Here Today... Gone To Hell!

I'll be there.

Since I already saw (and enjoyed) Bach on Sunday, my plan is to get home from work, nap until 9:45 or so, drive up to LA (from Orange County), and by the time I get thru security it'll be around 11:20 or so. That's right. I'm beating Axl at his own waiting game!  : ok:

The last two nights they have played everything that's been done on the tour so far (RQ, Used To Love Her, Think About You, Down On The Farm, in addition to the regular set tunes). Tonight I'm guessing You're Crazy or something totally unexpected. I'm crossing my fingers.

Good luck to Axl and the band - for all the criticisms from fans/media and the unfortunate circumstances alluded to in the open letter, they've worked their asses off and had a great tour. For what it's worth, in the two shows I've seen this fall, they turned me from a cynical/doubting fan into a proud/optimistic fan again. This should be a fun night for everyone.  :beer:

Only question, not to be a downer, but I've checked Ticketmaster for all 3 shows since October and I've noticed that while night one was sold out (it was packed) and night two only had loge seats available, this particular show has had orchestra seats available almost the entire time. Anyone have any idea how many tickets have actually been sold? Also, anyone know the attendance figures for last night?

Hope everyone that's going has fun. I'll be the dude in 10th row center with the bald head who's buzzing off his 'herbal medicinal' baked goods...Perhaps Baz and Axl will join me, end of tour celebration and all...

Drive safe folks!  :peace:

haha good man! : ok:

hope you have fun!

I need advice.  As far as sound quality is concerned, would it be better to be closer or further away from the stage?  I've been up close to GNR shows before where Axl's voice was drowned out or the sound was a bit muffled.  But after talking to people who were at the same show and further away, they said they had no trouble hearing.   

the best sound is/should be around mixer area... so somwhere middle/end of floor if I am correct

Agreed. I was 2nd row stage left on Sunday and the vocals were definately muddy...that was just due to the volume and the speakers being right in my ears....so go for 10 rows back or so. It's a great venue, you're going to be happy with the sound either way. Even in the 2nd row it sounded way better than most arena shows I've been to.

Sounds great guys!  There's some good seats available center stage but in the back.  I'm thinking about getting those.  Price is also an issue.  I wonder what the scalper situation is like.  Does anyone know about that? :beer:

I'm hoping for a setlist surprise...

*starts chant*
new song! new song! new song!

Ah, that would be beyond amazing.

My guesses for any 'surprises' tonight-

- TWAT

-New Song..from the options list maybe?

- single announcement

-telling the casual GNR fans about the tentative CD release date.  There was a press release, but how many people saw it?  There are probably a good number of people that are going to the show tonight that know nothing about it, and this would be a pretty damn good surprise for them.

Or a combination of the above :)  I can't wait to wake up tomorrow and find out how the show went! ;D

*starts sweating*? :nervous:

Dangit! Last night of the tour leg. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS? Pending tonight's concert, the new GUNS N' ROSES have completed a US Tour leg! Not being facetious (okay, maybe JUSSST a bit). But, I really have to give it up to Axl and co. Perserverance in the collective assface of adversity.

*sweating intensifies*? :nervous: :confused:

After tonight, do you realize that the next time we hear about something will be THE CHINESE F**KING DEMOCRACY ALBUM???!??!? (I'm over 30, dammit, and we still call 'em albums!)

*sweating stops*
*confidence regained*

Okay, so I'll be a bit sad to see the concert updates go away for now. But I'll be even more excited for the next wave of news, fingers and toes crossed, in early March, if not before.

To everyone going tonight, enjoy and be safe!! To all others on the board, Jarmo and the Mods, a most happy holiday to you and yours.? ?: ok:

SH

Yes, what a ride it's been...Best of luck to the band, Hope they put on a great show and I hope everyone enjoys it

just got my ticket.  this is gonna kick so much ass.  thanks to those who answered my question earlier.   : ok:

Everyone going to this have an awesome time!!! :beer:

I am going to try to stay up to read the updates!

I am so happy that GNR is back and completing a tour! :beer:

I bet you got damn good seats...Ticketmaster has this wonderful habit lately of releasing some of the best seats the day of the show. Have yourself a blast...if you want clearer sound, earplugs also sometimes help clean up the mix.

