Axl Rose at Billy Joel concert

[Gnrcane]

On 7/29/2024 at 1:01 AM, jamillos said:

I think it’s rather a question of pride. And the fact the fans are used to hear the songs with certain vocal melodies. You can’t usually go an octave lower, I think people mistake this word for something else. You can do that with e.g. Estranged, like we’ve seen in 2023, but you can’t do it with the most of the main hits that are on the medium vocal level, like SCOM. There’s nothing to do about it but sing it the original way or just skip the song altogether. Which is why they need to shuffle the playlist as much as possible (something like they kind of approached in 2023). There are actually only about 3 songs that absolutely need to be played (Jungle, SCOM, PC), plus a few that are gonna be played but are in the low register, so that’s ok (Easy, Brownstone...), and a couple that are gonna be played whether we like it or not (Heaven’s Door, NR). The rest can alternate or gradually disappear, like Better (should have been gone way earlier, though). But he won’t do that, will he. Although it kind of looks like he did start thinking about this recently. 

All this is caused by the fact there hasn’t been proper new material. Because if there had been, songs like LALD, which don’t sound that good any longer, could have been phased out with these new songs. We’re so used to the stale situation that we think 90% of the playlist absolutely needs to be there, with only a very few additions possible (like the new singles) – but that’s plainly not true. It’s all just a matter of habit. Bands touring new albums often keep only a few basic hits and re-establish / rework the setlists completely with each new tour. Unlike GN'R, of course. 

They pretty much have to do NR which tends to be quite sketchy.

[D4NNY]

On 8/2/2024 at 5:57 PM, Underhardy said:

LALD and Highway To Hell soundboard. Listen, it’s cool seeing Axl in good spirits, and also looking great himself. But god damn, the fucking voice is what’s most important and it’s worse than ever. God damn I wish he’d retire and stop embarrassing himself. Anyone who enjoys listening to this is just in a different reality. 

Considering the amount of backlash here on the voice I must just be losing the plot.. but I don’t think it’s THAT bad.. the screams aren’t his strong point anymore sure.. but it was bearable at least? Just me?  

[El Guapo]

22 minutes ago, Gnrcane said:

They pretty much have to do NR which tends to be quite sketchy.

NR could be sung in his natural voice all the way through.

[Draguns]

1 hour ago, D4NNY said:

Considering the amount of backlash here on the voice I must just be losing the plot.. but I don’t think it’s THAT bad.. the screams aren’t his strong point anymore sure.. but it was bearable at least? Just me?  

My point exactly!

[ChristianGNR]

That's it.

[SoulMonster]

7 hours ago, D4NNY said:

Considering the amount of backlash here on the voice I must just be losing the plot.. but I don’t think it’s THAT bad.. the screams aren’t his strong point anymore sure.. but it was bearable at least? Just me?  

Welcome to mygnrforum!

[Agattuso]

21 hours ago, JimiRose said:

The irony being here that Monsters hasn't actually been released and the glastonbury performance was panned in the mainstream. We have to add context. I / We enjoyed glastonbury because we've had so many horror shows in major events. To the mass audience who hears SCOM, NR, PC etc on tv and radio to then hearing Axl, it would sound dreadful. 

Monsters is a fantastic song. But we only have a version of it due to a leak. we're nearing 2025 and it still hasn't been released and no one had heard it. Gnr post 93 are just a frustrating entity. And that will lead lots of people to exaggerate, because they care and we can all see it's being totally mismanaged. 

Oh man, so right on the Glastonbury point. I live in UK and I remember being a very proud fans that night watching livestream of GNR at Glasto. In the few weeks after however I've had complete strangers approaching me on public saying they thought Axl sounded awful at Glasto (I wore GNR shirts). It was certainly eye opening experience for me of the bubble I was in.

[JimiRose]

1 hour ago, Agattuso said:

Oh man, so right on the Glastonbury point. I live in UK and I remember being a very proud fans that night watching livestream of GNR at Glasto. In the few weeks after however I've had complete strangers approaching me on public saying they thought Axl sounded awful at Glasto (I wore GNR shirts). It was certainly eye opening experience for me of the bubble I was in.

