10/14/23 - Seattle, WA - Climate Pledge Arena

[Blackstar]

12 minutes ago, KeyserSoze said:

Not really. It’s bad. Really bad.

we see through “rose” tinted glasses (quite literally) because we are fans and know his strong points and weak points.

everyone else online who sees these clips of the popular songs all say he sounds like Vince Neil… literally look up any Tik Tok of GNR from this tour and the top comment is “Mickey Mouse” and “Man, him and Vince Neil have really fallen from grace.”

As GNR fans, thats the perception we have of Crue and Bon Jovi… im sure Vince and Jon KILL some songs, and butcher others… just like Axl

I can't say about Vince Neil, as I haven't watched more than a couple of videos (he was never considered a great singer anyway, though).

But as far as Bon Jovi, he couldn't sing at all on any range, at least at the shows that have been talked about. Axl is not on that level.

[Blackstar]

Review:

https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/music/review-guns-n-roses-enlist-pearl-jams-mike-mccready-in-seattle-heavy-affair/

[We love Axl Rose]

2 hours ago, JimiRose said:

remember at the start of this tour we all thought axl sounded better than 19-22 era and now he sounds worse than ever. I don't think this is recoverable now sadly, the mocking on line is getting worse and he's on par with bon jovi and vince neil now. we'll always have 2006 and 2010, i just wish there were more official releases from the era

Axl sounds better than last 2 years. Axl in 2021 would die singing Street of Dreams, This I Love or TWAT.

[ZoSoRose]

I haven’t really been following so that’s a bummer if his voice has gotten worse. I thought it was acceptable in person in Boston and was hoping it’d stay at that level for when I see them again next month 

Edited October 15, 2023 by ZoSoRose

[ChristianGNR]

His voice was really okay at this show for 2021-2023 level.

Really didn’t understand the previous posts here 

[jamillos]

7 minutes ago, ZoSoRose said:

I haven’t really been following so that’s a bummer if his voice has gotten worse. I thought it was acceptable in person in Boston and was hoping it’d stay at that level for when I see them again next month 

It hasn't, has it. The reviewers don't follow the band fo years like we do. It's 2023 Axl, no huge differences or drastic shifts up or down.

[Blackstar]

43 minutes ago, We love Axl Rose said:

Axl sounds better than last 2 years. Axl in 2021 would die singing Street of Dreams, This I Love or TWAT.

It's not a big improvement by any means, and although his high notes have been noticeably weaker, he has been more consistent this year, for sure, and the additions in the setlist have helped, as well as the turned up backing vocals.

I think that deep down most people agree with this assessment, but are influenced by comments and mocking videos on the internet or what their friends/wives/cousins etc. say. It's the reverse psychological effect of people being overwhelmed and excited after seeing a show in person and overstating Axl's performance as better than it actually was. And many times they go from one end to the other.

It's the same with everything else, like the released songs. I'm sure it will be like this with The General, too, if there are negative comments from casual fans. Some of the people who will like it at first will then start to question their own judgement and eventually say that it's not that good.

Edited October 15, 2023 by Blackstar

[meadsoap]

As a person who's been to multiple crue concerts (my husband is a big fan) and multiple GN'R concerts, saying that Axl and Vince Neil are the same is laughable. The people in tiktok probably haven't been to either tbh, so I maybe understand why they might think that. But for those who are paying attention, hard no. Vince doesn't even sing, really. 

The one I don't know much about is Jon Bon Jovi. I'm a fan of his charity work, but not his music lol. I've seen a few unflattering clips, but I don't know what a whole concert would sound like. I do know that my sister and some of her friend group went and enjoyed themselves, so maybe he's doing better. Who knows.

Edited October 15, 2023 by meadsoap

[We love Axl Rose]

Some photos from Houston show:

[janrichmond]

My opinions on Axl's voice are just that, an opinion, not a fact. Maybe I'm hearing it as more of a casual fan because I'll admit, I rarely watch the recent performances. I love the band they'll always be a favourite for me. I just prefer the AFD/illusion era to anything else.

[GoBucky]

4 hours ago, KeyserSoze said:

Not really. It’s bad. Really bad.

we see through “rose” tinted glasses (quite literally) because we are fans and know his strong points and weak points.

everyone else online who sees these clips of the popular songs all say he sounds like Vince Neil… literally look up any Tik Tok of GNR from this tour and the top comment is “Mickey Mouse” and “Man, him and Vince Neil have really fallen from grace.”

As GNR fans, thats the perception we have of Crue and Bon Jovi… im sure Vince and Jon KILL some songs, and butcher others… just like Axl

Axl is still hated by the public who hasn't  been into Gn'R since the Illusions came out. People still try telling joke's by wondering 'if Axl showed up 5 hours late'. He could go out and perform every song he's ever recorded perfectly and still get shit on. He's nowhere near what Bon Jovi and Neil are at this point. It's really a fucking joke to compare him to Vince. He's certainly not vintage, but people in the building are enjoying it, or else they'd be booked in ballrooms and theaters. Axl will always be the brunt of jokes because of what he once did, no matter what he is at this point. He's a shell of his former self, but its still good enough to put on good shows in stadiums and arenas. 

