Here Today... Gone To Hell!

This is the thread for all Tommy Stinson interviews and articles...

Where's Tommy?
Updated 00:21 PDT Mon, Sep 06 2004
While Axl Rose puts the final touches to Chinese Democracy (that phase of the production process is scheduled through 2007), Guns N' Roses bass player Tommy Stinson is touring with a backup band, then solo, through October.
 Stinson is probably known to many GN'R fans only as the guy who was standing next to the drum kit during the newest version of the band's few live shows. But to others, Stinson is known as one of Minneapolis's fearsome four, The Replacements, which he formed at the age of 13 with his brother Bob, Chris Mars and Paul Westerberg.
 After that storied, drunken escapade, three of the original members took off to do solo projects, with Bob passing away after years of hard living. Stinson formed Bash & Pop, which was basically his project.
 Last year, he borrowed some mobile equipment from Frank Black (of Pixies fame) and started recording. That led to the solo album Village Gorilla Head, which led to this tour.
 Stinson kicked things off at San Francisco's Bottom of the Hill August 28 with his opening act, Alien Crime Syndicate, which also acts as Stinson's backup band. The tour stops include his home city of Minneapolis, Chicago, Detroit, Philly, New York, and Hoboken, N.J., plus dates in England, Scotland and Ireland.
 Stinson tours Europe through October in a solo acoustic show, playing with Jesse Malin.

Funny how they say through 2007?

That's sarcasm

Yeah I figured that after but it could be true : ok:

now that would be kinky  :beer:

Well, Tommy will be appearing on a radio station tomorrow afternoon - if anyone in Ontario is interested in checkin' it out, well, it is on 107.1 at about 3 in the afternoon. 

if anyone can record this, I can host it for people to download.

Is it www.q107.com ?

If so I'll try to rip the stream.

http://www.eye.net/eye/issue/issue_09.09.04/music/qa.html


Bassist Tommy Stinson was 14 when his former band, The Replacements, recorded their 1981 slacker-punk classic, Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash -- and he was still only 24 when the Mats self-imploded in 1991, after the slacker-MOR classic All Shook Down. Since then, Stinson's fronted the underachieving Bash & Pop, the non-achieving Perfect (whose long-shelved debut, Once, Twice, Three Times a Maybe, is out Sept. 14, a mere seven years after it was recorded) and has recently released his first solo album, Village Gorilla Head, an archetypal young-punker-hits-almost-middle-age record. From 1997, he's also played bass for the petrifying behemoth that is Chinese Democracy-era Guns N' Roses. We caught up with Stinson on the tour bus with his backup band, Alien Crime Syndicate, somewhere the hell in America.



This is your first solo tour -- how's life on the road treating you?

I'm totally fucked. We're travelling from Phoenix to Denver, and it's been a straight, 14-hour drive. Every tour there's one of these bad routing things -- you just have to suck up and suck dick. I don't even drive, and the guys up front are fuckin' dying. I just sit at the back and loiter. [The noise of an engine stopping is heard.] I think we hit a dead end.



It's been 11 years since you last released a full-length album (Bash & Pop's Friday Night is Killing Me). What took you?

I couldn't find the right guitar chords. I've been working on demos, but I only thought about putting a record together last March. The lyrics on a couple songs, like "Someday," date back from when I moved to Los Angeles 10 years ago. It just took me a decade to get the chords right.



The lyrics on Village Gorilla Head are pretty downbeat.

They're very reflective of the trials and tribulations of a young postmodern poet. [Laughs uncontrollably for about 20 seconds.] Or maybe just an old man.



The Perfect record is finally coming out, but does Axl Rose plan to release Chinese Democracy in his lifetime?

We don't have a release date right now, but I'm out of the loop. I'll probably hear about it on CNN. That's also where I'll hear about the next tour.



Who's a better boss, Paul Westerberg or Axl Rose?

Axl, definitely. It's more of a collaborative effort with him. Paul would come into the studio and say, "This is the how the song goes, and this is how you play it," end of story. But I actually helped write some stuff on the Guns N' Roses record... or at least it was there last time I listened. 



There's a song on Chinese Democracy called "TWAT."

Actually, it's called "There Was a Time." But we shortened the title to fit on the setlist.

Since the Pixies reunion has been a sell-out success, have there been moves to get The Replacements back together?

I've heard some talk about that, but I hope I squashed the rumours adequately. I don't want to close off the idea, but for the next few years I'm busy doing my own thing. If there's a need to do it, or a want to do it, it might make sense. But certainly not now.

The Perfect record is finally coming out, but does Axl Rose plan to release Chinese Democracy in his lifetime?

We don't have a release date right now, but I'm out of the loop. I'll probably hear about it on CNN. That's also where I'll hear about the next tour.


that is the craziest statement i've heard yet. out of the loop. on cnn.

when this album ever pops it will be very interesting.


 :hihi:. :hihi:. :hihi:. :hihi:. :hihi:.th

He is being sarcastic. And the CNN part does not refer to the album it referrs to Democracy in China.
He is just being a wise ass.

The CNN part actually refers to the album AND the next tour. Maybe he's just being honest. No one can say for sure. The only sure thing is that no one knows when Chinese Democracy will be released.

^^ No i dont think it does, i think he was using word play to fuck with the interviewer.

Why does this shock anyone? It is Axl's album and the decision to release the record is solely his and Geffen's. The tracklisting will also be decided by Axl. Tommy has a good idea of what will end up on the record but Axl could change his mind at any moment...or the record label could suggest changes. Not a big deal. :confused: :confused:

Sounds pretty honest to me.  He's absolutely right about that too; Axl is running the show.  All of the other band members are off doing their own thing, and it's Axl's call as to when and where they tour and when the album comes out.  He also says that some of the parts he wrote are on the album "or at least it was there last time I listened."  That's not a good sign at all.  Although he did say a few days ago that he had listened to it recently, so who the hell knows what to believe.  The bottom line is that it is extremely hard to be optimistic at this point. 

This is a confirmation of a track that actually will appear on the album, right?

And?Which setlist is it? for what?

BTW I didn?t know CNN was the quickest media for music news. ::)

Set list for the live shows. Most times they abbrievate the song titles.
Ie like this
Jungle
Easy
nighttrain
scom
Kohd?

etc etc

Even if tommy knew the release date, he cant tell us, so why bother even asking

You're reading way too much into the CNN comment. You go from that to Democracy in China? Think about how that sounds.  ::)

I think it needs to be taken for what it's worth; Tommy and everyone else has no idea what's going on. This is the Axl show and that just the ways it's going to be.

Agreed, i think he was just messing with the interviewer about the CNN comment. China is probably gonna become a fully fleged democracy before we get this damn album..... maybe thats what Axl is waiting for!!!!

Can hardly blame Tommy for doing this, he is probably getting tired of having to give the same answer to the 'when is chinese democracy coming out' question.

About the Setlist, that means they may have already rehearsed this or at least written it into a provisional setlist!

Jonx

tommy is just messin with the interviews
and he knows these comments will make the boards
bc in that radio interviewed he commented on that
he said something like, oh i know wthis will be all over the message boards, after making a joke

I agree with Dave, it sounds like he was being sarcastic or just fucking around with the interview. Hey, at least we know 'TWAT' and "There Was a Time" are one in the same.

Didnt Axl say TWAT and there was a time were the same song back in 1999?

Some of you lot need to get a wiff of reality   ::)


Tommy is out of the loop because there is not any GN'R past or new.

CD is not coming out because it is not created.

It is a hoax.

Talk about reading between the lines.

Tommy is not part of a non-functioning band and he is on a solo tour because he is a musician who likes to work and play live.

Hope and wait for a CD release date.  It is not happening anytime 'soon'

 

Coming up roses
Tommy Stinson, formerly of The Replacements, splits his time between Guns N' Roses and indie rock

 
 
BY KEVIN AMORIM
STAFF WRITER

September 10, 2004


Ah, yes, the vomit on the ceiling. That's a good one.

"It never happened," says Tommy Stinson, boy-wonder bassist for 1980s college- rock saviors The Replacements - a band he and his late, lead-guitarist brother, Bob, formed when Tommy was 12. He's pushing a youthful 38 now, and remembering the most enduring yarn in the group's canon of drunken escapades, myths and tall tales.

This is what never happened: While recording 1987's "Pleased to Meet Me" (Sire) at Memphis' Ardent Studios, the newly whittled-down trio of singer-songwriter- guitarist Paul Westerberg, drummer Chris Mars and Stinson got so drunk they began retching into their hands and throwing the, um, throw-up to the ceiling.

"We were drinking wine one day, and tossed some up on the ceiling," Stinson says. "It wasn't vomit."

There are other fables about Stinson - involving a kiddie pool filled with Jack Daniels, etc. - but the truth is always weirder, if not less palatable. The epitome of indie rock, before it was even called indie rock, he has been on retainer with Axl Rose's reconstituted Guns N' Roses since 1998, working on the long-delayed "Chinese Democracy" (Geffen) album.

The good news is that Stinson has had a load of downtime from the heavy metal project, and recently released a fine debut solo album, "Village Gorilla Head" (Sanctuary). The better news is he still leans left of the dial, rather than in the Roses' garden.

"Every influence I've ever had came out on this record," the bassist-turned- multi-instrumentalist says over his cell phone as he and his backing band make their way to a show in Omaha. They pull into the Mercury Lounge Wednesday.

"Gorilla" heads back to Ronnie Lane territory, the Stones' school of swagger and jingle-jangle rock that Stinson's first post-Replacements band, Bash & Pop, pulled off so well. It also stretches further than Stinson's dared to reach in his life. Opener "Without a View" feels downright majestic and "OK" is a dreamy pop rave-up that incorporates a chorus sung by elementary school kids.

Then there's the title track, which, honest to God, sounds like a slinky trip-hop experiment with some sax thrown in. But for a split second when a cello and piano make an appearance, visions of Rose's epic "November Rain" wash to the surface.

Which brings us to his day job with the new GnR.

"It's more family-oriented, a lot more stable, which is a good thing, because I'd rather not work with unstable people anymore," says Stinson, who 10 years ago gave up snowy Minneapolis for sunny Burbank, Calif.

Should we bother asking who's the better boss? "Paul was really never a boss, and Axl isn't really a boss, either. He's more of a collaborator. Axl is much better to work with; he wants to include you rather than exclude you. Paul's very, 'It's mine, do it this way.' Axl wants to get the best from everyone and give credit where credit is due."

That's one reason it's taken a decade for "Chinese Democracy" to reach the people - coaxing the best from several guys takes time. Fear not, it should be out in a few months, Stinson says. "Yeah, we're that close."

Replacements addicts who can hardly wait for a reunion will have to linger a little longer. Stinson's been playing phone tag with Westerberg and has had no contact with Mars and guitarist Slim Dunlap, who replaced Bob Stinson, who died in 1995 after years of drug and alcohol abuse.

"We've all moved on in our own directions," Stinson says.

Now that's enough to make any Replacements fan feel sick to his stomach.

WHEN&WHERETommy Stinson plays a short acoustic set at 9:30 p.m. and a full electric set at 10:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Mercury Lounge, 217 E. Houston St., Manhattan, 212-260-4700. $10. With Alien Crime Syndicate.

Thanks Lucio. Great article, but the same old thing about CD... Hope Stinson play some gigs here in South America later...  : ok:

If Axl is what Tommy considers 'stable people', then how fucked up were the Mats? :hihi:

GNR's Perfect Replacement

Stinson brings his solo effort to the Horseshoe tonight
By MARY DICKIE
Toronto Sun

 Tommy Stinson has been a rock 'n' roll animal since the tender age of 13, when he joined his brother Bob in Minneapolis' legendary Replacements. When that band fell apart in a haze of alcoholism and frustration, Stinson struck out on his own, and in the intervening 15 years or so he's been juggling his own projects, like Bash & Pop and Perfect, with playing bass in other bands, including the most recent version of the even more legendary Guns N' Roses.

In July Stinson released his solo album, Village Gorilla Head -- the title, believe it or not, refers to music that somehow encapsulates the Village People, the Gorillaz and Motorhead -- on which he played most of the instruments himself. And last week he began a tour with L.A. power rockers Alien Crime Syndicate as both opener and backing band.

"I open acoustically, then they join me for a couple of things," Stinson said yesterday down the line from Chicago. "Then I leave and come back after a half-hour to play the rest of my record and some of the Perfect and Bash & Pop stuff. It's working out well. These guys really listened to my stuff and do their best to emulate the record, and what they add is pretty cool."

