Official: Axl will join AC/DC for stadium tour/US dates

[GNRfan2008]

14 minutes ago, IncitingChaos said:

No idea, I really don't follow the band well enough, but with the loss of most of the original players and it basically being just Angus and Brian I'd have to say it's between 30-40% 

Whatever he gets, whether it's 20% or 40%...it's a huge amount of money for a guy who is already getting a huge amount of money in the GN'R reunion. 2016 is the year of Axl for sure. I wonder at what point Angus thought it was a good idea to ask Axl Rose of all people to come audition. Just seems like the most bizarre decision. Could be a disaster but could also be pretty fucking awesome too if both of those guys bring their A game. 

[IncitingChaos]

10 minutes ago, GNRfan2008 said:

Whatever he gets, whether it's 20% or 40%...it's a huge amount of money for a guy who is already getting a huge amount of money in the GN'R reunion. 2016 is the year of Axl for sure. I wonder at what point Angus thought it was a good idea to ask Axl Rose of all people to come audition. Just seems like the most bizarre decision. Could be a disaster but could also be pretty fucking awesome too if both of those guys bring their A game. 

I think Axl threw his name in the hat, he likely got word their tour was postponed, when he found out it was bc of Brian he likely had the connections to have someone in ACDC's camp know that he'd be available to them if they needed him. It doesn't seem like an Axl thing to do but like it's been pointed out this would be a dream for him that he'd regret not trying. But it would be very cool if Axl's name just came up from nowhere and Angus kind of thought it would work. 

As far as Axl's year it has to be one of the best for a musician. I hope there is an award for him to pick up at the end of the year..he could win tour of the year under his own name for doing two huge rock stadium tours in one year. Money wise he's going to be doing great! It seems he has mended so many bridges with people and for as much crap as he's getting from the ACDC fans Axl seems to be building goodwill towards all fans with his recent performances and showing up on time to the shows. Everything is in line, let's see him finish it. 

[Bumblefeet]

9 hours ago, Asia said:

Now everyone is excited how Axl is gonna sound May 7. Even on this forum, the GNR forum, it's trending much more than the Mexico GNR reunion concert that will take place tomorrow. It speaks volumes on what that announcement did to the GNR reunion tour that was supposed to be the news of the year :-( 

Except it wasn't the news of the year. Over here the Troubadour gig got a tiny article in the newspapers, whereas Axl's fronting AC/DC got top billing in the actual news broadcasts. So from a publicity standpoint, Axl/DC definitely helped out GNR. Just saying.

Also, why does it have to take away from the reunion? Why can't both coincide as one big celebration of rock music?

[GNRfan2008]

Something you would never expect to see on Wikipedia. Axl Rose is a member of AC/DC while Malcolm Young and Brian Johnson are not. We are in the Twilight Zone.  

[Bumble's Bridge Pickup]

2 hours ago, Original said:

Sounds like ACDC are the ones who should be getting criticized for a "money grab", not Guns.

It is a valid criticism for both

[alfierose]

3 hours ago, DanielCT said:

Of course i'm joking - I know how it's spelled. 

I'm constantly amazed how so many people get it wrong. It's only 3 letters to start with FFS! 

[Asia]

10 hours ago, Eddie Money said:

Here's my take on it.  I think it could end up being a great thing for the GNR tour but could also be risky for everything that GNR has been building in recent months.  For example, if Axl comes out and bombs a few performances with AC/DC, it will be all over the internet within hours and the shows that are slow to fill might continue to have a difficult time selling.  Worse, Axl could hurt his voice for is main gig.  I see a few of you are saying it and others shooting the possibility down, but it could happen.  A lot of the Back in Black and later stuff is challenging to sing.  If we, the GN'R armchair band/tour managers are thinking about these possibilities, you've got to think that the people close to the actual tour have considered them too.  