1 minute ago, GoBucky said:

 

 

Edited October 15, 2023 by GoBucky

[W. Axl Kev]

6 hours ago, KeyserSoze said:

Not really. It’s bad. Really bad.

we see through “rose” tinted glasses (quite literally) because we are fans and know his strong points and weak points.

everyone else online who sees these clips of the popular songs all say he sounds like Vince Neil… literally look up any Tik Tok of GNR from this tour and the top comment is “Mickey Mouse” and “Man, him and Vince Neil have really fallen from grace.”

As GNR fans, thats the perception we have of Crue and Bon Jovi… im sure Vince and Jon KILL some songs, and butcher others… just like Axl

I don't think you're technically wrong in your analysis but I also think less grace is given to Axl vs. other singers, maybe because of Axl's prior reputation. Where I do disagree is saying it's "really bad" because that's just not correct. When you're there, Axl sounds great, it's money well spent and the show is excellent. Yeah, YouTube videos are unkind but he's 30 years past his prime so what are we trying to zero in on exactly?

If the bar is reading comments from people who believe Axl Rose is comparable to Vince Neil then is the analysis worth the paper it's written on?

[6lake sa66ath]

13 hours ago, ChristianGNR said:

Really didn’t understand the previous posts here 

 

13 hours ago, Blackstar said:

I think that deep down most people agree with this assessment, but are influenced by comments and mocking videos on the internet or what their friends/wives/cousins etc. say. It's the reverse psychological effect of people being overwhelmed and excited after seeing a show in person and overstating Axl's performance as better than it actually was. And many times they go from one end to the other.

 

13 hours ago, meadsoap said:

As a person who's been to multiple crue concerts (my husband is a big fan) and multiple GN'R concerts, saying that Axl and Vince Neil are the same is laughable. The people in tiktok probably haven't been to either tbh, so I maybe understand why they might think that. But for those who are paying attention, hard no. Vince doesn't even sing, really. 

 

10 hours ago, GoBucky said:

Axl is still hated by the public who hasn't  been into Gn'R since the Illusions came out. People still try telling joke's by wondering 'if Axl showed up 5 hours late'. He could go out and perform every song he's ever recorded perfectly and still get shit on. He's nowhere near what Bon Jovi and Neil are at this point. It's really a fucking joke to compare him to Vince. He's certainly not vintage, but people in the building are enjoying it, or else they'd be booked in ballrooms and theaters. Axl will always be the brunt of jokes because of what he once did, no matter what he is at this point. He's a shell of his former self, but its still good enough to put on good shows in stadiums and arenas. 

 

7 hours ago, W. Axl Kev said:

I also think less grace is given to Axl vs. other singers, maybe because of Axl's prior reputation. Where I do disagree is saying it's "really bad" because that's just not correct. When you're there, Axl sounds great, it's money well spent and the show is excellent. Yeah, YouTube videos are unkind but he's 30 years past his prime so what are we trying to zero in on exactly?

If the bar is reading comments from people who believe Axl Rose is comparable to Vince Neil then is the analysis worth the paper it's written on?

All spot on.

[JimiRose]

16 hours ago, Blackstar said:

He's not on par with Bon Jovi and Vince Neil, because he sounds okay to good on about half of the current set (especially the low register songs, where his voice is still strong). But sadly he sounds the worst on most of the hits that casual fans and the general public know.

That's what the online perception is though, when people talk about singers who can no longer sing and should retire they say 'vince neil, bon jovi and axl rose' I think we look through 'rose' tinted glasses a bit. If we heard axl sing for the first time tomorrow, we'd never listen to him ever again. it is what it is sadly

[JimiRose]

13 hours ago, Blackstar said:

It's not a big improvement by any means, and although his high notes have been noticeably weaker, he has been more consistent this year, for sure, and the additions in the setlist have helped, as well as the turned up backing vocals.

I think that deep down most people agree with this assessment, but are influenced by comments and mocking videos on the internet or what their friends/wives/cousins etc. say. It's the reverse psychological effect of people being overwhelmed and excited after seeing a show in person and overstating Axl's performance as better than it actually was. And many times they go from one end to the other.

It's the same with everything else, like the released songs. I'm sure it will be like this with The General, too, if there are negative comments from casual fans. Some of the people who will like it at first will then start to question their own judgement and eventually say that it's not that good.

