Possible news from Best Buy...

[pilferk]

http://www.gigwise.com/news/46377/guns-n-roses-chinese-democracy-to-get-november-release

I'm not sure if they have confirmation, or if this is just an amalgamation of all the rumors:

"Guns N' Roses long awaited studio album 'Chinese Democracy' will be released on November 25th, according to new reports.

The album, which has been in production for over 14 years, will be available exclusively in Best Buy stores.

According to internet reports, the band's manager, Andy Gould, informed 900 employees at the retail store this week, before playing them three songs from the record.

Gould is also reported to have informed them that a new song, 'If The World', will feature in the forthcoming movie, Body of Lies, which stars Russell Crowe and Leonardo DiCaprio.

'Chinese Democracy' is understood to have cost frontman Axl Rose $2milllion to make.

In June, a number of songs, purported to be finished edits, appeared on an internet blog.

27-year-old Kevin Cogill, who uploaded the tracks, was arrested in August on suspicion of violating federal copyright laws.

Prosecutors claim he could have caused a "significant" profit loss for the band. Cogill has since appealed for donations to his defence fund.

Earlier this year, drinks company Dr Pepper promised each American citizen a free drink if the band released the album before the end of 2008.

Fans will get to hear the first official song from the album, 'Shackler's Revenge', on the video game Rock Band 2 next month.

[pilferk]

http://www.gigwise.com/news/46377/guns-n-roses-chinese-democracy-to-get-november-release

EH!! You beat me by about 4 min...I posted it in the Best Buy thread.

[Annie]

OH MY GOD! OMG! OMG!

[pilferk]

OH MY GOD! OMG! OMG!

I'm excited...but not TOO excited yet.

What I can't tell from the article is if they got some sort of "on the ground" confirmation, or if they're just mashing together all the various forum rumors swirling around into a story.

It might just be a case of them reporting what we're all talking about, rather than having any sort of solid info from someone who was at the BB event.  I don't know.

Here's hoping!!

[FunkyMonkey]

?Chinese Democracy? Rumors: Release Date, Best Buy Exclusive

9/26/08, 10:48 am EST

The latest rumors regarding the release of Guns N? Roses? Chinese Democracy have been swirling around message boards this week. The first rumor is that the long-awaited album will be released exclusively through Best Buy on November 25th. The source of the multi-tiered rumors is a supposed ?vendor convention? that Best Buy had on Wednesday in Dallas, Texas.

Reportedly, Guns manager Andy Gould told the 900 employees the news about Chinese Democracy before previewing three songs from the album. Cellphone recordings of the event were later distributed through GNR fan forums. Gould also reportdly alerted the crowd that ?If The World? would also be featured in the closing credits for the upcoming Leonardo DiCaprio/Russell Crowe film Body of Lies, which was confirmed by message boarders on movie websites (like IMDB) who happened to catch a press screening of the film yesterday. The number of witness accounts, evidence and message boards involved makes it hard to believe this is all just a hoax, but this is Axl Rose we?re talking about, so we?ll believe it when the press release reaches our inbox. Still, we?re cautiously looking forward to Chinese Democracy and free Dr. Pepper on November 25th.

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2008/09/26/chinese-democracy-rumors-release-date-best-buy-exclusive/

Thanks to Blabbermouth.net

[Olorin]

Well there is no Best Buy stores in the UK yet so it wont be exclusive to them here, I imagine a standard release outside of the US.

I suppose that Best Buy could have an advertising campaign to promote the album. If it is a release planned for the xmas market then I suppose that Best Buy is the kind of store that will have huge numbers of people passing through spending money on presents. If the first single is a huge hit then Best Buy reap the rewards with people having to go there if they want the album.

But isnt having the album confined to one store chain in the US, restricting sales a little and just asking for unofficial copies to flood the web once its released?

However it would be quite ironic if, after all the leaks, Chinese Democracy hits the stores in a format that is impossible to make copies of.

[pilferk]

Wow...I've missed the cell phone recordings being distributed....that's something I didn't know.

I also missed the reports from people about what specific song was included.

[jarmo]

But isnt having the album confined to one store chain in the US, restricting sales a little and just asking for unofficial copies to flood the web once its released?

Depends.

If the chain guarantees they'll buy a certain amount of copies and also promote the release, then it probably wouldn't hurt. Quite the opposite.

Also, the whole exclusivity thing generates press....