My biggest problem with the whole idea of Axl joining AC/DC was the timing for the official announcement.  I think it should have been done two weeks ago or at least they should have waited until after the Coachella shows.. Even the second Coachella weekend would have been better for GN'R than breaking the news just before the show on Saturday.  It still would have been a huge story but would not have overshadowed the reunion news.  I've already talked to a few people who are confused.  Not big fans like us but people who were considering going down to the San Diego show later this Summer.  The all said "Eddie, what's going on with GNR?  I thought there was a reunion tour but I just heard Axl's going on tour with ACDC instead? "  

Did they reschedule concert dates?  I think they did, although damage was probably minimal since agreements weren't signed until just before the dates were announced.  Many ancillary contracts regarding touring are written to provide flexibility in the event of a cancellation.  I suspect that Atlanta, Orlando, New Orleans, Houston, and Arlington were likely to have been rescheduled.  

Thank you Eddie, I wish I could give you more likes. Yes, the announcement had horrible timing. It might be confusing in the US, here in Europe (Poland in this case) it's not even confusing. Noone simply knows about the reunion, even my friends and collegues who like GN'R but are not die hard fans had no idea Axl and Slash were back together and thought I was joking not beliving me for a long time. But Axl and AC/DC are in all media outlets, even in TV news. Right now everyone knows Axl is an AC/DC singer. I don't think any frontman that really cares about his band should ever allow for a situation like that to happen.

I also agree that the risk of ruining his voice is very serious with AC/DC material, AC/DC schdule and the way their show looks. There are no possibilities for Axl to stay cautious about his voice or to spare it in any way with this material. He has plenty of chances with the GNR repertoire but none with DC's. What's more, he won't want to because it will now be an ego thing to prove to the world he can do it, knowing Axl, at any cost.

Also I don't believe the hype Axl creates with AC/DC, even if it's positive in which I doubt, will actually be of any benefit for GN'R. This will only lead to even more confusion and a lot of people being sure Axl is commited to AC/DC.

You're right, there won't be any good reunion press or member driven promotion because with Axl being away in Europe and Slash having a gag, there is noone to do it. AC/DC will have great promotion now, Guns will have none. The DC will overshadow the reunion completely.

The fact that any of the GNR dates were cancelled for this is sad from the point of view of any excited Guns N'Roses fans who waited for this chance 23 years and once it happens other things occur to be more important for Axl. It's kind of a real blow. Fuck, I thought this time it was for real, that this time Axl finally cares about GNR again the way he did back in the old days and... Nope. He doesn't. The old Axl wouldn't be rescheduling HIS BAND'S shows to join any other band! If Axl really believed in this incarnation of GNR and had high hopes regarding its future, he just wouldn't do it. Wouldn't cancel gigs, wouldn't allow for this confusion, wouldn't take chances of jeopardizing this.

All this makes you think that this is indeed a nostalgia reunion tour and nothing more. At least not at this point in time. Maybe it could change with the tour if things go right and everybody enjoys it but that AC/DC thing puts a serious threat to this anyway because, say what you will, I don't believe Slash is happy about this. The guy was very compromising, things are done exactly Axl's way and yet Axl wasn't even able to fully commit himself to this, in return. And commitment and fulfilling obligations are of major importance for Slash, mind you. Plus it was carried out in such a way that the  reunited GN'R served as a promotion for Axl's AC/DC gigs, actually Slash himself and the attention he draws through his achievements was used to promote Axl's new adventure. That is bad. At the very least, Axl should have taken all precautions not to make it seem like that. That way the massage he sends is clear - Slash has the same position in GNR as any other Ashba (former member right?). His role is limited to making Axl shine. People here were asking why Slash seems so reserved since the beginning of this. As far as I'm concerned this could just be the answer.

Yeah, AC/DC are their heroes, this might be Axl's boyhood dream but Guns has been his dream too. And he had 23 years to fulfill his dreams outside of GNR and will have even more. On the other hand it is unlikely he will ever have another chance like this to put GNR back on top. And he already undermined this reunion seriously, now if he additionally blows up his voice, it will be the end of that which hasn't even started.

I guess 23 years after the band has fallen apart the fanbase is very diversified. There are many Axl fans, not really just old GNR fans, and this people love the idea of Axl doing anything exciting regardless of it being related to GNR and Slash or not. Which is why he doesn't get bashed for it the way he should be. But anyone who thinks this will help GNR or that this won't hurt GNR in any way is simply fooling themselves big time, IMO. It already has hirt the reunited band, people. Now the question is how much worse will it get. What other Axl personal adventures will Slash be made to provide soundtrack for before he says once again - I'm done!