Here's a funny detail for all you folks. After tonights show, GNR's next appearance will be the new lineups 100th show (counting in the '02 VMA's, R. Dawson's bday and the acoustic gig in the Cuckoo Club). Yes, I'm what my friend calls 'anal retentive' (he alludes his father to be the same way, so I can't complain). I'm really hoping their first show en route to CD will now be in Dubai, since there's a damn good chance I might make it there to see them. My mom's been there a half a dozen times already and this fall, she complained she's running out of new faces to bring along. I told her about the possibility of the GNR concert and she said 'that's cool, let me know when'   :smoking:

But yeah, kudos to Axl and the boys for extensively touring Europe and North America this year. Despite the negatives, the fanbase has received a major adrenaline shot and all the bootlegs will keep us busy while waiting for the album to drop.

I only hope Izzy will be there again; A perfect way to end a good year.

a new song or a 100% for sure release date could make this the most important show gnr has played in nearly 20 years

Unfortunately I don't think they will play any new unheard songs yet, not until the album is out anyway.

Of course I would love that and any other surprises, but i don't expect to hear a confirmed release date until next month.  Axl seems to announce official news via press releases these days.

Here is Bumblefoot doing the Grinch theme:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYfPppe7TFQ

Thanks for that!

Bonus points for anyone who has a video of Live And Let Die - spill down the stairs and all  :beer:

some guy filmed the show and we are trying to get donations to get this dvd and share it with the fans so if anyone wants to help bring this dvd out and for us to enjoy it then check out the Dec. 20 thread in the appetite for collection thread

anyone have the audio of ron playing mr grinch?

theres a youtube video of it in the youtube thread

I am glad that the band is finally starting to get positive reviews. I have read so many lately, and it seems that people are starting to see this band as gnr. This is a good article and I feel the same way. The original line-up will always be gnr, I grew up on them. 2002 just did not do it for me, I dont care how good of a guitar player bucket is, i dont want to see some idiot with kentucky fried chicken bucket on his head standing next to a rock icon like axl. It just did not do the name justice! Seeingfiing them again this year in Cleveland, they actually looked and sounded like a gnr the world can accept. Now i did not say replace, but I can accept them as the evolution of the name. Now the article:

http://www.craveonline.com/music/articles/04647263/roses_new_guns.html

Thanks for posting that.. a pretty good writeup and it covered that show quite well!

That's pretty sweet.

But...


 :-\. What?

I must be the only person who still doesn't "feel" Robin's playing. Well.. I feel something... heh. And it's not good.

hes a good guitarist, but hes no shredder

Relax bro, I am a member at a guitar forum and absolutly nobody there likes the poor guy. I am trying my best to defend him but I guess alot of people dont like his "style" :peace:

...I do.  Here's hoping others come around once CD is out.      :peace:

I agree with you about 2002.  It's a year in GNR history I would like to forget and I am sure the band does too.  Thanks for posting this review, a great read!

It's really positive that the media has been somewhat kind to GNR this year even with a few setbacks.  I am really looking forward to next year now!

Well I feel everyone eles's style. I even like Finck's studio stuff. But live..  :P. Naw.

He just seems sloppy.. and not in a soulful good way. I mean how many times can you mess up The Blues solo? And it's not like he misses notes all the time consistently, but damn its a whole lot of the time. It shouldn't even be 70% of the time.. he should hit notes almost all the time.  I shouldn't have to worry before he plays a solo. One he probably wrote at that. And don't get me started on the old material. I just feel like hes more of a rhythm guy.. and I know that I'll have to "get used to it" but man.. I wish Richard was the main solo guy. He has a good mix of soul and technical ability...

Not to sound like Nesquick.  :hihi:

I just feel like reviewers are praising Robin because they heard he was the lead and that he was good. In the same way that the reviewers often just repeat what they heard from other reviews... to sound credible.

Anyways, I'm ok with Robin, hes a cool guy, and a good writer. So thats my 2 cents. Doesn't do anything for me live.


