Guns n' F**KING ROSES
opener: Bullet For My Valentine
LOCATION:
Hammerstein Ballroom, NY, NY
5th row, 1st balcony
PRICE:
$65-ish
DETAILS:
CONCESSIONS:
I didn't really check out the merch as the line was insane after the show. Parking was $11 again at my favorite lot.
VIEW:
Pretty good. The right side of the stage was slightly blocked because the VIP boxes were in my way.
PRE-SHOW VIBE:
Well, while waiting in line a Ted Nugent wannabe got ticketed for drinking in public. I'd say more than half the people there were drunk. Which I find incredibly shocking. I mean who the hell drinks at a metal show.
Before Gn'R a DJ was spinning lots of music that created a total party vibe. Selections included "Do You Wanna Touch Me" by Joan Jett, "Enter Sandman" by Metallica, "Mother" by Danzig, "The Wizard" by Sabbath (which totally made me think of Sekel), and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana. It was a set obviously tailored for those of us with even the slightest case of ADD, as none of the songs were played in full.
Lots of people were pissed that Gn'R was taking their sweet time coming out onstage, but I don't know why they acted all surprised. Hell, I went in there knowing there was a strong possibility Axl might not even show up! Eventually they came on at about 11pm.
ATTENDANCE:
Sold out and then some. I'm not sure I've ever seen Hammerstein that packed before.
AUDIENCE:
I was happy to finally go to a show where the majority of the audience was older than I was. There were a couple of celebrities I saw including Mickey Rourke, and Lenny Kravitz who was sitting with my boyfriend Fred Durst.
WARDROBE:
Axl wore what you see pictured above. Gone are the days of the football jersey/kilt ensemble. Thank goodness. And who could forget the hot pants? I tried. But 15 years later, the image is still burned in my brain. I do question one of the band members' plaid suit. But I understand he was in the Replacements, so maybe that explains it.
STAGE SET:
Not much going on except a giant screen. However there was tons of pyro which was cool. I don't remember seeing anyone at Hammerstein that used pyro this much.
ARI RATING (ADRENALINE RUSH INDEX - 1-10):
Frame of reference:
1= I sat in my chair motionless and felt no emotional connection
10=I walked out bruised and high off nothing but the energy of the show
10. I'll just copy my reason from Kid Rock and paste it here because it's the same: No bruises, since I went the lazy route and chose the balcony rather than the floor when I ordered my tickets.
SETLIST:
(not in order)
What a treat for you- I already elaborated on my feelings about the setlist in a previously written email to friends, so here you go:
"Welcome to the Jungle" (opened with this): Hearing
that as the opening riff gives you the fucking chills
"It's So Easy": Scott does it great, but no one can do
it like Axl
"Nighttrain": When it started I was more excited to
hear this than I thought I would be. The beginning
sounded really majestic live.
"Mr. Brownstone": The opening drums sounded great. I
think I was the only one to recognize what song it was
before the guitar riff started, as there was basically silence
when it began, except for my lone "Yaaay!"
"Paradise City" (encore): Axl came in too late and
messed the band up for a second in the beginning but
they fixed it. I so wanted to do the "I've seen it all
a million times" hand gesture from the video but held
back. Axl totally did it though.
"My Michelle": Before this song, Axl did a whole speech
about how Sebastian Bach saved his life and it's because of him
he (Axl) is here now. Then Sebastian came out and sang
this with him and sounded and looked great. This was
like watching some childhood fantasy come true seeing
the two of them sing together. I once had tickets to
see a Gn'R/Skid Row show but they cancelled it :( But
now I feel complete.
"Sweet Child O' Mine": Never been a favorite, but
sounded great
"Rocket Queen": I was PSYCHED FOR THIS. I had seen
another site that said they didn't play this so I
didn't expect it. Axl intro'd this by saying
"Now...rolling on with the Oldies" and then the drums
started and I think I peed a little. Axl screwed up a
line though. He said "I'd hate to see you until the
bitter end" instead of "I'll be there standing until
the bitter end." Unless he meant to do that. I don't
know.
"Patience": Axl really f'd up the whistling in the
beginning so the whistle intro went on for awhile till
he got it right. They performed it a lot like how
they did on the American Music Awards back in '89
which brought back the memory of me sitting in front
of the TV completely in a trance. I used to have this
on tape, but because I didn't label the cassette, my
Dad taped over it and when I found out, I ran up to my
room and cried like a baby, not knowing that 16 years
later I'd be able to download it off the internet. A pic
from that very performance:
"November Rain": I actually got emotional during this.
Not because of the lyrics, but because I remembered
the first time I heard this song. It was on this
Thursday night show WCCC in Hartford had at 9pm where
they played rare GN'R stuff. That's how big they were
back then- they got a weekly show on a radio station
dedicated to them. The version I heard was just Axl on
a piano (not this other version that I have that has
backup vocals and acoustic guitar). At the time I only
knew the heavy Appetite stuff, (I don't even think
Gn'R Lies was out yet) so to hear them do something so
romantic and beautiful was really moving. Anyway, I
got all nostalgic and nearly weeped like a bitch. But
I held it together.
"Live and Let Die": Forgot about this song, but I
welcomed it.
"You Could Be Mine": I never liked this song. But
again, I welcomed it last night.
"Out ta Get Me": Interesting choice, of course sounded
good
3 guitar solos, including one between two of the three
guitarists where they did a rendition of Christina
Aguilera's "Beautiful." You read that right.
3 songs I didn't know, presumably new
HIGHLIGHTS:
-Axl showing up was a highlight. And Fred Durst. But that was a little bonus just for me.
-"Rocket Queen" for sure. Also the appearance by Sebastian was really cool and he sounded sooo good. And looked good too. Hello. Holly, Mel and Christina (and probably Rubby) - you know what I'm talking about. *hi-five*
LOWLIGHTS:
Not being able to sit on Fred Durst's lap for the performance. Just kidding. Not really. There weren't any major lowlights except at times I thought the band could've been a little tighter since they've had years to prepare for this tour. That being said, I think Bumblefoot just joined two weeks ago, so maybe I'm wrong. Who can keep up with all their drama. Not me. Also I would've liked to hear some stuff off of UYI 1&2 but seriously I can't really complain about the setlist you see above.
DO YOU RECOMMEND THIS SHOW? (YES/NO - EXPLAIN):
Hell yeah I do. Gn'F'n'R rules.
I saw this link on Metal Sludge if you wanna check out some footage from Friday's show:
November Rain
and another link I saw:
More Hammerstein
Not THAT great, but you get the idea.
Oh and shoutout to Eddie Trunk and website writer friend whose name I never caught.
