Simon Price at The Independent out of the UK has issued a review of Guns N' Roses' May 23rd show in Newcastle at the Metro Radio Arena. An excerpt is available below:
"You can get away with almost anything in pop – that's kind of the point – but contempt for your fans is a cardinal sin. Asked for a reason for the insanely late hour at which Axl Rose and his "Guns N' Roses" (now featuring only long-serving keyboardist Dizzy Reed from the glory years) deign to take the stage, his PR people replied simply: 'No statement I'm afraid.'
Dig deeper, though, and you'll find a blog on their website by GN'R associate Del James arguing that the late stage times are about 'standing against conformity' and 'raising the middle finger', and that any complaints come from a 'vocal minority' of 'obsessive pests'. That's as close to an official statement as we're likely to get. Rose thinks it's punk; that's the only possible explanation.
But there's nothing punk about ripping off your own fans. Nothing punk about making them wait around in a shed for hours while you eat your 12-course dinner. Nothing punk about forcing them to fork out for hotel rooms and taxi fares because you can't be bothered to get out of bed.
When you've been photographed strolling along the Tyne the day before, you can't blame travel (although he does try to blame the fractured shoulder he sustained at Liverpool – where he went onstage even later). It's all very well playing a three-hour set bloated by too many cuts from the turgid 'Chinese Democracy', wailing through the once-great 'Don't Cry' and 'It's So Easy' like a constipated tomcat, and allowing some plait-beard guitarist called Bumblefoot have his solo spot. Just start earlier, schmuck."
Guns N' Roses kicked off their UK/Ireland tour in Dublin on May 17th at the O2 Arena. Check out fan-filmed footage from the three-hour-plus set below. Guns N' Roses performed the following:
01. Chinese Democracy 02. Welcome To The Jungle 03. It's So Easy 04. Mr Brownstone 05. Sorry 06. Rocket Queen 07. Live And Let Die 08. This I Love 09. Motivation 10. Street Of Dreams 11. You Could Be Mine 12. Sweet Child O' Mine 13. Another Brick In The Wall/November Rain 14. Don't Cry 15. Whole Lotta Rosie 16. Estranged 17. Knockin' On Heaven's Door 18. Nightrain 19. Better 20. Civil War 21. Paradise City
i do not agree. it's just like a metallica hate wagon. the Belgrade(2010) show was terrific. worth every penny and we didn't have to wait long at all. it was totally smooth. yes Axl gets tired, but the man left pieces of throat on that microphone. one can hate all he wants on the current line up, but every single one of them is a great player. i do think that it is more a cover band than a real band though and i do think that axl should retire guns n roses for good in a couple of years because those songs are just too demanding and he can't handle them all the time. sometimes yes, but more often not. he has such a great sense of melody and has a such great voice when he sings in a normal range, he should do some more laid back, bluesy stuff or something. this is kind of a "third person opinion" because i am not a die-hard guns n roses fan and i am not a die-hard rock/hard rock fan either, but i do respect the shit ouf them and that genre. rhcp all the way for me B)
I saw them in Glasgow last Friday and they came on about 50 minutes after Thin Lizzy. Other Gigs I have been to the Headliner comes on about 30-45 minutes after the opening act. So an extra 5-20 minutes is a far cry from the 3 hour waits you read about online.
My ticket was about £60 and travel was £20, The closest I came to getting ripped off was when Guns came out and completely tore it up. They were immense, Axl was running about like crazy and some of his screams were just unholy and watching DJ, Bumblefoot and Fortus in the flesh was amazing, not to mention the confetti/pyro during Paradise City.
I saw a review similar to this one of the show I attended and all the comments were disagreeing. It's simple if you like Guns N' Roses they you would have had a great time, if you don't then you wouldn't have.
I saw them in Glasgow last Friday and they came on about 50 minutes after Thin Lizzy. Other Gigs I have been to the Headliner comes on about 30-45 minutes after the opening act. So an extra 5-20 minutes is a far cry from the 3 hour waits you read about online.
My ticket was about £60 and travel was £20, The closest I came to getting ripped off was when Guns came out and completely tore it up. They were immense, Axl was running about like crazy and some of his screams were just unholy and watching DJ, Bumblefoot and Fortus in the flesh was amazing, not to mention the confetti/pyro during Paradise City.
I saw a review similar to this one of the show I attended and all the comments were disagreeing. It's simple if you like Guns N' Roses they you would have had a great time, if you don't then you wouldn't have.
I saw them a couple of years ago and although they were about an hour late they played for about 3 hours to make up for it and it was brilliant, they even gave water bottles out to us at the front cause we had been up there for so long. Plus Danko Jones got to play every song they'd ever written and got to give a speech about Ronnie James Dio whilst to fill the gap.
Hes had this bad habit for over 20 years.Hes hardly going to change now is he?I know its not really a solution but if it was me i would just go in later than i would for a band that would turn up in time.
In case you didn't know, Hired Guns N' Rose (as I call the new GNR) are actually pretty good live, but I do agree that they're more a cover band than a regular band. I have heard that their new album is gonna be more rock than Chinese Democracy (which is still a decent album).
I saw them in Glasgow last Friday and they came on about 50 minutes after Thin Lizzy. Other Gigs I have been to the Headliner comes on about 30-45 minutes after the opening act. So an extra 5-20 minutes is a far cry from the 3 hour waits you read about online.
The band's timing is certainly improving. When my friend saw Guns N' Roses a couple of years ago, he waited more than 3 hours for them to come on stage, and mind you, without any opening act! Anyway, taking his word, he saw one hell of a show.
And from what I've heard and seen, when they're on shape (definitely NOT the case on Rock In Rio last year), they're terrific. Sure, they're nearly nothing compared to the classic formation, but Axl sure managed to surround himself with incredible musicians, one of them being the aforementioned "plait-beard guitarist" Bumblefoot.
I was also at glasgow on the 25th and it was amazing. Those who complain aren't really the fans , it's the people who heard sweet cihld o mine on the radio a few times and decided to go along.
The chinese democracy stuff was great. I went expecting a long wait and i don't consider 10:30-11pm a late start time because the SECC has such a nice atmosphere to it.
In short.. the viewer obviously was not interested in being there.
Fuck the stupid moron journalist. I saw them in Glasgow and they were totally amazing. Axl wasn't wailing like a constipated cat or whatever, his vocals were top notch.
As for making fun on Bumblefoot's name and appearance? Well that just shows how pathetic this journalist is.
There were lots of Chinese Democracy songs, but it was a three hour set so LOADS of songs from their other albums. Besides, all bands play lots of stuff from their newest record. So what?
Saw them in Nottingham, I was more pissed with Thin Lizzy being on stage two hours after doors opened than Guns being on an hour after Thin Lizzy. Tbh, I'd have expected 30-45 mins changeover between the two even without Gun's reputation, so as far as I'm concerned, 15 minutes extra was nowhere near as bad as I'd feared. On the other hand, two hours for a support band is just awful.
The one bad thing about Guns was their mix. Could barely hear Axl, and you could tell he was pissed too- he got so frustrated that some lucky sod walked away with his microphone after he threw it in the crowd!
saw them about 6 years ago, there was a 3 hour gap between sebastian bach and axl, it was a Tuesday night and they didn't come on until after midnight, most people had already left the arena
saw them about 6 years ago, there was a 3 hour gap between sebastian bach and axl, it was a Tuesday night and they didn't come on until after midnight, most people had already left the arena
thats just poor prepration. had those people done some research they would have expected a late start and taken the day off work the next day or not bothered to go.
