November_rain Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Sep. 19, 2006Copyright © Las Vegas Review-JournalREVIEW: GN'R needs to trim fatBy JASON BRACELINREVIEW-JOURNAL"All we need is just a little patience," Axl Rose sang, and the Guns N' Roses frontman wasn't lyin': His band's padded set at The Joint on Sunday came coated in so much lard that you could feel your arteries clog as the group played.In addition to a pair of piano jams, there was not one, not two, but three extended guitar solo interludes by the band's trio of guitarists -- the worst of which was by Richard Fortus, who actually turned in an instrumental rendition of Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful" for some reason.All these detours took a wrecking ball to the considerable amount of momentum that Rose and company had worked hard to establish.Taking the stage in sunglasses, jeans and a white T-shirt that declared him an "Assassin of Youth," Rose was a commanding presence from the start, spinning himself in circles with arms outstretched as he sang, holding the mic stand above his head triumphantly, like a prizefighter who had just KO'd some stubborn foe.Heavily mining GN'R's debut, "Appetite For Destruction," the band worked itself into a lather on an opening suite full of gritty, hardscrabble urban blues -- songs like "Welcome to the Jungle," "It's So Easy" and "Mr. Brownstone" -- mean tunes about living hard in the hard part of town, which often sound as if they're sung through clenched teeth.GN'R is at their best when making nasty primal urges and a vengeful pathos something you can dance to -- such as on the paranoid gut punch of "Out To Get Me" or the libidinous fatalism of "Nightrain" -- and their early material is powered by a sultry rage.Nowadays, the group takes a more expansive view of the alienation and dystophia that has informed much of GN'R's repertoire, and the band's sound follows suit.This became especially evident as the group worked through a handful of selections from their long-delayed album "Chinese Democracy," the best of which was "Madagascar," a dusky, dramatic ballad with percolating electronic drums and sweeping guitar solos. Other new tunes included the similarly grandiose "The Blues," and moody rockers "IRS" and "Better."Through it all, Rose proved to still be strong of voice, shrieking through "Sweet Child O' Mine" like nails were being pounded into his wrists. He would occasionally get winded though, and his voice was frequently lost in the mix on songs like "Live and Let Die" and "You Could Be Mine."Still, Rose seemed to be in good spirits, smiling broadly and bounding about the stage like an aerobics instructor.He even alluded to making amends with some of his former bandmates. "We asked Izzy to come here," Rose says of ex-GN'R guitarist Izzy Stradlin. "But I think he's somewhere in the desert, driving around in a truck. But it's all good. He sends his mojo."Maybe so, but that mojo was too often squandered by all the unnecessary instrumental asides. The audience seemed to tire of the interludes as well. By the end of the night, the once-packed house had thinned out considerably, with a healthy chunk of the audience departing before the show ended at a little past 1:30 a.m."Nothin' lasts forever," Rose sang during a sprawling "November Rain."He may be right, but this gig came pretty close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axl_morris Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 That guy is a fuckin' knob!End off! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T.W.A.T. Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 (edited) That guy is a fuckin' knob!End off!No kidding. People probably left the show early because they had made arrangements to get home and couldn't break them. Also, in every video I have seen of Axl throughout the European tour he sounds amazing, especially since is he constantly running around and dancing throughout all the songs. Everyone gets a little winded doing live performances, so why should Axl be any different?I don't know about the rest of you on this forum, but I happen to really like the long guitar solos too. Edited September 19, 2006 by T.W.A.T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest cherry_bomb Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 im not overly keen on the solos, one or 2 would do. not a nasty review, but i couldnt disagree more with his negative comments. but hey, nothing new...bit of bad press. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highvoltage Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 I don't think it was such a bad review. If you pay close attention to what's being said, the criticism is no different to what other members on this board have offered. I think it provides an honest, unbiased view of the band and it's repeating the message that many fans have already offered: LESS SOLOS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Manson Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 I say get rid of all the solos but a few. Theres waaay to many.As long as they are used as intro's to songs, they're allright.Dont Cry should be kept as a solo section as the crowd sing along. And there is noting better than the crowd interacting with whats happening in the performance.I actually like Beautiful as a solo segment (Im a fan of Linda Perry and all her work)- as long as it isn't so choppy!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Izzy_Rocks Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 "Nothin' lasts forever," Rose sang during a sprawling "November Rain."He may be right, but this gig came pretty close.I took this as positive. Like he didn't want the show to end. Well, I was at the Vegas gig and to fully appreciate GNR, you have to see them live. No journalist will ever print the truth. They have a job to do and to print negative things allows for more people to be interested. That is my opinion anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highvoltage Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 "Nothin' lasts forever," Rose sang during a sprawling "November Rain."He may be right, but this gig came pretty close.I took this as positive. Like he didn't want the show to end. No offense, but I'm pretty sure he meant the exact opposite. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FinckFortus Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 First of all, I was pleasantly suprised to read a rock review by a critic with a reasonable hold of the English language, rather than the illiterate scrawl of most.Secondly, mostly this seems a positive and analytical review. We know, the solo's break the momentum of the show and Axl doesn't seem to have quite as much energy as the general public remember from the old days.The only dissagreement I have with the review was the comments of 'beautiful', Finck & Fortus solo. I think it's an awesome solo, perhaps only second to Slash's Godfather theme solo of the illusion era.Anyway, good to see GN'R in the press in such a positive way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Manson Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 "Nothin' lasts forever," Rose sang during a sprawling "November Rain."He may be right, but this gig came pretty close.I took this as positive. Like he didn't want the show to end. No offense, but I'm pretty sure he meant the exact opposite. Yeah basically what the writer means is "the gig went on forever!