I think we are also influenced by our personal bias in a positive way though. Like we will say 'yeah but it's better than 2021' - when it was dreadful. Or 'he sounds good on bad obsession and its so easy' like any fan cares about that. most people will have seen axl in 16/17 or know him from the 80s/90s. so when you hear 2023 vocals it is so drastically worse from that is shocking to people. we don't see it as much because we've seen such a gradual decline over 12 years. and will search for low register songs that sound good. but most normal people won't do that, so of course it will be extremely negative. as i said, just imagine you had people tell you axl is one of the greatest singers of all time, and the first time you heard him live was on this usa tour. You'd naturally be shocked and think it's terrible

[Blackstar]

1 hour ago, JimiRose said:

I think we are also influenced by our personal bias in a positive way though. Like we will say 'yeah but it's better than 2021' - when it was dreadful. Or 'he sounds good on bad obsession and its so easy' like any fan cares about that. most people will have seen axl in 16/17 or know him from the 80s/90s. so when you hear 2023 vocals it is so drastically worse from that is shocking to people. we don't see it as much because we've seen such a gradual decline over 12 years. and will search for low register songs that sound good. but most normal people won't do that, so of course it will be extremely negative. as i said, just imagine you had people tell you axl is one of the greatest singers of all time, and the first time you heard him live was on this usa tour. You'd naturally be shocked and think it's terrible

This is all true for the people who hear him on e.g. Welcome to the Jungle now after not having heard him in years. I didn't say anything different as far as this goes. Actually I have said before that Axl sounds really bad or plain awful on the songs that the majority of people know.

But here I was talking about us, who know all the other songs in the set and don't go to the shows to hear only the hits. There is no reason to subscribe to the "consensus" that Axl is like Vince Neil or whatever, because we know that he sounds okay on half of the set. We can admit both this fact and the fact that he sounds terrible on most of the popular songs.

[meadsoap]

3 hours ago, JimiRose said:

I think we are also influenced by our personal bias in a positive way though. Like we will say 'yeah but it's better than 2021' - when it was dreadful. Or 'he sounds good on bad obsession and its so easy' like any fan cares about that. most people will have seen axl in 16/17 or know him from the 80s/90s. so when you hear 2023 vocals it is so drastically worse from that is shocking to people. we don't see it as much because we've seen such a gradual decline over 12 years. and will search for low register songs that sound good. but most normal people won't do that, so of course it will be extremely negative. as i said, just imagine you had people tell you axl is one of the greatest singers of all time, and the first time you heard him live was on this usa tour.  naturally be shocked and think it's terrible

Not everybody has this experience. Reddit and Facebook is full of posts by people who say that they went to their first GnR concert and was completely happy and thought Axl sounded good. If you taking into account what people online say, it's fair to take in the positive as well as the negative. 

The complaining is there, but that doesn't erase the other half. People who were unsatisfied are always louder than the people who were pleased. It is what it is. But would they be still booking stadiums (and mostly filling them) 8 years into it if that opinion was as unanimous as you say it is? They've come back to the US/Europe so many times that most people have already heard them twice over by now, whether it's live or on video. But still consistently pulling 20k-40k per market. Numbers don't lie, even if people (who never would have gone to a GnR concert no matter how Axl sounded) leave unflattering comments ok tiktok

Edited October 16, 2023 by meadsoap

[Amir]

EDIT: Wrong thread

Edited October 16, 2023 by Amir

[Blackstar]

https://www.instagram.com/lias1229/

https://www.instagram.com/tako217/

[GoodOlJohnnyK]

13 minutes ago, Blackstar said:

Wow. Lean!

[cineater]

5 minutes ago, GoodOlJohnnyK said:

Wow. Lean!

I'm thinking too skinny.  He needs some meat back on him for all that he burns off in a show.

[meadsoap]

4 minutes ago, cineater said:

I'm thinking too skinny.  He needs some meat back on him for all that he burns off in a show.

People here were making fat jokes about him a week or two ago, so this is ironic to hear.

Edited October 16, 2023 by meadsoap

[Italian girl]

16 minutes ago, cineater said:

I'm thinking too skinny.  He needs some meat back on him for all that he burns off in a show.

I agree

[cineater]

3 hours ago, meadsoap said:

People here were making fat jokes about him a week or two ago, so this is ironic to hear.

Yeah that wasn't me.   Despite what some people think, no kick back doesn't mean everyone agrees.  

[HollyWoodRose84]

He needs a break. A long break to hopefully recover whatever vocal abilities he still has left. It’s been non stop singing and partying just about every night for the last few years.  We are at the point where the weakest link is Axl. Yes he looks great, happy etc. but his voice is just not there anymore and there’s no denying or arguing otherwise. If this was any other act, we could let this slide but GnR is Axl and his voice is was and ways will be the driving force behind those songs. Let’s be honest, 99% of us here only went to the NuGuns shows because of Axl. It’s amazing how during that time there was so much hate for his voice but looking back on it, we would long for those abilities at this stage of the game. 

Edited October 17, 2023 by HollyWoodRose84