Spinal Tap

[GNRLived]

Ive been a GNR fan for 20 years, never seen them live but I have followed GNR for the best part of my life. Ive been reading this site since it started. After watching the Lisbon show on the internet I am very skeptical about attending my first GNR show. I have convinced the majority of my mates to go who are also GNR (ex GNR - cos thats all they can go by) fans and I am starting to worry that this is going to be shit.

I am worried that Axl is going in the wrong direction with this band and returning to the SOAP Opera days of GNR. Most people became guns fans because the of pure Rockin n Roll substance they had between 87 - 91.
-- Out of control
-- Rock n Roll
-- Unreal musicians
-- Sounded great
-- Axl tore up the stage. Non stop movement in his own unique way.
-- Basically Axl was the best front man in the world, Slash the best (Iconic) guitarist, Izzy added the Rockin n Roll touch, Duff was the punk & Popcorn or Sorum filled the disco beats.

They lost a lot of fans after 92 because the band became a bloated heap of Rock Opera (No new music, 80 dress code, Horn Sections, Costume changes, Long gaps between songs, A Fat turd of a Keyboard player(paid to bang a tambourine -> Teddy) and a band who was becoming FAT & disorientated.

I was originally convinced that AXL was going in the right direction:
-- Full attention on the music. Bringing back the raw days of GNR.
-- Writing dynamic and complex tunes that played Live would become Epics (Madagascar, Blues).

After watching Lisbon I am now afraid Axl is going to become Spinal Tap.

-- A shit load of musicians with no direction.
-- Changing clothes in between each song.
-- Long delays between each song.
-- Bringing the half empty wine bottle on stage to scream "You know where the fuck you are"
-- Pretending that the "James Brown" tune was improvisation and jamming? The cheesy laugh after the song as if to say "that was kinda cool", even though he did the exact same thing the other night. His "oooo Yeahs" that he sings while improvising sound like the fuckin shit that ruined the Sympathy for the Devil cover.
-- Guitar solo's & drum solo's.
-- That stupid fucking sound control monitor he has attached to his hip.
-- The 2 miles an hour Serpentine Dance (a sign of a chunky has been).
-- The vegas style to the show (that will not go down well in UK & Ireland). Anything cheap and Americanised can fuck back off across the sea. Introducing the band in the final part of the heaviest GNR tune (paradise city).
-- One of their lead guitarists joining the band 2 weeks before the tour.

I am also worried about AXLs voice. He sounds like he is holding back incase he fucks up a note hear or there. Rather than sing the songs he is simply just trying to get the words out in a raspy sounding voice. I think he should hold back on singing Better (I fuckin love the Demo) and IRS until he has practiced singing the melodies a million times over.He is doing these songs no Justice at all. His voice is all over the place.

Seriously I want this to work as much as anyone else. I do not have Slash hanging out of my ass (I hate VRs song writing capabilities) & I am certainly not living in the past (I am interested in both new and classic rock).

I think the following are lame ass excuses:
-- He?s 44 (he chose to make his fuckin comeback now and not 10 years ago).
-- The monitor blew up. Fuck off. U2 have played 1000 gigs with absolute perfect sound (P.S I am not a U2 fan). Either pay for a decent sound engineer or rehearse ( and sing in fuckin rehearsals ).

I see a GNR fence.
On one side you have the media that have there reviews written before the gig even starts. The AXL haters.
On the other side you have people who see the sun shining out of AXLs ass. If he walked on stage, took & turd and left, these people would say ?Amazing. What a turd. He?s 44 that?s why it was that color. It?s a far better turd than what Slash could do etc etc.

I like to believe I am sitting on top of the fence and observing from a realistic point of view.
Axl please return GNR back to its roots, whether with the New Version or the Old. Bring it back to the music. No Vegas. No cheese. No spinal tap. Run that stage like the lunatic you use to be. Rockin Roll should not be perfect. But it should Roll.

Slate my ass!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[The Hinge]

I thought that was a good post. some good points

[KeVoRkIaN]

I do have to say that the crowd reaction of Izzy joining the band in NYC made me think of Nigel Tufnel joining the band before Japan - but in all seriousness - I like the new band fine right now.

[WhosGilby?]

Definitley don't judge the band by what you saw at Rock In Rio the shows that I saw in New York were the greatest Iv' ever seen

[AXL 20]

ok then dont see the band, and sit at home hating free countrires  its all good, no 44 year old turd really needs you anyways

[GNRLived]

Hopefully so. I hope the new guys do it.
I will be surrounded by people expecting an Indiana 91 like Axl performance.
Mic slinging, rage flinging, grooving, rasping motherfucker!!!!.

[WARose]

i`m fine with the direction the new band is going at....

the band introduction in paradise city wasn?t meant to take place originally i think. they had to cut early and axl didn`t want to miss that....  what else do you mean with vegas style of the show?

and well....  i don`t really love america, but this americanized gigs seem to please me

i won`t judge about rio until i get to hear a proper recording. the one we got doesn`t to justice to the band and axl?s voice. i`ll see gnr this friday at rock am ring for the first time in my life and i`ll build my opinion there.

in the meantime, i really enjoyed ALL the solos from the rio show. if you don?t like the guys who play them, of if you don`t care about them, you also won`t enjoy the solos....

the lead guitarist, who joined the band 2 weeks before the tour and the half empty bottle of champagne didn?t bother me at all...  as axl said.....  he`s a three week wonder

[WARose]

Hopefully so. I hope the new guys do it.
I will be surrounded by people expecting an Indiana 91 like Axl performance.
Mic slinging, rage flinging, grooving, rasping motherfucker!!!!.

at least they won?t be dissapointed if axl`s voice fucks up then

seriously, if someone expects to see the same performance from axl now, he delivered 15-20 years ago he`ll be dissapointed anyways....

[GNRLived]

ok then dont see the band, and sit at home hating free countrires  its all good, no 44 year old turd really needs you anyways

Im from a free country (Ireland) and if you think America is free well then you will be shocked when you take a trip across the water and look at it from the outside. The government is fake, fraud and resembles a dictatorship lead by an unintelligent twat. Its not the land of high hopes that it was early 90's. The Statue of Liberty would look better in a pair of hotpants to resemble America's current state.

That does not mean that there is not loads of great people living there. Just means you aint as free as what you think. Texas presses your buttons. The wrong buttons.

[GNRLived]

ok then dont see the band, and sit at home hating free countrires  its all good, no 44 year old turd really needs you anyways

Im from a free country (Ireland) and if you think America is free well then you will be shocked when you take a trip across the water and look at it from the outside. The government is fake, fraud and resembles a dictatorship lead by an unintelligent twat. Its not the land of high hopes that it was early 90's. The Statue of Liberty would look better in a pair of hotpants to resemble America's current state.

That does not mean that there is not loads of great people living there. Just means you aint as free as what you think. Texas presses your buttons. The wrong buttons.

Sorry that was a bit harsh. Nothing against texas. I meant bushe and his cowboy machine. He has become the joke of the political world and hopefully America can fully recover when he's out. By recover I mean sort the shit of Iraq and start working on its reputation on a global perspective again. Maybe  then the biggest band in the World will once more be American and hopefully Axl will be its lead singer.

[TheMole]

Im from a free country (Ireland) and if you think America is free well then you will be shocked when you take a trip across the water and look at it from the outside. The government is fake, fraud and resembles a dictatorship lead by an unintelligent twat. Its not the land of high hopes that it was early 90's. The Statue of Liberty would look better in a pair of hotpants to resemble America's current state.

That does not mean that there is not loads of great people living there. Just means you aint as free as what you think. Texas presses your buttons. The wrong buttons.

I'm from Belgium... I got all worked up and ecstatic about them changing the name of French Fries (since they're not French at all, they're a Belgian invention you know)... until I found out they decided to change it to freedom fries...

