My email to KFAN AM Radio.

[fridayfan13]

i'll end this now,slash is a legend,is loved,cant changed that,and all the anti -slash ppl would still love him if he ws in the band still.

Legend? Hendrix is a legend. Cobain is a legend. Lennon is a legend. Clapton is a legend. Guitarist who know how to use the guitar to get their message accross to the world.

Slash's just a dumb guitarist with nothing to offer except a lot of distorted riffs. He's not even at Angus Young's or Joe Perry's level yet.

you suck at life, do you not?

[highvoltage]

i'll end this now,slash is a legend,is loved,cant changed that,and all the anti -slash ppl would still love him if he ws in the band still.

Legend? Hendrix is a legend. Cobain is a legend. Lennon is a legend. Clapton is a legend. Guitarist who know how to use the guitar to get their message accross to the world.

Slash's just a dumb guitarist with nothing to offer except a lot of distorted riffs. He's not even at Angus Young's or Joe Perry's level yet.

I don't think Slash is a legend, but I still think you're understating his ability and influence (on more modern acts). Whilst it's true he didn't pioneer anything groundbreaking, and his influences are glaringly obvious - he still created an instantly recogniseable image for himself, and became famous playing blues licks in an era dominated by hair metal bands.

He brought a 70's revival to popular music and put an 80's spin on it. Guns were one of the only new acts doing that at the time - they made good music and got on the charts when a lot of the other mainstream stuff sucked. You can thank Slash largely for that.

EDIT: Oh right, I remember now. Your name was "Anti-Slash" when you joined up, and since you've been here, you haven't managed to make a single post where you haven't criticised him. Cool.

Edited October 13, 2006 by highvoltage

[mr. orangestone]

have you even heard the first snakepit CD? his guitar playing is probably better than in gnr. the second CD has worse songs but great playing. velvet revolver is boring though.

[GOLDEN]

all I can say about the never-ending debate of Pro-Slash vs. Anti-Slash on this forum is there are good and bad points being made on both sides...

but the good is mostly from pro-Slash and the bad mostly from anti-slash

but onto the e-mail from A_F.....about the Slash point...it is partly correct....Slash definitely isn't playing as well as he did back in the glory days with GNR, but like someone said this isn't sports. He doesn't just get worse on the ability aspect...at least I dont think he would. I mean he isn't THAT old.....I think it goes more along the lines of the fact that Slash doesn't have the desire anymore to play well. I honestly don't think he has the love playing with VR, or the energy and emotion in his playing.

His playing sounds very "dead" to me when listening to Contraband. on AFD and the Illusions his playing was so "rich" and "energized".

I think what I'm trying to say is that Slash isn't playing that well anymore because he doesn't love playing. If he was back in GNR and wa sunder good terms with Axl then it may or may not get back to the level that it once was.

I actually looked back over your post A_F and you did mention how Slash lost emotion after leaving GNR which is what I'm getting at. But I wouldn't say he should retire....well, at least not until a reunion happens.

I wouldn't rag on Slash because I don't think it's necessarily his fault. He couldn't work with Axl anymore and left but never got the fulfillment like he did playing in GNR. So it technically isn't his fault since he can't make himself enjoy playing in VR. But you are right somewhat about how his guitar playing(strictly from the emotional and energy standpoint) has gotten worse.

[King Dick]

why do so many of you have your panties in a bunch over his comments about former members? those guys are irrelevant in the picture now, we are here for the guys in the band now. i dont give a shit who bashes ex-members, this isnt about them.

[Turn_It_Up]

I love how while he discredits Slash, he says he only listened to the first 4 songs on Contrband

Yep, everyone's entitled to their opinion, that's all it is, but stating you only listened to the first 4 tracks of the album does make it an uniformed take. Hell, most of the people here that don't dig VR tend to like STB and DIFTK and those are the first 2 songs off the album. You don't think think the solo in STB rocks?!!

How does his work on Elan's Street Child compare to GNR and new Guns?

If they are GNR fans at all, a letter like that is probably only going to get them ragging on the new group more...

