Contraband Review of AxlGreece

[Jizzo]

Well I'll judge it for myself at midnight on the morning of the 8th. Somewhere better be open in la for this

[RnT]

I have one

when you heard the album for the first time, did you tought "woww, better look out NEW GNR !!" ?

(not in a bad way, not "choosing just one band to like" )

I liked.
JUST liked.
good songs.
good hard/dark rock.
SLASH and DUFF.
STP = A LOT! ( that?s why I liked more )

I just didn?t like YGNR, don?t know why

peace  

[younggunner]

Mysteron...can you recite the chorus to "DIrty Little Thing" for me? I'm very interested in this song....

[littlewing]

Well I'll judge it for myself at midnight on the morning of the 8th. Somewhere better be open in la for this

I'd hope at least the Tower on Sunset would be... I'm going to call them to see if they'll be open for it. If not, the Besy Buy's in my area are pretty notorious for ignoring release dates and putting stuff out early by a day or two (boost sales maybe?).

[Mysteron]

Mysteron...can you recite the chorus to "DIrty Little Thing" for me? I'm very interested in this song....

Not at this very moment in time as I am off to the airport in 5. It was a fast song that I didn't like if I remember, and anyways I'm sure I have seen the lyrics on the web somewhere anyway. If not, email someone who has reviewed it in a magazine

[sandman]

Hi, first of all let me start by saying that I really like Scott Weiland, Slash, Duff and Dave. I will compare at some moment this album with Axl's latest songs, so don't start "not again...".

I like Matt but I always prefered Steven. However things have changed on my taste about Matt...

Anyway, I had the luck to have the album (with some official promo gifts) sent to me by BMG Greece because I'm organising an Official Presentation of the album in my town (which is something I'm good at...).

I've been listening to the album for too many hours so that I could make up my mind about this review.

A Dark, Hard Rock album which might not bring rock music back to the charts but it will definitely help.

The great surprises for me were 2. Matt's improvement in playing (which was fuckin' awesome) and the small changes in Set Me Free, that made it a lot cooler.

You'll notice that there are some small changes in Set Me Free (guitars, vocals), the time is still the same. It's probably because of the new producer.

We've all heard Slither by now so I won't talk about it.

Now, the DIAMONDS of this album are YOU GOT NO RIGHT, FALL TO PIECES, HEADSPACE, DIRTY LITTLE THING, ILLEGAL I SONG, LOVING THE ALIEN.

YOU GOT NO RIGHT is just amazing. I loved this song from the moment I heard the first riff at the fashion show. I rarely have a wrong opinion if a song is going to be a hit or not. This song is gonna be huge (at least between VR's fans, like Estranged). The lyrics are great and Slash's solo is just out of this world.

FALL TO PIECES. Another great ballad written about Scott's problems with his wife (which are now past, at least I hope so cause this song should make her go back to Scott). Slash has come up with another great melody.

HEADSPACE. Isn't all that original? hehehe... Don't fuck with Scott. He'll beat the shit out of you. Just don't fuck with his HEADSPACE...

DIRTY LITTLE THING. Written about Paris Hilton (according to an interview). A fast rocker. I really like this song. "Get away from the life you're living".

ILLEGAL I SONG. Keep The Money Bitch... says it all...

LOVING THE ALIEN. Another cool ballad. The lyrics are not the best but it has a really cool melody so it "makes" you like it.

Sucker Train Blues. A good song. Nice intro to the album. Fast, catchy.

Do It For The Kids. A little punk. Probably Duff's work. Slash's guitar is really hot on this one.

Big Machine. Not my favorite song, but I like it.

Spectacle. Hard rock, just good.

Superhuman. Good one but not great.

Set Me Free. You gotta love this new version. If you liked the original, you'll love this one.

Slither. We've all heard it, we've all liked it.

Bodies. Good cover.

Overall it's a great record. It's definitely not GN'R or STP. It's Velvet Revolver.

The lyrics are sometimes great and sometimes just good. Don't expect GN'R's lyrics. They're more in the style of STP, but a lot darker. But the music is Velvet Revolver.

I don't know if it's gonna be a huge success as a record but some singles have all the potential to go to really high places on the charts.

That's all from me, if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask.

.christos.
velvetrevolver.gr

Cool :-)

I've had the album for a couple of weeks now and I'd give it 5, maybe 6 out of 10

It sounds rushed, there are some poor tracks, and some of the production sounds slightly off

Loving the Alien is a nice track, Kids is also a catchy track. The faster ones such as Superhuman though sound quite poor. You got no Right though gets better as you listen

So, an ok first attempt, but I wish they had taken maybe 6 months more over it

i'm shocked that someone with your knowledge, connections, expertise, etc. would assume that more time = a better album. IMO that makes no sense.

were just trying to take a shot at the band??

[younggunner]

and anyways I'm sure I have seen the lyrics on the web somewhere anyway. If not, email someone who has reviewed it in a magazin

Na, iVe searched the web....why should i email a magazine when you have the album? So when you get a chance can you please recite me the chorus...thanks bud

[Christos AG]

i'm shocked that someone with your knowledge, connections, expertise, etc. would assume that more time = a better album. IMO that makes no sense.

were just trying to take a shot at the band??

I believe that it's just his opinion... Nothing more.