 

[The Archer]

Alice Cooper is giving this the thumbs up -

 

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/alice-cooper-on-axl-rose-joining-ac-dc-that-might-just-work-20160418

[cheesecake]

1 hour ago, Asia said:

Thank you Eddie, I wish I could give you more likes. Yes, the announcement had horrible timing. It might be confusing in the US, here in Europe (Poland in this case) it's not even confusing. Noone simply knows about the reunion, even my friends and collegues who like GN'R but are not die hard fans had no idea Axl and Slash were back together and thought I was joking not beliving me for a long time. But Axl and AC/DC are in all media outlets, even in TV news. Right now everyone knows Axl is an AC/DC singer. I don't think any frontman that really cares about his band should ever allow for a situation like that to happen.

I also agree that the risk of ruining his voice is very serious with AC/DC material, AC/DC schdule and the way their show looks. There are no possibilities for Axl to stay cautious about his voice or to spare it in any way with this material. He has plenty of chances with the GNR repertoire but none with DC's. What's more, he won't want to because it will now be an ego thing to prove to the world he can do it, knowing Axl, at any cost.

Also I don't believe the hype Axl creates with AC/DC, even if it's positive in which I doubt, will actually be of any benefit for GN'R. This will only lead to even more confusion and a lot of people being sure Axl is commited to AC/DC.

You're right, there won't be any good reunion press or member driven promotion because with Axl being away in Europe and Slash having a gag, there is noone to do it. AC/DC will have great promotion now, Guns will have none. The DC will overshadow the reunion completely.

The fact that any of the GNR dates were cancelled for this is sad from the point of view of any excited Guns N'Roses fans who waited for this chance 23 years and once it happens other things occur to be more important for Axl. It's kind of a real blow. Fuck, I thought this time it was for real, that this time Axl finally cares about GNR again the way he did back in the old days and... Nope. He doesn't. The old Axl wouldn't be rescheduling HIS BAND'S shows to join any other band! If Axl really believed in this incarnation of GNR and had high hopes regarding its future, he just wouldn't do it. Wouldn't cancel gigs, wouldn't allow for this confusion, wouldn't take chances of jeopardizing this.

All this makes you think that this is indeed a nostalgia reunion tour and nothing more. At least not at this point in time. Maybe it could change with the tour if things go right and everybody enjoys it but that AC/DC thing puts a serious threat to this anyway because, say what you will, I don't believe Slash is happy about this. The guy was very compromising, things are done exactly Axl's way and yet Axl wasn't even able to fully commit himself to this, in return. And commitment and fulfilling obligations are of major importance for Slash, mind you. Plus it was carried out in such a way that the  reunited GN'R served as a promotion for Axl's AC/DC gigs, actually Slash himself and the attention he draws through his achievements was used to promote Axl's new adventure. That is bad. At the very least, Axl should have taken all precautions not to make it seem like that. That way the massage he sends is clear - Slash has the same position in GNR as any other Ashba (former member right?). His role is limited to making Axl shine. People here were asking why Slash seems so reserved since the beginning of this. As far as I'm concerned this could just be the answer.

Yeah, AC/DC are their heroes, this might be Axl's boyhood dream but Guns has been his dream too. And he had 23 years to fulfill his dreams outside of GNR and will have even more. On the other hand it is unlikely he will ever have another chance like this to put GNR back on top. And he already undermined this reunion seriously, now if he additionally blows up his voice, it will be the end of that which hasn't even started.

I guess 23 years after the band has fallen apart the fanbase is very diversified. There are many Axl fans, not really just old GNR fans, and this people love the idea of Axl doing anything exciting regardless of it being related to GNR and Slash or not. Which is why he doesn't get bashed for it the way he should be. But anyone who thinks this will help GNR or that this won't hurt GNR in any way is simply fooling themselves big time, IMO. It already has hirt the reunited band, people. Now the question is how much worse will it get. What other Axl personal adventures will Slash be made to provide soundtrack for before he says once again - I'm done!

 

This. I am very worried about this whole situation and your post sums it up. 

[axlsend]

This is on ebay.

[Asia]

3 hours ago, Bumblefeet said:

Except it wasn't the news of the year. Over here the Troubadour gig got a tiny article in the newspapers, whereas Axl's fronting AC/DC got top billing in the actual news broadcasts. So from a publicity standpoint, Axl/DC definitely helped out GNR. Just saying.

