Do you miss the "Classic-Rock" vibe in GN'R?

[Mattman]

I do miss the classic rock vibe of GN'R.  They were always touted as the band that returned raw, grimy rock 'n' roll to the charts, and now they're fooling around in neo-industrial noodling.  I always thought that the Illusion albums toed the perfect line between big melodramatic ballads and bluesy hard rockers.  But I think that with the rumours of what CD is gonna sound like, Axl has suddenly taken all the classic rock influences out of there in an attempt to sound "modern".  But what he doesn't get is that the simple hard rockers were the reason people liked GN'R in the first place.  Experiment all you want, but you have to retain some element of what made you famous in the first place, or you lose your soul.

What I don't like is that there's really no way Axl can go back to doing classic rock-style stuff with the current lineup, because these guys simply don't have the image or interest in doing that.  Robin is sort of like a goth kid that likes doing dark industrial stuff, Brain comes from an alternative-metal band, Tommy is a veteran of an old punk band.  Richard Fortus played with bland modern acts like Ben Folds, N'Stync, and Enrique Iglesias.  And the two keyboardists, from what I've heard, are focusing more on electronic experimentation rather than blues piano stuff.

This has zero similarity with the five L.A. scumbags who smoked, drank, and rocked out at the Whiskey back in 1987.  It was the people that made up the original band that gave rise to the Guns N' Roses sound we all know and love.  Now that they're gone, there's no way to go back to the classic rock sound.

One thing I find interesting is that by trying to go for an industrial sound, Axl has now effectively dated his record to 1997.  Nine Inch Nails are more of a cult band these days.

[Continental Drift]

Some very interesting posts here. I would just say that I think it's a common misperception that Axl Rose was once a die-hard lover of classic/blues-based rock. I don't think he ever really was. That was much more Slash and Izzy's thing. I think I've read that "Back in the Saddle Again" by Aerosmith was the song that made Slash want to be a performer, and converesly "Bennie and the Jets" by Elton John was the song that made Axl want to be a performer. Quite a diference there. I just think Axl was always drawn to those artists that thought in terms of huge, sprawling canvases like Elton John, Freddie Mercury, Pink Floyd and later U2 (Achtung Baby era), NIN and just about any other band that made music that sounded "cool" no matter what their style (hence his apparent liking for The Verve and Fiona Apple)- while Slash and Izzy were much more into the "plug-in and rock your ass off" bands like Aerosmith, ACDC, Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, etc.

I think Axl worked well with AFD line-up at the time mostly because he also happened to be one pissed off, meaner than hell 25 year-old and blues-based hard rock was an effective vehicle to express his anger. But I always found it interesting to hear that even at the time AFD was being recorded, Axl was already kicking November Rain around on the piano. So, in sum, I think this is pretty much the direction Axl always wanted to take his career (and Guns N' Roses)- basically assemble a band that would be able and willing to bring HIS sprawling artistic vision to life- no matter what its style happened to be at any given time.

BTW: I don't think the new band does a bad job at all with the old catalog. I wouldn't be surprised at all if there's at least some blues based rock influences on CD.

[Wooody]

It is natural to miss the dead.

But it's dead. I don't want old gnr part 2.

I want to see what the new gnr can do.

  I love rhiad.

[jarmo]

No, the only thing I miss is having GN'R out there kicking ass.

I didn't miss the "classic" U2 sound when they started trying new things either.




/jarmo

[nesquick]

Experiment all you want, but you have to retain some element of what made you famous in the first place, or you lose your soul.

+1. I totally agree with that.

[younggunner]

Some very interesting posts here. I would just say that I think it's a common misperception that Axl Rose was once a die-hard lover of classic/blues-based rock. I don't think he ever really was. That was much more Slash and Izzy's thing. I think I've read that "Back in the Saddle Again" by Aerosmith was the song that made Slash want to be a performer, and converesly "Bennie and the Jets" by Elton John was the song that made Axl want to be a performer. Quite a diference there. I just think Axl was always drawn to those artists that thought in terms of huge, sprawling canvases like Elton John, Freddie Mercury, Pink Floyd and later U2 (Achtung Baby era), NIN and just about any other band that made music that sounded "cool" no matter what their style (hence his apparent liking for The Verve and Fiona Apple)- while Slash and Izzy were much more into the "plug-in and rock your ass off" bands like Aerosmith, ACDC, Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, etc.