Like I said, I like Robin's playing on the demos.. but not live. I'm sure his contributions are huge.

just out of interest, do you have link to any videos that he totally fucks up? I'm not discrediting or bashing you, I'm just interested in seeing it.

When does this happen?

I've seen 13 or so shows this year and.. haven't really ever noticed Robin mess up.  Everything sounds fine to me.

Jack.

I was standing right next to you on the 20th....maybe we're not hearing the same band?  :nervous:

I like Robin. He is sloppy sometimes and seems to keep his own pace, but I like his playing. It's different, and it blends well with mr Fortus and Thal's abilities.

The major problem people seem to have with him, is his take on the November Rain-solo.

i love his take on the november rain solo.  one of my fav. "old solos" that the new band does.  But I agree he is def. not a shredder.  To me he is the opposite of fortus.  Fortus plays technical, Finck is all about playing with "feeling."

Of the new songs presented, the most impressive by far was the tremendous ?Better.? Delivered with jaw-dropping power, it?s a classic waiting to happen; beginning as a muted nursery-rhyme melody, it explodes into a fierce, immensely addictive rocker with the blood of Use Your Illusion.

all the reviewers seem to like better. I love this description.

I don't know. Lol. Honestly, I just don't feel like the guy is very great at all. Good? Sure. But, not great. I feel nothing when the guy plays

And right now, off the top of my head, I know he botched the end of The Blues on the Dec 20th show... I was there. I know he did pretty much the same thing at Pittsburgh in '02. And yeah thats not too many examples, but it's just from what I've heard.

And on the old material.. I really would say, almost all examples. Like the SCOM solo.. the Patience solo especially. It's not so bad that it messes up the song, I just feel like when people say "Finck adds his own style to the song" that he's just fucking up.

It just seems like Finck struggles on stage.. and it's almost stressful to watch. It's weird.

I take back what I said about him being really.. poor and sloppy.. because I can't prove that you know? That's just how I hear it. Everybody will have their own opinions. It's just I don't feel like he has stage presence or great playing ability and I'm always wondering why he plays over Richard and Bumble when I feel like they are more talented.

But I'm no hater. Robin is a great writer, and I feel he is a great studio musician. I don't mind him being lead too much and I'm over it anyways.

Sorry Finck fans! No offense meant.

http://www.gunnerstube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=e926456240b2ff0100bd

thats all i have to say  :yes:

Jack, you shouldn't have taken the earplugs out.  :hihi:

http://www.craveonline.com/music/articles/04647263/roses_new_guns.html

(http://images.craveonline.com/headers/2006-12-26-01_48_gnr_header.jpg)

Axl and co. achieve the impossible December 20th in Los Angeles

Posted: Tuesday, December 26th 2006 03:12 PM PST
By Johnny Firecloud, Writer


Walking into Wednesday?s tour-closing Guns N? Roses show in Universal City, I had good cause for the skepticism I felt. With only one original member, no new material released in over a decade and a tornado of negative hype surrounding the mere name, the modern version of Guns N? Roses should, by all accounts, be a recipe for colossal failure. How do you replace the dirty swagger, the serpentine energy, the explosive chemistry of the band that brought an endgame to hair metal? The vacancies left by the original members seem too vast to be occupied by anyone else, and it?s been the upside of a decade since Axl Rose?s signature wailing dominated the rock landscape. I fully expected the same ugly disappointment and vicarious embarrassment I felt while watching G?N?R?s ?big comeback? performance on the 2002 MTV Music Awards, where my attention was split between Axl?s surgically altered wax-museum face and his embarrassingly off-key performance.

The sleaze was on ten in the Gibson Ampitheater as openers Suicide Girls slithered through an attempt to pass themselves off as erotic art. Nineties rockers Helmet followed offered a spot-on performance, providing the night?s more biting, darker shades, but were met with a surprisingly lukewarm reception. Third preshow act Sebastian Bach, every bit the venerial Skeletor frontman he was in Skid Row, dominated the stage as if it were his band headlining the bill, swinging his shampoo-commercial hair like it was 1989. With a set clocking in at just over an hour, Bach bled the eighties nostalgia out of the room, but I?ll admit with surprisingly little shame that I rocked the hell out to set-closer ?Youth Gone Wild.?

