Frank, I love you - but could you please slow the F down a bit? ;)

[adamsapple]

I dont mean to compare him to any other drummer, but certain songs like Estranged, Rocket Queen or last night's SOYL...I just wanna scream take it easy man lol. He doesn't have to prove anything, he sure gets the job done, but I feel the band could use a little more swagger and groove. Sometimes I think the reason Axl gets out of breath is because the songs are just played way too fast. I like Frank a lot more than Matt Sorum though but I wish he'd listen/watch how Steven and Brain approached the rhythm section of this band, for me these were the best drummers ever in GnR. What do you think?

[RussTCB]

This has been discussed a million times here. Personally, I think the whole show is on a click track which means Franks just playing to the speed the band wants the tracks played at.

[MildlyArtistic]

Axl mentioned during his interview with Duff in 2016 that Slash and Duff worked with Frank to up the tempo on some of the older songs.

 

Frank 100% plays as fast as the band wants.

[wasted]

It was Slash and Duff that wanted to speed things up. The idea that Frank is deciding anything is ridiculous. 

[adamsapple]

If they want it like that then ok, I'm just wondering if I'm the only one thinking it's too fast sometimes. I like them better with some groove.

Also noticed when Axl was singing in AC/DC the rhythm section gave him more space than he has in GNR, maybe that's part why he sounded so good there?

Edited June 7, 2018 by adamsapple

[TheSeeker]

59 minutes ago, RussTCB said:

This has been discussed a million times here. Personally, I think the whole show is on a click track which means Franks just playing to the speed the band wants the tracks played at.

I think one of the IEM recordings (Tokyo 2012 maybe?) revealed he was using a click track, but I don't know if he still uses it now

[jacdaniel]

Slash said before that lots of riffs such as paradise city were originally slower but sped up because that's what Guns did. 

So I assume they like the tempo fast. They are all professionals, they would fix it if they thought it was broken.

[adamsapple]

Perhaps they're on click because of the pyro and videos and all? I suppose it's not easy to do for a show this big.

[Bitchisback]

Lol at the idea of Frank coming into rehearsal and saying "this is how fast we are gonna play the songs guys"

 

You know that was an A/S/D decision.  

 

But I agree a slower tempo would help Axl out.  PC is played so fast compared to the studio version for example lol 

[Tom-Ass]

2 hours ago, adamsapple said:

but I feel the band could use a little more swagger and groove. Sometimes I think the reason Axl gets out of breath is because the songs are just played way too fast. 

I agree with both these points 100%

This lineup definitely doesn't capture the "Swagger" and "Groove" of the classic lineups. I attribute that to Frank whether it is the tempo or just his style in general.  Can't stand his fills either.. Instead of slowing down, I wish Frank would step down.. 

 

[MildlyArtistic]

1 hour ago, jacdaniel said:

Slash said before that lots of riffs such as paradise city were originally slower but sped up because that's what Guns did. 

So I assume they like the tempo fast. They are all professionals, they would fix it if they thought it was broken.

Slash has also mentioned that the way they played AFD songs on the UYI tours was almost like slow motion.

I think Nightrain is probably the worst example of this.

This sounds absolutely glacial compared to how it sounds on other tours.

This performance is miles better, in my opinion. Nightrain shines best when it feels like the band is blasting through it.

[adamsapple]

5 minutes ago, Tom-Ass said:

I agree with both these points 100%

This lineup definitely doesn't capture the "Swagger" and "Groove" of the classic lineups. I attribute that to Frank whether it is the tempo or just his style in general.  Can't stand his fills either.. Instead of slowing down, I wish Frank would step down.. 

 

I'd be fine with him just not pushing so much and playing less fills, but then again if that's how the band wants to play their music then so be it.

[AxlRoseCDII]

As much as I’m not a frank fan, the faster songs aren’t his fault. If the band had a problem with it they would’ve told him right after the Vegas shows. It’s clear that Axl/Duff/Slash are the ones setting the tempo, and hell, you could argue that it comes from Duff since the 2014 shows with Duff seem to be much faster than regular as well. Frank isn’t my favorite drummer but he’s not stupid

Edited June 7, 2018 by AxlRoseCDII

[Gnrcane]

I posted this in the Odense thread.  Maybe we can put this to rest:

4 hours ago, Gnrcane said:

I can guarantee you that Frank is not the one deciding on the tempo.  At the very least, Slash and Duff have a say.  Somebody posted something where before the reunion Slash commented on listening to the studio version of PC and mentioned how fast "we" play it.  The "we" he was talking about was SFMKC.  

