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Guns N' Roses Lose 'Patience' in Toronto

Waiting for Axl Rose is a state most Guns N' Roses fans are well accustomed to by now. It famously took 15 years for Rose to release 'Chinese Democracy.' Then almost two more years for Axl and his hired Guns to take it on a tour which is currently crossing Canada.

Still, the mood was getting tumultuous in Toronto's Air Canada Center last night as the clocked crept towards 11:30pm and the boos let up only when a lady doffed her top for the jumbotron. It was starting to get worrisome. After all, GN'R has sparked two full fledged riots in Canada -- in Montreal in 1992 and in Vancouver a decade later.

Then Axl rolled out in a wheelchair and did something utterly unexpected. He apologized. "Sorry abut the time delay," he said with a sheepish grin beneath his new handlebar mustache. "I got carried away jumping off sh-- last night."

Alas, the two-hour delay meant songs had to be cut from Guns N' Roses setlist to finish by 2am -- ironically including 'Patience.'

But after a tepid response to 'Chinese Democracy' as the opening track, all seemed forgiven the second the Axl screeched, "You know where you are? You're in the jungle, Toronto, you're gonna dieeee." They then barreled headfirst into 'Appetite for Destruction' classics 'It's So Easy' and 'Mr Brownstone.'

Unlike their past two tours, this was Axl's chance to properly trot out his new songs – unfortunately, 'Chinese Democracy' resembles those 'Star Wars' prequels. Aside from a few flashes of greatness -- encore number 'Madagascar' is a 'November Rain' style epic purpose-built for stadium performances while aching ballad 'This I Love' provided nice counterpoint -- the songs just don't have much soul.

Same goes for Axl's band -- they're an extremely talented bunch, especially onetime Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson and new, Slash-esque guitar hero DJ Ashba -- but as fans discussed ad nauseum during the delay, they're not quite the same.



Still, GN'R's back catalogue, including beloved covers of 'Live and Let Die' and 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door,' are as powerful as ever, even if Axl's voiced only sporadically hit his old heights until a blazing set-closing rendition of 'Night Train.'

"We're gonna do this for our good friend J.D. Salinger, who passed away today," Axl said mid-concert, launching into 'Catcher in the Rye.' It was an interesting callout because of the similarities -- and differences -- the two men share. Both were reclusive artistic geniuses whose early work encapsulated the aimless anger of youth. But while Salinger holed up in his home and adamantly refused to follow-up his seminal work, Rose almost drove himself crazy trying to outdo his past. Ultimately, he failed and, in doing so, lessened his legend.

Not that it matters much to Axl, who ran around the stage like a young man. He was in far better shape than on his last two tours, both physically and mentally. Up there on an arena stage, in front of 21,000 fans, he's rarely looked happier.

And when the guitars chimed out the indelible opening riff to 'Sweet Child O' Mine' or the chorus to 'Paradise City' sparked a thousands-strong sing-along, the crowd looked just as content.

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bbboux

i saw the winnipeg show and these guys are the best for sure,axl is better than ever and their display of talent is unmatched,its awesome to hear such great comments from the fans in T.O. ROCK ON GNR FANS!!

February 02 2010 at 8:37 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Storm1313

I agree that Chinese Democracy is a GREAT album. I don't know what this write is talking about when he says it has no soul. I mean seriously???? Come on, has he really listened to it? How can you listen to Street of Dreams, the way that Axl sings his ass off, especially at the end. You can hear years of pain and anguish in his voice in that song, if that's not soul, I don't know what is. This album to me is definitely better than the UYI albums and much more heartfelt, because Axl had to go to hell and back before this album could be in his heart, complete. It's a masterpiece..

January 31 2010 at 10:06 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
pixy lee

I'd looked forward to the concert for a looooong time, I've always been a huge fan, and I'd never before had the chance to see Axl live...

Yeah, the time delay was brutal, although it gave me time to get my man properly drunk so I could take total advantage of him after the show (lol) ;)

Still, although I was impressed with Axl's energy onstage, along with the talent of his bandmates (that black sequined guitar was so f*****g HOT!) I have to say that WHOEVER WAS MICING THE SOUND NEEDS TO READJUST FOR FUTURE SHOWS!!! The bass was jacked up waaaay too high, which made some of Axl's vocals inaudible at times; the uneven balance also masked some of the other instruments for many of the songs.
Too bad...sloppy sound techs can kill a good band and a good show (for me, anyways; I'm a bit of an "aural" geek). My man and I were somewhat disappointed; between the bad sound and the time delay, we ended up leaving the concert early.
But fate intervened: on the drive home, we turned on the radio and what happened to come on the air?
Paradise City!!! Heh heh....we never made it back to the house...the car suited us just fine :P So I guess all's well that ends well...

*pixy lee*

January 30 2010 at 2:01 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Gooze

Bottom line: Even if you had the original line-up, you wouldn't have GN'R without Axl - he is the foundation of GN'R. I don't know what all the negativity is with these Canadian reporters covering the Toronto show. The show f**king great. Period. Get over the fact that its not 1987 anymore.

January 30 2010 at 12:04 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Vincenzo

Axl's a cool guy. The real deal. New GNR all the way baby!

January 30 2010 at 9:31 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
george

whats with the "they are not the same"issue? who says theyre trying to be the same? theyre being themselves and what they are is a terrific band that puts on a great show.

Al's voice is phenomenal on this tour and countless fans who have attended the shows have said that. yet the writer tries to take away even from this!

how can anybody say that Chinese Democracy songs dont have soul? have you listened to Prostitute or There Was a Time? such heart-felt emotion and startling beauty is virtually non-existent in music these days.

for me, Chinese Democracy elevated Axl's legend. he refused to settle, gave his all and made sure that every single band member got to display their wonderful talents both on the album and in live settings. the reviewer may not have much faith in this line-up but Axl certainly does and that positive spirit makes this band very special.

songs like This I Love and Catcher in the Rye put forward new dimensions of Axl's talent and have a depth that goes beyond what he offered before.

January 30 2010 at 8:33 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Rhymetyme

I disagree with the review. Chinese Democracy was much better than both UYI albums, and is second only to Appetite.

January 29 2010 at 6:12 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Koumaris

Heard from an ACC employee that Axl injured his hip and the Team Chiro from Soccer Canada happened to be at the ACC so she worked on him a bit before the show.

January 29 2010 at 4:25 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply