Bob Guccione Jr. at Spin!

[Emphyrio]

Ok lads, what do yis make of Chinese Democracy?

I've always thought it was an underrated record, ok it's a drastic sound difference and overproduced to fuck but again, like the UYI's, if you trimmed the fat a little I think there's a great record in there.

There's 2 horrendous tracks and another 2 or 3 filler, which aren't any worse than the filler on UYI, and the rest of the album is excellent. The good stuff on it is very nearly on a par with the good UYI stuff.

[Kurt Cocaine]

To this day, Appetite for Destruction is the only GnR record I've listened to in full.
Of course I've heard the singles on and off from the other records. From this thread, I can gather that I haven't missed much.
I saw them twice (1992 & 2006). I thought they were shite both times.

[Pedrito]

No love for Yesterdays? I love that song.

An incredible song. I love the Illusion albums. Coupla dud tracks here and there but overall just masterpieces. The artwork, the songs, the breadth of their musicianship and writing has probably never been matched by any band. People get worked up the superficial, the image, the personalities, but go try and write a song like Breakdown or Estranged and come back to me in 500 years when you finally manage it. Pure genius.

[Pedrito]

Ok lads, what do yis make of Chinese Democracy?

I've always thought it was an underrated record, ok it's a drastic sound difference and overproduced to fuck but again, like the UYI's, if you trimmed the fat a little I think there's a great record in there.

There's 2 horrendous tracks and another 2 or 3 filler, which aren't any worse than the filler on UYI, and the rest of the album is excellent. The good stuff on it is very nearly on a par with the good UYI stuff.

The first few songs are sort of gicky but the further you go into the album, it's got some very nice stuff indeed. I love the song Prostitute.

[Pedrito]

Rock Opera. Larger than life. God be with the days.

https://youtu.be/dpmAY059TTY

[Kurt Cocaine]

Rock Opera. Larger than life. God be with the days.

https://youtu.be/dpmAY059TTY

Just listened to that. Mightily impressive, I have to say. Amazing song writing skills for sure from dear ol' Mama Fratelli.

[TheRuts]

There's been an abridged version available for over 20 years!

https://www.discogs.com/Guns-N-Roses-Use-Your-Illusion/master/1167578

[The Butcher]

Estranged is such a great song. We all know Axl should have released Chinese Democracy as his own solo album which is a mixed bag affair. Think it was the 2006 gig when Therapy? were supporting and news came that Axl actually showed up on time and was out on stage, Andy from Therapy? goes something along the lines of "I hear Axl is actually on time for once, we had another dozen songs in the setlist in case he didn't show up so anyway...here's our last song."

It's hard for me to listen to GNR after years and years of my brother blasting them in his room, esp him jamming to Coma on a ACOUSTIC guitar.

[Emphyrio]

Better
There Was a Time
Sorry
IRS
Madagascar
This I Love
Prostitute
are all class.

First two tracks are cool too. Axl pulled another Axl overloading it with filler. But if he'd even dropped If The World and Scraped, it would have helped a lot.

[StoutAndAle]

This is good podcast on Axl's various rows with people around Use Your Illusion - including the who Bob Guccione Jnr. tale.

https://www.stitcher.com/show/rivals-2/episode/press-punks-axl-rose-vs-everyone-in-get-in-the-ring-69792594

It's not a bad podcast in general actually until the two lads start to out-muso each other in later episodes.

[Pedrito]

Better
There Was a Time
Sorry
IRS
Madagascar
This I Love
Prostitute
are all class.

First two tracks are cool too. Axl pulled another Axl overloading it with filler. But if he'd even dropped If The World and Scraped, it would have helped a lot.

Agree mostly on the above. I wouldn't be mad on the opening 2 or 3 songs, Scraped crap too. The list you put up is incredible. I think the album really just soars to amazing heights 5 or 6 songs in and keeps going until the end. Listen to the odes to Queen and even Blind Melon on Catcher in the Rye. Street of Dreams is excellent too. It's a great album when you actually go and listen to it. Proper rock songs.

[TheRuts]

Scarily, it's nearly 13 years since the release of 'Chinese Democracy'.

The gap between 'The Spaghetti Incident' and 'Chinese Democracy' was 15 years.

Has there been any mention of a new album, especially now that Slash and Duff are back in the line up?

[Emphyrio]

As I think you said earlier about Estranged, it's just pure rock opera. And I think because he indulged in that side of things so much, and possibly got it out of his system to an extent, if current GnR write material, which I believe they are, I think they could come up with something as balanced as UYI.

[Pedrito]

They're one band I could easily see releasing an absolute epic of an album if they ever got round to it. I don't thnk their songwriting ability has gone anywhere unlike Metallica for example.

[Emphyrio]

100% agreed.