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Izzy_Rocks Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 "Nothin' lasts forever," Rose sang during a sprawling "November Rain."He may be right, but this gig came pretty close.I took this as positive. Like he didn't want the show to end. No offense, but I'm pretty sure he meant the exact opposite. Yeah basically what the writer means is "the gig went on forever!"Well, to me that isn't a bad thing. rock2 But, yeah, like I said jounalists have a job to do and unfortuately with GNR, negative press sells. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leigh-Rok! Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 smiling broadly and bounding about the stage like an aerobics instructorOoh er... should hope not! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brock landers Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 The review sounds oddly familiar, like what people have been saying ALL SUMMER about the solo's....Get Rid of em! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
f**k_your_enemy Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 What pisses me off about the FANS who moan about the guitar solos of the new band but worship the old....ANYTHING that comes out of any of the guitars is a million times better than Matt Sorums 20 minute drum solo!!! and Slash making stupid noises with his mouth for 10 mins! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.Seal Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 (edited) Decent review..And like FYI said who the fuck wants to hear Matt's 20min drum solos!?! Edited September 19, 2006 by .Seal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-GenerationX Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 I don't think it was such a bad review. If you pay close attention to what's being said, the criticism is no different to what other members on this board have offered. I think it provides an honest, unbiased view of the band and it's repeating the message that many fans have already offered: LESS SOLOS!Absolutely right.I think some of you, if they don't get a glowing review, you get all worked up. Not every review is going to be a valentine to the band like you would see from some of the posters here.But the bit about the solos is valid. And I keep thinking how so many play the "but its different when you are there" card. Yeah, it is different when you are there in this case. ITS WORSE. I have about 60 total GNR concerts on my iPod. I edit all the solos out. But at the show, you are stuck. If Richard and Robin want to putz around for 7 minutes (which must seem like an eternity if you are there) there is nothing you can do.Less solos. More new songs.That's my motto. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ridin' the Nightrain Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 I think the solo stuff is spot on. The first time I saw them I didn't mind them, kinda cool. But the other 3 times they bored me shitless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evil_l Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 that review is pretty much what I experienced during the Stockholm show. I might have put it in a little bit more positive words, and to me it didn't do anything at all that the show was very long. But I did get tired of the guitarsolos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
potbreath Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Guitar and drum solos suck ass......if the man needs a minute to catch his breath, then the whole band should play something. Solos are hard on the ears. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zint Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 psssttt...all those solos are intended to allow Axl to take a breather and recharge (and to allow his throat to chill for a few..)shhhhh...don't tell anyone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angel of music Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 I think this journalist missed the memo about Axl and Izzy sharing the stage all this summer.. he talks about it at the end as if it was news..anyway, the review seems for the most part to be a fair, honest one.. only part that I truly dislike is where he says the worst solo is by Richard Fortus.. he was a bit rude there, and also I disagree, cuz I love Beautiful Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohyesindeed Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 at this point, any review that doesnt bash axl's new look, or bring up the fact that slash isn't there, is a good review. i think the guitar solos are stupid....not because the guys are bad guitar players but because there are already enough thoroughly bitchin' guitar solos in the songs already......and if the solos are there strictly so axl can catch his breath, he needs to take better care of himself. then again, maybe he has some kind of crazy medical condition that we dont know about....either way the solos are boring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
worldwideboss Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Yeah, he's right about the solos. I mean, Robin's Finlandia before Sweet Child O' Mine is cool, Ron's Don't Cry is phenomenal, but Beautiful, as good as it sounds, goes on for way too long. 7 minutes is the time for 1 or 2 songs. I understand Axl needs to catch his breath... But come on, just cover some Rolling Stones or Aerosmith instrumentally then. Do NOT do so many solos. The gig I went to lost some momentum during the solos. And, although they were able to recover it, it could have flowed better.Oh, and couldn't Axl choose Mama Kin to replace Live And Let Die in the setlist? Aerosmith had such a huge influence in GN'R's sound and LALD is seriously getting old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrShankly Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 (edited) What pisses me off about the FANS who moan about the guitar solos of the new band but worship the old....Yeah i've noticed that, on some old shows with Slash, they did a few solos that lasted pretty long and no one complained about them, not that i've noticed anyway. Where as the new band gets bitched at all the time. I think people just need to warm up to the new guitarists a bit more, and listen and try take an interest in the solos they are playing. But, i do however, find Slash more interesting to listen to because I play his music all the time and i like learning from watching him etc. ANYTHING that comes out of any of the guitars is a million times better than Matt Sorums 20 minute drum solo!!! and Slash making stupid noises with his mouth for 10 mins!I guess you mean the Talkbox..... the Talkbox rocked!! B) Edited September 20, 2006 by AS_Warlock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
worldwideboss Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 ANYTHING that comes out of any of the guitars is a million times better than Matt Sorums 20 minute drum solo!!! and Slash making stupid noises with his mouth for 10 mins!I guess you mean the Talkbox..... the Talkbox rocked!! B)That part in the Tokyo DVD sucked some serious ass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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