Perhaps - August 18. UPDATE IV: A New Hope (Radio Premiere Tomorrow?)

[chester]

24 minutes ago, AxlRoseCDII said:

If you showed people tracks like TWAT, SOD, TIL, Better, etc, and just said it’s Slash, people would regard CD as one of the best albums of all time.

100%… It’s hilarious. 

[We love Axl Rose]

23 hours ago, ZoSoRose said:

I feel like HS is an ideal GNR single in this day and age. Am I on crazy pills? Guitar riffs, Slash solo that’s actually thought out and fits the song, lots of lead guitar, Axl screaming chorus…

What is there to not like?

I absolutely agree with you! 

[Skamos66]

24 minutes ago, AxlRoseCDII said:

If you showed people tracks like TWAT, SOD, TIL, Better, etc, and just said it’s Slash, people would regard CD as one of the best albums of all time.

I was 10 when I first heard Chinese Democracy and i had no idea Slash wasn't on it at the time or that the band broke up at all, I had the Tokyo 92 VHS tape in our house that I watched on our old grey box TV and Appetite on the CD player, first time in a record store I convinced my foster parents to buy me Chinese & UYI 1, I listened to CD as an album a lot more than UYI 1, although I probably played Don't Damn Me & Perfect Crime the most when I had a first choice.

[GNFNRUK]

10 minutes ago, GoodOlJohnnyK said:

Yeah, and the "yeah!" and "Ooooh!" and ending each line with an "-ah" is a classic James Hetfield sound. But it can be overdone and silly. This is a case of that.

Also - did I miss something? Earlier in the thread someone implied that Slash and Duff approached Axl with these songs, and Axl said okay or at least didn't say 'no.' Why do we think this? Was this stated in an interview somewhere?

It was my understanding that Axl told Slash and Duff 'these are the next songs I want to release,' and they got to work. Not the other way around.

I think I do recall reading or hearing somewhere that Axl let Duff and Slash hear a bunch of unreleased stuff and they chose which ones they wanted to record parts for 🤔. Can anyone else confirm?

[Skamos66]

I remember 8 year old me asking my mom to skip Sweet Child O' Mine when we played Appetite, die-hard fan from the start I didn't consider anything besides GNR lol.

(I remember begging to go to the house with The Great Pyrenees Mountain Dog from the Estranged music video, unknowing that was in the 90s lol)

Edited August 14, 2023 by Skamos66
added info

[Blackstar]

As with the demo, I like the piano "riff" and the melody in the verses, although I have to say that I could have done with less "heys" and "ooohs" - I agree that Axl overdid it with them - and that I would have liked a second verse with different lyrics and not just a repetition. The chorus sounds improved at least based on the available recording. I like the new lower vocal layer. I also like it that the bass seems to be more prominent.

The solo is fine. Nothing too memorable, but the original wasn't better anyway, so yes, I prefer the new one because it's Slash. Although I usually don't notice these things, especially on low quality recordings, the transition at the beginning of the solo stood out for me from the first listen, and not in a good way. But I'll wait to hear the proper version for better judgement. 

I don't believe Atlas will be next. And that's because it has a similar "vibe" with Perhaps - both mid-tempo songs that even share some common themes in the lyrics (weight on the shoulder), so the next one would have to be something different. It would be either Atlas or Perhaps this year, and they chose Perhaps. I also think it's possible that Atlas won't be released at all, because I reckon that Slash may not want to replace a solo originally played by Brian May.

22 minutes ago, GoodOlJohnnyK said:

Also - did I miss something? Earlier in the thread someone implied that Slash and Duff approached Axl with these songs, and Axl said okay or at least didn't say 'no.' Why do we think this? Was this stated in an interview somewhere?

It was my understanding that Axl told Slash and Duff 'these are the next songs I want to release,' and they got to work. Not the other way around.

Yes, clearly Axl asked them to work on these songs. I posted the related Slash quotes a few pages that.

Edited August 14, 2023 by Blackstar

[The Real McCoy]

1 hour ago, Blackstar said:

I don't know, but from having a look there from time to time it seems that there's almost no censorship now.

Anyway, it seems that radio stations have it ready to go but can't play it yet.

Radio gets NOTHING in advance.

I work in radio - I know how this works.

IF it’s really coming out this Friday, the song will be available on radio distribution channels first thing Friday morning and not a moment sooner. 

Edited August 14, 2023 by The Real McCoy

[Underhardy]

31 minutes ago, kingcanyon said:

its classic axl sounds what are you talking about

It’s classic Axl yes, but it always struck me as a little much on Perhaps.. it was my immediate reaction to it when it leaked years ago. It doesn’t work as well as it did KOHD, for example. 

[GoodOlJohnnyK]

32 minutes ago, AxlRoseCDII said:

If you showed people tracks like TWAT, SOD, TIL, Better, etc, and just said it’s Slash, people would regard CD as one of the best albums of all time.