Village Gorilla Head may sound more like the Replacements than its other inspirations, but Stinson adds his own spin to the anguished, Dylan-influenced punk rock genre.

"I had some stuff I'd been sitting on for years, and some stuff I wrote in the past five years, while we've been working on the Guns N' Roses record," he said. "I wasn't really contemplating when I was going to make a solo record, just compiling songs and demoing things for when the day came."

That was when Frank Black, with whose band The Catholics Stinson had played bass, went on an extended European tour and gave him the keys to his mobile recording studio.

"That's when I decided to make the record, 'cause I was able to cut some real drums and do the bass properly," Stinson said. "It was a blast, 'cause he had all this vintage gear and I had my modern Pro Tools stuff, and I put the two systems together."

Stinson and Alien Crime Syndicate bring that vintage-modern synthesis to the Horseshoe tonight. And maybe in the new year we'll see him on a bigger stage as part of the long-awaited GNR resurrection. 

http://www.canoe.ca/JamMusic/sep9_stinson-sun.html


/jarmo

Stinson will support Malin on tour
Guns 'n' Roses current bassist and Replacements founding member Tommy Stinson will support Jesse Malin at his upcoming gigs in Dublin and Belfast.

Stinson, who has just released his debut solo album 'Village Gorilla Head', plays support at Belfast's Limelight on Thursday 23 September and Dublin's Whelans on Friday 24 September.

Produced at Pixies frontman Frank Black's studio, 'Village Gorilla Head' features Stinson on vocals, guitar, bass, drums and keyboards.

The album has earned praise from The Guardian, The Sunday Times and The Independent, with comparisons to George Harrison, New York Dolls, Big Star, Cheap Trick and The Replacements.

http://www.rte.ie/arts/2004/0910/stinsont.html


/jarmo

"Axl isn't really a boss."  Okay Tommy, sure.

Not really anything we haven't seen before.

Guns take aim
GN'R targets early 2005 for new album: Stinson
By MARY DICKIE
Toronto Sun

Guns N' Roses have been working on their comeback album, Chinese Democracy, for so long now that folks are starting to think it's every bit as elusive as its namesake. But GNR drummer Tommy Stinson, currently touring his solo album Village Gorilla Head, promises that it will appear before there are democratic elections in the People's Republic.

"It's really close," he says. "There are a few small things to finish up, and some negotiating with the record company. So I'm guessing it'll be released sometime in the new year, and of course we'll tour the world afterwards."

Stinson says Democracy sounds "a little like the old Guns, but a lot deeper lyrically. There's more introspective and socially minded stuff, and musically it takes a lot more risks than they ever took. It's going to be amazing." (More on Guns N' Roses)

Taken from:
http://jam.canoe.ca/JamMusic/sep10_gunners-sun.html

 :o :o :o :o :o Now he's getting cocky!

i thought he was outta the loop ?

With so many news regarding the release, it's getting hard not to believe CD is finally coming out..

wow...they know what they are talking about for sure! :hihi:

This consequence stands to reason.? :yes:
A shame is that some are so tipsy n whiff. A fat lot of reality they know.

? :D sounds so fantastically excellent but you know what,
I?m very disappointed that he said "sometime in the New Year".? :-\

Guns N' Roses Closer Than Ever With 'Chinese Democracy'

Guns N' Roses bassist Tommy Stinson is convinced Axl Rose is close to completing the group's long-awaited new album 'The Chinese Democracy,' because he has been told to get ready for an extensive tour.

Stinson reveals he has heard the new album, which fans of the group have been waiting eight years to hear, and it sounds amazing.

He says, "I'm thinking (the) GNR record will be coming out real soon. Then I'll be touring behind that record. I'm anticipating being on the road for the next year and half, two years."

"I was pretty stoked about it (the album). I heard some really, really great stuff, and that I hadn't heard in a long time."


http://www.whjy.com/script/headline_newsmanager.php?id=345776&pagecontent=musicnewsrockactive&feed_id=122

---------

Kind of the same stuff but this article claims that he has been told to get ready to tour.   :-\

-TyRod-

That is an interesting tidbit about getting ready for a tour.  Thank you, Ty.

Ali

Thanx.? : ok:
Seemingly, it?s like a summary of Sep. 02 Rocky Mountain News article.
But hey, don?t you notice this??
He said "I'm thinking (the) GNR record will be coming out real soon. Then I'll be touring behind that record. I'm anticipating being on the road for the next year and half, two years."
I reckon he meant two years= his solo tour + GNR tour.
On Sep.09-eye? " for the next few years I'm busy doing my own thing."
Isn't he saying his own thing Here?
I reckon he meant Tommy's own thing =his solo + GNR.
Yo ho, now he?s confident about stating GNR his thing.

http://www.bravewords.com/news.html?id=17612

Special Report By Martin Popoff



Bassist TOMMY STINSON is best known for being one of THE REPLACEMENTS - start of the band to finish - but he's beginning to be a regular in the metal press given his now long-standing relationship with Axl Rose as part of the aggregate GUNS N' ROSES. If all goes according to plan (and there's no assurance that it will), the eon-awaited Chinese Democracy will be out this fall and GN'R will be touring "for the next year and a half or so."



Stinson was in Toronto recently to promote his new solo album called Village Gorilla Head, a collection of quirky hard and soft pop songs with an appropriately artsy, even Replacements-like flair. "I think the hardest thing was to just finely get it done," says Stinson of the lush yet emotionally edgy album. "I worked on it for about a year, toured a little bit in between, and I wasn't really under any pressure from anyone to finish it in any particular amount of time. But after awhile, after you've done all the instruments yourself, you start to burn out. You get to a point where you go, 'I really wish I were done with this now, because I'm kind of tired.' It got a little much. Because I was recording everything in my home studio, which is basically in my apartment, in my bedroom, in Burbank, California. So the idea of recording and living and sleeping and breathing all in the same three or four rooms was a little bit much after awhile."



Well, rest up, because it sounds like life is gonna get complicated soon. Tommy offers a few elliptical remarks on the looming Chinese Democracy opus.



"Stylistically speaking, if I were to take a stab at it, it would probably be something more focused than Use Your Illusion. I think Use Your Illusion was going in a couple of other musical directions, but not fully realized. I think there were some limitations to where the band was maybe willing to go? That has been taken out of the mix. More focused, but also more diverse. I think the music on the new GN'R record will be a lot more complex, a little more far-reaching probably? As well as there will be some rock there that will be reminiscent of the older records. But for the most part, stylistically speaking, there's a lot more going on. And I would say lyrically, definitely there is a lot more going on than old Guns. There's a lot more introspection, a lot more social commentary involved."



After intimating that most of the lyrics and vocals are Axl's, but that he and Dizzy Reed do a lot of the back-up vocals, Tommy states that songwriting-wise, "there'll probably be compositions that started with each of us and were compiled by all of us, on the whole record, yeah. I would be willing to wager that that is how it turns out, because Axl is the kind of guy who is always looking out for the fairest way to do it so everyone's happy. Because obviously, that's the kind of thing that screwed up the old band. Everybody had songs they wanted to write, and have Axl sing, and then there got to be infighting, I think, with whose songs were going to be on the record. He's really conscious of that, so it ends up being a bit of everyone on there."



Stinson also says that he listened to the final mixes recently and "added his two cents," noting that the songs were mostly quite long and epic, but "mind-blowing and fucking huge."



In closing, I had Stinson reflect on Axl's personality these days, his state of mind, his strengths and weaknesses...



"Wow. I would say his strengths are definitely his heart and his loyalties. He's incredibly loyal and totally has your back if you're straight with him and are loyal back. Which is why him and I have gotten along so well. I'm the same sort of person. I don't fuck around or waste my time with people who waste my time, and I don't really take up people's time if they don't want it. I would say those are his strengths. Other than that, he's a fucking awesome singer and an amazing songwriter. The weaknesses part? Maybe he still thinks too much of what people are expecting of him. Maybe he could try just fucking exist, and not worry about the way people want him to be? Maybe a little bit of that? Might be hard for him, because he's got a lot riding on it. I've got a lot riding on it, but he's obviously got way more (laughs). What I see with the Guns N' Roses thing... you know, I've hung out with him so much to know that it's hard to be him, just because people are rabid. They get pretty weirded out. He's got some crazy fans, and people that have been there for a long time. And I think if he could just exist, if he could get up in the day and go cruise around like I cruise around and see the world in a non-stressful environment like that (laughs), it might do some good for his fuckin'... his self. He's a huge fucking rock star, man. He can barely go down the street without someone fuckin' throwing some curveball at him. It's a bummer."



See www.tommystinson.com or www.sanctuaryrecordsgroup.com for more.

It is pretty obvious that Tommy has been given the ok to talk a little. Holy shit-I just got excited-"final mixes" ;D

I think this is the first time we hear the phrase "final mixes" being used.

 :o


/jarmo

I think tommy is a cool guy in general, I just thinkhe has proven he doesn't know anything, he keeps moving the dates back ,once was a hairs breadth very soon..Now it's legal stuff 2005... I wish someone else fromthe group would say something... Just like when vr does a show they get simliar interviews, tommy is touring he will get asked questions everywhere he goes asking about cd..

I wish someone would ask where axl is, when was the last time he talked to him.. I'm glad tommy says things, but they're all redundant...

Did you miss the part where he said he had listened to the final mixes? Usually he's been saying "soon", which could mean it's not even done yet. Now we know that they've been mixing at least parts of it.


Wonder if those were the final mixes of the two songs Slash said Axl had finished?  ;)



/jarmo

Damn...

That "final mixes" thing got me all excited...

Yeah I saw that... The thing he said about there was a time in a interview was weird, he sid they needed to shorten it... I didn't get that unless he just loves to say twat... The other part was where he mentioned he hopped the songs were the same since the last time he heard them... I sometimes worry about the contact amongst the band... I wish brain, and finck would get interviewed a few times..

Final mixes...thats...certainly encouraging. I also like his answer about Axl's state of mind, it's kind of what I thought it would be...obviously, the guy puts enormous pressure onm himself because he (perhaps rightly) thinks he has enroumous expectations to fullfill. But if he does, then hopefully it makes the wait worth it, and restores more confidence in Axl to get things done faster in the future.

wow... rabid, crazy fans huh?   :-X :hihi:   Here's hoping Axl gets to cruise around one of these days down Ventura Blvd over Mulholland.  free falling.

Anyway, I thought it was a great interview - it's the most I've heard about the actual content and style of the album other than crystal-ball utterances about its release.  I am looking forward to hearing Axl's 'social commentary' lyrics, but if it's anything like OIAM, all hell will really break loose.

Well is anyone else besides me scraed to death about this statement:

"Stinson also says that he listened to the final mixes recently and "added his two cents," noting that the songs were mostly quite long and epic, but "mind-blowing and fucking huge."

WTF?  If this album is 18 tracks of NR or Coma type song it will be aweful.  As much as II like Coma, I don't think itis in Axl's best interest to put 18 songs liek that on his new album.  I seriously hope to god he hasn't over-bloated and over-produced the entire album.  I hope he has created some shorter, punkier style songs that were GNR's trademark.  I'd take 18 It's So Easys over 18 November Rains everyday of the week.  If it is 18 songs that are 9 minutes long with full orchestration behind them, it may sound great, but it will flop and I will be extremely disappointed in that.

I hope Tommy knows as much about the songs as he does about the release date.  :hihi:

-TyRod-

DazRose01, Ta! The interview is full of meat. His talking his view of Axl and sympathy is also noteworthy.

 :D Could it be One In A Billion this time? Or rather 1.2billion was it, CIA man?


 :hihi: Are you another one TIPSY? Almost certainly he loves the sounds of TWAT.?
Read reply no.15~19 again.? I think we had it explained.

 :D I'm looooooooooooooonging for "long and epic, but "mind-blowing and fucking huge"
 :love:

i wish i hadnt read that stinson article.

I never thought in a million years i could ever be more excited over a cd than i already was, now i go read that shit and im bouncin off the walls!


an effort more focused than the illusions? are u fuckin kiddin me? being an illusion era GNR fan considering i owned them before afd i am ecstatic and almost giddy thinkin of what we are gonna hear.

that interview was the best interview so far!


I just wish i hadnt read it cause now im actually anxious, i was doing good with the wait but now im soooooooo anxious its crazy!

epic and long thats what i love!

