wasnt for Cobain blowing his brains, Foo Fighters would be way bigger than Nirvana. I never expected that from Grohl.

I wish Axl had given up on GN'R and gone that way. If he had worked that hard people would be laughing at Slash and loving Axl all over

Totally. I understand there are multiple reasons for Axl continuing Guns, the main one being the advance money for the record, it was technically his band, he fought hard to build the name/brand etc etc. But it's been more of an albatross than anything. And as far as Chinese costing 13 million goes, so much of that was on the insanity of renting equipment and studios that were never used and re-recording parts and paying multiple producers. I prefer the live versions 100% of the time and I will probably never again listen to the original version of IRS now I have Evader's Star Chasing mashup. Bucket and Axl could have recorded that in a weekend.

[Dazey]

Guy's a total fucking bellend quite frankly!

Also you've gotta love the perfect manicure with stain free fingers yet he appears to be halfway through a cigarette?

It's almost as if the picture was simply staged.

Edited June 2, 2014 by Dazey

[stanleyjp]

For me personally I never hated the guy, but I didn't like his tone of playing, and the last years it seems like it's been even worse... I don't know.

This shit in interviewes pretending there will be surprises pisses me off, but it's not a big deal because we know it's bullshit anyway. The major cause if it's a good or bad performance for me is how Axl sounds.

[Lio]

Although appreciate, to an extent, those old Guns fans who just will never relate to Bucket, I don't agree about the lack of charisma. He had something. Every single crowd around the world roared, literally roared, at the crescendo of Big Sur Mon in 2002. Whether it was London, Tokyo or a festival crowd.

Just listening to Evader's IRS/Star Chaser mashup makes it so clear that Axl and Bucket fit like a hand in a glove. The tone of Axl's voice and the tone of Bucket's guitar melt like butter and Bucket's melodic sensibilities compliment Axl's melodies perfectly.

At this stage, given how so little of the original NewGNR dream has come to fruition, I wish Axl had just started a new band with Bucket and Brain and worked their way up playing small venues and mid-card slots at festivals, playing 2/3 new stuff and 1/3 Guns stuff. If they'd started doing that 14 years ago they'd be headlining festivals today. Look at what Dave Grohl's done with the Foos and as good as he is he ain't Axl and he ain't Bucket.

I don't dislike DJ. I cringed when he butchered the SCOM intro at GG (may be the guitar tech's fault, but anyway) and when he acted all stupid when BBF did the Don't Cry intro in SA (I think, I know it was a show with Duff, don't remember exactly which show),

What did he do?

I can't find it right away, but it was during the intro of DC or a solo of BBF, DJ appeared on stage, drinking jager and passing it around or something, so the audience there would cheer him on, thus ruining BBF's solo. If memory serves me right. I think it was the same night he stage dived.

[Jordan Rose]

Although appreciate, to an extent, those old Guns fans who just will never relate to Bucket, I don't agree about the lack of charisma. He had something. Every single crowd around the world roared, literally roared, at the crescendo of Big Sur Mon in 2002. Whether it was London, Tokyo or a festival crowd.

Just listening to Evader's IRS/Star Chaser mashup makes it so clear that Axl and Bucket fit like a hand in a glove. The tone of Axl's voice and the tone of Bucket's guitar melt like butter and Bucket's melodic sensibilities compliment Axl's melodies perfectly.

At this stage, given how so little of the original NewGNR dream has come to fruition, I wish Axl had just started a new band with Bucket and Brain and worked their way up playing small venues and mid-card slots at festivals, playing 2/3 new stuff and 1/3 Guns stuff. If they'd started doing that 14 years ago they'd be headlining festivals today. Look at what Dave Grohl's done with the Foos and as good as he is he ain't Axl and he ain't Bucket.

I don't dislike DJ. I cringed when he butchered the SCOM intro at GG (may be the guitar tech's fault, but anyway) and when he acted all stupid when BBF did the Don't Cry intro in SA (I think, I know it was a show with Duff, don't remember exactly which show),

What did he do?

I can't find it right away, but it was during the intro of DC or a solo of BBF, DJ appeared on stage, drinking jager and passing it around or something, so the audience there would cheer him on, thus ruining BBF's solo. If memory serves me right. I think it was the same night he stage dived.

*facepalm*

I really want to know what Axl wanted to fire him for (and yes, I do mean as stated in MSL's emails titles which I take as 100% real - hence the situation that occurred and his current loyalty).

[Apollo]

So is it all an act or is this really how DJ acts in real life?

Yelling at hotel maids, thinking it's "cool" to take shots of booze on stage, bragging about bar fights.......is that really him, or does he just do all the clichéd rock star stuff to try and make himself look cool?

[stanleyjp]

So is it all an act or is this really how DJ acts in real life?

Yelling at hotel maids, thinking it's "cool" to take shots of booze on stage, bragging about bar fights.......is that really him, or does he just do all the clichéd rock star stuff to try and make himself look cool?

I would guess it's all part of his act.. and thats patetic.