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FeedWelcome back to Axl's jungle
At about 9:20 p.m. Sunday night, Sebastian Bach—yes, Skid Row's Sebastian Bach—made a startling announcement from the stage of Hamilton's Copps Coliseum: "Axl Rose is IN THE BUILDING!"
"Wow," I thought to myself from row fourteen of section 109. "I guess this show is actually going to happen ..."
That in itself was a rather shocking surprise. For this was Guns 'N Roses, the onetime most dangerous rock band in America, the group that often failed to show for concerts and left riots and outrage in its wake.
But that was then. In 2010, GNR is Axl Rose, Use Your Illusion-era keyboardist Dizzy Reed, and several "new" members. (Some of them, like ex-Replacement Tommy Stinson, have been part of the Rose Corporation since the late-nineties.) Today's band is humbled, for the decade-plus-in-the-making Chinese Democracy was an epic flop, an often solid but overproduced, overwritten, over-thought-out jumble.
The long-awaited CD tour plan was a bit odd, too—shows in the Far East, followed by a trek through Canada. No USA dates seemed like a partial admittance of defeat. Or perhaps Axl simply felt the band should get into a groove before storming America.
In any event, the band that came onstage at 10:25 p.m. was fighting fit. (Incidentally, the show didn't end until after 1 a.m.) As the opening riff of "Chinese Democracy" shot out of the speakers, it was hard not feel goosebumps. This, the strongest track on the album by a mile, is good, old-fashioned GNR, and when a button-down-opened-to-the-navel-clad Axl ran onstage, accompanied by a blast of fireworks, it felt like this was the ultimate rock show.
And I think that's Mr. Rose's goal. No Slash, or Izzy, an album that has not sold well ... That can be combatted by bombast, and this show had bombast to spare.
The setlist was happily heavy on Appetite for Destruction—"Mr. Brownstone" (Axl flubbed the lyrics on this one), "Nightrain," the mighty trio of "Jungle," Sweet Child," and "Paradise" (the closer), and my personal fave, "Rocket Queen.
Disappointingly, the Use Your Illusions were curiously underrepresented, although "November Rain" was suitably huge and "You Could Be Mine" had the swagger of the record.
The Democracy tunes were ... interesting. But mostly underwhelming. Still, it's hard to argue with a setlist so heavy on audience favorites, and a few of the newbies—especially "Street of Dreams"—certainly have the feel of the old days.
There were many notable omissions—"Patience," "Don't Cry," "Civil Wars," "Yesterdays." And often the whole thing felt, quite simply, weird. Hearing other guitarists, even those as talented as these, duplicate another man's riffs ... well, it just feels wrong.
But it's impossible not to come away impressed with the sound, the overall experience, and with Axl Rose. He's now the spitting image of Kid Rock, with a Hogan goatee, long hair, and either a hat or bandana at all times. But the man moved, and emoted, and genuinely seemed to be enjoying himself. I have no idea what Guns 'N Roses will do next, but with a live show as strong as this, the smart move is to tour, and hard.
So Axl Rose lives, and seems intent on keeping the brand alive. And with a dearth of rock stars left on the planet, I think that's something to be applauded.
Photo courtesy of Boris Minkevich/Winnipeg Free Press.