"Mostly long and epic"... :yes: :drool:

For me this is like the best news ever. I know Tyrod said he was disappointed in that and the record would flop if it was the case. One could say UYI2 was kind of epic (Civil War, Breakdown, Locomotive, Estranged) and it did very well on the charts. Unless it's a 2CD set, most of the songs can't be longer than 4-5 min. anyway (if it's an 18-track record). I bet it's gonna be close to UYI2: 4-5 epics songs, and the rest classic length or shorter (Chinese Democracy, Oh My God, Silkworms). That's all I wanted: epic songs from the new band! : ok:

I would love to hear what this new band is up to. So to hear it must be really really really REALLY awesome. I can't wait to hear those "mostly long epics". This album is gonna rock like no one ever seen before. With Tommy talking about Chinese Democracy like that......it increases the hype even to higher levels.


soooooooooon sooooooooon sooooooooon  :)





 

We've never gotten such detailed and consistent information that the record is almost here from a band member. We've had waves of rumors and insinuations. I remember when Dizzy was talking about the record a lot after the botched tour in 2002. His talk was vague and always changing. Tommy has really been saying the same thing, with more and more detail, in each and every interview. I see this as a definite positive. It's exciting.

I like the part about being hard rockers of old, but hearing so many songs are being epic is a real let down... Gnr was great during the afd era, we don't need  tons of piano ballads with some orchestra ,that's a big let down.. November rain done once was great, I don't need 10 songs similar to it..

Whatever happened to guys just rocking out and kicking ass?? :-[

I feel the same...

Please wait for the album to come out before you criticize it.  : ok:

TyRod, I wouldn't necessarily assume that by "long", Tommy means length on the order of "Estranged".  I mean, "Madagascar" is an epic song in my opinion, and it's only about five minutes long.  Also, "Chinese Democracy" is only about three minutes long, and "The Blues" is between four and five minutes long.

I agree, an entire album of nine minute songs would be a bad idea, but that didn't stop "November Rain" from going to #2 on the charts. ;D

Ali

Just like everyone else here that interview above makes me very excited  :yes:
Long and epic sounds great to me, so long as the songs don't lose their way, which i'm sure they won't. For the ones who are worried about the album containing JUST long songs, as someone else stated 'Chinese Democracy' and the other songs we heard on the tour aren't particularly long. CD the song is also one song we KNOW is going to appear on the album, I mean it has to really with the album having that title.
However even though that song was 3 minutes long when we heard it, who's to say they haven't added to it? It could be 6 minutes long and full of guitar solos now. I am quite certain the songs we heard live will sound VERY different on the album.
Do you guys think 'Oh My God' will actually appear on CD?? I always thought that song was just put out to 'test the water' so to speak, also it has different players than they have now, maybe it's been re-done. Anyway I like the song but I know the rest of the album is going to kick it's ass. As for Silkworms, PLEASE Axl, DONT DO IT!! Keep that song away from CD!!
I think Tommy must have been given the OK from Axl to talk in this detail about CD, it's obvious Tommy has a lot of respect for him, he wouldn't want to piss Axl off by talking without checking it was ok to do so first. My guess is he's phoned Axl up and basically said 'look Axl they keep on asking me questions about CD and they're gonna continue to ask me questions about it, how much can I tell them?' and Axl will have told him what to say. The BIG NEWS (Release dates, tours, first single etc) we know is going to come from Axl's mouth only.

Wow,such detail we now know CD has been mixed.I think all that holds it back is the slash and duff suit and things with the record company.

That is really exciting.
More focused than UYI??!!!? : ok:
God, it better bloody well come out soom!!!

This definitely is one the best signs that CD is near.? I'm glad to hear that CD has finally been mixed.? ? ?:beer:

After hearing Madagascar and The Blues, I do not have any reservations about there being "long" and "epic" songs on CD.? I truly enjoy listening to those two songs each and every time.? Although I love AFD-style songs, I think it would be great to hear a diverse GNR record - epic songs and all.? I'm looking forward to it!?

I read the 9/10/04 article that was posted all the way through a FEW times.? Very good article, probably the best any GN'R memeber has ever given of the new band.? I like hearing in depth details but no sign of any release date in sight.? That's the only dis-encouraging part.? I'm still sticking with 3/31/05.? Sounds about right for CD to start.

I didn't knock it, I was talking about the epic songs mentioned, and the times I've read about violins n chellos... I bought afd when it came out, it was my favorite era..

You're little late then, maybe you should get your delorean and back to the present.  :hihi:
I wish Tommy had said something about a single or a video... If the album is so near to be released, I guess it's time to think about those things, huh?

I agree, they were great...but it was 17 years ago. People change, things evolve. GN'R evolved too (a lot!) and I'm glad. I wouldn't want to hear "Appetite For Destruction II".

Because it gets old after a while. Who wants to see a bunch of 40 yr old guys continuously "rocking out" throughout their whole career. Talking about what they did ages ago about girls, drugs,etc.  Yea bands do it. BUt that ended with GNR after AFD.

Why the hell does "rocking out" have to mean AFD/ACDC/etc type music. WHy cant a band still be rocking out to different types of styles and songs? I just never get this "rock out" stuff. Its great initially for a band to break in with a bang and  attitude. But it can only  so far before it becomes stale and redundant.

This article is great news. It gave descent info on the content of the album. Just because he said epic doesnt mean we will gt a shitload of NR, Coma typesongs. {ALthough I hope we get 1 or 2 of those types}...Look at Maddy. That song has an epic feel to it. But its not "epic" in terms of length. I htink he means more of the lyrics,vibe, content of the album have an epic feel to it as an album as a whole. There will definately be all out rockers on the album. It gonna be a fukin melting pot.....

Its been a long ride but I'll tell u what......Theres no doubt in my mind that this band will deliver the fukin goods......The lyrics alone are going to be mind blowing......

thanks voodoo!!!!!!!!!!! that was fuckin hysterical bro! :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

i agree with youngunner, watchin axl perform some of AFD is interesting cause u can tell he is not that guy anymore, so i think the new stuff will rock and kick fuckin ass but will be a little more mature

I'd love it even (more) if they were epics of gigantic proportions of over 50mins,
which consists of dramatic breaks and dazzling varieties of elements which are equivalent for 18 songs of 3 mins.
Yay, Mad as a hatter, so what!!!
Sales wise? Just look at Led Zeppelin.

I love the notion of songs filled with various movements and tempo changes.....I believe CD will  have a real cinematic feel to it....A CD that is truly WORTH every penny of a $20 purchase is certainly a rare thing to behold these days....I enjoy painting with music as much as anything else, I think we're in for one hell of an emotionally fulfilling ride

so pretty much dizzy and tommy have stated that CD is mixed and done right?

maybe not entirely but at least it's almost there. A year from now we will all have heard CD. Think of it. :o

Braveworld has a Tommy article in which he talks about Chinese Democracy and Axl. According to the article he recently listened to the final mixes of the new album:

---

Stinson also says that he listened to the final mixes recently and "added his two cents," noting that the songs were mostly quite long and epic, but "mind-blowing and fucking huge."

It sounds fucking great but when is it gonna come out? Are they gonna settle on a date and stop pushing the release date back so many times? It's been over 10 years in the making and i know i ain't gonna be disappointed. GIMME YOUR THOUGHTS ON CHI DEM!!!!!

I don't know, I think it will be a diverse record

epics? yes!
I hope it will be hard too, like heavy...

I think Dizzy mentioned listening to a few tracks and Tommy didn't specify the number of tracks he listened to.

Slash says Axl has finished two tracks....



/jarmo

Where does all the information about the album having 18 tracks come from? Is this information reliable. I was really hoping for a double album, Axl must have so many songs, its been so long. Wonder how Tommy heard these final mixes, he has been on tour for a while now hasnt he? Maybe Axl is letting copies of mixes out to the other band members!

Jonx

Axl in 2002.



/jarmo

gnrsucks.com has a better write up about what's going on.

You're little late, but thanks anyway. There's already a topic about that here: http://www.heretodaygonetohell.com/board/index.php?topic=15217.40? : ok:

ps: you should be more clear in the title. You don't want panic here, don't you?  :hihi:

I sure hope that tommy isn't just kidding when he said in that recent interview that he just had his two cents on the final mixes of the chinese democracy songs. If those are the final mixes then the album could definatley be a posibility at last, right?

The bravewords.com Stinson interview states the following:

"If all goes according to plan (and there's no assurance that it will), the eon-awaited Chinese Democracy will be out this fall and GN'R will be touring 'for the next year and a half or so.'"

Maybe the targeted release date is November after all. : ok:

All grown up and rocking
By Jim Sullivan, Globe Staff  |  September 14, 2004

Tommy Stinson began playing bass with the Replacements at age 13, which means that Stinson could be the youngest person inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. To which he says: "I don't give a [expletive] about being in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. That's one step closer to getting in the box." This is not to say he's dissing his old band -- "I've got nothing but love for the little legacy we left behind," he says. But what Stinson, who recently released his solo debut CD, "Village Gorilla Head," wants to do is rock in the present tense. He's on tour with backing from Seattle rockers Alien Crime Syndicate, and they stop at T.T. the Bear's tonight. "I'm never gonna try and reinvent the wheel," he says of the gritty, Stones-like pop-rock music he makes. "I like to make records the same way I listen to records." Aside from his solo tour, there's Guns N' Roses, the mysterious rock beast of which he's a part. "It still exists," he says. "There's a record coming -- sooner rather than later -- and six or seven of the songs are earth-shattering. We'll be touring the world the beginning of the new year." As to tonight's gig, expect two sets, one acoustic and one electric, some solos, and tunes from Stinson's former band Bash & Pop, but nothing from the Replacements. "I didn't write those [expletive] songs," says Stinson, who's now 37. "Why would I play them now?" He does credit the Replacements for giving him direction at an early age: "It kept me from grand theft auto. That's the direction I was headed at the time, and I'd be in jail or dead by now, easily." The music starts at 9 with AM Stereo. Tickets are $12

10 Brookline St., Cambridge, 617-492-0082.

http://www.boston.com/ae/events/articles/2004/09/14/all_grown_up_and_rocking/




/jarmo

"earth shattering" ;D

slowly, slowly he's beginning to give some info on the record

Notice how he didn't say maybe, or show any doubt. This means if they aren't touring in the beginning of the year then....Tommy is a liar! I sure as hell hope not. But that is the most definite comment we've heard so far.

He is doing Axls job..... :-X :hihi:

Ya Tommy seems to be the new GNR promoter :peace: They have taken every thing in to there own hands :beer:

Nope... it would just mean things went wrong in the world of Gn'R one more time.

thats because he is on the road touring, and it easy to get a interview of the guy ::)

whay does "earth-shattering" mean?  ???

Something amazing..

So he says tour by the new year...When is there going to be word outside of forums for people to read this..??

I'm sure they're not doing 5000 seaters.. Smart money would be releasing a single very soon, each day the window closes for publicity..? I wish the others would finish their tours already and get their faces on mtv or something to push this..
I think the new guys have put so much pressure oin themselves to live up to.. It's better to be quiet and let the music do the talking, they're leaving themsleves open , getting anything less than perfect reviews might be a blow to axl..

The idea they feel/he so confident about the music is nice to know.. :beer:


Someone needs get a sooner then later translation in gnr terms :hihi: :rofl:

it's something like an earthquake!
so you'll have to wait for a major earthquake before you see CD

Fine by me.  Axl doesn't need to do shit.  And all these recent interviews with Tommy indicate the CD is very very close.  It sounds like they have recently picked the set list and are ready to move forward, start promoting.

I'd much rather axl say whatever is going on..Everyone will listen when he talks, shame the guys in the group don't have the actual dates so they could use it during their tours..  :'(

I won't feel right until axl says anything, dizzy said almost ages ago, nothing has changed..  I also wonder why tommy said 7 songs were earth shattering?

Fuck You Tommy Stinson!!!!!!


Im a patient man but these last few interviews are turning me into a rabid impatient fanatic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


earthshattering? there are only a few songs that are earth shattering and to have 6 or 7? that means at least 6 or 7 monster singles in my definition of the word, plus who knows how many other just great songs.

buckle your seatbelts my fellow GNR fuckers cause the bank is up ahead and our payoff is gonna be huge!

see what tommy is doin to me? he is turnin me into a fanboy! :hihi:

Earthshattering doesn't exactly mean single. In many cases Earthshattering is to complicated or to long to be conidered a radio single. But great news none the less.