/jarmo

[Jonx]

Well there is no Best Buy stores in the UK yet so it wont be exclusive to them here, I imagine a standard release outside of the US.

I suppose that Best Buy could have an advertising campaign to promote the album. If it is a release planned for the xmas market then I suppose that Best Buy is the kind of store that will have huge numbers of people passing through spending money on presents. If the first single is a huge hit then Best Buy reap the rewards with people having to go there if they want the album.

But isnt having the album confined to one store chain in the US, restricting sales a little and just asking for unofficial copies to flood the web once its released?

However it would be quite ironic if, after all the leaks, Chinese Democracy hits the stores in a format that is impossible to make copies of.

Traditionally the UK get albums a day early. Its also pretty convenient as the film comes out in the UK on the 21st November, so the film on Friday with the song and then the album on Monday.

Jonx

[Howard2k]

In still cant get my head around what this "Best Buy" agreement is. I gather its an American retail outlet, but what does it mean for CD? Is that the only place it will be availible when its released? What about amazon.com and play.com etc, will it be availible there?

We don't know for sure.  But this is NOT the first time this sort of thing has happened.

Several possible scenarios are (in no particular order):

1 - General release of Chi Dem worldwide, but Best Buy in the US gets a Special Edition Chi Dem
2 - Chi Dem gets worldwide release EXCEPT the US, where it is ONLY available through Best Buy for a period of time, then gets general US release. (This is like AC/DC I believe)
3 - Chi Dem gets an exclusive Best Buy release in the US for x weeks and then get a general worldwide release.
4 - Chi Dem is only ever available for purchase though Best Buy in the US

OBVIOUSLY 4 is not going to happen, but for some reason there seems to be lots of panic and assumption that it will.  It doesn't make sense and there is no precedent for it. 

My guess is scenario 2. 

It is NOT obvious that 4 won't happen, and their IS precedent for it. See the Eagles last release and AC/DC's upcoming release for more.

Not true.

AC/DC's newest release it NOT only going to be sold at Walmart in the US.  It's ALREADY being promoted at "general" music stores in Canada.   Are you suggesting that NOBODY outside of the United States will be able to purchase Black Ice?  Because VERY CLEARLY that is not the case.

[pilferk]

In still cant get my head around what this "Best Buy" agreement is. I gather its an American retail outlet, but what does it mean for CD? Is that the only place it will be availible when its released? What about amazon.com and play.com etc, will it be availible there?

We don't know for sure.  But this is NOT the first time this sort of thing has happened.

Several possible scenarios are (in no particular order):

1 - General release of Chi Dem worldwide, but Best Buy in the US gets a Special Edition Chi Dem
2 - Chi Dem gets worldwide release EXCEPT the US, where it is ONLY available through Best Buy for a period of time, then gets general US release. (This is like AC/DC I believe)
3 - Chi Dem gets an exclusive Best Buy release in the US for x weeks and then get a general worldwide release.
4 - Chi Dem is only ever available for purchase though Best Buy in the US

OBVIOUSLY 4 is not going to happen, but for some reason there seems to be lots of panic and assumption that it will.  It doesn't make sense and there is no precedent for it. 

My guess is scenario 2. 

It is NOT obvious that 4 won't happen, and their IS precedent for it. See the Eagles last release and AC/DC's upcoming release for more.

Not true.

AC/DC's newest release it NOT only going to be sold at Walmart in the US.  It's ALREADY being promoted at "general" music stores in Canada.   Are you suggesting that NOBODY outside of the United States will be able to purchase Black Ice?  Because VERY CLEARLY that is not the case.

I suspect (though I'm sure GunnerOne can elaborate) this might be a misunderstanding in punctuation.  As in:

4 - Chi Dem is only ever available for purchase though Best Buy in the US (meaning, worldwide, you'll only be able to buy this item from a US based company, Best Buy)

as opposed to this:

4 - Chi Dem is only ever available for purchase though Best Buy, in the US (In the US, you'll only be able to buy the item from best buy)

[Howard2k]

In still cant get my head around what this "Best Buy" agreement is. I gather its an American retail outlet, but what does it mean for CD? Is that the only place it will be availible when its released? What about amazon.com and play.com etc, will it be availible there?

We don't know for sure.  But this is NOT the first time this sort of thing has happened.