Edited October 13, 2006 by Turn_It_Up

[GOLDEN]

why do so many of you have your panties in a bunch over his comments about former members? those guys are irrelevant in the picture now, we are here for the guys in the band now. i dont give a shit who bashes ex-members, this isnt about them.

He mentioned Slash in his article as one of his points...I'm not saying I disagree with it as I stated in my post I made 5 minutes ago, which is located as the second post from the top on this page(or somewhere close to that)....all I'm saying is that he brought Slash in saying that he is going downhill....

While people are here for the new band, most will defend against Slash because they love him....It's like going onto the biggest and most loyal ACDC board and saying Bon Scott sucks. While people have their own opinions, almost everyone will come to the aid of Bon Scott. And before you say it is a completely different situation...it is not! Bon Scott was the original member and he died. (RIP) SLash was an "original" member(so to speak) and now he's out of the band. Brian Johnson came in and RELEASED material. Robin, Richard, and BBF are now in the band and hopefully will be releasing material soon. The only difference between the two is that one left because they passed away(RIP Bon Scott) and the other left because of unfortunate circumstances. Now whilst Bon Scott did die and ppl find an affection to him, if he did decide to leave ACDC back in 1979(or whenever it happened) in the same manner Slash left, you would also have people love him and run to his aid if anyone ever bashed him.

Now I'm not saying that bashing Slash is wrong because A_F has made valid points, even in his Slash part....but for you A_D to ask us why we "have our panties in a bunch" about comments made about old members, well that's just plain idiotic. It would be the same as if you went to the most loyal Van Halen forum around the time that Hagar joined and said bad things about David Lee Roth and expected them to be OK with it. Guess what?.... they wouldn't be!!

But nonetheless if you say bad things about Bon Scott on an ACDC forum then expect the pain to get brought unto you. And if you say bad things about Slash on a GNR forum then expect the pain to get brought unto you. And if you don't like it, which I know you don't A_D, then get the fuck out!

Edited October 13, 2006 by GOLDEN

[feconroses]

why do so many of you have your panties in a bunch over his comments about former members? those guys are irrelevant in the picture now, we are here for the guys in the band now. i dont give a shit who bashes ex-members, this isnt about them.

im here for axl...one of my idols.

not for fuckin finck, pittman etc.

If axl joins forces, with barney and the power rangers, and still call it gnr...i wud give HIM a chance...still...it wudnt be GNR. Same here in this actual situation.

[Almost Famous]

So yesterday at work my boss told me about KFAN AM radio ragging on this lineup and told me to email 'em n' put in my input about why they should go see this show.

Here is the email. Remember people, this is my opinion!

Hello there,

My boss mentioned to me that you were ragging on Guns N' Roses not being Guns N' Roses without Slash. Well, first off, let me introduce myself, I've been a fan of Guns N' Roses my whole life, I'm 17 now. Anyways, I've always been a die hard Guns N' Roses fan, I've got every live audio recording released so far, and a number of concerts in video/DVD. I've listened to each and everyone, and have came up with reasons to go and see this band live.

My Boss told me to either call or e-mail you guys about this little 'ragging' of the new band.

So, without further ado, here is my top 6 reasons why this upcoming concert at the Target Center would be worth going to.

1. Axl Rose's voice:

Currently, his vocals are the best that they've been at since December of 1991 to January of 1992. His voice was shot through out most of the two and a half year Use Your Illusion tour. During their 'stint' during 2002, Axl's voice was not up to par, he sounded more so like an early 1984/1985 Axl. In 2006, Axl's vocals are actually the best that they have ever been.

2. Guest appearances by Izzy Stradlin and Sebastain Bach:

Axl and Izzy got together on stage for the first time since May 30th, 1993, at the final show, May 17th 2006 of the four sold out shows at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City. And, through out the European Tour, from June 11th, 2006 to the final show of the tour, on July 30st 2006 at Wembley Stadium in London, was a guest on anywhere from 3 to 5 songs a night.

Also, Sebastain Bach has been doing a duet with Axl on 'My Michelle'. Baz totally kicks ass on the song. From all the reviews I've read about the shows with Baz and Axl on vocals, almost everyone has said that it's been one of the highlights of the concert.

