Guns N' Roses - Chinese Democracy (2008)

[LG]

Re: Chinese Democracy ~~~ Guns N' Roses

Not likely to happen anytime soon Cosmic.

For me...any superstar that pulls the stunts he did at his concerts that could have led to serious injuries or deaths to his fans is deserving of utter contempt.(I could pick Axl up with one arm and throw him across the room, probably a good idea if we never meet in person...)

Compared to the earlier albums Chinese Democracy doesn't measure up at all, if you have all that time you should be able to come up with a "Pearler" to quote Sox, instead of a below average recording, after all Axl is not a rookie.

 

[Magic]

Re: Chinese Democracy ~~~ Guns N' Roses

I myself liked Chinese Democracy, but was still disappointed. My expectations were a bit high for this album. I am among those that heard about the album quite some time before its release, not that what I heard was 'hype' but I read about the amount of money that had been spent and the fact that the album was all new material, so I was expecting mind blowing new music, instead I got the good ole Guns N' Roses, minus all the Guns.

It took 5 guitarists to accomplish Slash's and Stradlin's job, but this isn't a bad thing, the guitar work is still smokin'.

Was the album worth getting....absolutely. Was the album worth listening to......most definitely. Would I listen to it again....yes. Is it good........it is good, nothing more nothing less.

 

[LG]

Re: Chinese Democracy ~~~ Guns N' Roses

Not me...Appetite is all the G 'n R I need and it puts Chinese Democracy to shame,,,I only have so much time left and it's too precious to waste on Axl Rose.

 

[Magic]

Re: Chinese Democracy ~~~ Guns N' Roses

There is no doubt this album doesn't measure up to Appetite for Destruction. Although, Chinese Democracy was a huge improvement over The Spaghetti Incident?, which made me happy. I was thinking, though, that with all the band member changes, new material, and an insane amount of money being spent, Chinese Democracy was going to offer up something really special, which it didn't, just some good music which was a slight improvement over the 1993 release.

 

[LG]

Re: Chinese Democracy ~~~ Guns N' Roses

I will make all the Guns 'N Roses fans happy...If they ever reunite I will buy the CD when it is released...but I am not interested in Axl's solo work using the G 'n R label...he should have used his own name instead, and saved the band name for a possible reunion later on...unless the others no longer want to have anything to do with each other...

 

[Hepcat]

Re: Chinese Democracy ~~~ Guns N' Roses

Cosmic:

...possibly the most anticipated album of all time....

Most anticipated album of all time you say? How then could it be anticipated at all had it not been hyped?

...upon seeing dozens of copies of "Chinese Democracy" staring me in the face....

Sounds to me like a point of purchase display. What more do you need?

...it has sold as many as 5.5 millions albums worldwide...though that is well below expectations....

Below whose expectations and what drugs were these people taking? Here Axl Rose has been doing naught but playing the part of an indolent, prima donna rock star for fifteen years and somehow 5.5 million buyers for the album are found anyway? "Chinese Democracy" reaching number three on the U.S. Billboard charts is among the worst indictments of the state of pop/rock music today I've ever encountered.

Flipflop:

I must agree with Cosmic here - Axl refused to do promotion for the album.

The album was still promoted more heavily than 99.99% of albums ever released. Album promotion has traditionally been limited to advance copies being distributed to radio stations together with point of purchase displays. But it seems there were actually TV commercials for "Chinese Democracy", as if they were selling underarm deodorant or beer or Coke or something! And what about that incredible tie in with Dr. Pepper? Yeah, yeah, I know the logistics of the Dr. Pepper thing were bungled but I find it hard to believe such a promotion even existed in the first place!

'The hype' was the media going into overload, that's all.

There, you just said it yourself; not only was there hype but there was an overload of hype.

 

[Cosmic Harmony]

Re: Chinese Democracy ~~~ Guns N' Roses

I have to agree with Magic in most ways. The only difference is that I actually didn't have all that high of expectations for this album. After learning that Buckethead, Bumblefoot, and Robin Fink were all the primary guitarists (none of which I really enjoyed in previous work) I was not thrilled in the slightest but after listening to the album with low expectiations it was very easy for it to exceed them, which is did beautifully. Of course "Chinese Democracy" is going to be remembered by history for all the extra baggage that came with it but I still say it's an album that any hard rock fan should have.

Not me...Appetite is all the G 'n R I need and it puts Chinese Democracy to shame,,,

Should any artist's work be condemned for their later day transgressions by way of comparison to their early work?

I am not interested in Axl's solo work using the G 'n R label...he should have used his own name instead, and saved the band name for a possible reunion later on...unless the others no longer want to have anything to do with each other...

Actually all of the original Guns N' Roses members played on Slash's solo album, aside from Axl, and more than one of them have gotten together with Axl to play a few shows. Really the main thing in the way of a Guns N' Roses reunion is the tension between Axl and Slash.



If I may set aside a personal observation, this thread, which started out as a review of the music of "Chinese Democracy" has boiled down to little more than a "Does Axl Rose Suck?/Was Chinese Democracy Over Hyped?" thread.

 

[Sweaty]

Re: Chinese Democracy ~~~ Guns N' Roses

I think that the album was way over hyped, I purchased the CD hoping it would live up to the hype and was disappointed, it was ok but not a patch on their original material. It now resides in the cheap rack in almost every place that sells CD's in the UK.

It is a sad demise of a once great band.

 

[LG]

Re: Chinese Democracy ~~~ Guns N' Roses

Not surprising Cosmic...if you post about this album it is different from a normal release as you knew when you wrote it. And if I forgot to mention it, another very well written review, thank you.

I have been honest, and comparing within the G 'n R universe is on topic. I admit a "Small" amount of Axl bashing but didn't take your thread off topic, it's all about the near universal disappointment with CD after such a long wait.

How long did it take Michelangelo to do the Sistine Chapel?...

 

[Hepcat]

Re: Chinese Democracy ~~~ Guns N' Roses

And if I forgot to mention it, another very well written review, thank you.

I agree. I think Cosmic did an excellent job of writing up the album.

And controversial though it may be, it's generally a decent album. Just not top of the charts material.