Also, why does it have to take away from the reunion? Why can't both coincide as one big celebration of rock music?

No, absolutely not. GNR need to be promoted as GNR just like any other brand. You don't promote Nike with the CEO doing publicity stunts with Adidas hoping his name will be then asscoiated with Nike for God's sake! It just doesn't work that way. Wikipedia lists Axl as AC/DC member. Kimmel calls him the youngest AC/DC member. People think Axl is AC/DC, they don't know about GNR at all or are totally confused at best. You say it yourself - it is Axl in AC/DC that gets the headlines, GNR doesn't. AC/DC and Axl get the promotion, GNR gets shit, it is losing big time, the hype is gone. For the GNR tour it's a catastrophe! The money invested in the promotion is being thrown in the drain. This is also Slash's and Duff's money.

Axl just blew it. I'm really shocked so few people can see this. Anyway thank you Axl Rose, you just fucked it up again...

Seeing what's going on Axl should now be at every media outlet possible explaining that with AC/DC it is just a short time side project and that Guns N'Roses is making a world tour and a great come back to save the whole thing. Will he do that? No, I doubt it. He doesn't give a shit.

Edited April 19, 2016 by Asia

[st0n3r]

So I sold my tickets when I heard Brian was out. Now I bought a secondhand ticket after I heard Axl was in. Cost me less. Win.

[Lio]

8 minutes ago, Asia said:

No, absolutely not. GNR need to be promoted as GNR just like any other brand. You don't promote Nike with the CEO doing publicity stunts with Adidas hoping his name will be then asscoiated with Nike for God's sake! It just doesn't work that way. Wikipedia lists Axl as AC/DC member. Kimmel calls him the youngest AC/DC member. People think Axl is AC/DC, they don't know about GNR at all or are totally confused at best. You say it yourself - it is Axl in AC/DC that gets the headlines, GNR doesn't. AC/DC and Axl get the promotion, GNR gets shit, it is losing big time, the hype is gone. For the GNR tour it's a catastrophe! The money invested in the promotion is being thrown in the drain. This is also Slash's and Duff's money.

Axl just blew it. I'm really shocked so few people can see this. Anyway thank you Axl Rose, you just fucked it up again...

Seeing what's going on Axl should now be at every media outlet possible explaining that with AC/DC it is just a short time side project and that Guns N'Roses is making a world tour and a great come back to save the whole thing. Will he do that? No, I doubt it. He doesn't give a shit.

The reason why GNR isn't getting any coverage is that there's no European shows scheduled yet. AC/DC on the other hand, is coming to Europe in a few weeks. Bit logical it gets more coverage in Europe than GNR. Plus, this is a huge band that gets another (controversial) singer from another huge band. That doesn't happen every day.

If Axl pulls this off, I'm sure lots more Europeans will be interested in GNR. Right now, all everyone thinks about Axl is what you read all over: lost his voice, always late, prima ballerina... If he shows he's on it, a professional and GREAT singer and frontman, I am sure it can only be positive for GNR. As far as I'm concerned, Axl/DC is promotion for GNR.

[The Archer]

1 minute ago, Lio said:

The reason why GNR isn't getting any coverage is that there's no European shows scheduled yet. AC/DC on the other hand, is coming to Europe in a few weeks. Bit logical it gets more coverage in Europe than GNR. Plus, this is a huge band that gets another (controversial) singer from another huge band. That doesn't happen every day.

If Axl pulls this off, I'm sure lots more Europeans will be interested in GNR. Right now, all everyone thinks about Axl is what you read all over: lost his voice, always late, prima ballerina... If he shows he's on it, a professional and GREAT singer and frontman, I am sure it can only be positive for GNR. As far as I'm concerned, Axl/DC is promotion for GNR.

Well said. This is huge. Axl just needs to do his part and pull it off.

[-W.A.R-]

On 4/17/2016 at 0:26 PM, maynard said:

he's just a rock n' roll singer

how fitting...this would really be a good song for Axl to perform...i think he can relate to it

 "i left school and grew my hair, they didn't undeeerrstaaand"

 

Edited April 19, 2016 by -W.A.R-

[Asia]

4 minutes ago, Lio said:

The reason why GNR isn't getting any coverage is that there's no European shows scheduled yet. AC/DC on the other hand, is coming to Europe in a few weeks. Bit logical it gets more coverage in Europe than GNR. Plus, this is a huge band that gets another (controversial) singer from another huge band. That doesn't happen every day.

