After many years, several line-up changes and sky-high expectations, The Machine finally rolled back into London last night – Guns N’ Roses returned. I am very happy to report that it was worth the wait. Whether you want to call it a “reunion” or not, there really is no point dwelling on who wouldn’t sign up or get on board the Nightrain – whoever they are, they weren’t missed last night.
The entire band seemed to be genuinely happy and enjoying themselves during the concert, none more so than W. Axl Rose. The king of the jungle himself was in fine vocal form with smiles & grins all night. I have honestly never seen the man enjoy himself on stage so much, with interaction and fun.
The changes were not only visible, but audible too. Having followed Gn’R for many years, I’ve come to enjoy the subtlest changes. The previous few line-ups of Guns N’ Roses were stacked with some of the fiercest and most talented players in the rock world , particularly in the six-string department. It often felt like a rag-tag group of outlaws supporting and giving to their hard-core fans while simultaneously flipping off their detractors. The current line up feels like everybody’s favourite team running a victory lap in front of 70,000 adoring fans – that element of confrontation , which produced at times both incredible and challenging shows, is gone.
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It has been replaced by a lean, well-balanced band that can handle “Appetite For Destruction” era classic like “My Michele” and “It’s So Easy” with hard punk energy while still leading the crowd through a beautiful “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door”. The return of “Use Your Illusion” album tracks like “Double Talkin’ Jive”, “Yesterday” and the truly epic “Coma” was a joy to hear.
Even more exciting is that Slash has his fire back. Whether its the extra pressure that goes into the big shows or just having to keep up with the truly incredible Richard Fortus on guitar, Slash was playing with focus, energy and real speed. His blistering solo of “The Godfather” theme led into “Sweet Child of Mine” , thankfully slowed down to the correct speed and still enjoyable even for the millionth time.
The sublime guitar duel of Slash and Richard Fortus during “Wish You Were Here” is followed by the Piano intro of “Layla” leads us into “November Rain”. A healthy selection of songs from “Chinese Democracy” also make a welcome showing, from the title track and “This I Love” to hard rocking “Better” now its new industrial riffing intro. The one and only Mr Duff Mckagan steps up for the punk blast of “Attitude”, while “Civil War” is played with classic “Voodoo Child” outro.
Following a roaring “Nightrain” the band passes the 2.5 hour mark but they are still not done. The Encore begins with a tremendous tribute to the late Chris Cornell in the form of “Black Hole Sun” before leading and an almost acoustic “Patience”. This is followed by a truly joyous cover of “The Seeker” before GN’R break the 3 hour mark and take us down to the “Paradise City”. 70,000 happy, tired and sometimes rowdy fans file out of the stadium, content in the knowledge that they have just seen legends in action.
With its Golden Circle standing area and steep ticket prices, is the “Not in This Lifetime” tour a cash grab? Possibly.
Did the fans leave happy having got their moneys worth? Most certainly yes.
Are “Guns N’ Roses” still the greatest Hard Rock band in the world? Without a doubt.