I am getting pretty sick of Tommy telling everyone how great the record is. I know he is very excited about it and that's great, but everytime I read an interview it seems like the album is getting better and better, only no one has heard it. I really hope he is right, and hopefully I'll (we'll) be able to hear it...But I will never believe what even Tommy says about the release date, or even Axl for that matter...Only when I have that CD in my hands will I believe it's actually out.

http://www.boston.com/ae/events/articles/2004/09/14/all_grown_up_and_rocking

All grown up and rocking
By Jim Sullivan, Globe Staff? |? September 14, 2004

Tommy Stinson began playing bass with the Replacements at age 13, which means that Stinson could be the youngest person inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. To which he says: "I don't give a [expletive] about being in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. That's one step closer to getting in the box." This is not to say he's dissing his old band -- "I've got nothing but love for the little legacy we left behind," he says. But what Stinson, who recently released his solo debut CD, "Village Gorilla Head," wants to do is rock in the present tense. He's on tour with backing from Seattle rockers Alien Crime Syndicate, and they stop at T.T. the Bear's tonight. "I'm never gonna try and reinvent the wheel," he says of the gritty, Stones-like pop-rock music he makes. "I like to make records the same way I listen to records." Aside from his solo tour, there's Guns N' Roses, the mysterious rock beast of which he's a part. "It still exists," he says. "There's a record coming -- sooner rather than later -- and six or seven of the songs are earth-shattering. We'll be touring the world the beginning of the new year." As to tonight's gig, expect two sets, one acoustic and one electric, some solos, and tunes from Stinson's former band Bash & Pop, but nothing from the Replacements. "I didn't write those [expletive] songs," says Stinson, who's now 37. "Why would I play them now?" He does credit the Replacements for giving him direction at an early age: "It kept me from grand theft auto. That's the direction I was headed at the time, and I'd be in jail or dead by now, easily." The music starts at 9 with AM Stereo. Tickets are $12.

Please post your comments about Tommy's interviews/ articles in this thread.

- Topics merged -

The sad part is he has to say the band still exists, shows how people think outside of forums.. There needs to be months of preperation before the album comes out, video, single, tour dates, etc.. I want the album more then life, but I don't want another live era sales wise..

We waited this long, we should have eveything big.. ;D

What if the cd is too heavy to carry home?

Funny it could be 200 pounds it'll still be going home.. I'll need to call the guys from the tv  show BIG to make me a cd player for it though :D
You get my drift though.. ;)

Here's another piece from Mr. Martin Popoff, the guy who had that really cool one on www.bravewords.com.  I'm guessing this is just an extension of his first conversation:

Tommy Stinson Remains Hopefully Vague On Future Of New GN'R Album

September 14, 2004 @ 04:00 PM
By: ChartAttack.com Staff


Tommy Stinson?s rock circuit hasbeein a strange trip indeed ? plying the fat strings on the full catalogue with the legendary Replacements, a one-off as Bash & Pop, a new solo album called Village Gorilla Head and eventually (hands clasped in prayer), a new Guns N? Roses album called Chinese Democracy.

The solo record at hand, Village Gorilla Head, is an as-expected batch of eclectic rock and pop tunes reminiscent of The Replacements, albeit tighter and brighter.

"When I decided I was going to make a record, all the demos were based on me experimenting with other instruments, different arrangements and other musical soundscapes, so to speak," Stinson says. "It was all meant to be very experimental. That gets back to what makes music interesting in the first place, stepping out of your norm, stepping out of what your expertise is, challenging yourself musically. And that's what I intended to do, which, I think I did pretty well. I covered a lot of things that I had never done before that are interesting, and I think a lot of people are responsive to. And I think, I'll continue that path [laughs]."

With tour dates pock-marking the landscape for Stinson, all the guy can do now is wait for the GN?R situation to ramp up and explode.

"I would imagine they would start mastering it some time in October, November, somewhere in there," says Stinson vaguely, about a record that seems destined to miss another semi-set release date. "I just wanted to make sure I got my two cents in so I couldn't look back and go, 'Dudes, what's up?' And they go, 'Dude, where were you? You didn't say anything!' So I got my two cents in on it."

And what was your two cents?

"My two cents was very much like a cent and a half," he says. "It's like, all the stuff I heard was phenomenal. I didn't get a chance to listen to all of it, because I was pressed for time. But also I wanted to hear the things I hadn't heard yet. Some of the stuff had been done a while ago and hadn't changed much; I didn't really bother with that. But I wanted to hear all the new stuff and I heard about six things that I hadn't heard finished yet, that were really mind-blowing. A few of the songs are pretty epic in length, but that's always been GN'R's thing, hasn't it? I don't think it's a particularly long album, but I think the six I heard are pretty epic. I mean they are just... fucking huge, you know [laughs]. I think pretty much all of us in the band have some songwriting credits on just about everything. The undertaking was pretty much a large collaboration between eight people, even a couple others who aren't around anymore, but maybe started with pieces of the old band or whatever. But yeah, there is probably a lot to go around with that one."

?Martin Popoff

http://www.chartattack.com/damn/2004/09/1406.cfm

Ali

Thanks Ali, I was about to post that too here, lol.


Hmmm.. Six epic songs?  :nervous:

" I didn't get a chance to listen to all of it, because I was pressed for time."

Sounds like someone is more involved in other things,,,You would think gnr would be his first and only priorty, statements like that makes you wonder if he's more worried about his career outisde of gnr?? Everything is a long process when it comes to chinese d, the thing should be long done by now, should be just ready to be put on the shelves..

Not much more tommy can say with each interview, someone like axl needs to step up now and break his monk like vow of silence,... I'm so anxious for this album, it's crazy

He seems to be hyping the release of this record in slightly more specific terms now (mentioning final mixes, descirptions of what the songs are like, the ideas in them, etc.), so it ought to imply we are close to hearing new material. Aslo seems, regardless of whether CD is out, a tour will happen.

WHy wouldn't the entire band want to be around to follow the album through? You would think it's the band's first project which will mark them as a band album wise.. He says things wehich are promising but he also says them as what he thinks will happen, very unsure of himself..

He didn't really get to put his two cents in, I wonder if the rest of the band is close to the project or are they calling in when they get a second??

To bad so many are touring, you would think they'd all be crowding around with smiles on their face

I'm too fucking excited right now!

Mike, it is Axl's album. Period. They are foot soldiers and will be called to duty when needed. ;D

Why don't people understand that with a project like this you can't say when anything will happen certainly. If anyone here has been involved in any sort of project of reasonable size, they will know that there are constant changes in planning.

I'm constantly working on projects in an IT department, and as you do one phase, you realise there are extra little things to be added on all the time, and the next phase gets postponed. You can never tell exactly when the next phase will start untill everything is ready.

In summary, I'm sure not even Axl could tell you exactly when mastering will occur so when Tommy says "I would imagine they would start mastering it some time in October, November", it's not because he's out of the loop, it's because he has to make an educated guess just like everyone working on CD, including Axl.

Also, why is it that people can't understand that you can't have all these guys in the studio all the time? These are people with families, commitments, etc. This is especially true if they are gonna be touring for more than a year and may have very little time for their families, etc.

And mike...."the thing should be long done by now"..... No shit man!

@#$%Funker

Does anyone have any idea how long the process of Mastering takes?? IF and it's a big IF, Axl REALLY is happy with the album now and wants it out ASAP, how long would he have to wait for it to be mastered and when do you think we could expect it in stores? I know any hope of getting CD this year is all but gone, however, I was looking forward to an early 05 release for CD, again that's IF Axl is happy about releasing his opus early on in the year because other people have said IMPORTANT albums usually get released at the end of the year. PLEASE Axl don't put us through another year of waiting, not sure if I can take much more of this!! The problem with Axl is he seems the type of person who could THINK he's happy with the album but then play it one last time and be like 'oh no we gotta change that little lick of guitar, someone call up Robin' and keep doing that shit forever! He needs to have the confidence in himself that we all have in him  :yes:

Another thing is, in Axl's last press release didn't he say Buckethead leaving had put them in a better position and opened up an oppertunity for Guns?? At first I thought this was just Axl being spiteful towards Bucket by saying 'Fuck you cos we didnt need you anyway', but after analysing it more it almost definately means that it's given him the oppertunity to work with ANOTHER guitarist. I am racking my brain to think who it could be. What i'm saying is I think Axl DOES have a replacement for Bucket, but he's keeping it a surprise. I know people keep saying G'N'R never needed 3 guitarists anyway but think about it, if Axl thought he didn't need 'em he wouldn't have em! What Axl wants he gets. The sound on this CD must be so huge that 3 guitarists are needed to pull it off live, plus if Axl needed to re-do any of Buckets parts and Bucket aint around to do them he would rather have someone else re-do them than release an album that wasn't perfect in his mind.

Actually, you are correct. Tommy is involved with his tour and album at the moment.

GNR was his frist priority from when he joined up until recently. HIs work is DONE. He states that they are close to mastering it which means that the songs are DONE and that he went by to see how it turned out. Why does he have to be there when he was there night and day for a long ass period of time?
After all....he isnt called coined the  General for nothin  : ok:

You keep saying how this whole process took longer than it should have.

Ill bet you if there was an article a few yrs back that stated how this a complete Axl project and he tells the members what to do, etc and then released the album soon after you would be complaining how this is not a RnR band and all that other good stuff.
Instead this is the total opposite. Its a complete band effort. Axl got everyone to invest everythign they had into this. Yea, its taking some time, but again, if you look at in context of new gnr, its not that long afteralll...

On a sidenote...i'm happy to see that most of the material will be from the current band...including bucket....yea baby...

There taking a short break from GNr. What is wrong with that? They worked hard overe the yrs and are about to embark on a massive worl tour to support this album and the followus....to enjoy the fruits of thier own labor......They know much more than we do...trust me...

Everything Tommy is saying is great. Im so pumped that the material will be from the current band members...The album is going to be worth the wait...I just get that feeling.....Something special is coming to the music world...and as DMX once said...all them bands are gonna suffer a depression....can you say chinese democracy......!

NO RECORD BEFORE 2005
So listen to my advide: live your life for the moment because the record is not finished yet.

I'm glad you cleared that up Nesquick, and thanks for the great (and original) advice *sarcasm mode off*

@#$%Funker

Really? Do you have a source for that information?  :hihi:

Seems like it's closer to being done than what it was a year ago.



/jarmo

1) yes I have.
2) indeed, yes it's closer, but the record isn't finished yet. However, it's not impossible that an annoucement could be make before the end of the year to announce a release date for 2005. But once again, nothing is sure and totally decided for the moment.

Wow, your powers of stating the obvious are truly astonishing!

I need to sit down.

@#$%Funker

What's your source? Some record store employe?  ::)

I too would love for Axl to break his silence and give us a release date and I know this whole board would go crazy if Axl was to give an interview now stating it was due for release in Jan 05, but is everyone forgetting that EVEN Axl has told us this stuff before and it hasn't happened. Just check out the archived interviews and articles on this site to refresh your memory:

Radio Rock And Pop Chile, January 2001
DJ: When is it gonna be the new album? Is it possible that we're gonna have a new record from Guns N' Roses?

Axl: Yes. Um, hopefully we will put out a new single umm sometime this spring and then the record gonna be done in June or shortly thereafter.

AND THEN IN 2002

2002: August 14th Press release.
AXL: it's time to stop that now and wrap up the baby. It feels right, the timing, and a lot of things. We?ve sorted it down to what songs are on the record. What the sequence of the songs is. The album cover art is ready.

Sorry to be negative, I want CD just as much as everyone else but for those people who are saying 'I will only believe it's coming soon when Axl says it is' , you may still be let down if Axl faces another hurdle in it's recording/release.
On a more positive note I do have a good feeling about 2005, I think it will be nearer the end of '05 but I'm pretty sure we'll see it next year.

At the end of the day, nobody ever said it's going in for mastering before and that it's been mixed.

All this time the delay has been that the album hasn't been finished. Once it's done, what else can Axl delay over?

@#$%Funker

Here is a simplified explenation of mastering:

WHAT IS MASTERING?
Mastering is a fine tuning process that is done to the studio mix. It is the final step before duplication and your last chance to get everything perfect. Albums that contain music from a variety of sessions, studios, engineers and producers need to be combined into a cohesive sounding package. Mastering is about album consistency, and a sound quality that doesn't vary from track to track. Tonal balance, fade in's and fade out's, sequencing, noise problems... all of these things are dealt with during the mastering process. Frequency analysis and correction, noise reduction, compression, expansion, and equalization (EQ) are just a few of the techniques used to provide the professional quality heard on every major record labels' commercial recordings. We offer the latest in a computerized state- of-the-art digital mastering and editing.? We use special digital signal processing tools to make your mixes sound the way they should. Whether it is rock, rap, pop or dance, blues, jazz, country or gospel, we can bring out the sound quality of your music using the latest techniques. Why settle for just the studio mix down copy of your recording when it could be clearer, cleaner and more cohesive? Let us give your recording the attention it deserves.