Now seriously, let's not get into politics here huh. I think you made a pretty reasonable post, AXL 20 obviously didn't... just... don't... go there...


*edit* sorry, didn't see your follow-up...

[faldor]

I think you've seemed to answer your own questions.  It sounds to me like you wouldn't enjoy the show at all, so I wouldn't go if I were you.  I don't agree with your points, but you obviouslly have some strong convictions and it doesn't appear you're willing to back down from them, so don't go.  You'll just allow yourself to be dissappointed.

[GNRLived]

I think you've seemed to answer your own questions.  It sounds to me like you wouldn't enjoy the show at all, so I wouldn't go if I were you.  I don't agree with your points, but you obviouslly have some strong convictions and it doesn't appear you're willing to back down from them, so don't go.  You'll just allow yourself to be dissappointed.

You could be right. I do like a lot of elements of what I have seen from the new GNR. I am only writing comments about what I observed from my first Live video I have of the new crew.

If Lisbon is to judge I think you may be correct in that I will not enjoy the "Show". If the "Show" is a little out of sorts and lacks CHEESE I recon I can defo like it. Its the Cheese / Spinal Tap stuff that does not belong in GNR. Hopefully we will get a New York part 5 in Ireland and not a Madrid/Lisbon "Show".

[Tomorrows]

I see where youre coming from. Good post, that bit about Teddy Zig Zag cracked me up and the final bit about him taking a turd.

But, I think the album will be the most telling thing about how successful the new band is or otherwise.

[Oh My Choking Soul]

Whoa!!! I am from Canada living in Texas, I have been across the pond and just because the president is an ass doesn't mean the people here aren't great!

Think twice before you trash an entire country, the people here are no different than the folks in Ireland, I travel around the world with my job and I travel alot. The Irish have thier problems, as does America, the fact is, there are plenty of "free" counties even though Americans lose sight of that at times. But to be fair the world judges America on thier president and if I did that I would not have met my amazing Texas American wife, and I take exception to anyone ignorant enought to judge a person by thier leader of the stigma attached to thier country. Any Germans on this board, French, Chinese? Every country has had thier history of problems... maybe ours is now.

[faldor]

I think you've seemed to answer your own questions.? It sounds to me like you wouldn't enjoy the show at all, so I wouldn't go if I were you.? I don't agree with your points, but you obviouslly have some strong convictions and it doesn't appear you're willing to back down from them, so don't go.? You'll just allow yourself to be dissappointed.

You could be right. I do like a lot of elements of what I have seen from the new GNR. I am only writing comments about what I observed from my first Live video I have of the new crew.

If Lisbon is to judge I think you may be correct in that I will not enjoy the "Show". If the "Show" is a little out of sorts and lacks CHEESE I recon I can defo like it. Its the Cheese / Spinal Tap stuff that does not belong in GNR. Hopefully we will get a New York part 5 in Ireland and not a Madrid/Lisbon "Show".

Unfortunately I think you're not likely to get a NY part 5. ?That was a very intimate setting with mostly hardcore GNR fans. ?These larger shows aren't likely to match the intensity. ?I still think they'll be great and definitely worth seeing but if you didn't like the other night you may not enjoy seeing them live. ?Try to catch the show on June 2, I believe that'll be streamed too. ?If your opinion changes then, then you've got your answer.

[Tomorrows]

I think you've seemed to answer your own questions.  It sounds to me like you wouldn't enjoy the show at all, so I wouldn't go if I were you.  I don't agree with your points, but you obviouslly have some strong convictions and it doesn't appear you're willing to back down from them, so don't go.  You'll just allow yourself to be dissappointed.

You could be right. I do like a lot of elements of what I have seen from the new GNR. I am only writing comments about what I observed from my first Live video I have of the new crew.

If Lisbon is to judge I think you may be correct in that I will not enjoy the "Show". If the "Show" is a little out of sorts and lacks CHEESE I recon I can defo like it. Its the Cheese / Spinal Tap stuff that does not belong in GNR. Hopefully we will get a New York part 5 in Ireland and not a Madrid/Lisbon "Show".