I think Axl worked well with AFD line-up at the time mostly because he also happened to be one pissed off, meaner than hell 25 year-old and blues-based hard rock was an effective vehicle to express his anger. But I always found it interesting to hear that even at the time AFD was being recorded, Axl was already kicking November Rain around on the piano. So, in sum, I think this is pretty much the direction Axl always wanted to take his career (and Guns N' Roses)- basically assemble a band that would be able and willing to bring HIS sprawling artistic vision to life- no matter what its style happened to be at any given time.

BTW: I don't think the new band does a bad job at all with the old catalog. I wouldn't be surprised at all if there's at least some blues based rock influences on CD.

excellent post

People have said that the album is going to be more blues based rock than you all think. I dont know how yiu get industrial out of those kinds of descriptions but its not the case. I definitely think there will be industrial elements on cd but nothing too drastic. I think its gonna be guitar driven axl wailen gnr ....with some axl epics thrown in

[journey]

I like the new songs. AFD is great, but that was then and things have changed. I don't want a repeat of the same kind of music/attitude. When artists produce one type of sound over and over, it makes them seem one dimensional.

So, it'll be refreshing to hear something different.

[makemyday]

Some of the bands I like, try to be different with each album and no matter how much I liked this or that album I don't miss that sound and I don't want them to? make the same on the new album. So if chinese democracy will have kick ass songs I'll be fine. But yeah we don't have anything to compare. Back in '99/2000 there were a lot of rumors and information that the new album will be an indrustial one (it was even in TV and in magazines) and still can decide how many of these were true info and how many were only based on? just 'Oh, My God'.

[Lady Livin]

Some very interesting posts here. I would just say that I think it's a common misperception that Axl Rose was once a die-hard lover of classic/blues-based rock. I don't think he ever really was. That was much more Slash and Izzy's thing. I think I've read that "Back in the Saddle Again" by Aerosmith was the song that made Slash want to be a performer, and converesly "Bennie and the Jets" by Elton John was the song that made Axl want to be a performer. Quite a diference there. I just think Axl was always drawn to those artists that thought in terms of huge, sprawling canvases like Elton John, Freddie Mercury, Pink Floyd and later U2 (Achtung Baby era), NIN and just about any other band that made music that sounded "cool" no matter what their style (hence his apparent liking for The Verve and Fiona Apple)- while Slash and Izzy were much more into the "plug-in and rock your ass off" bands like Aerosmith, ACDC, Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, etc.

I think Axl worked well with AFD line-up at the time mostly because he also happened to be one pissed off, meaner than hell 25 year-old and blues-based hard rock was an effective vehicle to express his anger. But I always found it interesting to hear that even at the time AFD was being recorded, Axl was already kicking November Rain around on the piano. So, in sum, I think this is pretty much the direction Axl always wanted to take his career (and Guns N' Roses)- basically assemble a band that would be able and willing to bring HIS sprawling artistic vision to life- no matter what its style happened to be at any given time.

BTW: I don't think the new band does a bad job at all with the old catalog. I wouldn't be surprised at all if there's at least some blues based rock influences on CD.

Grrrreat post, man. It reminds me to keep that type of perspective again.

[disease51883]

Yeah, I was going to say that that was a good post, but I was lazy when I read it before.. Made me look at things a little differently..

[Mattman]

Some very interesting posts here. I would just say that I think it's a common misperception that Axl Rose was once a die-hard lover of classic/blues-based rock. I don't think he ever really was. That was much more Slash and Izzy's thing. I think I've read that "Back in the Saddle Again" by Aerosmith was the song that made Slash want to be a performer, and converesly "Bennie and the Jets" by Elton John was the song that made Axl want to be a performer. Quite a diference there. I just think Axl was always drawn to those artists that thought in terms of huge, sprawling canvases like Elton John, Freddie Mercury, Pink Floyd and later U2 (Achtung Baby era), NIN and just about any other band that made music that sounded "cool" no matter what their style (hence his apparent liking for The Verve and Fiona Apple)- while Slash and Izzy were much more into the "plug-in and rock your ass off" bands like Aerosmith, ACDC, Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, etc.