3. The combination of Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal, Robin Finck, and Richard Fortus:

Richard Fortus and Robin Finck are the two tightest guitarist's in any band right now. They've both got amazing onstage charisma, and they're tighter then Slash n' Izzy were back in their heyday. Also, with the recent addition of Ron Thal, the three of them are the most talented, close nit guitarists currently out there. Ron's got amazing abilities, he's got the talent of Slash, and the ability to shred like ex-guitarist Buckethead.

Robin Finck worked with Nine Inch Nails and Cirque Du Soleil in the past. His got an on-stage presence that matches the likes of Angus Young. Richard Fortus did a lot of session work back before replacing longtime friend of Axl's and guitarist, Paul 'Huge' Tobias. Since the addition of Richard in the summer of 2002, Guns N' Roses have became even better. Richard and Robin are today's Slash and Izzy. They're a great team together.

4. A highly successful European Tour.

The European Tour consisted of a number of festival shows, including Download Festival at Castle Donnington, Gods Of Metal in Milan, Italy, Rock In Rio 2006, and the NovaRock festival.

This tour included 10 sold out shows, and was the most successful tour in the UK during the summer. This tour was the best tour for Guns N' Roses since the 1987/1988 tour for Appetite For Destruction. No riots like in 1991 and 1992, no walk offs in the middle of the show (There was one, but an audience member kept throwing shit at Axl after being told not to, but the show was ended without an encore. They finished their normal set, and skipped the two song encore, so that doesn't really count.)

Also, songs that haven't been played in years, for example Used To Love Her was played a few times during the tour.

And, we can't forget the live performances of some of the material from the upcoming album Chinese Democracy. (Chinese Democracy, The Blues, Better, IRS, There Was A Time and Madagascar)

5. May 12,14,15, and 17 shows at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City.

Well, the shows speak for themselves, seeing as they sold out in under 3 minutes. If no one wanted to see GnR because they don't have Slash, why would there be 10 sold out shows during the European Tour, and the 4 NYC shows selling out in under 3 minutes?

6. Slash:

Have you heard his playing in the last 10 years or so? He's lost a lot of the emotion he used to put into playing when he was with Guns N' Roses, frankly, I think he should 'retire' because, since leaving Guns N' Roses, his playing has went downhill. Velvet Revolver isn't worth even seeing live, or even listening to. The level that Slash used to play at, is no longer there, he will not be as good as he was before. Since 1993, his work has been going downhill. Listen to his Solo albums from Slash's Snakepit, they're mediocre at best, but hardly even that. But, don't get me wrong, I do like Slash, but since 1993 his work has not been to his full potential. Even the second Slash's Snakepit album, was hardly mentionable, and should not have been released. It was a huge flop on Slash's part. And, with the Velvet Revolver album, I couldn't make it through the first 4 tracks without turning it off, it was a very big letdown, not only for me, but other people who thought that VR might be up to par with GnR. Frankly, that is NOT the case. I haven't listened to the VR record since I turned it off, I was hugely let down, because it did not even come close to matching the hype that was made about it.

Media to help prove my point even more then already stated above:

Videos from Download Festival, Donnington, England can be found on the bands official website. I would link to the videos, but I can not.

So, go to www.gunsnroses.com and then click on watch video. There is three videos there, My Michelle featuring Sebastain Bach, Paradise City featuring Izzy, and Nightrain, also with Izzy Stradlin.

And, some audio; these are tracks that were leaked onto the Internet in February. (Please do not spread this link, I am hosting it on my own web space and I only have a small amount of bandwidth per month)

LINK Removed.

If you need some live stuff to even further prove my point, give me an address and I'll send out the complete recording of Download Festival, recorded from Axl's Monitor feed.

Hope you enjoyed the read;

Alex Anderson, a 17 year old die hard GnR fan from Bloomington.

What do you guys think? Don't bash, as it's a waste of time since this is based on my opinion as I stated above.

Nice work, man. Is it OK if I forward your letter to radio stations in the Detroit, Toledo, Windsor (Canada) area? (The midwest)

Thanks,

Rainman

i beleive most guitarists are better than fink, so i disagree with your post

Definately in the minority. Watch the VW commercial, this is not the same Slash.

Thanks,

Rainman

Feel free to forward away.

