Estranged from Rock in Rio 2011 (Discussion)

[Jordan Rose]

3 hours ago, MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle said:

Wow.  HA! I get it now - I was literally LOLing!!  Bumblefoot's reaction - what a legend!  Thanks for posting those.  OK, the guy seems like a bit of a wanker.  Yet Axl asked him to stay on for the NITL tour?  Must have liked him despite his delusions of grandeur. 

 

I don't think he had any choice. I'm guessing at least part of Slash being asked back was Axl not being able to sell a tour with yet another replacement (for BBF) 

[shotsfired cro]

32 minutes ago, Jordan Rose said:

I don't think he had any choice. I'm guessing at least part of Slash being asked back was Axl not being able to sell a tour with yet another replacement (for BBF) 

what tour!? outside of US/London they couldn't sell 2500 tickets.

[soon]

10 hours ago, MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle said:

 

As a result of not following NuGUns during this time, I have a question (hope I don't get yelled at): why doesn't anyone like DJ Ashba? 

In addition to other answers you've received, right from day one he would do Hogan ears - eliciting extra applause be dramatically cupping hand behind ear - and he would make dramatic, wavy movements as he raised his hand to his ear.  In 2010 the shows opened with Ashba being lifted on a raiser and doing hogan ears.  It took me 5 seconds to be eternally annoyed by him.  In one of the first one or two reunion shows a camera caught Slash briefly mocking this but I dont know what video.

In the Estranged clip he is playing his absolute top form.  And its pretty good there, but to me he's not inhabiting the lines, just executing them fairly well.  Often he does not play that well.

To explain why he's such a creative power house (selling plain t-shirts in his clothing line for example), he said it was just in his blood because his aunt and uncle invented aerosol.  They did not.

Plenty of people dig him though and thats cool.

[Graeme]

Thanks for sharing this, I remember actually being emotional during the broadcast of this performance, like a sharp intake of breath then feeling a weird kind of floaty feeling in the pit of my stomach. 

It's strange to think how much this band actually mattered to me back then. 

[AXL_N_DIZZY]

On 9/3/2017 at 7:20 AM, MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle said:

As a result of not following NuGUns during this time, I have a question (hope I don't get yelled at): why doesn't anyone like DJ Ashba? 

There are some Dj fans in the Guns community. I am a big fan of his and Sixx: A.M.'s. As long as Slash was seemingly off the table- I personally preferred Dj's enthusiasm for the gig, sunset strip pedigree (i.e. Bullet Boys, Beautiful Creatures, working w/Motley) and the fact that he was in a band (Sixx: A.M.) that had had some modern radio success. I found he did a very good job with the classics for the most part- and the casuals I took to shows 2011-12 really enjoyed his stage presence (solid wingman for Axl, etc.). 

[AXL_N_DIZZY]

On 9/3/2017 at 0:24 PM, MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle said:

OK, the guy seems like a bit of a wanker.  Yet Axl asked him to stay on for the NITL tour?  Must have liked him despite his delusions of grandeur. 

 

I do think Axl enjoyed having Dj around. Dj's Sharon Osbourne and Nikki Sixx "approved" and he came in having had modern rock radio success. Dj is from the Midwest (IN & IL) too- which maybe harkened back to Izzy and Paul Tobias, etc. for Axl.

Edited September 4, 2017 by AXL_N_DIZZY

[Sosso]

On 3.9.2017 at 1:20 PM, MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle said:

As a result of not following NuGUns during this time, I have a question (hope I don't get yelled at): why doesn't anyone like DJ Ashba? 

I can only speak for myself but it's not like that I don't like him. His work for bands like SIXX:AM is actually really cool. 

But I'm a much bigger fan of Slash, Robin, Buckethead, Richard and Bumblefoot in regards of GN'R. 

Edited September 4, 2017 by Sosso

[YourMother'sDruthers]

On 9/3/2017 at 7:20 AM, MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle said:

Thanks for posting - I don't normally seek out this kind of thing, so it was nice to see the band do good job on this.  It's weird...I love CD to death yet I can't bring myself to watch any live performances from NuGuns and I feel distinctly uncomfortable watching Axl in this era.  I don't know why, I just get a sense of an unwell, unhappy man and I don't like to see that unfolding before my eyes.  He seems so much better nowadays.

