Guns N' Roses Sued for Plagiarism

It looks like Axl Rose and Coldplay's Chris Martin have something in common. Guns N' Roses are being sued for song theft by two independent record labels that represent German electronic artist Ulrich Schnauss. UK label Independiente and the US arm of Domino Recording Company -- the companies that hold the licensing rights to Schnauss' songs -- are seeking $1 million, according to details of the suit released Monday.

Schnauss' labels allege that portions of his tracks 'Wherever You Are' and 'A Strangely Isolated Place' were sampled without permission and used on the track 'Riad N' the Bedouins,' one of the songs on the 2008 release 'Chinese Democracy,' the Axl Rose-fronted outfit's first album of new original material in 17 years. Aside from Rose, the suit names guitarist Brian Carroll (aka Buckethead), bassist Tommy Stinson and guitarist Robin Finck, as well as GNR's record company, Interscope-Geffen.

While there has yet to be a response from Axl's camp on the suit, the band is reportedly gearing up for a busy December, with tour dates slated for enormous venues in Asian locales like Taipei, Seoul, Osaka and Tokyo. A formal confirmation of these dates is expected shortly.

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