How Long Does it Take?
Although there is no limit to the time or money that can be spent on mastering, many people in the business state that a good rule of thumb would be an average of 8-12 hours for most albums, or in the neighborhood of an hour for each song. This assumes that the CD was well recorded and no additional processing requirements are specified. Additional time will be allocated depending on the condition of the original recording, a client's specifications and any unusual or custom needs.

Thanx to: http://www.acoustikmusik.com/mastering.htm (http://www.acoustikmusik.com/mastering.htm) / http://www.discmakers.com/music/pse/mastering.asp (http://www.discmakers.com/music/pse/mastering.asp)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So even if Chinese Democracy took 56 times longer to master than the average amount of time albums are mastered in, that would only come out to 4 weeks. Velvet Revolver just mastered Contraband in one day. (December 19th, 2003)

great!
thanks for that info Indianana Rose

"last chance to get everything perfect"  :nervous:
:lol

"there is no limit to the time or money that can be spent on mastering"
sounds perfect for GN'R!  :P

I think you should "liberate" your source.......

Is this nesquick that rocktar person? argh...

Tommy Stinson Remains Hopefully Vague On Future Of New GN'R Album
Tuesday September 14, 2004 @ 04:00 PM
By: ChartAttack.com Staff


Tommy Stinson 

Tommy Stinson?s rock circuit hasbeein a strange trip indeed ? plying the fat strings on the full catalogue with the legendary Replacements, a one-off as Bash & Pop, a new solo album called Village Gorilla Head and eventually (hands clasped in prayer), a new Guns N? Roses album called Chinese Democracy.

The solo record at hand, Village Gorilla Head, is an as-expected batch of eclectic rock and pop tunes reminiscent of The Replacements, albeit tighter and brighter.

"When I decided I was going to make a record, all the demos were based on me experimenting with other instruments, different arrangements and other musical soundscapes, so to speak," Stinson says. "It was all meant to be very experimental. That gets back to what makes music interesting in the first place, stepping out of your norm, stepping out of what your expertise is, challenging yourself musically. And that's what I intended to do, which, I think I did pretty well. I covered a lot of things that I had never done before that are interesting, and I think a lot of people are responsive to. And I think, I'll continue that path [laughs]."

With tour dates pock-marking the landscape for Stinson, all the guy can do now is wait for the GN?R situation to ramp up and explode.

"I would imagine they would start mastering it some time in October, November, somewhere in there," says Stinson vaguely, about a record that seems destined to miss another semi-set release date. "I just wanted to make sure I got my two cents in so I couldn't look back and go, 'Dudes, what's up?' And they go, 'Dude, where were you? You didn't say anything!' So I got my two cents in on it."

And what was your two cents?

"My two cents was very much like a cent and a half," he says. "It's like, all the stuff I heard was phenomenal. I didn't get a chance to listen to all of it, because I was pressed for time. But also I wanted to hear the things I hadn't heard yet. Some of the stuff had been done a while ago and hadn't changed much; I didn't really bother with that. But I wanted to hear all the new stuff and I heard about six things that I hadn't heard finished yet, that were really mind-blowing. A few of the songs are pretty epic in length, but that's always been GN'R's thing, hasn't it? I don't think it's a particularly long album, but I think the six I heard are pretty epic. I mean they are just... fucking huge, you know [laughs]. I think pretty much all of us in the band have some songwriting credits on just about everything. The undertaking was pretty much a large collaboration between eight people, even a couple others who aren't around anymore, but maybe started with pieces of the old band or whatever. But yeah, there is probably a lot to go around with that one."


A very little one i know but do you find after each one it seems that just the tiniest piece of extra info come out

yes, tomy has said more on one tour than axl said in the past 10 years....
if the mastering of the album is starting, then it can't be very far away at all

What does mastering exactly mean?? and how long does it take to master a cd???

GENERALLY: 1 week or 2
FOR AXL: "within the next few weeks" and then the CD will be released "soon"... ;D

Mastering means the song are alredy record and finally mix but they are working on some points in the songs like audio level, and cleaning the beggining and the end (fade's in & out) so the final sound it's fixed to the technical issues in audio  for playback and difussion on radio and tv

Motherfunk,

I have to disagree on the projects like this take so long... It's just more like projects with axl rose take this long.. A rock album would never take this long with anyone else..

Sure I agree with the idea that if you get an orchestra to play with the band and you have 7-8 members it could be a while..

To go over the same songs for years is just crazy, how much tweaking can one do..? I mean did he hear a violin out of whack then have to hire diferent players to fix the parts??

Everything we do is guess work on what has been going on etc, but I wll never agree that there's any way to justify how long the album has taken..

I could say hey dude I work construction in nyc, worked on a 90 story trump building. There's 1000's of people that need to be on the same page, changes happen, things need to be fixed etc, but it gets doine and everything works out...In much less time.. I wish there was a deadline on this album... I am by no means comparing music to construction, just saying things happen but the show must go on.. :beer:

Did Tommy just imply that some of the old band's stuff was used?  Or pieces of it anyway?

GUNS N' ROSES bassist Tommy Stinson recently told Canada's Chart Attack that the group's long-awaited new album, "Chinese Democracy" is nearing completion. "I would imagine they would start mastering it some time in October, November, somewhere in there," Stinson said. "I just wanted to make sure I got my two cents in so I couldn't look back and go, 'Dudes, what's up?' And they go, 'Dude, where were you? You didn't say anything!' So I got my two cents in on it."

And what was Stinson's two cents?

"My two cents was very much like a cent and a half," he said. "It's like, all the stuff I heard was phenomenal. I didn't get a chance to listen to all of it, because I was pressed for time. But also I wanted to hear the things I hadn't heard yet. Some of the stuff had been done a while ago and hadn't changed much; I didn't really bother with that. But I wanted to hear all the new stuff and I heard about six things that I hadn't heard finished yet, that were really mind-blowing. A few of the songs are pretty epic in length, but that's always been GN'R's thing, hasn't it? I don't think it's a particularly long album, but I think the six I heard are pretty epic. I mean they are just... fucking huge, you know [laughs]. I think pretty much all of us in the band have some songwriting credits on just about everything. The undertaking was pretty much a large collaboration between eight people, even a couple others who aren't around anymore, but maybe started with pieces of the old band or whatever. But yeah, there is probably a lot to go around with that one."

If this is already posted sorry

You have to excuse me - but Axl is not just making a rock album. He had to rebuild Guns N' Roses to do that, so this isn't like any other band.

Tommy must have seen Axl in the past few days to hear the final mixes. Can probably figure out where aswell considering a new interview with Tommy has been coming out pretty much every day. At the begining of this tour he wasnt really saying anything about the album, then all of a sudden we are getting told all this information about the amazingness of the tracks and what is currently happening. Either Tommy has been told to start letting the press know what is happening in the world of GnR or....... he has become so annoyed with the questions that he has given up dodging around them and is just telling it how it is.

It seems like the wait is almost over. Bring on 2005!!!

Jonx

Every group in the world has to start somwhere, doesn't mean it should take so long.. SO many groups start with just putting some add in the paper and need to recruit players.. Gnr formed by 1985, look at what they did by 87...

The one thing the new gnr has that others don't is the foot in the door.. This should speed up the process..

That "foot in the door" will only take them so far. Yes, they have the GNR name and that will definately help, initially. But what has the GNr done since TSI? Nothing. So yea the old GNr fans will be there for CD. But they would be there even if it was a different band name.

This new band and album have a lot more proving to do than having the red carpet rolled out. For anyone who doesnt see that is blind. This band still has to prove that they are legit. This band has to prove that they are worthy of the already scucceful old lineup.

And the only thing that will prove and legitimize this band is the music. If it sux, GNR, as it is today will flop. But if its good its becuase of the music, not the GNR name.

You cant have it both ways. Yes, initially the GNR name will help sell a few more records. But not mucha nd not for long. Th emusic will have to push the album, not the name. CAse Closed

I agree it will be harder with the name, they have to prove everyone wrong, at least axl does.. !

The gnr name though did make swome great stuff happen for the new guys, arena tour, closing the vmas, doing rio 3, and were to play rio 4.,..I think rio 4 really fucked them up, it would have been a place where something new would have to have been played..

Carrying the name definetly has pros and cons..
Having the name could cause some laziness on promotion..

Sometimes I would love to take a four month nap and then check the board :hihi:

Great...cya in 4 months ;)

I wish I could. I was waiting for that :rofl:

mikegiuliana, man, you either didn't read my post or misunderstood it.

When Tommy said they "should be mastering October/November", someone said he was vague because he really doesn't have a clue what's going on.

What I was trying to say is that this vagueness is normal when predicting exactly when things will happen on projects, and doesn't mean Tommy knows nothing.

As for how long it's taking, I completely agreed it's too long in my last sentence in that post.

 : ok:

@#$%Funker

I think Axl can score a few Guiness World Records now.

-Most money spent on one album. Over $13 million in this case, so far.
-Most time spent on one album. 8 years in this case, so far.
-Most times a man has disappointed his fanbase.
-First guy to use a tour to re-train his voice while decieving his fans as this is the beginning of a new era.
-Most players playing on the same album.
-Most producers working on the same album.
-Most players fired from one project.
-Most producers fired from one project.

Don't take all that too seriously, I've just been frustarated lately.

Nope:

-The most expenisve album ever was Michael Jackson's Invisible. It is rumored to have cost over 23 million dollars. Also, Axl hasn't spent 13 million dollars on one album, he has spent it on three albums.

-The most time taken on an album is Brian Wilson's 'Smile'. (over 30 years)

I could go on, but I just realized that you were jokin' around... :P

So I guess Buckethead will be on the album? Or at least credited?

He has to be, I couldn't imagine re doing all his parts, plus he probably has done work on some parts of the other two albums we've heard about..

I think it's better to just pay whoever was on the albums and even if you don't get along just cut your loses and move on..

http://airamericaradio.com/layout.asp?baseurl=Unfiltered/9-17-04/Unfiltered.wma

New interview...? ;)

Tommy mentions that he might play Greece before his return to the US.? ;)

Can anyone rip it and send it me? or save it on some webspace for d/l? pleaseeeeeeee  :-*

Thanks to Jarmo... : ok:

Cant play this interview. Anyone have it on Winamp, or Windows Mediaplayer?

http://www.longislandpress.com/v02/i37040916/music_aside_01.asp

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? The Replacement

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? TOMMY STINSON ON HOOKING UP WITH AXL, LEAVING
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? THE 'MATS BEHIND, AND MOVING ON
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? By Dave Gil de Rubio


It's the late afternoon in the heart of summer, and the sun is beating down on the isle of Manhattan. It doesn't take long for the heavy wave of humidity to wrap a blanket of sweat around anything with a pulse; however, despite the oppressive conditions outside, Tommy Stinson is still impossibly cool, sipping on a draft beer while getting comfy in a red crushed-velvet chair situated in the bar area of the swanky Park South Hotel in Murray Hill.

In keeping with a pedigree that not only includes a stint as the bassist of the legendarily ramshackle Replacements, but currently includes a lengthy swim in the fishbowl that is Guns N' Roses, Stinson's attire includes black jeans, argyle socks and a green-and-white-striped shirt draped on a lanky frame topped off by a blonde-streaked spiked haircut. Having joined the aforementioned 'Mats as a precocious pre-teen who went from "13 to 30 pretty quick," it stands to reason that this lanky Minnesotan has pretty much seen it all, which helps to explain his remarkably even-keeled demeanor.

The latest chapter in Stinson's life is the release of Village Gorilla Head, an ambitious solo project recorded during downtime away from his current gig as bass player for the latest incarnation of Guns.

" really only started thinking about making this record last March, when Frank Black and the Catholics let me use all their gear and studio space when they went to Europe and toured," recalls Stinson. Unlike the raggedy looseness of Stinson's other post-'Mats projects?Bash & Pop and Perfect?the songs on VGH go from the drum loop and strings that make "Without a View" an ethereal slice of dream-pop, to the simmering jangle of "OK," to the Dylan-like weariness of "Light of Day" with its loping tempo and hints of pedal steel. "It's probably my most honest record to date," says Stinson. "It's centered more around my ideas as opposed to [being] a collaborative effort."

Up until this latest foray into the studio, Stinson had spent the last decade wrestling with his Replacements legacy while trying to get something else off the ground. That changed one day at a recording session with longtime friend and then Guns-drummer Josh Freese (who appears on Stinson's latest), which resulted in an invitation to take a crack at being in Axl Rose's employ.