If Axl pulls this off, I'm sure lots more Europeans will be interested in GNR. Right now, all everyone thinks about Axl is what you read all over: lost his voice, always late, prima ballerina... If he shows he's on it, a professional and GREAT singer and frontman, I am sure it can only be positive for GNR. As far as I'm concerned, Axl/DC is promotion for GNR.

But there are scheduled US and South America dates, the Mexico show is today for fuck's sake! Nobody cares about it. The GNR tour is ONGOING. The press in the the Americas should be all about this, not AC/DC and it is about AC/DC.

What are you talking about that AC/DC will make people more interested in GN'R? This could be true if GN'R was a new band working its way into public consciousness. GN'R though is a band that was on top of the world, more famous than AC/DC. It should promote itself and it can do it easily. It's like saying Mick Jagger joining Queen during the RS tour and at the expense of its canceled dates is the best way to promote The Rolling Stones.

[GNRfan2008]

6 minutes ago, The Archer said:

Well said. This is huge. Axl just needs to do his part and pull it off.

Yeah. The worst that happens is Axl delivers exactly what the naysayers expect: late starts and poor vocals. Big deal. They expect nothing from him anyway. But what if he shows up on time and kicks total ass? I don't expect Angus will tolerate any late shows and this should help Axl because I don't think he wants to disappoint one of his musical heroes. If he actually delivers in a big way with AC/DC, hype will go through the roof for the GN'R tour, especially among casual audiences that are concerned about the start times in particular. The GN'R tour is already selling very well in many markets despite very limited promotion by the band. 

[Lies They Tell]

1 minute ago, Asia said:

No, absolutely not. GNR need to be promoted as GNR just like any other brand. You don't promote Nike with the CEO doing publicity stunts with Adidas hoping his name will be then asscoiated with Nike for God's sake! It just doesn't work that way. Wikipedia lists Axl as AC/DC member. Kimmel calls him the youngest AC/DC member. People think Axl is AC/DC, they don't know about GNR at all or are totally confused at best. You say it yourself - it is Axl in AC/DC that gets the headlines, GNR doesn't. AC/DC and Axl get the promotion, GNR gets shit, it is losing big time, the hype is gone. For the GNR tour it's a catastrophe! The money invested in the promotion is being thrown in the drain. This is also Slash's and Duff's money.

Axl just blew it. I'm really shocked so few people can see this. Anyway thank you Axl Rose, you just fucked it up again...

In my country the GNR reunion has been much bigger news than the ACDC thing, so that's probably one reason why I can't see what your saying. Axl's broken foot and the bus breakdown has been the major news. But I trust you that in your country the ACDC news has been bigger. Still, I'm not exactly sure what your point is. Who says that the GNR reunion hype would be ANY bigger news than it is now, if there was no AC/DC hype?

Cause in all seriousness it's not even a reunion. The worst thing that could have happened would be if the band had just made a reunion concert and that's it. Nothing else. If that had happened, there would be absolutely no hype at all, cause people wouldn't have anything to talk about. As a matter of fact the big news would probably be that Izzy and Steven weren't there. So this whole reunion would have got a negative vibe to it. Now people have other things to talk about than just the absence of Izzy and Steven.

As much as some people try to make this all sound so negative, I just can't agree. You say that your friends know about Axl joining AC/DC, but they don't know about the reunion. Well, at least they know about the AC/DC thing, so at least there's some talk about GNR. I'm sure that many people who hear about Axl joining AC/DC, will want to read more about it, and then they find out that Slash is also back in GNR. So obviously this is GNR promotion as well. Axl's stirring up controversy again just like in the old days. I see that as a good thing.

[supercool]

4 minutes ago, Asia said:

But there are scheduled US and South America dates, the Mexico show is today for fuck's sake!

mexico is not south america.