Minutes after midnight, the revving intro to ?Welcome to the Jungle? began as the crowd roared their ecstatic approval. We found ourselves strapped in and screaming down memory lane before any of us knew the engine was even running. A focused, happy-looking Axl ran around the stage like he was on fire, howling the theme song to Los Angeles as fists pumped throughout the crowd. Yes, the man actually shows up to his own concerts these days.

The setlist played out less like the ?Best of G?N?R? mixtape you made in middle school and more like a greatest-hits collection, flavored with scattered gems from each album and even a few impressive selections from Chinese Democracy, the near-mythical "comeback" Guns N' Roses record Rose has labored over since the split of the original lineup. Of the new songs presented, the most impressive by far was the tremendous ?Better.? Delivered with jaw-dropping power, it?s a classic waiting to happen; beginning as a muted nursery-rhyme melody, it explodes into a fierce, immensely addictive rocker with the blood of Use Your Illusion.

The heat of the pyrotechnic blasts could be felt to the rafters as the band tore through ferocious renditions of ?It?s So Easy,? ?Mr. Brownstone? and ?You Could Be Mine? with sharper and more layered intensity than the original lineup possessed; the trademarked slutty, throbbing energy soaked in Jack Daniel?s replaced with the slick mile-a-minute riffs and technical prowess of the finest musicians money ? and the biggest name rock has seen in twenty-five years ? can buy.

Axl?s hired hands, the latest entrants in a revolving door of names facing the impossible mission of honorably reviving the G?N?R sound in the 21st century, respectfully did justice to their roles with faithful, colored renditions of the songs that made me believe in rock n' roll when I was a kid. In what was perhaps a passing attempt lend legitimacy to the atmosphere, original member Izzy Stradlin made an appearance, joining drummer Frank Ferrer, bassist Tommy Stinson, Illusion-era keyboardist Dizzy Reed and guitarists Richard Fortus and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal on a handful of songs. Despite looking out of place and being out of tune onstage, Izzy was warmly welcomed as he contributed an unnecessary third rhythm guitar to a stage already brimming with six-string virtuosos.

A third guitarist stood apart from the others both visually and sonically, effortlessly tearing through every riff and solo like a man possessed; think Jimmy Page on ecstasy. Even after Rose introduced the bearded, sunglass-wearing phenomenon by name, dressed like a cross between Jim Morrison and Chris Robinson, I still couldn?t believe I was looking at Robin Finck. Having proficiently handled axe duties for several years with Nine Inch Nails, Finck looked back then to be something out of the circus of the apocalypse, but the man played like the devil himself. Exuding a confidence no amount of posturing can imitate, he brought a searing intensity to each Guns song with impassioned intricacy and soul. His beautifully shredding five-minute solo following "Better" was a standout performance in a night full of highlights.

Finck was great before his apparent bohemian awakening, but this was something else entirely. He was essentially running through a gallery of world-renowned portraits and landscapes, the best of their time and sacred to many, casting his own colors and impressions onto each canvas. Somehow, blasphemy be damned, he made improvements.

Bumblefoot?s solo instrumental take on ?Don?t Cry? was gorgeous enough to substitute for the real thing. However, the pace of the evening stumbled during his failed, entirely- too-long attempt at turning ?Mr. Grinch? into a sing-along during one of Axl?s many departures from the stage. How many verses are in that damn song, forty? Points for the green smoke effects, but it would?ve gone over better as just a ten-second teaser.

Visually, the years may have done strange things to Axl Rose, but his signature wailing has never been better. Polished, commanding and in high gear from the start, his delivery only grew stronger as the band moved through an impressively solid set. The infamous temper tantrums of old weren?t at all present; Rose actually laughed at himself for slipping and falling on his ass early on. This man knows he has something to prove, and for a reputation such as his, it?s remarkable to see him actually behaving himself. The guy actually comes off as likable.

Sebastian Bach returned to the stage to share vocal duties on a blistering rendition of ?My Michelle,? a appropriately shiteating grin on his face as he traded lines with Rose; after his set earlier in the evening he was offered a major-label record deal. Watch out world, hair metal returns...or something.
 