Yep. I remember thinking oh wow axl is doing ok here this isn't so bad. Then getting texts from friends saying 'My god he's atrocious, how have they not cut the show to save embarrassment' etc. then i thought no way, went on twitter and it was just people saying he sounded like an old granny version of mickey mouse and looked like benny hill. If anything i would say this forum is overwhelmingly positive because we factor in age, lifestyle, steady decline and a true love for axl. but if you're a causal who only hears the songs on radio then see's the live shows, the truth is, he's much worse than we think. And still people here will say it's exaggerated. it isn't. it's just our bubble. if you had never heard of axl rose, and you heard him sing live since 2022, you would never listen to him again. that is the crux of it. That's not negative, it's just the truth. 3 chords and the truth... 

[jamillos]

1 hour ago, JimiRose said:

Yep. I remember thinking oh wow axl is doing ok here this isn't so bad. Then getting texts from friends saying 'My god he's atrocious, how have they not cut the show to save embarrassment' etc. then i thought no way, went on twitter and it was just people saying he sounded like an old granny version of mickey mouse and looked like benny hill. If anything i would say this forum is overwhelmingly positive because we factor in age, lifestyle, steady decline and a true love for axl. but if you're a causal who only hears the songs on radio then see's the live shows, the truth is, he's much worse than we think. And still people here will say it's exaggerated. it isn't. it's just our bubble. if you had never heard of axl rose, and you heard him sing live since 2022, you would never listen to him again. that is the crux of it. That's not negative, it's just the truth. 3 chords and the truth... 

100% agree. Even people who've heard him in the heyday or actually in 2016 might have a problem recognizing him today. We're still being nice here. 

[Seb91]

I think the sad reality is that Axl blew his voice by pushing way too much over the years and clearly didn't take as much care of it as other older singers have. The issue is that Axl's signature style is a result of him overstraining so when he's tried to sing more cleanly (2002 as an example) it doesn't sound right as there's no rasp. Whilst non-fans will clearly call a spade a spade in terms of his voice, they are still a draw touring wise due to the name. People will go so they can say they've seen Guns N' Roses.

As others have said, this reunion has never been about the art. It's why I wasn't excited when it was announced the best part of a decade ago. Whilst it's fun to have Duff and Slash back, I saw the 2010 tour and having heard Axl at his peak modern era wise, paying through the nose to hear him not as his peak just because Duff and Slash were back didn't appeal. Plus, new material seemed unlikely. Axl/DC was awesome though and the best I've heard him, although I do think he probably really overdid it on that tour as the GN'R shows seemed weaker vocally after that.

I've made peace with the fact that it's basically just a cash cow and we'll get some CD leftovers as a PR thing each time they'll tour. Duff and Slash are clearly happy with their solo projects in terms of new material. I last saw Guns in 2012 and so it's been long enough since I heard Axl sing the back catalogue that I'd love to catch a show but yeah, I think waiting for some miraculous resurgence is a bit too optimistic considering Axl's age. I'm hoping I can get to a show and have a fun time singing along next time they roll around but I'm unlikely to make it a regular thing. 

Edited August 6 by Seb91

[F*ck Fear]

I saw GNR for the last time when they played their first reunion show in Toronto. I will not part with the kind of money they ask for, to hear Axl sound as bad as he does.

[Underhardy]

2 hours ago, F*ck Fear said:

I saw GNR for the last time when they played their first reunion show in Toronto. I will not part with the kind of money they ask for, to hear Axl sound as bad as he does.

It’s unbelievable that this thread has 5-6 other living human beings with ears that enjoyed that Bill Joel performance, vocally speaking. You ask ANY non-GNR die hard fan and they would laugh at that. “He’s a professional singer?” It’s just insane. I understand that it’s subjective, but it’s like saying that shit smells good. 