[The Archer]

5 minutes ago, GNRfan2008 said:

Yeah. The worst that happens is Axl delivers exactly what the naysayers expect: late starts and poor vocals. Big deal. They expect nothing from him anyway. But what if he shows up on time and kicks total ass? I don't expect Angus will tolerate any late shows and this should help Axl because I don't think he wants to disappoint one of his musical heroes. If he actually delivers in a big way with AC/DC, hype will go through the roof for the GN'R tour, especially among casual audiences that are concerned about the start times in particular. The GN'R tour is already selling very well in many markets despite very limited promotion by the band. 

I remember reading somewhere that Axl once claimed he was 'possessed by the spirit of Bon Scott'. True or not, he will not want to come off bad by comparison. More than Angus, it's Bon that I think he admires. Covering some of the great Bon era songs well would really stoke the AC/DC crowd. This is going to push Axl more than anything else can. I see only good things coming out of it.

Edited April 19, 2016 by The Archer

[DieselDaisy]

Well he is no Bon Scott - I can tell you that now.

[Asia]

4 minutes ago, supercool said:

mexico is not south america.

Yeah, you're right, my mistake. But it sort of is part of that culture.

[Lio]

8 minutes ago, Asia said:

But there are scheduled US and South America dates, the Mexico show is today for fuck's sake! Nobody cares about it. The GNR tour is ONGOING. The press in the the Americas should be all about this, not AC/DC and it is about AC/DC.

What are you talking about that AC/DC will make people more interested in GN'R? This could be true if GN'R was a new band working its way into public consciousness. GN'R though is a band that was on top of the world, more famous than AC/DC. It should promote itself and it can do it easily. It's like saying Mick Jagger joining Queen during the RS tour and at the expense of its canceled dates is the best way to promote The Rolling Stones.

GNR were a huge band almost 25 years ago. They haven't been relevant for ages now. All people know, is Axl always fucks up. That's what the general public thinks.

The Rolling Stones have never disappeared, so the analogy is flawed. You can't compare Jagger to Axl. Jagger is regarded as a saint almost, while Axl is mostly hated on.

A Mexico show would never be in the news here anyway. You can't expect every single show to be front page news in the Americas either. I'm sure the Troubadour, Vegas and Coachella got coverage over there.

You obviously have a much more pessimist outlook than I have on the whole Axl/DC thing, but don't you agree that if Axl pulls this off, this will be huge promotion for GNR?

[GNRfan2008]

6 minutes ago, Asia said:

But there are scheduled US and South America dates, the Mexico show is today for fuck's sake! Nobody cares about it. The GNR tour is ONGOING. The press in the the Americas should be all about this, not AC/DC and it is about AC/DC.

What are you talking about that AC/DC will make people more interested in GN'R? This could be true if GN'R was a new band working its way into public consciousness. GN'R though is a band that was on top of the world, more famous than AC/DC. It should promote itself and it can do it easily. It's like saying Mick Jagger joining Queen during the RS tour and at the expense of its canceled dates is the best way to promote The Rolling Stones.

GN'R has barely promoted the gigs here in North America and yet they are selling very, very well. If Axl kicks ass with AC/DC and most importantly shows up on time to shut up all the critics on that point, the hype will be enormous for GN'R the rest of the year. Axl teaming up with AC/DC is a once in a lifetime chance for him to play with his heroes AND help restore his standing in the music world, especially when it comes to showing up on time. Angus being such a strict person to work for could really help Axl in that regard.

Then next year bring in Adler and Izzy for the Appetite 30th Anniversary to build up even more good will with the public. Suddenly GN'R is set up to be one of those legacy acts that just keeps on going for many years with huge popularity (Stones, AC/DC, etc). 

[PatrickS77]

13 hours ago, Eddie Money said:

My biggest problem with the whole idea of Axl joining AC/DC was the timing for the official announcement.  I think it should have been done two weeks ago or at least they should have waited until after the Coachella shows.. Even the second Coachella weekend would have been better for GN'R than breaking the news just before the show on Saturday.  

You are forgetting that AC/DC have a european tour coming up that is starting May 7th. Fans who have tickets for that need to know what is going on. They are the priority. So announcing it last weekend, was just the right thing. So GNR had enough time to get their business in order, do their first shows and sell their tickets to their tour. Also everyone could see how Axl would do on the chair. With Angus joining GNR at Coachella to do 2 songs was just a perfect showcase of what is going to happen.