I agree with you on all counts, almost famous, But some people are just a litle TOO emotional over slash

admit it fellas, the guy isnt as good as he used to be, plus he sucks without axl.

Holy shit, FI agrees with me! Ha, I agree that people are too emotional over Slash.

Rock on guys.

[Naupis]

Slash definitely isn't playing as well as he did back in the glory days with GNR,

In all fairness it isn't like the songs we have heard from New GNR are exactly at that level either. Of the demos we've heard it is pretty safe to say that Axl hasn't exactly hit his peak either if you want to get the old Guns comparissons out.

No one from the old band has produced anything that rivals the best work they had as a unit, which is why these arguments are a big clusterfuck. Debating about which one has achieved the better level of mediocrity since the break-up is trivial as they have all come out worse off.

[Dead Flower]

[boomerphil03]

well i guess not everyone has a musical hear in this place but why the hell do you walk in the lions den with shit! SLASH isnt the issue anyway he has made his mark in this worid musicly well the new gnr have not (YET) so dont try to build them up by bashin the former gnr guitar god! let the new gnr speak for itself!!(SHIT)well see whats up and has nothin to do with slashs playin which is fuckin awesome

[Naupis]

they're tighter then Slash n' Izzy were back in their heyday

I do have to mention that this is possibly the single most outrageous thing ever written on this board.

Edited October 13, 2006 by Naupis

[highvoltage]

they're tighter then Slash n' Izzy were back in their heyday

I do have to mention that this is possibly the single most outrageous thing ever written on this board.

Ahem:

Robin Finck...(has)...got an on-stage presence that matches the likes of Angus Young.

[Urlacher54]

they're tighter then Slash n' Izzy were back in their heyday

I do have to mention that this is possibly the single most outrageous thing ever written on this board.

Ahem:

Robin Finck...(has)...got an on-stage presence that matches the likes of Angus Young.

Sad thing is one could argue that these aren't even the worst comments in this thread, much less the whole board.

[eschman]

i beleive most guitarists are better than fink, so i disagree with your post

More like you disagree because he dissed Slash his post ... Just because he hit it on the money with his Slash comments doesn't mean you can bash the Finck-miester!

As a guitarist, you either have to be very great technically, or very creative. If you have both, then you'll become a legend. If you have a lot of creativity, then you'll be a famous music artist. If you are very great technically, you'll be a great teacher and write a lot of books (ie. tab books). If you are somewhere in the middle, you'll be consider good, but nothing special.

Slash is good, but nothing special. A Joe Perry clone made for the late eighties at best ...

Slash's technical ability is nothing compared to most guitarists. Bumblefoot doesn't even have to shred and he still wipes Slashes ass. Slash's creativity is what hurts him the most. No memorable songs since he ditched Axl. Oh, wait, that MJ song where MJ sangs about little boys was cool ... "give in to me" ... In terms of creativity, he's no where as close to Cobain.

Finck isn't into those eighties rock type soloing, nor is he very bluesy like Slash. He is progressive and innovating not trying to copy someone else. And he's already got more memorable songs written since joining GnR than Slash has since leaving.

Seriously, they're apples and oranges, and Slash doesn't do what he used to because VR is not a late 80s band, so they are playing to the musical tastes of the day. Technically, his playing has not deteriorated, adn to compare him to a shredder like Bumblefoot is silly.

[highvoltage]

they're tighter then Slash n' Izzy were back in their heyday

I do have to mention that this is possibly the single most outrageous thing ever written on this board.

Ahem:

Robin Finck...(has)...got an on-stage presence that matches the likes of Angus Young.

Sad thing is one could argue that these aren't even the worst comments in this thread, much less the whole board.

Indeed.

BTW - I do support the new band. Just not stupidly overexaggerated statements.

...to compare him to a shredder like Bumblefoot is silly.

You know, Bumble is so much more than a shredder - the man is like... everything.

But yes - to compare him to Slash is silly, as they're both aiming for a difference niche musically.

[Jackamo!]

AF- you forgot to mention Chris "Mother Fuckin' Goose" Pitman. #7.

[Almost Famous]

He isn't fuckin bashing anybody. He is just stating how things are. He explained it very maturely. So everytime anyone criticizes Slash, it's just a pile of horseshit? Now who is the biased one here? Pathetic dude...

