Guns N' Roses, O2 Arena, 13/10/10 - Concert review

Guns N' Roses were one of the most rockin' bands around in the 1980's, the peak of mainstream rock/metal, writing some of the most famous songs in rock history, and selling out concerts worldwide. They were also infamous for their rock 'n' roll lifestyle, partying all night, drinking, drugs, women etc. Guns N' Roses were the stereotypical rock band and acted as an inspiration to millions, and were a large inspiration to this media studies project. Unfortunately, the ego of the lead singer led to the band's downfall, with all other members, bar the keyboardist, departing in 1996, leaving Axl Rose on his own. This didn't stop him however, and he recruited a new set of musicians to fill in. Axl and his new band began touring in 2002 to mixed receptions, claiming the band were a disappointment and lacked the magic of the past. Also, the much anticipated album "Chinese Democracy" was nowhere to be seen, after first being confirmed to be in the making around 1993, and was becoming a laughing stock.

Chinese Democracy was finally released in November 2008, 15 years after being initially announced, to mostly positive reception, including from myself. However, the band's form on tour was still poor, with Axl living up to his reputation by frequently coming out late, whilst also having a poor voice. This still didn't stop me from buying tickets to see them back in the summer as, despite Axl being the only original member, I always feel the lead singer is the most important person with the band. I was very worried whether or not I has wasted my money on a bad show, especially when a show in Dublin ended in Axl walking off the stage during the first song on then not returning.

Also, the 80's are long gone. Axl no longer looks like this:

But instead looks like this:

So, I departed to the O2 with my expectations low. I thought the band would come out late, they would play a short set, and Axl would sound terrible. Wow, was I proven wrong.

They came out the same time most bands do, about half hour after promised. Axl had obviously done some vocal training in recent weeks, as voice sounded fantastic, I dare say it sounded like it was 1987. The setlist was long, combining old classics, such as Nightrain, Welcome to the Jungle, Rocket Queen, and, of course, Mr. Brownstone, with new songs like Better, Chinese Democracy and Sorry, although I am glad to say the old songs largely outweighed the new. Axl had also obviously changed his attitude. Someone threw a bottle at him during the second song, an act which usually doesn't end well, with Axl even stopping the song and walking off stage. This time, he finished the song and said after, "now, we don't want to go throwing things because, if you miss me, you might hit my nice friends at the front of the stage". Another sign of Axl changing his ways was when someone threw a KFC bucket on stage (bare in mind that there is no KFC even in the O2 or in the surrounding area, so whoever brought it made a big effort to do so). Of course, ex-GNR guitarist Buckethead famously wears a KFC bucket on his head, and he left the band in not so good terms. What did Axl do? He saw the bucket, and put it on his head whilst singing the rest of the song, causing the whole crowd to cheer. The gig ended with an amazing performance of Paradise City, with Axl coming out after to say a heartfelt thank you to the audience, a sell out crowd of about 20,000 people.

This was a great shock to me, and you could even say it was a dream come true. To see so many favourite songs of mine performed so well, even when it seemed impossible, was something truly amazing, and will go down as one of my favourite gigs ever. The only downside? The gig the next day, the extra date added to appease demand, had the return of Duff Mckagen, the band's former bassist, and a performance of the song Patience, one of my favourites. However, I am still over the moon to see such an amazing performance, and to see the inspiration to our media project back on top form.