As a result of not following NuGUns during this time, I have a question (hope I don't get yelled at): why doesn't anyone like DJ Ashba? 

Watch the first 30 seconds of this video and you will know why no one likes DJ HA-HA. nu gnr officially died when he joined.

 

 

[Axl Rose aka God]

11 minutes ago, YourMother'sDruthers said:

Watch the first 30 seconds of this video and you will know why no one likes DJ HA-HA. nu gnr officially died when he joined.

 

 

I didn't even hate DJ but even Axl afterwards is shaking his head like "What the fuck dude..."

[Original]

Wow- listening to Bumble butcher that compared to Slash dominating it is painful.  Yuck. 

[Graeme]

12 hours ago, Original said:

Wow- listening to Bumble butcher that compared to Slash dominating it is painful.  Yuck. 

If someone who studied music listened to both objectively, blindfolded, I seriously doubt they would detect any significant difference in the melody whatsoever, it's pretty much note-for-note. "Butchering" something would imply a substantial change in tonality and structure. It's pretty clear you're just saying that for the sake of having something bad to say about someone who is not Slash playing it.

[SoulMonster]

On 3.9.2017 at 1:20 PM, MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle said:

As a result of not following NuGUns during this time, I have a question (hope I don't get yelled at): why doesn't anyone like DJ Ashba? 

He really didn't shine on most songs. Basically not good enough. And he looked like a wanker with terrible stage antics.

[axlweave]

On 9/3/2017 at 4:13 PM, killuridols said:

A Estranged without Slash playing his parts is not Estranged (no matter how cool the tv broadcasting is) 

 

I hated how bumble sounded on Estranged his tone was too high, glad Slash is back to play it right

[MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle]

21 hours ago, YourMother'sDruthers said:

Watch the first 30 seconds of this video and you will know why no one likes DJ HA-HA. nu gnr officially died when he joined.

 

 

Oh God, how cringey.  LOL  Actually, this is the first NuGuns video I can stand to watch because it's not depressing, or creepy but is actually unintentionally funny.  If Andrew Lloyd Webber ever produced Guns N' Roses the musical, this is what it would look like, maybe with fewer glittery lights.

Axl looks like a joke, but sounds pretty darn good actually.  Then he's shaking his head like WTF?  Everyone looks like they are wearing a badly made costume.  DJ's theatrical arm gesture at 1:50 had me LOLing.  The dodgy 70s camera at 2:00.  Bumblefoot looks like he tripped up the steps.  Only Richard manages give a good account of himself.  Good grief. What a circus.  Thanks for posting this - I've just been 'educated' in this era. 

I hope there are more funny ones out there!

Edited September 5, 2017 by MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle

[HollyWoodRose84]

40 minutes ago, MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle said:

Oh God, how cringey.  LOL  Actually, this is the first NuGuns video I can stand to watch because it's not depressing, or creepy but is actually unintentionally funny.  If Andrew Lloyd Webber ever produced Guns N' Roses the musical, this is what it would look like, maybe with fewer glittery lights.

Axl looks like a joke, but sounds pretty darn good actually.  Then he's shaking his head like WTF?  Everyone looks like they are wearing a badly made costume.  DJ's theatrical arm gesture at 1:50 had me LOLing.  The dodgy 70s camera at 2:00.  Bumblefoot looks like he tripped up the steps.  Only Richard manages give a good account of himself.  Good grief. What a circus.  Thanks for posting this - I've just been 'educated' in this era. 

I hope there are more funny ones out there!

Axl is shaking his head in the beginning because he's motioning offstage he can't hear himself through his monitor. 

[themadcaplaughs]

DJ is a tough one to examine. As a person, I actually find him to be a likable dude. Regardless of all his posturing, he clearly enjoyed playing in the band, went out of his way to be nice to fans, and certainly did seem to give Axl some energy. As someone pointed out, during the 2009/2010 shows I actually did not find much issue with him. Yeah, the top hat seemed a little cheesy, but he wore that before joining Guns N' Roses. He wore "plain" clothes at that time, and while he was certainly not perfect playing all the parts, he seemed to have a much more "Slash" vibe and I could not deny he had to learn a LOT of songs in a relatively short amount of time. Robin and Bumblefoot certainly weren't perfect when they joined the bands.