Thank you for having some sence and understanding where I am coming from.

[Naupis]

He isn't fuckin bashing anybody. He is just stating how things are. He explained it very maturely. So everytime anyone criticizes Slash, it's just a pile of horseshit? Now who is the biased one here? Pathetic dude...

This is the same kid who made the comment "they're tighter then Slash n' Izzy were back in their heyday." Things like that have know business being said on a GNR fan board. He is obviously not living in reality.

[SylvesterStallone]

6. Slash:

Have you heard his playing in the last 10 years or so? He's lost a lot of the emotion he used to put into playing when he was with Guns N' Roses, frankly, I think he should 'retire' because, since leaving Guns N' Roses, his playing has went downhill. Velvet Revolver isn't worth even seeing live, or even listening to. The level that Slash used to play at, is no longer there, he will not be as good as he was before. Since 1993, his work has been going downhill. Listen to his Solo albums from Slash's Snakepit, they're mediocre at best, but hardly even that. But, don't get me wrong, I do like Slash, but since 1993 his work has not been to his full potential. Even the second Slash's Snakepit album, was hardly mentionable, and should not have been released. It was a huge flop on Slash's part. And, with the Velvet Revolver album, I couldn't make it through the first 4 tracks without turning it off, it was a very big letdown, not only for me, but other people who thought that VR might be up to par with GnR. Frankly, that is NOT the case. I haven't listened to the VR record since I turned it off, I was hugely let down, because it did not even come close to matching the hype that was made about it.

This is the biggest and most biased pile of horseshit I have yet to read on this forum. Jesus.

You hurt your credibility when you chose to include this in that letter. Like Moreblack said, you can't make your point if you have to bash someone in order to make the band look good. It just weakens your case.

He isn't fuckin bashing anybody. He is just stating how things are. He explained it very maturely. So everytime anyone criticizes Slash, it's just a pile of horseshit? Now who is the biased one here? Pathetic dude...

Well I don't think he's accurate with his analysis of Slash's post-gnr output. You mean to tell me Slash has not made one good riff since leaving GnR? Come on. I don't even LIKE Slash's work outside of Guns for the most part and I know that's not true. Do you really think he gave those post-gnr songs a fair chance? He even admits himself he stopped listening to Contraband after 4 songs. I mean really dude...that paragraph is HARSH. I just don't think he gave Slash a fair shake.

In any case that's a moot point, because the main problem here is that he needs to criticize Slash in order to make the new band look good. Why not discuss them on their own merits and leave the ex-members out of it? Does denigrating Slash's abilities really make his argument more credible? Think about it.

Criticising any old member is going to catch flack here, because unlike certain unnamed members, most of us respect the past which is why we all are here on this forum.

[boomerphil03]

His post was fine till reason 6...I dont mean to bitch at anyone but ive spent alot of time in my life admireing slash and gnr now VR and the NEW GNR but theres no reason for tearin down an awesome guitarist just because they split and axl has a new band why cant us true fans just enjoy all of them.. with no comparison..atleast we get music from them all(twice what we would have if they never split!)but the new GNR still have stuff to prove where slash and VR do not...there more to bein a badass guitarist then practicing some one else shit Over a long period to perfection... ecept for solos cause they just gutted the originals!!!

[PrettyTiedUp763]

Wow! Very nice post Almost Famous. I agree. People, get over the Slash thing. The guy can have an opinion! I happen to disagree with that point as well, but there is no need to start all the bitchin'.

[Kickingthehabit]

Could it be? Did Slash really lose his touch? I would suggest the author of this thread view the following..

Performance at the UK Hall of Fame:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bI4XdlErz8M...ted&search=

Solo from Street Child:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iS5tHxZNPCw

-Kickingthehabit

[Naupis]

I actually think his guitar in Street Child may be some of the best work he has ever done period. His playing is just haunting when you listen to the song the whole way through. It justs fits so well within the song, he is a master at that.

The UK Hall of Fame may be one of the highlights of his career. Playing with those guys and getting to play the Hendrix song, he looked and sounded absolutely as cool as he ever has.