As far as cheese goes, things have definately improved since the 90s. No Tracy and Roberta. No Ego ramps. No Teddy Zig Zag. No kilts. etc.

The only cheese as I see it really is the excessive solos. (Chris Pittman doesnt count since you hardly see him)

[GnR-NOW]

i think his points are valid, but this isnt 1987, and if Axl were still doing the same routine he did in 1987 then that would be boring. ?I think to a certain degree he re-invented himself, but its hard to re-invent something that was so big during that 87-93 time frame. ?I think, and I ve said this way before they tour started, that they need to make sure there is no sound problems, there was were alot in 02, and theres not a better way to piss off the fans then to have sound problems. ?I think it is necessary to fix those and continue to give the fans the best sound possible at the shows. ?

[killingvector]

-- A shit load of musicians with no direction.

what exactly do you mean by no direction? Robin Finck, Tommy Stinson, and Richard Fortus are very accomplished musicians. Ron Thal is respected for this precision axework in the community. Brain is a much sought after session and touring player. These guys are solid. No direction? They have completed three albums worth of material and are planning a release this fall. I think that is a step in the right direction.

-- Changing clothes in between each song.

Axl didn't change his clothes between each song. In the NYC shows, he didn't change clothes once. As we get to larger venues in which he can run around more, he will change clothes simply because he will perspire more. I don't think he was overextravagent in Lisbon.

- Long delays between each song.

there were sound problems at RiR; Merck mentioned that a sound monitor blew up. The band stalled several times so that the problem could be fixed but apparently they could only do so much.

-- One of their lead guitarists joining the band 2 weeks before the tour.

It was a prop. A cool touch back to the old days. I really don't see why this is a point of contention.

-- Pretending that the "James Brown" tune was improvisation and jamming? The cheesy laugh after the song as if to say "that was kinda cool", even though he did the exact same thing the other night. His "oooo Yeahs" that he sings while improvising sound like the fuckin shit that ruined the Sympathy for the Devil cover.

Once again, they were trying to solve the sound problems. They stalled as much as they could, even had to omit new songs in order to finish on time.

-- That stupid fucking sound control monitor he has attached to his hip.

Ummm, Axl cannot hear himself without the ear monitor. Why don't you try singing with a freight train blasting in your ears. It is necessary.

-- The 2 miles an hour Serpentine Dance (a sign of a chunky has been).

Axl has been moving beautifully. I went to NYC and his dancing was terrific. Merck said he pulled a muscle during the RiR show, perhaps that slowed him down.

-- The vegas style to the show (that will not go down well in UK & Ireland). Anything cheap and Americanised can fuck back off across the sea. Introducing the band in the final part of the heaviest GNR tune (paradise city).

huh? such as what? The show isn't half as bloated as it was during the UYI tour.

-- One of their lead guitarists joining the band 2 weeks before the tour.

Management tried to get buckethead back for the tour but it was not to be. The band did what it had to do and hired someone else. You complained about the lack of dangerousness, is there anything more spontaneous than hiring a guy who barely had a chance to learn the songs. You will see raw ability up there on stage.


Axl's voice is great. Back to the illusions days.

[badintentions]

i can assure you that we are not free here in america. the government openly listens to phone calls and reads through emails. all under the guise of "the patriot act". they can search our homes without warrants and everything. Bush is a moron and anyone that supports him is twice as stupid as he is. anyone that gets inspired by his retarded speechs spewing catch words like "liberty" "terror" "freedom" is not intelligent. another funny thing is pretty much the attitude from bush is if you are against his presidency and the freedoms he's taken away then you yourself are a terrorist. its like the book 1984 in this bitch. free my ass!

back on topic:

That is pretty cheesy to act like you were improving (James Brown song) when it was done at another recent show. I have never been a fan of all the solos (saw them in 02, great show, the solos were stupid). And introducing the band is never cool, always cheesy. That said, I like the new GNR. The new songs kick ass.