"I learned a couple of songs, tried out and it went well," says Stinson. "They liked me and then I met Axl." At this point, Stinson noticeably perks up. "He explained to me what the whole deal was about and I decided this was about the ballsiest guy I've ever f**king met in my life. It seemed about the most credible, fun and interesting move I could have made at that point."

Legally restricted from commenting on the most recent Guns N' Roses tour, which had the bulk of its run cancelled with little explanation, there's no doubting Stinson's loyalty to his current employer.

"[Axl's] got my back," says Stinson. "He's totally supportive of me doing my own thing on the side. Treats me well. We've got a good friendship."

The same, perhaps, cannot be said of Stinson and his former bandmate, the Replacements' Paul Westerberg.

"I haven't seen Paul in seven years," scoffs Stinson. "That's all I'll say about that."

So a reunion is out, then?

"I've got so much s**t going on that I wouldn't have time even if I wanted to," says Stinson. "And I don't."

Another sore spot is ex-Gunner Buckethead, who left the band amid controversy in March of this year. When someone remarks that Buckethead is "an amazing guitarist," Stinson scoffs: "Too bad he's not an amazing person."

Quietly drinking his beer, Stinson brightens when the topic switches to the future. He cheerfully talks about working as a producer, starting with friends like Los Angeles political punks Bobot Adrenaline. As a broad grin spreads across his face, he admits that he has plenty to be thankful for.

"Right now, I'm musically in the best place that I've ever been in for my whole life in that I have freedom," says Stinson. "I'm all right financially and I'm making records the way I want to, as opposed to [concerning myself with] what would sell. Of course you want them to sell, but that's not what I ever made music for in the first place. It's never worked out trying to make that happen. Now I get to make my cake and eat it too."

Tommy Stinson will be appearing on Sept. 15 at The Mercury Lounge
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?                             Published September 16, 2004

When someone remarks that Buckethead is "an amazing guitarist," Stinson scoffs: "Too bad he's not an amazing person."



ouch!!!!! :o

ouch indeed  but really ffrom the sound of it, it does appear bucket did fuck over axl n the boys

ooo.....burn!

<too bad bucket is not an amazing person!>


yeah,  and too bad you can't write a good song or even play a bass with nearly as much conviction as
Duff!      what a poser!

this guy refuse to sign a simple autograph for me once and acted like a dick ego asshole.

Axl please get a better bass player,   at least someone who is cute and not so old looking!

kisses

Hi

I saw Tommy in Reading on Friday Night. Unfortunately I arrived 10 minutes late, so only saw him for 20 minutes or so. When I arrived there wasn't too many people and Tommy kept glancing at me (I had a GNR shirt on)

My criticisms were that he should have been allowed to play for longer, and I would have preferred to see him with a backing band.

He played a couple of  songs I didn't know, three tunes of VGH (off my head I can remember 'Hey You' and I think 'Someday') and finished with a couple of tracks from a former band - pop passion??. He was a good entertainer and worked what crowd there was well.

When his gig finished, he came down for a drink and then it was apparent he had lost something and was frantically looking around the stage for it for about 15 minutes. I laughed to myself as I thought 'he's lost his only working copy of chinese democracy'!

I didn't talk to him just managed to say 'hi'. Nevertheless he seemed like a sound man and probably a lot of fun.

I met up with some GNR fans who had met him twice earlier in the evening. One of them (I think he regretted it afterwards) asked him about a date Chinese Democracy, and Tommy said February.

Its a pity I didn't get to meet him, I would have liked to have asked him whether he will be returning in full support of his album, or whether the new Guns and Roses might play any of his material live. I was also going to try my luck with 'whats your favorite song off CD'?, so if anyone else gets chance to meet him maybe they can put forward these questions!

Andrew
 

Well, he signed autographs for everyone I know that tried to get one, so I guess it depends on the person...

Yeah, I've never tried the, "Tommy Stinson! You can't write a good song or play bass better than Duff McKagan! Will you sign this CD PLEASE?!?"  approach....

Asking Tommy to sign AFD is not the best way to approach him for an autograph

Just heard on my local radiostation (rockclassics) in Stockholm, that hopefully Tommy will be on the show on monday afternoon.

If he says something  we haven't heard before I'll let you know.

You can listen to the station online @ www.rockklassiker.se

Yes, it's a Swedish station so you might not understand that much of what the DJs are saying.  ;D


/jarmo

(http://gypsysoul.lunarpages.com/bassguitar1204.jpg)
(http://gypsysoul.lunarpages.com/bassguitar1204a.jpg)

He will also be on World Cafe October 13 (in Oslo) at 2pm ET. I guess it's a live broadcast of his show since 2pm ET is about 8 or 9pm Oslo time, I think.
You can tune in live here :
http://xpn.org/listen.php

As usual, I will try to rip this stream and the swedish one   : ok:

Well, he is going to play 12.okt here in Oslo.. On a place called John Dee... about 200 meter from where i live! Its gonna be great... Were did u get the word cafe info?

On Tommy's website. It says that the Oslo date is on October 13, but I know there was some confusion over this date at one point, so there might be a mistake.

well, my tickit says 12.oktober, and also on John Dee`s website. Im gonna call them tomorrow and clear it up! Myteron said 12.oktober... i think there is one more date added.. In Bergen the 13th... Bergen in Norway.

I think the Bergen date got scrapped. I think the Oslo show is on Tuesday since Stockholm is on Monday.



/jarmo

Okay, thanks for the info Jarmo, i just sent an email to John Dee, so we finaly get is stright!
Anyway, i cant wait... but whats that World Cafe thing? Where is it?

Ill be in Oslo on Tuesday, so Ill try to get a few pics with Tommy.

well, c`ya there Invisible Noise!!

If I understand correctly, it's a kind of web radio station based in Philadelphia. I don't really know how they'll manage to get him on the air since he'll be in Europe, but we'll see  ;)

I got to interview Tommy tonight. I just need to get home and transcribe it all......

Nothing that shocking in the interview, some of your questions were answered and I'll get to it when I get home.



/jarmo

Yeah! Great! When do you get home?

good work jarmo

Like two hours ago.  ;)


It's a 30 minute interview/conversation so it might take a while to get it all typed out.



/jarmo

Tommy supposed to be on at around 2:30 (in 20 minutes or so) on Rockklassiker.

To listen, go to www.rockklassiker.se and click "Lyssna Live" in the top right corner.


Not A Moment Too Soon is playing right now.  :D



/jarmo

while we are waiting.. How was he? Did uget any bright news? Hey! Now they are playing WTTJ on Rocklassiker.se

Thanks for telling us, because I heard his name mentioned but I couldn't get a damn word apart from that  :hihi:

Just my luck, the network went down when he was about to be on.   :-\

Did anybody rip it? 




/jarmo

Yes I did, and as usual I'm looking for a good soul who can host it.  ;D  The file is about 13 MB, in asf format. Apart from the first two seconds (software is always a bit slow to start), the recording is complete.
He played 'Light of day' and 'Someday'. He said he could only play 2 songs because he had caught a cold and his voice was strained (it showed a little bit). He said he looks forward to playing in Greece because he's freezing his ass off in Sweden  :hihi:
Nothing earth-shattering in what he said about GN'R, but it's always nice to hear. There were interesting things about the Replacements too.

I'll probably upload the file to his Yahoo group anyway  ;)

Well, he said that Chinese Democracy prob. would be out arfound new year... hopfully before!

I can host it, i have msn etc, or you can email it webmaster@silence-isnt-golden.com

could u transfer it to me with MSN? My nick is Merkaba

Sorry, I don't use MSN and I don't think I can send a 13MB file by email. But we can probably work something out. I'll PM you ;)

http://www.silence-isnt-golden.com/rockklassiker2.asx

well, the link dont work.... :-X

It works for me. Don't left click on it, right click and then save as.

You might have to rename it to .asf , too  ;)

Me too :)

He was blowing his nose last night when I talked to him..... He mentioned having a sore throat.




/jarmo

He was blowing his nose last night when I talked to him..... He mentioned having a sore throat.




/jarmo

Was that before or after you started asking about GNR  :hihi:

i'm listening to this right now. light of day sounds amazing. i love this song.
tommy rox  : ok:

thanks for putting this up. i'm gonna order VGH right now. this two songs make me really curious!

Before I asked anything.  :P



/jarmo

Got finished the interview soon. LOL

Ok, if he sounds like that with a sore throat, I'm pretty sure he's got an awesome voice...

Great interview.

Hi - for Jarmo - any update on when you are likely to post Tommy's interview or is it elsewhere on the site?

Thanks

Here's what Tommy said about Bucket in that interview: http://www.student.dtu.dk/~s011272/tommy/

Since 2001, Buckethead left the band...
"That's a good thing. that's a really, really good thing."

Is that a good thing?
"A very good thing...He was the guy least likely to succeed...He fuckin...he drag...he drug us thru the fuckin mud, to fuckin, you know, to appease his own, fuckin, you know, his own needs, which are very...best for fuckin, I don't know, self-serving. And I can't really subscribe to anyone that, you know, is only into taking. I'm a giver, I give you know, I give only to people who are going to give back, and I hang out with people who only fuckin wanna hang out with me. And, that guy didn't want to hang out with me. I'm cool with that. Don't want to hang out with him."

Lots of fuckin and stuff, sorry! ;D

Tommy's session on the World Cafe was broadcast today. It was prerecorded. He played "Not a moment too soon", "Hey you" and "Someday".
He also talked a little bit, explained the meaning of the album title. Originally, the title track was 3 different songs : one reminded him of the Village People, one of Gorillaz and one of Motorhead. So there you go : 'Village gorilla head'  :hihi:

I ripped the stream to .asf. I'll check with chineseblues to see if he can host that one too.

Thanks.. Tomorrow... taram taram.. GREECEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Yeah! I know how u feel! Ur gonna have a great time!
Slow down ur waitng and look at the pics from Oslo http://home.no.net/mysticy

here it is: http://www.silence-isnt-golden.com/xpndotorg.asx

Thanks for uploading that. :)




/jarmo

no problem, i was going to upload it for the forum i run anyway, so just as well to post to here too.

Very Cool!
The Village People!? lol..!
okay.. now... which parts of which songs from each of the respective bands might he have been reminded of from the original 3 songs that ended up making up VGH.

YMCA!?  In The Navy!?

Tommy..!   :hihi:

The Motorhead part was dropped in the end, so no need to look for it   ;)  But I'm still confused about that Village people thing, too  :hihi:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/presenters/phill_jupitus/home.shtml

Go under Thursday's show.

The part with Tommy starts after 3h 20m something.


Thanks to nia137 on the TS board.



/jarmo

NEW INTERVIEW TONIGHT (gnrsucks.com):

"For starters, the train we took down to Oslo hit a car just 10 mins after it left the station. Some signal stuff didnt work, and a car got its ass smashed in real good. I dont't know what happened to the driver or any passangers, but if he was alone, I think he was alright, although very shook up! We got a taxi to Oslo from there on, on the Norwegian railway system's bill. Before the concert started I was also lucky enough to find a very good quality Motley Crue, Girls Girls Girls Vinyl from 1987, with the tattoo sticker still intact!

The Alien Crime Syndicate guy did a few songs before Tommy. Meanwhile, Tommy was going back and forth from backstage to the merchandise girl and I got the chance to get him to sign my VGH album booklet and get a picture with him! We never got a chance to ask any questions, but don't worry, we would later!



Tommy opened with 2 songs I wasnt familiar with, maybe called "7 days a week" or "On top of the world" or something like that. He commented on my mate's GNR shirt that looked like a Jack Daniels bottle. He thought it was rather wierd they didnt serve Jack at the bar. He also said he might have been in Oslo before, but wasnt sure.

He did "Without a view" and "Light of day". He felt that it was a very relaxed evening, but still very cool. During "Light of day" a couple of guys (including me) sang along to his song and he commented after the song that "maybe his album wasnt so hard to find afterall". He didnt bring any CD's with him, coz they were all stolen somewhere.

Then he played "Someday" with more sing along before one of the strings broke and they had to stop the song and do another one instead with Malin's guitar. One of the songs of his "new old" album.

He finished with "Not a moment too soon". Really cool song live btw.

Ran into a couple of GNR fans from HTGTH from what I could understand and we hung out a bit.
After the show was over he went up to the merchandise stand again and we started talking to him. We didnt get any "new" information from him, but yet a few interesting bits and pieces. I asked him if he felt that the European audience were more hungry for live music than in the US, like Nikki stated this summer. Tommy didnt think so, but he said it was very expensive to go touring in Europe and had to strip it down to just him and his guitar with the ACS guy on backup.

