Axl's back! (Chinese Democracy - Guns N Roses)

Member Name: sparksteroid

Product:	Chinese Democracy - Guns N Roses
Date:	11/12/08 (54 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Original, fresh new material, resembles the old Guns n Roses

Disadvantages: One or two bad tracks, but nothing major

Chinese Democracy is one way overdue album and it really makes you wonder why it took Axl Rose so long to sort his act out and finally get it together. It's been thirteen years since Guns n Roses released a studio album back in 1995 - The Spaghetti Incident, which contained no original material. Chinese Democracy, then, has to be the most eagerly anticipated and long awaited album of all time!

I actually listened to the album in full on Guns n Roses' Myspace page a few days before the official release. Mid-afternoon the album had received nearly two million plays that day. However, sales figures for Chinese Democracy never came close to the iconic release of AC/DC's Black Ice and I believe Chinese Democracy only made it to number 25 in the UK album charts.

Unfortunately, this isn't the old Guns n Roses and only consists of two original members, Axl Rose and Dizzy Reed. In all honesty Slash was the one who really made Guns n Roses for me and they will never be the same without him. However, all the way through Chinese Democracy the three credited lead guitarists involved do seem to do their best at imitating Slash's style and they do it fairly well. They also have their own style which is extremely industrial which is also thrown in for good measure. Impressive, but not particularly tuneful at times and a lot of the time it just sounds like random notes. In a way I am glad that Buckethead isn't credited on the album. Why hide behind a KFC bucket?

The album kicks off with the title track, Chinese Democracy, which has a long gradual intro containing loads of different sounds and samples which eventually creeps up to the song, which begins with a distorted rhythm guitar coming in to play a catchy riff. The track then kicks into action and you begin to realize that the band have managed to retain some of the distinct Guns n Roses styles of the past with bluesy lead guitar riffs scattered throughout.

The two following tracks, Shacklers Revenge and Better seem to be a bit lighter in comparison, Better being the more iconic with melodic vocals and an original sound which then moves into some heavy guitar riffs and Axl's typical screeching. Better also contains some impressive lead guitar riffs.

Street Of Dreams is a bluesy ballad type of track which contains some heavy guitar playing to spruce it up. This track does genuinely sound like an authentic Guns n Roses track and The lead playing sounds like Slash himself. This is followed by If The World which has a funky groove and repetetive rhythm to it. This song is mostly about the vocals which are highly melodic and Axl does a great job of performing them.

There Was A Time is a fantastic very original song mixing a combination of piano, industrial but light percussion and electric guitars together. Excellent well written lyrics and a memorable vocal tune and this track really stands out. This is followed by Catcher In The Rye which has to be the best song on the album for me. The vocals on the chorus are amazingly catchy and the song builds up and progresses through several changes getting better and better as it goes along.

Probably the heaviest song on the album, Scraped drives along at a fast tempo accompanied by heavy thunderous guitar riffs, raw fast vocals and some extremely heavily industrial lead guitar solos. Overall, a little manic where the lead is concerned. In comparison to the first eight tracks, Rhiad And The Bedhouins, Sorry and IRS all seem a little feeble and possibly average quality. Sorry is quite drab and made up of very simple lyrics which anyone could have written and sounds more like Pink Floyd whereas IRS does catch a bit of the old Guns sound and style but is also a lot lighter and simpler in musicianship and melody.

For anyone who heard the bootleg of the next tack, Madagascar, will know that this is not actually a studio recording. Some clever recording studio tricks have actually been used to make the track sound a lot better. This started as a recording of a live performance where Axl's voice just wasn't up to scratch that day. On the original version he is way out of tune and just can't reach the high notes and on the album version it is pretty clear that they've used feedback from the lead guitar to block out his out of key singing. This also explains the deep throaty sound of his vocals on the track. I really think that this could have been a decent song, but it should have been re-recorded and built upon. It's kind of like the song intends to be very atmospheric, tuneful and melodic, but just isn't.

This I Love is an incredibly strong track in comparison the last. The words are extremely simple but easy to follow and overall this sounds more like a theatrical piece of music with an almost operatic theme. Axl's vocals really are up to scratch and the song is soft and slow paced but still very catchy. This is a style very different from what you would usually expect from Guns n Roses. The album finishes off with Prostitute, which is probably the most memorable song featured. It contains some impressive vocals, interesting lyrics and is quite a dynamic piece of music where the guitars are concerned.

Overall Chinese Democracy is a fairly impressive album which contains original fresh sounding material that manages to resemble the old Guns n Roses rather well, though with a more modern indutsrial edge to it. There may be one or two songs that are not much above average but it's definitely an enjoyable and entertaining experience.

Summary: Overall a great album, though it doesn't sound like 13 years worth!