[D4NNY]

20 minutes ago, Underhardy said:

It’s unbelievable that this thread has 5-6 other living human beings with ears that enjoyed that Bill Joel performance, vocally speaking

[Draguns]

1 hour ago, Underhardy said:

It’s unbelievable that this thread has 5-6 other living human beings with ears that enjoyed that Bill Joel performance, vocally speaking. You ask ANY non-GNR die hard fan and they would laugh at that. “He’s a professional singer?” It’s just insane. I understand that it’s subjective, but it’s like saying that shit smells good. 

I enjoyed it for what it was worth. It was a guest appearance with a legend that has had had a successful run in one of the most famous arenas ever! 

I really don't think a lot people here realize what it means to be a guest at another vocalist final show who had a record number attendance of shows at a historic venue.  Bill Joel had 150 sold out shows at Madison Square Garden. That's pretty big. Axl took part in rock history in Billy Joel's final sold out show. 

[F*ck Fear]

1 hour ago, Draguns said:

I enjoyed it for what it was worth. It was a guest appearance with a legend that has had had a successful run in one of the most famous arenas ever! 

I really don't think a lot people here realize what it means to be a guest at another vocalist final show who had a record number attendance of shows at a historic venue.  Bill Joel had 150 sold out shows at Madison Square Garden. That's pretty big. Axl took part in rock history in Billy Joel's final sold out show. 

It would have been so cool if said guest actually sounded good when he sang, though.

[Gordon Comstock]

On 8/5/2024 at 12:34 AM, JimiRose said:

The irony being here that Monsters hasn't actually been released and the glastonbury performance was panned in the mainstream. We have to add context. I / We enjoyed glastonbury because we've had so many horror shows in major events. To the mass audience who hears SCOM, NR, PC etc on tv and radio to then hearing Axl, it would sound dreadful. 

Monsters is a fantastic song. But we only have a version of it due to a leak. we're nearing 2025 and it still hasn't been released and no one had heard it. Gnr post 93 are just a frustrating entity. And that will lead lots of people to exaggerate, because they care and we can all see it's being totally mismanaged. 

 

Hey, at least they almost pulled off the Perhaps release like a normal band...

Yea, Monsters is a leak but at least we know they've got a song of that calibre up their sleeve. I fully expect them to botch the release, though. Glastonbury wasn't great, but it had it's moments... certainly better than the last few Rock In Rio or Download festivals they've played. It's definitely relative, I wouldn't say it's a great show but in this 'bubble' it was passable.

At this point I wish they'd break their shows into sections... call it An Evening With GNR or something. Do an acoustic set, do a 'deep cuts and covers' set where Axl sings everything with his natural voice, then do an 'encore' with all the hits so I can leave during that

[evilfacelessturtle]

There's nothing more embarrassing than fans who blindly defend an artist. Thank god the GNR fanbase aren't mostly 13 year old girls.

Axl's voice was cracking in a pretty damaging sounding way when he tried to push it a couple times there. I didn't notice it until I heard the soundboard.

The difference with Dickinson and Dio is that they both have healthy operatic vocal support and sprinkle on distortion like a seasoning. Axl's distortion was always like a light switch; 100% on or off, and no dimmer.

Brian Johnson is a strange one though; by all accounts, he never took any lessons and just belted his tits off with full rasp. For whatever reason, he went the opposite way of Axl, instead of losing his rasp, he just got more and more raspy with abuse. Eventually he got nodules removed around 2003 and it cleaned his voice significantly while restoring range. Gave him a second lease on life that he's been taking advantage of ever since.

At this point I'd honestly just rather hear Axl use a fucking Tubescreamer on his mic, or there has to be some kind of vocal fry plugin at this point. They're already using AI for videos, put it on Axl's mic FFS. AC/DC are using pre-recorded backing vocals, it recently came out, and I'm all for it. Stevie Young has an atrocious voice and big gang vocals in the chorus is a key component of their sound.

We're past the point of proving something, or "purity". Just make the shows sound good. I'll pretend I don't know, and that Axl is 23 again, just like I'll pretend to myself that the hooker is really impressed by my dick.

... what?