Best of all time? I can't go that far with you.

It's a good album. Way better than expected and way better than people give it credit for (though it actually received a pretty good and fair evaluation from critics). Yet If The World, Scraped, Riad, and IRS are clunkers. Even the title track and Sorry are only okay. Prostitute and This I Love are a little better than those, but I wouldn't call them classics. The true worthy additions to the GnR canon, to these ears, are Shackler's, Better, SoD, TWAT, Catcher, and Madagascar. Which makes a pretty good album, but not one of the best albums or all time, or even one of the best Guns N' Roses albums of all time.

Even if Slash was on it, or people were told he was, people would pick apart its flaws and, more importantly - Slash or no Slash - it's just not what people necessarily want to hear from Guns N' Roses. The songs don't have the strength of the songs on U2's Achtung Baby that allowed the band to move from their 'traditional' sound to a more experimental, electronic one. 

It's not strictly a matter of wishing Slash was still in the band - the songs weren't all the way there. Even some of the A+ songs could've used some tightening up - TWAT is a triumph due to the verses and outro section, but the chorus is bad and it's overproduced to hell. Madagascar is incredible, but I get sort of taken out of the song every time I hear Dr. King's speech - it works perfectly to build the solo section's momentum, but it's still the I Have a Dream speech! It's a good album, but not their best, and that's coming from a fan of it.

[Sweersa]

9 minutes ago, Blackstar said:

I also think it's possible that Atlas won't be released at all, because I reckon that Slash may not want to replace a solo originally played by Brian May.

It's possible they played the Buckethead/Robin/Bumblefoot solo version of Atlas for Slash. Or maybe they played the Brian May version too, all would be good for inspiration. 

[Coma16]

48 minutes ago, SoulMonster said:

We know that the song is finished, the reason is was't released last week must have been Axl. 

Fixed

[GoodOlJohnnyK]

11 minutes ago, Blackstar said:

the transition at the beginning of the solo stood out for me from the first listen, and not in a good way.

This is something I read about on the forums, but didn't hear myself when I listened to the song. Possibly because the bartender chose this moment to try and refill my drink, so I was distracted. I'll have to give it another listen.

12 minutes ago, Blackstar said:

I don't believe Atlas will be next. And that's because it has a similar "vibe" with Perhaps - both mid-tempo songs that even share some common themes in the lyrics (weight on the shoulder), so the next one would have to be something different. It would be either Atlas or Perhaps this year, and they chose Perhaps.

This is actually an interesting perspective. I hadn't thought about it this way. You're right.

It does bring up another beef I have with Chinese Democracy and much of the Village Leaks: there is so much mid-tempo to slower-ploddy stuff and not nearly enough uptempo, fast tunes. I think that's why I like Tonto and even Mustache so much - they have some pep in their step. 

The great Elvis Presley once said "As a general rule, an audience always goes for a fast number." He's right. They need to release something with some speed to it.

[SoulMonster]

2 minutes ago, Coma16 said:

Fixed

No, I don't think Axl suddenly wanted changes to the song. More likely something with legal or logistics. Again, it is not like the song was announced to be released last week, it was an inhouse deadline, it cost them nothing to delay with one week and none would have known if it weren't for our sleuthing. 

[Blackstar]

3 minutes ago, Sweersa said:

It's possible they played the Buckethead/Robin/Bumblefoot solo version of Atlas for Slash. Or maybe they played the Brian May version too, all would be good for inspiration. 

Even if the Brian May version is not the one Slash was presented with, he probably knows the story. So it's possible that he wouldn't want to replace the solo out of respect for Brian.

[StrangerInThisTown]

The fact BRIAN MAY played on turds like Atlas Shrugged and Riad is hilarious to me. It's like putting perfume on a dog turd.

[Judezki]

I've been a fan of GN'R since 2004 so I've seen how bad the management of this band has been through the years. But it STILL amazes me how the management team doesn't know how to do things correctly when it comes to A) marketing new releases B) creating hype etc... To me it seems like all the effort has been put into getting more tour dates and re-releasing the classic albums. But now when UYI albums have been re-released you would think that there has to be some new stuff coming up with proper marketing etc.. but no. It's still the same old thing with leaks and stuff.

I have to admit that back in the day the leaks were exciting because you really didn't know when CD was going to be released. Nowadays its just sad to see how one of the biggest rock bands in the world still can't get new releases properly marketed. Look for example how Metallica does their marketing, that's how you do things professionally, not like bunch of amateurs.

I mean, just release the song properly, how hard can it be?  /End of rant.

[GoodOlJohnnyK]

2 minutes ago, StrangerInThisTown said:

The fact BRIAN MAY played on turds like Atlas Shrugged and Riad is hilarious to me. It's like putting perfume on a dog turd.

Don't forget that our current lead guitarist is a guitar legend in the same class as Mr. May, and he just played on Perhaps. Sometimes, there's just not enough polish in the world.

[NachoLZ]

Just now, Judezki said:

I've been a fan of GN'R since 2004 so I've seen how bad the management of this band has been through the years. But it STILL amazes me how the management team doesn't know how to do things correctly when it comes to A) marketing new releases B) creating hype etc... To me it seems like all the effort has been put into getting more tour dates and re-releasing the classic albums. But now when UYI albums have been re-released you would think that there has to be some new stuff coming up with proper marketing etc.. but no. It's still the same old thing with leaks and stuff.

I have to admit that back in the day the leaks were exciting because you really didn't know when CD was going to be released. Nowadays its just sad to see how one of the biggest rock bands in the world still can't get new releases properly marketed. Look for example how Metallica does their marketing, that's how you do things professionally, not like bunch of amateurs.

I mean, just release the song properly, how hard can it be?  /End of rant.

It's sad also cuz Slash and Duff are back, you would think they would get a new management layer or something, for example, the 2016 NITL april's fool thing was kickass, Axl was going to be in Jimmy Kimmel announcing the reunion (cancelled), it seemed like they would be like very profesional when it comes to public relations.

[GoodOlJohnnyK]

4 minutes ago, NachoLZ said:

It's sad also cuz Slash and Duff are back, you would think they would get a new management layer or something, for example, the 2016 NITL april's fool thing was kickass, Axl was going to be in Jimmy Kimmel announcing the reunion (cancelled), it seemed like they would be like very profesional when it comes to public relations.

Don’t forget: they joined Axl’s band. With Axl’s management. And Axl’s management does what Axl tells them to do. It’s this way by design. Next time you’re upset with a management decision, don’t just look to Fernando and Beta: our redheaded friend is the one calling the shots.

(It’s also worth noting that Axl’s management, for all of their mishaps, also put on one of the most profitable tours of all time. It hasn’t all been bad, especially if you’re Slash and Duff.)

[Gaanzer]

46 minutes ago, GoodOlJohnnyK said:

Yeah, and the "yeah!" and "Ooooh!" and ending each line with an "-ah" is a classic James Hetfield sound. But it can be overdone and silly. This is a case of that.

Also - did I miss something? Earlier in the thread someone implied that Slash and Duff approached Axl with these songs, and Axl said okay or at least didn't say 'no.' Why do we think this? Was this stated in an interview somewhere?

It was my understanding that Axl told Slash and Duff 'these are the next songs I want to release,' and they got to work. Not the other way around.

I totally agree with the overdone Axlisms. He seemed to resort to ooohs & aaays a lot on the village leaks. In the case of Perhaps, the "drive" of the verses would have been just fine without them.

[We love Axl Rose]

31 minutes ago, Blackstar said:

I don't believe Atlas will be next. And that's because it has a similar "vibe" with Perhaps - both mid-tempo songs that even share some common themes in the lyrics (weight on the shoulder), so the next one would have to be something different. It would be either Atlas or Perhaps this year, and they chose Perhaps. I also think it's possible that Atlas won't be released at all, because I reckon that Slash may not want to replace a solo originally played by Brian May.

Would it be unrealistic for Gn'R to eventually release Atlas with Brian May's solo?

I believe that even more people would want to hear that song when they saw the news that GN'R released a new song featuring legendary Queen guitarist Brian May. It would be good marketing.

Also, Slash can't play a better solo. Win-win situation.

[Dani_1455]

On 8/13/2023 at 12:09 AM, meadsoap said:

Has anyone seen this reddit post. 

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/GunsNRoses/comments/15oow3l/atlas_was_supposed_to_be_next/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=2

I know the last one was bogus, so this should be taken with a huge grain of salt. The only thing that made me pause is that someone in the comments pointed out that the artwork seems to be original (no pre-existing images of it online). So if that's true (I did not check myself) it's either officially made.... or it's a troll who spent a lot of time making it themselves.

 

Both possibilities are bizarre enough to keep me entertained lol

At this moment I think the post still can be seen but the comment with the information has been removed so who knows

Edited August 14, 2023 by Dani_1455

[ZoSoRose]

21 minutes ago, StrangerInThisTown said:

The fact BRIAN MAY played on turds like Atlas Shrugged and Riad is hilarious to me. It's like putting perfume on a dog turd.

Riad has actually really grown on me over the years. It has some really cool music and vocals. The lyrics are just weird

[StrangerInThisTown]

Just now, ZoSoRose said:

Riad has actually really grown on me over the years. It has some really cool music and vocals. The lyrics are just weird

That's great, but I'm not even gonna try that for me, and I'll probably never listen to it again in my lifetime. I'm just gonna go out on a limb here and say, if a song took you years to like, it's probably NOT a good one lol.

[Alejandro GNR]

9 minutes ago, ZoSoRose said:

Riad has actually really grown on me over the years. It has some really cool music and vocals. The lyrics are just weird

It has some weird pronounciations by Axl...but all in all, its a good song