Good call.  Axl was always more into that balladic, epic kind of music.  But I'm starting to wonder if he hasn't gotten two caught up in the ballads on this album.  I've heard a lot more ballads than I have rockers, and too many ballads are bound to slow down an album's flow.

I like the new songs. AFD is great, but that was then and things have changed. I don't want a repeat of the same kind of music/attitude. When artists produce one type of sound over and over, it makes them seem one dimensional.

So, it'll be refreshing to hear something different.

I generally have that same attitude to music, but I would still prefer to hear at least some semblance of the old GN'R.  I'm a Guns N' Roses fan, not a Nine Inch Nails fan, and I don't want to see an album where Axl tries to imitate NIN rather than playing up his own strengths.  You know, I'll be glad to see Axl try out new stuff, but I wish he could do it while retaining some of the Gunners' old hard rock bluster.

Now, my only question is, why are people so open to Guns N' Roses radically altering their sound, and yet when Metallica does the same thing, people go "SELL OUT! SELL OUT!" or say that they're betraying their fans?

[Lady Livin]

>> Now, my only question is, why are people so open to Guns N' Roses radically altering their sound, and yet when Metallica does the same thing, people go "SELL OUT! SELL OUT!" or say that they're betraying their fans?

They want them to stay twenty-three years old for the rest of their lives, and basically feel they betrayed their "roots." Their former fans are more knuckleheaded than metalheaded, though. Jaymz was and is in the same boat as Axl; they both didn't grow up on the hardest rock n' roll, but they incorporated their aggression and "apocalyptic" mentality into the type of hard rock they performed with. It blended wonderfully, but they have every right to do whatever the hell they want with their music and vision, in my opinion.

[Mikkamakka]

I do miss the classic rock vibe of GN'R.? They were always touted as the band that returned raw, grimy rock 'n' roll to the charts, and now they're fooling around in neo-industrial noodling.? I always thought that the Illusion albums toed the perfect line between big melodramatic ballads and bluesy hard rockers.? But I think that with the rumours of what CD is gonna sound like, Axl has suddenly taken all the classic rock influences out of there in an attempt to sound "modern".? But what he doesn't get is that the simple hard rockers were the reason people liked GN'R in the first place.? Experiment all you want, but you have to retain some element of what made you famous in the first place, or you lose your soul.

What I don't like is that there's really no way Axl can go back to doing classic rock-style stuff with the current lineup, because these guys simply don't have the image or interest in doing that.? Robin is sort of like a goth kid that likes doing dark industrial stuff, Brain comes from an alternative-metal band, Tommy is a veteran of an old punk band.? Richard Fortus played with bland modern acts like Ben Folds, N'Stync, and Enrique Iglesias.? And the two keyboardists, from what I've heard, are focusing more on electronic experimentation rather than blues piano stuff.

This has zero similarity with the five L.A. scumbags who smoked, drank, and rocked out at the Whiskey back in 1987.? It was the people that made up the original band that gave rise to the Guns N' Roses sound we all know and love.? Now that they're gone, there's no way to go back to the classic rock sound.

One thing I find interesting is that by trying to go for an industrial sound, Axl has now effectively dated his record to 1997.? Nine Inch Nails are more of a cult band these days.

Some very interesting posts here. I would just say that I think it's a common misperception that Axl Rose was once a die-hard lover of classic/blues-based rock. I don't think he ever really was. That was much more Slash and Izzy's thing. I think I've read that "Back in the Saddle Again" by Aerosmith was the song that made Slash want to be a performer, and converesly "Bennie and the Jets" by Elton John was the song that made Axl want to be a performer. Quite a diference there. I just think Axl was always drawn to those artists that thought in terms of huge, sprawling canvases like Elton John, Freddie Mercury, Pink Floyd and later U2 (Achtung Baby era), NIN and just about any other band that made music that sounded "cool" no matter what their style (hence his apparent liking for The Verve and Fiona Apple)- while Slash and Izzy were much more into the "plug-in and rock your ass off" bands like Aerosmith, ACDC, Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, etc.