In this video it is 9 seconds from Slash starting the first note of the actual song until the drummer hits something other than a cymbal:

In this video, it is also 9 seconds from the time Slash plays the first note of the actual song until Frank comes in

You can just about sync these two videos up.  So, we ask the question.  Who is setting the tempo for PC, Frank or Slash?  Seems like the obvious answer is Slash since he is the only common musician between these two videos.

You may not like Frank's drumming style or whatever but he is not the one to blame for the tempos.  GNR is not the only band that speeds songs up live vs. the recordings.  I know it is not a band on nearly the same level but go watch videos of Bowling for Soup performing 1985 (basically their only hit) live with the original members that recorded it within a year of the release.

 

[El Guapo]

No way Frank has any say in this (or anything, really). Same with Fortus. By the way, can anybody confirm that Richard's nick name within the band is "Fortus Longus" because of his very large genital? 

[SoulMonster]

You could also hear it from how fast Slash is picking the intro parts to PC, before the drums come in. 

[DIST]

If they don't want Adler to play the AFD songs live then get this guy...

Frank has had a decade to get it right and still can't do it.

[bigpoop]

Shadow of Your Love is supposed to be a fast song. I find the the newly released version too slow. If you listen to the 'wake up' version it's  a lot faster and it sounds great. So it's not really the tempo, but still Frank just plays it wrong.  I'm not a drummer so I can't really put my finger on what it is, but if you listen to that demo version with Adler it rocks like crazy. And when Frank plays it it doesn't.

[themadcaplaughs]

Honest to God, Frank's speed from 2016 on never bothered me too much. He played the songs at a more normal tempo from 2007-2014, so Duff and Slash obviously had something to do with the decision (as others pointed out). The only song where I ever notice it would be "Rocket Queen," and I cannot stand the NITL "Rocket Queen" wank, so Frank's speed doesn't make or break the song. 

[Nice Boy]

The thing about people complaining Frank plays too fast is that they seem to have forgotten or unaware of how much faster some of these songs were being played in the 'classic' era.

Take Brownstone, for example. Frank plays that at around 107 bpm currently. That's about the same as Sorum did on the UYI tour. But compare this to the tempo Adler used to race through the song - if you clock the tempos of Brownstone in 1988, you'll find that he gallops through it at up to 125 bpm! A big difference. 

So in short, anyone complaining that Frank's tempo is too fast compared to AFD era is not correct. He drums slightly faster than Sorum, but he is not exactly 'fast' if you compare him to 1988 standards.

A couple of examples here, listen the intros and check the vast difference :

 

 

 

[ludurigan]

Frank, I don't love you - so could you please step out of the band and give room to Steven Adler a bit?

[Annabelle]

^^^LMFAO

[-W.A.R-]

10 hours ago, wasted said:

It was Slash and Duff that wanted to speed things up. The idea that Frank is deciding anything is ridiculous. 

Yes very silly to think Frank would be dictating pace. That wouldn't last half a song before they got on him.

[wasted]

4 hours ago, -W.A.R- said:

Yes very silly to think Frank would be dictating pace. That wouldn't last half a song before they got on him.

Slash or Duff even said specifically we wanted to play them faster. 

It's like Steven blaming Fernando now for him not being on the tour when he said it was Duff and Slash who didn't believe he was sober. But the partnership and the promoters must set the tone. Steven has literally said he wouldn't play Chinese songs, so right there it's a problem. He actually just said he would on this new interview but he wasn't convincing. He would be a liability for this rigorous touring. He'd be fine on the AFD era stuff. Could happen one day if he doesn't keep lighting these bridges on fire. 

What he needs to is carry a laminated rule card. 

1. Always say it was his fault he got fired.

2. Always say he has not done the work over the years to entitle himself to being part of such a big show. But he would love to and is working to get himself ready. 

3. Always say he is willing to be fully professional and do whatever Slash tells him to do if he joined the tour in any capacity. 

4. Drop all the negative stuff about CD or how he should have been in VR. Don't be a wise ass in the media. 

He should wear this card around his neck at all times. 

 

Edited June 8, 2018 by wasted

[Fashionista]

2 hours ago, ludurigan said:

Frank, I don't love you - so could you please step out of the band and give room to Steven Adler a bit?

 

No thanks.