Several possible scenarios are (in no particular order):

1 - General release of Chi Dem worldwide, but Best Buy in the US gets a Special Edition Chi Dem
2 - Chi Dem gets worldwide release EXCEPT the US, where it is ONLY available through Best Buy for a period of time, then gets general US release. (This is like AC/DC I believe)
3 - Chi Dem gets an exclusive Best Buy release in the US for x weeks and then get a general worldwide release.
4 - Chi Dem is only ever available for purchase though Best Buy in the US

OBVIOUSLY 4 is not going to happen, but for some reason there seems to be lots of panic and assumption that it will.  It doesn't make sense and there is no precedent for it. 

My guess is scenario 2. 

It is NOT obvious that 4 won't happen, and their IS precedent for it. See the Eagles last release and AC/DC's upcoming release for more.

Not true.

AC/DC's newest release it NOT only going to be sold at Walmart in the US.  It's ALREADY being promoted at "general" music stores in Canada.   Are you suggesting that NOBODY outside of the United States will be able to purchase Black Ice?  Because VERY CLEARLY that is not the case.

I suspect (though I'm sure GunnerOne can elaborate) this might be a misunderstanding in punctuation.  As in:

4 - Chi Dem is only ever available for purchase though Best Buy in the US (meaning, worldwide, you'll only be able to buy this item from a US based company, Best Buy)

as opposed to this:

4 - Chi Dem is only ever available for purchase though Best Buy, in the US (In the US, you'll only be able to buy the item from best buy)

You could be right.

[pilferk]

But isnt having the album confined to one store chain in the US, restricting sales a little and just asking for unofficial copies to flood the web once its released?

Sales, in this case would = items shipped, not actually SOLD (we're not talking for RIAA purposes, but strictly for business purposes).

To get exclusivity, typically a chain commits to buying an exact number of copies...and is NOT able to return copies that are unsold for "credit".  They might only sell through 50% of their commitment..but then they mark them down until they're either giving them away, or put them in the trash.  It takes ALL the risk out of it for the label.  EVERYTHING is contracted, including distribution and manufacture...no guesswork from them.

The chain gets the foot (or web) traffic generated from the exclusive....you'd think maybe driving some more purchases.  It's like using the item as a loss leader, if it doesn't sell as well as what you committed to.  It's more risky for the chain, but...with something like this, I think it's safe to say that it will accomplish the goal.  CD is almost mythic in the music world....

[neon2002]

http://www.gigwise.com/news/46377/guns-n-roses-chinese-democracy-to-get-november-release

Hopefully it's true.

[jarmo]

The chain gets the foot (or web) traffic generated from the exclusive....you'd think maybe driving some more purchases.

Yeah, people go to buy the album and come out with the album plus some other stuff they didn't know they needed..... 




/jarmo

[Olorin]

Ah, I see things more clearly now

Surely it is now a countdown to the official statement regarding the status of the new album and its release. The clouds of rumour have been gathering for a while and perhaps the storm is about to break....

[Cuzon]

Great time to be a GnR fan. It can only get better.

[pilferk]

Yeah, people go to buy the album and come out with the album plus some other stuff they didn't know they needed..... 




/jarmo

Yup, that pretty much describes every trip I've ever taken to Best Buy in my life.   

[slashsbaconpit]

OH MY GOD! OMG! OMG!

I'm excited...but not TOO excited yet.

What I can't tell from the article is if they got some sort of "on the ground" confirmation, or if they're just mashing together all the various forum rumors swirling around into a story.

It might just be a case of them reporting what we're all talking about, rather than having any sort of solid info from someone who was at the BB event.  I don't know.

Here's hoping!!

I agree. Until I see an official statement with Axl's name on it, or on the GNR homepage, I'm excited, but taking this with a grain of salt.

[GNR4L]

OH MY GOD! OMG! OMG!

I'm excited...but not TOO excited yet.

What I can't tell from the article is if they got some sort of "on the ground" confirmation, or if they're just mashing together all the various forum rumors swirling around into a story.

It might just be a case of them reporting what we're all talking about, rather than having any sort of solid info from someone who was at the BB event.  I don't know.

Here's hoping!!

I agree. Until I see an official statement with Axl's name on it, or on the GNR homepage, I'm excited, but taking this with a grain of salt.

Oh Slashbaconpit don't worry the greatest band ever is coming back ! with a new song in a movie, CHINESE DEMOCRACY STARTS NOW !!!