I think Axl worked well with AFD line-up at the time mostly because he also happened to be one pissed off, meaner than hell 25 year-old and blues-based hard rock was an effective vehicle to express his anger. But I always found it interesting to hear that even at the time AFD was being recorded, Axl was already kicking November Rain around on the piano. So, in sum, I think this is pretty much the direction Axl always wanted to take his career (and Guns N' Roses)- basically assemble a band that would be able and willing to bring HIS sprawling artistic vision to life- no matter what its style happened to be at any given time.

BTW: I don't think the new band does a bad job at all with the old catalog. I wouldn't be surprised at all if there's at least some blues based rock influences on CD.

Great posts! Kinda sums my opinion except Mao's last two sentences. I think Axl is closer to UYIs than AFD musically, some parts of the new stuff was decent (but IMO very far from the old catalogue) like Blues and Madagascar, but the other songs which were considered to be 'harder' songs lacks the musical quality, those are dumb new metal cliches. And the only good guitar moment of Nu-GN'R is the solo of The Blues, and it's quite said. As Axl is doing a great job on the new songs, unfortunately I can't find the new music interesting in any way, for me the new music is quite boring, uninspired or even worse (Silkworms). I have no problem with Axl being obsessed with piano-based music, cause it fits him, unlike the old GN'R rockers - when he's singing them he looks and sounds like a parody of himself.

I'm still looking forward to hear the new songs, and I hope that Axl will show his talent, his part of Guns N' Roses on that.

[Wooody]

If you want boring and uninspired go listen to contraband 

[Mikkamakka]

If you want boring and uninspired go listen to contraband?

It's a shame that some of you turn everything into a Nu-GN'R vs VR thread. With some intelligence you can rid of this stupid habit 

[Wooody]

If you want boring and uninspired go listen to contraband?

It's a shame that some of you turn everything into a Nu-GN'R vs VR thread. With some intelligence you can rid of this stupid habit?

You started, you're always bashing the New GNR.

If you had some intelligence you would stay on the VR section. But we  know that won't happen. 

[Mikkamakka]

If you want boring and uninspired go listen to contraband?

It's a shame that some of you turn everything into a Nu-GN'R vs VR thread. With some intelligence you can rid of this stupid habit?

You started, you're always bashing the New GNR.

If you had some intelligence you would stay on the VR section. But we? know that won't happen.?

Since I'm a fan of Axl I visit the Nu-GN'R section as well. I'm not bashing Nu-GN'R, it is my opinion. It's not a religion, some of you are so obsessed that if we had been living in the Middle Ages, you would have burnt us, 'doubters', 'heretics'. If we were living under some communist or nazi government, you would surely kill us on other 'creative' ways. GN'R is my all-time favourite band, but I'm not impressed with the new songs, cause I'm sure that Axl can do much better - although his vocals are the only parts of the new songs I fing good, sometimes great. Being a fan doesn't mean you can't say that if something smells like shit, looks like shit and tastes likes shit then it's shit. (Replace the word 'shit' with mediocre.) But there is some intelligence needed to understand this, so keep on posting mate  I still believe that Axl would deserve much better music to write lyrics and vocal melodies for, and I think he's able to make much better music that the last we've heard from him. (Before you ask I think that VR can make a much better album than CB, although I like the record.)

[jarmo]

Are you two done?




/jarmo

[Continental Drift]

Wow. Thanks for the positive feedback on my post guys.

Of course, I'm just speculating like anyone else. This thread has been a very interesting read though!

BTW: if you haven't tried this before... go listen to "Bennie and the Jets" followed by "Back in the Saddle Again" and vice versa. It's pretty f'n interesting. The great diveristy in tastes (don't forget to throw in Duff's punk roots) was both that which made GN'R so damn "listenable" to so many different types of people and also probably the thing that put them out of business when they no longer could agree.

[badapple81]

Lucky we have Velvet Revolver for the classic rock?

When Axl releases his stuff, we'll have the best of both worlds I guess.

I don't care anymore who uses which name and who plays with who.. and what type of music they play.. I just miss seeing Axl playing.. as long as they are all out there kicking ass I'm happy.