[Mysteron]

and anyways I'm sure I have seen the lyrics on the web somewhere anyway. If not, email someone who has reviewed it in a magazin

Na, iVe searched the web....why should i email a magazine when you have the album? So when you get a chance can you please recite me the chorus...thanks bud

My nephew has the album and will also be looking after my network/computer accounts during my absence, so I will ask him to look

[younggunner]

thanks

[Mysteron]

Hi, first of all let me start by saying that I really like Scott Weiland, Slash, Duff and Dave. I will compare at some moment this album with Axl's latest songs, so don't start "not again...".

I like Matt but I always prefered Steven. However things have changed on my taste about Matt...

Anyway, I had the luck to have the album (with some official promo gifts) sent to me by BMG Greece because I'm organising an Official Presentation of the album in my town (which is something I'm good at...).

I've been listening to the album for too many hours so that I could make up my mind about this review.

A Dark, Hard Rock album which might not bring rock music back to the charts but it will definitely help.

The great surprises for me were 2. Matt's improvement in playing (which was fuckin' awesome) and the small changes in Set Me Free, that made it a lot cooler.

You'll notice that there are some small changes in Set Me Free (guitars, vocals), the time is still the same. It's probably because of the new producer.

We've all heard Slither by now so I won't talk about it.

Now, the DIAMONDS of this album are YOU GOT NO RIGHT, FALL TO PIECES, HEADSPACE, DIRTY LITTLE THING, ILLEGAL I SONG, LOVING THE ALIEN.

YOU GOT NO RIGHT is just amazing. I loved this song from the moment I heard the first riff at the fashion show. I rarely have a wrong opinion if a song is going to be a hit or not. This song is gonna be huge (at least between VR's fans, like Estranged). The lyrics are great and Slash's solo is just out of this world.

FALL TO PIECES. Another great ballad written about Scott's problems with his wife (which are now past, at least I hope so cause this song should make her go back to Scott). Slash has come up with another great melody.

HEADSPACE. Isn't all that original? hehehe... Don't fuck with Scott. He'll beat the shit out of you. Just don't fuck with his HEADSPACE...

DIRTY LITTLE THING. Written about Paris Hilton (according to an interview). A fast rocker. I really like this song. "Get away from the life you're living".

ILLEGAL I SONG. Keep The Money Bitch... says it all...

LOVING THE ALIEN. Another cool ballad. The lyrics are not the best but it has a really cool melody so it "makes" you like it.

Sucker Train Blues. A good song. Nice intro to the album. Fast, catchy.

Do It For The Kids. A little punk. Probably Duff's work. Slash's guitar is really hot on this one.

Big Machine. Not my favorite song, but I like it.

Spectacle. Hard rock, just good.

Superhuman. Good one but not great.

Set Me Free. You gotta love this new version. If you liked the original, you'll love this one.

Slither. We've all heard it, we've all liked it.

Bodies. Good cover.

Overall it's a great record. It's definitely not GN'R or STP. It's Velvet Revolver.

The lyrics are sometimes great and sometimes just good. Don't expect GN'R's lyrics. They're more in the style of STP, but a lot darker. But the music is Velvet Revolver.

I don't know if it's gonna be a huge success as a record but some singles have all the potential to go to really high places on the charts.

That's all from me, if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask.

.christos.
velvetrevolver.gr

Cool :-)

I've had the album for a couple of weeks now and I'd give it 5, maybe 6 out of 10

It sounds rushed, there are some poor tracks, and some of the production sounds slightly off

Loving the Alien is a nice track, Kids is also a catchy track. The faster ones such as Superhuman though sound quite poor. You got no Right though gets better as you listen

So, an ok first attempt, but I wish they had taken maybe 6 months more over it

i'm shocked that someone with your knowledge, connections, expertise, etc. would assume that more time = a better album. IMO that makes no sense.

were just trying to take a shot at the band??

Good lord, no

With Velvet Revolver I see a band that need more band development time. They need a bigger pool of songs, they need more time on the road, and basically just more time to get to know each other and their songs

What I see in Contraband is an excellent EP of 4-6 songs that should have been released instead. Contraband itself will get 6-8 out of 10 rating, but there is a 9-10 out of 10 rated EP there that would have sold the band better at this stage (in my opinion, of course). The band should have also toured alot more before finally releasing an album. Only through playing material over and over again live do you get the best sound for all of the songs. Kids live, as well as Slither live are far superior to the recorded versions

On the flipside, with Janes Addiction recent album, I think they took too long over the new album. Some of the earlier demo's were far superior to released songs

The good thing though with VR is that they are showing promise, which is the most important thing

[sandman]

mysteron - now i understand a little better where you're coming from. thanks for the explanation.

i still disagree somewhat. it sounds like you're talking from a record label's point of view - like you want rock n roll to be all about what the masses will enjoy.

i haven't heard the album, but i think VR finalized the songs when they sounded the way THEY wanted them to sound. and an additional six months wouldn't have changed anything as far as the album goes.

maybe i'm naive, but i believe they are recording what's inside them.

[Jizzo]

Well I'll judge it for myself at midnight on the morning of the 8th. Somewhere better be open in la for this

I'd hope at least the Tower on Sunset would be... I'm going to call them to see if they'll be open for it. If not, the Besy Buy's in my area are pretty notorious for ignoring release dates and putting stuff out early by a day or two (boost sales maybe?).

Let me know what tower says. I'm actually seeing a band at the roxy that night so I'll be like a block from it.