The gritty jive of junkie-anthem ?Nightrain? closed the first set, explosive and supercharged. Axl?s vocals were again undeniably perfect as he soared through the highest registers without so much as a strained note. The band exited the stage to thunderous applause, but for a production of this scale, nobody expected the night to end there.

Three of the four encore songs were new, presumably a part of Chinese Democracy (due to hit stores on March 6 ? allegedly -  you know the drill). The first was the grinding, not-quite-epic title track, while ?IRS,? another new overdrive-rocker, was more energetic and fun than the studio version circulating around the net. It gives exactly the impression that Rose likely wants: it?s a logical step forward from Use Your Illusion, Rose?s narrative landscape and dramatic flair pushing the envelope just enough to avoid alienating fans. The magnetic pulse of ?Madagascar? was irresistible, building steadily toward an epic climax with a ?Civil War? vibe.

Red confetti filled the Gibson Ampitheater as the sticky-sweet ?Paradise City? brought the show to a close, a wall of sparks showering down behind Axl while he wailed into the mic as if it were only yesterday that he ruled the rock world, white spandex shorts and all. There?s never been any shortness of theatrics associated with G?N?R, but these days costume changes and pyrotechnics replace concert no-shows and childish fits.

The band took a final bow to ear-splitting cheers, every one of them smiling genuinely. The only true, classic Guns N? Roses was buried before the turn of the century. Nobody's denying that. Short of a seemingly-impossible reunion of the original members, this is the very closest Rose can come to bringing justice to the name while keeping these songs, these living legends, alive. It's close enough for me.

Having canceled what was intended to be the remaining four dates of the tour to put the final touches on Chinese Democracy, Axl?s apparent new urgency is a good sign. It would seem that this is the last stretch before we finally hear what?s been in the works for a decade, but don?t hold your breath ? it?s been said before. The new tracks are a very promising taste of things to come, and should he finally deliver on this latest deadline, one thing is certain:
2007 will belong to Axl Rose.

Setlist
1. Welcome To The Jungle
2. It's So Easy
3. Mr. Brownstone
4. Live and Let Die
5. Better
6. Robin Finck Solo
7. Sweet Child O' Mine
8. Knockin' On Heaven's Door
9. You Could Be Mine
10. Dizzy Solo ("Angie")
11. The Blues
12. Jam
13. Rocket Queen
14. Down On The Farm
15. Richard Fortus Solo
16. Out Ta Get Me
17. Jam / Axl Solo
18. November Rain
19. Think About You (w/ Izzy)
20. Bumblefoot Solo (Don't Cry)
21. My Michelle (w/ Bach)
22. Patience (w/ Izzy)
23. Nightrain (w/ Izzy)
-------------------------------
24. Chinese Democracy
25. IRS
26. Madagascar
27. Paradise City

Great review, and great pic of Robin and Axl  8)

lucky you :drool:

and I agree, Robin sounds fine to me, I love the guy! my favorite new member : ok:

and to see critics raving for him makes me feel proud somehow lol

Got it.? There's a big difference between appreciating studio/writing contributions and "feeling" that same player in a live setting.? Oftentimes, there's a really poor translation between writing/recording and live shows (To me, Blink-182 epitomizes this...the songs, while bland and predictable, can sometimes be catchy and are well-recorded, yet live...good God, I can't stomach more than a few notes whenever I've seen a televised performance.)?

When I praise Robin, I'm primarily referring to his studio stuff and writing abilities.? Given that I'll be listening to CD far more than I'll be seeing the band live, I'm more forgiving of a sloppy live performance...

 :love: Robin  :love:
This part got me really psyched!  Fuckin' awesome for Robin  : ok:

Yeah, deffinetly the highlight of the article.

And he's right: 2007 is Axl's year.

Off all the reviews mentioning the new songs...has anyone *not* raved about "Better?"? Seems predestined to be the next GnR classic...

Any way to consolodate these two threads on the same thing, Mods?

this review made me wish we had this show on tape.. :drool:

is there a boot of this show out there?