On the subject of Buckethead: Tommy didnt like the guy at all. He tried to be friends with him, talking to him and get a bit close to him, but it didnt work. He was a great guitarist, but didnt really fit in just doing his thing, and the chemistry in the band was a lot better whith Buckethead gone. He mumbled something about "shitting in his bucket", so no, Buckethead was in Tommy's opinion not a nice person at all.

Richard Fortus: Tommy's best mate from what he told us. Richard was an fantastic guitarist and a really good friend. I think he was very happy they had Fortus in the band.

Robin Finck: We asked what Robin was doing these days. I never caught it, but my mate said Tommy said that Robin had been taking dancing lessons! Tommy said Robin was a great guy, and the artistic bit in the band. He had been to his website and thought it was really cool.

February tour: As we propably knew, he wanted to do some solo touring in February, but it wasnt a done deal, coz Axl needed him as well, so it would sort of be on and off with the tour and with GNR.

VMA 2002: He thought it was awesome. Just before they started playing, Axl cracked a joke and kind of caught everyone a bit off guard when the carpet suddenly started rising and they had to stop laughing and start playing!

Future with GNR: When the ball starts rolling sometime after new years, everything will happen. Videos, interviews, a new and updated website. They will be making videos for sure and be on tour. (cool! ;))

Bumblefoot: Never heard of him, but he said he would propably be filled in on that once he gets back.

He also introduced us to Nathalie (if that was her name) the merchandise girl. "Nathalie, this is the guys". I thought that was pretty cool.

I dont know how long we talked to him, might have been 10-15 minutes or more. When Jesse Malin started his show, Tommy went back to the hotel to check when their flight was departing."

www.gnrsucks.com

Great news!!!!

A new webside... finally...

I think C.D will be released in spring next year....

Nice one nesquick

I saw this finally after forgetting where it was. This shows that no one should have gotten worried about thal, or buckethead's parts..

Stinson added that he thinks the record is finally almost done, and the only thing that's holding back its completion is legal issues. Even the recent departure of guitarist Buckethead (see "Buckethead's Hand Puppet Says Goodbye To Guns N' Roses") isn't slowing anything down. "As far as I know, he hasn't been replaced, but we already have enough guitarists," Stinson said. "We have Robin Finck and Richard Fortus, and Buckethead will be on the record, too. I really have no idea why he decided to leave, but it didn't come out of left field because he's always come and gone. Even when I do see him, I don't know what he thinks."

Seems like they don't need a third, and that bucket's parts will stay.. Never says you need three to play teh songs..

Yes, and this is true! Actualy it was me asking the question! Since he was so positive that there were going to be videos, they may have made some!

Good Job guys : ok:

Videos, Cd, tour...sounds too good to be true.

By the way, GNR hasn't shot a vid in almost 11 years ( WTTJ Live Era doesn't count) Can't wait till I watch the first one off CD.

Source:? BLENDER (mag)
NOVEMBER 2004 Issue

(http://gypsysoul.lunarpages.com/blender1104.jpg)

red X

I read this at the 2TI board, thought it would be worth posting, quite interesting, some gnr info, nothin' new, but interesting anyway:



"Tommy Stinson "review" 12th of Oct, 2004, Oslo.

Pictures at: http://home.no.net/mysticy/

For starters, the train we took down to Oslo hit a car just 10 mins after it
left the station. Some signal stuff didnt work, and a car got its ass smashed in real good.
I dont't know what happened to the driver or any passangers, but if he was alone, I think
he was alright, although very shook up! We got a taxi to Oslo from there on, on the Norwegian railway
system's bill. Before the concert started I was also lucky enough to find a very good quality
Motley Crue, Girls Girls Girls Vinyl from 1987, with the tattoo sticker still intact!

The Alien Crime Syndicate guy did a few songs before Tommy. Meanwhile, Tommy was going
back and forth from backstage to the merchandise girl and I got the chance to get him to sign
my VGH album booklet and get a picture with him! We never got a chance to ask any questions, but
don't worry, we would later!

Tommy opened with 2 songs I wasnt familiar with, maybe called "7 days a week" or "On top of the world"
or something like that. He commented on my mate's GNR shirt that looked like a Jack Daniels
bottle. He thought it was rather wierd they didnt serve Jack at the bar. He also said he might have been
in Oslo before, but wasnt sure.

He did "Without a view" and "Light of day". He felt that it was a very relaxed
evening, but still very cool. During "Light of day" a couple of guys (including me) sang along to his song and
he commented after the song that "maybe his album wasnt so hard to find afterall". He didnt bring any CD's with him,
coz they were all stolen somewhere.

Then he played "Someday" with more sing along before one of the strings broke and they had to stop the
song and do another one instead with Malin's guitar. One of the songs of his "new old" album.

He finished with "Not a moment too soon". Really cool song live btw.

Ran into a couple of GNR fans from HTGTH from what I could understand and we hung out a bit.

After the show was over he went up to the merchandise stand again and we started talking to him.
We didnt get any "new" information from him, but yet a few interesting bits and pieces.
I asked him if he felt that the European audience were more hungry for live music than in the US, like
Nikki stated this summer. Tommy didnt think so, but he said it was very expensive to go touring in
Europe and had to strip it down to just him and his guitar with the ACS guy on backup.

On the subject of Buckethead: Tommy didnt like the guy at all. He tried to be friends with him, talking
to him and get a bit close to him, but it didnt work. He was a great guitarist, but didnt really
fit in just doing his thing, and the chemistry in the band was a lot better whith Buckethead gone.
He mumbled something about "shitting in his bucket", so no, Buckethead was in Tommy's opinion
not a nice person at all.

Richard Fortus: Tommy's best mate from what he told us. Richard was an fantastic guitarist and a really
good friend. I think he was very happy they had Fortus in the band.

Robin Finck: We asked what Robin was doing these days. I never caught it, but my mate said
Tommy said that Robin had been taking dancing lessons! Tommy said Robin was a great guy, and
the artistic bit in the band. He had been to his website and thought it was really cool.

February tour: As we propably knew, he wanted to do some solo touring in February, but it wasnt a done
deal, coz Axl needed him as well, so it would sort of be on and off with the tour and with GNR.

VMA 2002: He thought it was awesome. Just before they started playing, Axl cracked a joke and kind of
caught everyone a bit off guard when the carpet suddenly started rising and they had to stop laughing and start
playing!

Future with GNR: When the ball starts rolling sometime after new years, everything will happen. Videos,
interviews, a new and updated website. They will be making videos for sure and be on tour.

Bumblefoot: Never heard of him, but he said he would propably be filled in on that once he gets back.

He also introduced us to Nathalie (if that was her name) the merchandise girl. "Nathalie, this is the guys".
I thought that was pretty cool.

I dont know how long we talked to him, might have been 10-15 minutes or more. When Jesse Malin started
his show, Tommy went back to the hotel to check when their flight was departing." gnr.com.ar


A "new updated website"..."videos".... I cry everytime I read that....


ROCK ON

Shit I just saw that on the "Tommy Stinson In Europe" thread, didn't know it had been posted.
My bad :-\ Sorry!


ROCK ON

cool reading man : ok:
makes me wanna cry too, they must be hangin' to get it all out to the world. :yes:

oh well...lets see it for 05' :'(

Tor (Invisible Noise-2TI)) did a great write up didn't he?  : ok:

I already posted this article 3 days ago.

can we say with confidence that Tommy actually said that??

For second Time! I were there with Tor! (The guy who made this review) And i can with confidence say that Tommy said this! Because it was actually me Asking the questionto Tommy!

It's not a "done deal". It's to his best knowledge. He isnt really in touch with the GNR camp right now, but would be filled in
as soon as he got back.

There were 2-3 of us asking questions. I didnt catch all of it, but most.


Definetely. You also asked what Robin was doing. I didnt hear the answer, but my mate said that Tommy told us Robin have been taking dancing lessons. I asked the question about Bumblefoot, his view on the European live audience compared to the American and some stuff I cant remember.

On the train back home I wrote everything I could remember down on a CD booklet I was given prior to the show.

Thats great! I got a bit drunk later that night, so i cant remember everything, LOL. So, But i do remember that when we asked about videos and things, he answerd with an enthusiastic voice!
I think he said that Robin wasnt doing anything special, but he was taking som lessons. But anyway, i think u got the most in the review Tor, and it sure is the best review we got from any of Tommys shows..!

It's time we got some info from Richard, Robin and Chris. Those guys never speak.

NOV. 1 Tommy is scheduled to perform Dec 9th with Jesse Malin in New York. Check the TOUR page for ticket info. He will have a full band featuring Richard Fortus as well.

www.tommystinson.com

I don't think this has been posted.

I found a brief Tommy interview on Mean Streer Magazine & Online Store. Not much in addition to what we've already read about him/record over the past months. He talks a little bit about his album and GNR.

http://meanstreet.com/article.php?article_id=305&issue_id=59

Here's the paragraph concerning GNR.

Was there any resistance in the Guns N’ Roses camp in releasing your solo album?

Tommy: No, it’s actually the exact opposite. [Axl Rose] has been real supportive of me and my stuff. He’s listened to it all and totally championing me. One reason why is that it keeps me from barking up the tree, his tree, going “What are we doing? What am I doing?” I’ve been pretty straight up about everything and it works out good.

Everyone out there would really love to hear me talk shit and say, “Yeah, he had me fuckin’ tied by the balls, and I decided to fuck him and make my own [record]” but it’s really just nonsense. I’ve talked about it enough where it’s like now, I’m done even explaining it in those terms. [Rose] is really supportive of me and I’m totally into doing Guns N’ Roses again. We made a great record together and when it comes out, I’ll be the first one in line to go tour behind it.

Nothing new, at least he is still in GNR and plans to tour with GNR when the album comes out.

I know it could be a case of reading too much into a few words (but in the GNR world what else is new), but notice how Tommy said "We MADE a great record....". That makes it sound like the album is done. It's good news in that it's just waiting to be released. Hopefully. Maybe. Possibly.  :-\

I imagine he's referring to the unmixed/mastered version.

I can't wait to hear it.

:D I'd rather imagine he?s heard the whole by now.
Ignatius, you are kidding right? That?s great read. Cheers. : ok:
Also there?s lots info dead new to me, like:

"He?s listened to it all and totally championing me."

Axl liked VGH too.

"One reason why is that it keeps me from barking up the tree, his tree, going ?What are we doing? What am I doing?? I?ve been pretty straight up about everything and it works out good."

So, In short, they are real buddies. From now on, When I see ?Yes men? comments, or rabid Axl-only Cult dissing other members like his servants and shits, I'm gonna quote this!

"I like to hear bands take risks and go places that maybe they?re not geared for or take chances that they shouldn?t take. That?s kinda where I come from."

How Rock n' Roll!? That?s why he is with Axl. This Also suggests the guts of current members to be in GNR?

"when it comes out, I?ll be the first one in line to go tour behind it"
I don?t get this line fully? ? ??? ?? Aren?t all the members going to be in the same line then?

My interp: Since they probably haven't even spoken to eachother in a group setting since the '02 tour nobody knows anything about each other except Axl. Tommy is down to tour 100% but as for everyone else... we'll just have to wait and see. If it doesn't happen soon we'll see another member drop out... I can't believe they have stuck together this long.

Honestly, if these guys are willing to stick it out this long then they must really believe in Chinese Democracy.

Or they are getting paid a lot of money from axl to wait for him to release the cd. If the are getting paid monthly for doing very litle and also they can do their own solo things i see no reason for not sticking and believing on CD :hihi:

Exactly they are free to do every other project under the sun while this sits on the shelf somewhere. They should stay in gnr forever as long as they get paid and could do tours, albums and anything else they want.. Brain even gets to collaborate with an ex replacement in bh..  It's almost comical at times..

Yikes!!!  Haunting Evil spirits again!!!  :rant:

How can we exorcise this place? :'(

This (http://www.heretodaygonetohell.com/board/index.php?action=profile;u=1739;sa=showPosts) is going to become the link for my "HTGTH Forum" bookmark.

Yep http://www.heretodaygonetohell.com/board/index.php?topic=15398.20 :yes:

(http://drummertroy.com/lionsdennycrichardtpfdzrscropped.jpg)

Static Multimedia - A Rock N Roll Legend (http://www.staticmultimedia.com/content/music/features/feature_1100465956)

by Brett Hickman



/jarmo

Wow thanks, intresting read
i feel some nerves moving now, (as always with these things) ;)

Thanks Jarmo.? I have a question for you.? You've been doing this for 8 years now.? When you read this article ('the landing pad is near...'), did you allow yourself to feel excited?? Or is to better to expect nothing as always?



