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Page 3 of 5 It’s been fourteen years since any of us last saw the Gunners live and a lot has changed since then, both inside and outside the group. In those fourteen years of absence, we’ve seen the rise and fall of grunge, the mainstreaming of rap, the commercialization of “indie” rock and the absolute pervasiveness of electronic music. Not to mention boy bands, girl bands and countless carbon copies of annoying Orange County pop punks. Kids just don’t worship rockstars like they used to and with the advent of file-sharing services such as Napster, Kazaa and Limewire, and websites such as Myspace, kids no longer have to listen to what’s force-fed to them by the Big Five record labels on corporate radio or MTV. In many ways, the playing field has been leveled, and now everyone has as much a shot as anyone at being heard and becoming famous. On the other hand, with just SO MANY musical options out there, and no seeming end to it all, it is possibly more difficult now, more than ever, for something to catch.
Within the group, the major difference is that Axl is the only original member left in the band. You could say he’s been somewhat estranged from his former band members Slash, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum, all of whom had their differences with Axl, and decided to form their own successful band, Velvet Revolver, along with former Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland. According to repots from other so-called gonzo publications, Axl has spent the past 14 years crystal healing (sometimes bunkered in the Sedona, Arizona, desert) surrounded by well-paid gurus and spiritual advisors, while meticulously and obsessively tinkering on Chinese Democracy, as if it were his Kubrickian masterpiece, with a slew of sessions musicians and producers that have come in and out of the revolving door that is his recording studio. With over 80 shows beneath their belts, their most recent incarnation looks something like this:
Axl Rose, Vocals
Dizzy Reed, Keyboards
Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, Lead guitar
Richard Fortus, Rhythm guitar
Robin Finck, Lead guitar
Tommy Stinson, Bass guitar
Chris Pitman, Keyboards and programming
Frank Ferrer, Drums and percussion
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Due to an injury to bassist Tommy Stinson's left wrist, the Guns had to cancel some dates in Japan and decided to kick off this latest leg of their world tour in Mexico, which was a pleasant surprise for us! There would be three dates: Monterrey, Guadalajara and Mexico City and the Superfans would try to make at least two of them. So Edgar, Chon (another childhood Mexican friend who was responsible for corrupting Edgar into GN’R) and myself hit the road for the second show in Guadalajara, not really knowing what to expect, other than it would probably go late (we had heard reports that the Monterrey gig had begun at 2:00am).
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After the two opening acts, who’s names I cannot recall and will not even bother researching for you here, slopped it up (if the intention was to find opening bands that totally SUCKED, in the hopes of making GN’R look that much better—mission accomplished!), there was at least a two-hour gap of bright house lights and absolutely nothing onstage, except for some Oompa-Loompas who quietly prepared the rather austere stage for the headliners. This was probably the most stripped-down stage I’d ever seen for a major rock show. Could this be another reflection of the current state of the music industry? A new cost-effective-sure-fire-can’t-miss-or-lose-money-on-the-tour-doctrine: The Low-Budget / High-Yield Tour! The audience didn’t really seem to notice, though, as they were too busy going absolutely ape-shit, especially our comrades in the cheap seats, who began ceremoniously burning t-shirts and throwing beers and debris towards the audience below and onto the sound console, which was promptly covered with a tarp.
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Last update : 04-11-2007 12:07
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