Unfortunately, instead of getting incrementally better over time, he seemed to get worse and worse. He clearly became much more interested in posturing and playing the rock star part than actually playing the songs well. He almost seemed to become a "Guitar Hero" like caricature of a guitarist more than an actual musician. 

As a musician, I cannot deny that he's clearly a talented songwriter, and I would even say a "very good" (B+ maybe) guitarist. The problem remains, much like it did with Paul Tobias, that simply being "good enough" can't do it in a band like Guns N' Roses. Robin did not play Slash's solos perfectly, but he could throw some of them out of the park ("Sweet Child O' Mine), make interesting interpretation of others ("Patience), and his solos on songs from Chinese Democracy were killer (I rank his solos on "This I Love" and "Better" up with Slash's). Bumblefoot may not have been the most perfect "image" for the band, but his ability to play the most difficult parts flawlessly made him stand out. DJ sort of became the worst of both worlds. His stage presence seemed rehearsed and not authentic, and his playing became worse and worse as he stayed in the band. The fact that DJ was surrounded by two guitarists light years beyond his skill level (and that one of them got relegated to rhythm guitar) only made the situation more laughable. 

 

[ZoSoRose]

Rio 2011 was a disaster, but Estranged was fucking awesome that show. I was SO happy they brought it in the set (thanks, Bumble) and it made me so fired up to see them again in 2011 no matter how bad Rio was. Its great to have it now with Axl and Slash belting it out. Its my favorite Slash song, but damn was I happy to get it in 2011.

I also agree with P5 about DJ. He got way worse for me as time went on. I kind of forcrd myself to really like him because he was in my favorite band, but now that he is out its easy to look back and wonder wtf Axl was thinking. He had some positives, he had good energy on stage that casual fans liked and he played the Slash material ok during the first few years, but he became an absolute cringy cartoon character. His stage appearance and social media presence became boderline disrespectful to the GNR brand. I hope he never plays with Guns again in any capacity.

3 hours ago, themadcaplaughs said:

DJ is a tough one to examine. As a person, I actually find him to be a likable dude. Regardless of all his posturing, he clearly enjoyed playing in the band, went out of his way to be nice to fans, and certainly did seem to give Axl some energy. As someone pointed out, during the 2009/2010 shows I actually did not find much issue with him. Yeah, the top hat seemed a little cheesy, but he wore that before joining Guns N' Roses. He wore "plain" clothes at that time, and while he was certainly not perfect playing all the parts, he seemed to have a much more "Slash" vibe and I could not deny he had to learn a LOT of songs in a relatively short amount of time. Robin and Bumblefoot certainly weren't perfect when they joined the bands.

Unfortunately, instead of getting incrementally better over time, he seemed to get worse and worse. He clearly became much more interested in posturing and playing the rock star part than actually playing the songs well. He almost seemed to become a "Guitar Hero" like caricature of a guitarist more than an actual musician. 

As a musician, I cannot deny that he's clearly a talented songwriter, and I would even say a "very good" (B+ maybe) guitarist. The problem remains, much like it did with Paul Tobias, that simply being "good enough" can't do it in a band like Guns N' Roses. Robin did not play Slash's solos perfectly, but he could throw some of them out of the park ("Sweet Child O' Mine), make interesting interpretation of others ("Patience), and his solos on songs from Chinese Democracy were killer (I rank his solos on "This I Love" and "Better" up with Slash's). Bumblefoot may not have been the most perfect "image" for the band, but his ability to play the most difficult parts flawlessly made him stand out. DJ sort of became the worst of both worlds. His stage presence seemed rehearsed and not authentic, and his playing became worse and worse as he stayed in the band. The fact that DJ was surrounded by two guitarists light years beyond his skill level (and that one of them got relegated to rhythm guitar) only made the situation more laughable. 

 

Spot on