Edited August 9 by evilfacelessturtle

[Karice]

8 hours ago, evilfacelessturtle said:

There's nothing more embarrassing than fans who blindly defend an artist. Thank god the GNR fanbase aren't mostly 13 year old girls.

Axl's voice was cracking in a pretty damaging sounding way when he tried to push it a couple times there. I didn't notice it until I heard the soundboard.

The difference with Dickinson and Dio is that they both have healthy operatic vocal support and sprinkle on distortion like a seasoning. Axl's distortion was always like a light switch; 100% on or off, and no dimmer.

Brian Johnson is a strange one though; by all accounts, he never took any lessons and just belted his tits off with full rasp. For whatever reason, he went the opposite way of Axl, instead of losing his rasp, he just got more and more raspy with abuse. Eventually he got nodules removed around 2003 and it cleaned his voice significantly while restoring range. Gave him a second lease on life that he's been taking advantage of ever since.

At this point I'd honestly just rather hear Axl use a fucking Tubescreamer on his mic, or there as to be some kind of vocal fry plugin at this point. They're already using AI for videos, put it on Axl's mic FFS. AC/DC are using pre-recorded backing vocals, it recently came out, and I'm all for it. Stevie Young has an atrocious voice and big gang vocals in the chorus is a key component of their sound.

We're past the point of proving something, or "purity". Just make the shows sound good. I'll pretend I don't know and that Axl is 23 again, just like I'll pretend to myself that the hooker is really impressed by my dick.

... what?

Most of your post is REALLY insightful, 🤔💡and I burst into laughter at the last 16 words of your post. 🤣

Edited August 7 by Karice

[JimiRose]

10 hours ago, Gordon Comstock said:

At this point I wish they'd break their shows into sections... call it An Evening With GNR or something. Do an acoustic set, do a 'deep cuts and covers' set where Axl sings everything with his natural voice, then do an 'encore' with all the hits so I can leave during that

Having seen gnr 12 times since 2006, i'd be happy with that. in reality the setlist hasn't really changed much in all that time. 3 or 4 separate sections of the show would be cool. 

[jamillos]

Bring back the sofa I say! 

And You Ain't the First. 

[JimiRose]

'Axl can still sing' https://www.instagram.com/p/C965MesIjwz/ 

[Dean]

On 8/5/2024 at 9:21 PM, D4NNY said:

Considering the amount of backlash here on the voice I must just be losing the plot.. but I don’t think it’s THAT bad.. the screams aren’t his strong point anymore sure.. but it was bearable at least? Just me?  

Just rewatching some of the videos doing the rounds and there's quite a lot of positive comments on Highway to Hell. It would be near identical to what he produced in 2017 if he added a bit of drive rather than singing it clean, but I'm just glad he's singing up there with relative ease for the most part.

Live and Let Die has always been hit or miss for me, but this to my ears sounds like one of his better efforts in the last 11/12 years or so - granted this is just joining for a few songs rather than belting out a full set, but still better than most of the performances of the song I can remember from that timeframe. 

[Rindmelon]

1 hour ago, Dean said:

Just rewatching some of the videos doing the rounds and there's quite a lot of positive comments on Highway to Hell. It would be near identical to what he produced in 2017 if he added a bit of drive rather than singing it clean, but I'm just glad he's singing up there with relative ease for the most part.

Live and Let Die has always been hit or miss for me, but this to my ears sounds like one of his better efforts in the last 11/12 years or so - granted this is just joining for a few songs rather than belting out a full set, but still better than most of the performances of the song I can remember from that timeframe. 

It's not for me but I have decent camera angles and audio for them maybe I'll do a multicam mix

exporting the file now, came out pretty cool, with HQ audio too

Edited August 12 by Rindmelon
update

[Rindmelon]

@Dean Done. Unless they put out pro shot this is probably the best you will get. GN'R fans need to learn filming skills from Billy Joel fans I think 

 

[Dean]

24 minutes ago, Rindmelon said:

@Dean Done. Unless they put out pro shot this is probably the best you will get. GN'R fans need to learn filming skills from Billy Joel fans I think 

 

Fucking hell, you made quick work of that!! Thanks as always for all you do!