There will be soon, we arranged a fund to buy it for $500 bucks and I think we've just about got that much $.

It looks like the best bootleg of the tour.  :drool:

Now that's  very cool.  Who's the "we" you mention?  What a great show that would be to see/hear...    :beer:

He left Used To Love Her out of the set, and it was most definitely played after Think About You because I remember Izzzy fucking Stradlin teasing the crowd with the intro.

but thats being nitpicky  ;D   Great review!! seriously, its great that so many positive reviews have come out of this tour.  Especially love what he had to say about Robin.

awesome, thanks to everyone that put money for this, and for all the bootlegs for that matter, i love you all :love:

Yep great review, and Robin Rocks!!!

 :peace:

I don' t know if my opinion captures how anyone else feels about Robin's playing, but I'll give it a go.  I don't mean this in a particularly positive or negative way, but his playing, especially solos, seem to give each note its own space.  What I mean, is that each note seems very independent of the one before and after.  I THINK this may be what some mean when they call him sloppy, though I'm not sure it's sloppy so much as it's just his style.  This "spacing" is most obvious (to me) in TWAT, though I can also hear it clearly in the patience solo posted earlier in this thread.  It took me some time to get used to, and I'm not saying it's bad...it's just different.  And, since GNR is a blues based hard rock band, many of the solos from previous material had that feel where each note seems to bleed into the next.  That's not Robin's style, IMO, and I'm sure what HE does will work well when it's featured.  If his style isn't the best to solo on a particular track, well, there ARE three guitarists! 

About the Patience solo - he plays it differently because he wants to. I'm sure he can play it close to or exactly the same as the album version but he doesn't.
IMO , something like the SCOM solo is closer to the original.  But, overall they play the solos differently because they are different people.  A ton of people can mimic the album version exactly but then that wouldn't be good either, at least not to me.

Thanks for the review. I like when they talk about the new songs, but I really don't know what's the deal to say they are a natural evolution from UYIs. I can't see anything in common besides the obvious presence of Axl.

What do you mean? The end of his solo, right? Because the last solo is Richard playing..

IMHO, all the three can play anything Slash wrote perfectly, but it's obvious that they want to put their own touch. Also, if you wonder why Robin gets more spotlight, just listen to Better solo again. ;)

Finck's great live, musically. He was flawless on the 17th. On the 20th, he was obviously drunk, and it showed at times. What? A GN'R guitarist played a gig drunk? I know, but in Robin's case, it bordered on sloppy and careless at times. Slash was drunk and sloppy often, but never careless. My opinion.

Presence wise, I've stated a hundred times I think that black hat in the beginning is just so tacky, lame and unnecessary. Also, there's a fine line between 'confident' and 'cocky', sometimes Robin comes off cocky. When you're assigned the position of filling Slash's shoes (or being Axl's guitar player, whatever you want to call it), he could be a little more personable onstage. In my opinion, he has too many calculated rock star poses and not enough crowd interaction.

Bumblefoot, to me, comes off as a class act as well as a great player. He's personable with fans and obviously grateful to be in the position he's in. Same with Richard, actually...even Tommy has a great sense of humor. I don't get that vibe from Robin.

Robin still gets an 8/10 from me overall, I can't deny he's an amazingly talented player - especially blues stuff.

And come to think about it, I suppose if I were in his shoes I'd need to be extra cocky to get up there and play the Sweet Child riff without having my hands slip up or something.

Oh, and since this is the "Praise Only" GN'R board, even though I say mostly positive things about Robin here, I'll add one more compliment to go alongside the bits of criticism - his writing so far based on what I've heard is fantastic. The Blues solo, the final solo in Better, the music to Better since I understand he wrote a good share of it...all great, great material.

if anyone could get the audio into a seperate file of bumblefoot playing the grinch song id be forever indebted

slash isnt mr crowd interaction himself

Have you guys heard Robin's new solo he plays?  It sounds Zeppelin-ish, and its really awesome.  Robin puts so much emotion into what he plays, it seems like he's putting it all into each note.  There's a youtube vid of it from 12/19.  It's great.  I don't know how you guys can be calling him "sloppy."  Everything doesn't have to sound perfectly right.