I guess I do too.? I hate my nerves ;)

well, Tommy said that he will tour with his Solo thing, in February! An in this interview he said that he would prob. be away when Chinese Democracy will be released!

I Think this is great! Something is happening soon! For the first time, we can actualy say that! With no doubt!

I don't want to play devil's advocate, but keep in mind that interview was made in early September, so things might have changed since then  ;)

Noooo, i thought it was new, fuck :'(

dosent matter! It will be out soon! : ok:

yes, "soon" :)
 In the meantime i check tommy's disc

It's something we haven't heard before, but until I'm holding the cd in my hands, I won't get my hopes up. ;)



/jarmo

just pray the cd ain't blank :P

Then I can read the lyrics or the booklet.  :hihi:


/jarmo

I can't wait to see the booklet, it will be huge,..

 :D So in September it was likely to be released while he was still on the road. And the date was supposed to be before New Year, which is in Accord with what Dizzy said.
As is often the case with an Indiana thing, the target date is not that one anymore(FEB?). But perhaps the Same is the case with this time round. They will release it and tour until the cows come home?. regardless of a member?s solo tour. Or Being far-fetched, I?d say maybe Tommy is touring where GNR will tour.. :-X

Lets say that GNR will release theyr album im February 2005. Then im pretty sure that they wont start Touring before Mars/April! Most of the big bands dont tour before at least a month after theyr release! Lets take U2, they release theyr new album, but wont tour for a while.. If i got it right? Anyway, it dosent matter if Tommy are doing some shows around the time CD will come out!
 So it looks like Feb. is the final date! When i talked to Tommy in Oslo, he said that he might do a little tour in Feb. If GNR camp let him... And he also said, that CD prob. would be out right after new year!

I think the signs we got now. Is the best sign we ever have had! At least im very positve right now! And when Mysteron (if that is his name?) says we will soon have a anouncment! im pretty sure we`re close!

Im just tryn to be positive! There is so many other good records coming out in the near future! So im happy anyway!  :beer:

Like judas priest, feb release for them :o

Tha apparent fact that it/is/was sent to be mastered would speak to it finally coming out in 2005,Axl could always completely abort it, but would he? The question may be coming down to the right "marketable" time to release the record...March is traditionally when big stuff for the 1st Qtr gets released, I think.

I've just realized that interview from Magnet Magazine hadn't been posted yet :
http://www.magnetmagazine.com/interviews/stinson.html

I'm guessing it was done sometime in August. It's quite interesting since it covers a wide range of topics.

 :hihi:

did mysteron really say we will soon have an announcement?

where did he say that, wow :o

He said it in the cd release date rumor thread.? To be fair, he said there might possibly be an announcement.?

I'm not trying to be one of the negative people, but keep in mind that even if its all finished, Axl might not like the finished sound and pull it back.? So don't get your hopes up too much until you get an official release date.?

It's always "soon" and "near" with Tommy.  I think it's actually getting close this time as he stated in the interview.  Maybe the landing pad really is near?

To my knowledge, Tommy hasn't confirmed any dates in Jan/Feb, despite his intentions to tour during this period.

Either they are in the process of booking venues, or he's been asked to hold fire and help with the release of CD.

Perhaps some one in the know could clarify whats going on with Tommy's touring.

Either way its a good thing for me - I'd like to see Tommy play with a backing band (I don't think this will influence CD) but it would also make me happy to know he's helping make one final drive to ensure the record is released.

Anyone got any ideas?

No idea what the hell he?s doing right now till Dec.  8)

Prob in the GNR camp.. What is Dizzy, Robin, Fortus, and Brain doing? If none of the guys are touring or anything, theyr prob. in GNR

Poor guy is gonna get trashed again, but from what I gather he's producing the new album of his friends Bobot Adrenaline (his webmaster is a member of the band).

I don't blame the guy for keeping himself occupied...I just hope there really is nothing left for him to do

a little updat for our best man!

www.tommystinson.com

on the musicsite... u can listen to VGH online..

If this is old news, then forgive me!


So tommy use myspace?? Great

Nytunz

Tommy said that he would be away when the CD would be released, and that he would hear the press release throug CNN or somthing. If Tommy is back on tour in February, then ill guess we`ll see CD then... So.. A announcement should be out before christmas...

This logic amazes me. BTW he said it months ago, so we can't be sure if it's still a valid info.

well, we gotta belive in what we got  :P

Hmmm, myspace sounds familiar.

I guess he and co. had a great laugh @ that Axl page too.

Sorry is this has already been posted here..But i found it over at the gnrstrip

Stinson article in Mean Street Magazine...
   
Tommy Stinson
By Waleed Rashidi

At the barely ripe, eerily young and fiercely impressionable age of 13, Minneapolis-bred musician Tommy Stinson plotted the course of his life thus far, by simply joining as the bassist of his older brother Bob's scrappy punk outfit, The Replacements. Fronted by the now-revered Paul Westerberg and best known as a group whose drunken-blur stage antics generally superceded their surprisingly high degree of musicality, The Replacements' pop and blues-based punk gained national notoriety in the early '80s, paralleling neighboring punk act H?sker D?. Since The Replacements' demise, Stinson formed Bash & Pop, moved to L.A. and performed in Perfect, and then signed aboard the latest incarnation of Guns N' Roses. Although he's still associated with Guns, Stinson has been able to produce his own solo work. His latest, released this past summer, is Village Gorilla Head (Sanctuary). Nearly a quarter-century since his start, Stinson is still creating and producing rock that matters - this time, sans much of the riffraff that enveloped his earliest efforts.

Living in L.A., how much of your songwriting would you say is influenced by your surroundings?
You know, a good part of it is definitely that. I've lived here for 10 years and there's certainly a lot of songs that have been written in that period.

Did you move here for your career?
Mostly it was because I made a record for Warner Bros. and kinda how it was going down, or not going down, I kinda felt like it would work a little better if I was in their face, then I could kind of be around and that was a good part of the reason why I went out. As I got into town, that was really not exactly how it works. Then it all fell into place and I was there.

Where are you living these days?
I live in Burbank. I don't have any problem being (818), none at all.

Was there any resistance in the Guns N' Roses camp in releasing your solo album?
No, it's actually the exact opposite. [Axl Rose] has been real supportive of me and my stuff. He's listened to it all and totally championing me. One reason why is that it keeps me from barking up the tree, his tree, going "What are we doing? What am I doing?" I've been pretty straight up about everything and it works out good.
Everyone out there would really love to hear me talk shit and say, "Yeah, he had me fuckin' tied by the balls, and I decided to fuck him and make my own [record]" but it's really just nonsense. I've talked about it enough where it's like now, I'm done even explaining it in those terms. [Rose] is really supportive of me and I'm totally into doing Guns N' Roses again. We made a great record together and when it comes out, I'll be the first one in line to go tour behind it.
Getting to your songs on Village Gorilla Head, "Couldn't Wait" rocks. What's behind such a propulsive track?
Thank you, you know, it just kind of popped out, one of those things. The beauty of making this record is that I wasn't trying to make a cohesive record. I was trying to write a bunch of songs and each song is it's own little planet, so to speak.

Yeah, the album does seem a bit scatterbrained.
That's the way I like listening to records. I don't like listening to 12 songs that sound very similar to the one radio song, but they're not as good. I like to hear bands take risks and go places that maybe they're not geared for or take chances that they shouldn't take. That's kinda where I come from.

How much of a risk would you say this album is?
There's plenty of risk on it. I'm sure I'm gonna get panned to death on some of this stuff. I made a record I wanted to make and someone decided they liked it enough to put it out, Sanctuary Records, and it's like, cool, that's all I do. If someone can put 'em out, then put 'em out so the rest of the world can check 'em out.

After a quarter-century of playing rock, is there anything that starts to hurt after a while?
Only the business side.
On the web: www.tommystinson.com


View this band's Mean Street info page

http://mag.meanstreet.com/article.php?article_id=305&issue_id=59

I thinks this hasn't been posted yet, i can't find it in the board so here it goes. If it has already been posted, my excuses!.

Very interesting interview. seems chinese democracy is done, since tommy says in the interview "we made the record". : ok:

Tommy Stinson
By Waleed Rashidi

At the barely ripe, eerily young and fiercely impressionable age of 13, Minneapolis-bred musician Tommy Stinson plotted the course of his life thus far, by simply joining as the bassist of his older brother Bob's scrappy punk outfit, The Replacements. Fronted by the now-revered Paul Westerberg and best known as a group whose drunken-blur stage antics generally superceded their surprisingly high degree of musicality, The Replacements' pop and blues-based punk gained national notoriety in the early '80s, paralleling neighboring punk act H?sker D?. Since The Replacements' demise, Stinson formed Bash & Pop, moved to L.A. and performed in Perfect, and then signed aboard the latest incarnation of Guns N' Roses. Although he's still associated with Guns, Stinson has been able to produce his own solo work. His latest, released this past summer, is Village Gorilla Head (Sanctuary). Nearly a quarter-century since his start, Stinson is still creating and producing rock that matters - this time, sans much of the riffraff that enveloped his earliest efforts.

Living in L.A., how much of your songwriting would you say is influenced by your surroundings?
You know, a good part of it is definitely that. I've lived here for 10 years and there's certainly a lot of songs that have been written in that period.

Did you move here for your career?
Mostly it was because I made a record for Warner Bros. and kinda how it was going down, or not going down, I kinda felt like it would work a little better if I was in their face, then I could kind of be around and that was a good part of the reason why I went out. As I got into town, that was really not exactly how it works. Then it all fell into place and I was there.

Where are you living these days?
I live in Burbank. I don't have any problem being (818), none at all.

Was there any resistance in the Guns N' Roses camp in releasing your solo album?
No, it's actually the exact opposite. [Axl Rose] has been real supportive of me and my stuff. He's listened to it all and totally championing me. One reason why is that it keeps me from barking up the tree, his tree, going "What are we doing? What am I doing?" I've been pretty straight up about everything and it works out good.
Everyone out there would really love to hear me talk shit and say, "Yeah, he had me fuckin' tied by the balls, and I decided to fuck him and make my own [record]" but it's really just nonsense. I've talked about it enough where it's like now, I'm done even explaining it in those terms. [Rose] is really supportive of me and I'm totally into doing Guns N' Roses again. We made a great record together and when it comes out, I'll be the first one in line to go tour behind it.

Getting to your songs on Village Gorilla Head, "Couldn't Wait" rocks. What's behind such a propulsive track?
Thank you, you know, it just kind of popped out, one of those things. The beauty of making this record is that I wasn't trying to make a cohesive record. I was trying to write a bunch of songs and each song is it's own little planet, so to speak.

Yeah, the album does seem a bit scatterbrained.
That's the way I like listening to records. I don't like listening to 12 songs that sound very similar to the one radio song, but they're not as good. I like to hear bands take risks and go places that maybe they're not geared for or take chances that they shouldn't take. That's kinda where I come from.

How much of a risk would you say this album is?
There's plenty of risk on it. I'm sure I'm gonna get panned to death on some of this stuff. I made a record I wanted to make and someone decided they liked it enough to put it out, Sanctuary Records, and it's like, cool, that's all I do. If someone can put 'em out, then put 'em out so the rest of the world can check 'em out.

After a quarter-century of playing rock, is there anything that starts to hurt after a while?
Only the business side.
On the web: www.tommystinson.com


Link: http://mag.meanstreet.com/article.php?article_id=305&issue_id=59

Tiny tiny tiny Tommy mention in today's (Friday) Minneapolis Star Tribune.?


Thin to win

A Thin Lizzy cover band called (what else?) Jailbreak, led by Stingray Green's Kent Militzer, won the not-so-coveted prize at First Avenue's 10th annual Cover Song Contest last week: a case of hearty ol' Night Train.? The "wine" was good for at least one tasteless joke about Thin Lizzy's deceased leader:? "Phil Lynott would have loved it."? Plenty of acts deserved to win on originality alone - never mind that it was a cover-band show.? Performing as Perfect Strangers, Kruddler played a set of songs by Tommy Stinson's Perfect and the Rank Strangers.

by Chris Riemenschneider www.startribune.com


The irony and GNR connection is so blatant I can't believe the writer didn't put nightrain and Tommy together.? The perfect strangers name is pretty funny too.?