Guns N' Roses' Chinese Democracy: A 10 Year Retrospective

Hey, guys. I know it’s been quite a while. As you may have guessed, I have decided to quietly retire from Young Ears, Fresh Perspective. Ever since I started my new job a few months ago and moved during the past month, things have been a lot busier for me. I don’t have the time and energy to devote to writing a regularly posted blog any more.

That’s not to say that I won’t still make a post once in a while, but I won’t be posting regularly any more, as this blog has done its job for me in helping me get a job. It’s time for me to grow as a person, spread my wings, and move on to the next big part of my life.

That said, before I go, I’m going to do one last big post for you.

As it once began, so too shall it end.

For those of you who have been following Young Ears, Fresh Perspective from the beginning, you know that the very first post I EVER made was a review of the infamous Guns N’ Roses LP Chinese Democracy.

When I wrote that review, I was definitely still in the midst of my GN’R fanboy phase of my life (and also didn’t know how to write a professional review yet). I was a hormone driven angsty youngster with a lot of problems and was fueled to keep going by the equally heavy emotion driven music of Guns N’ Roses. I loved anything with the band’s name on it and in my eyes, Axl Rose could do no wrong, even with him being the only original member left in the band at the time. I was willing to defend them to the death, which showed in my not very impartial review.

10 years ago (as of November 23), the long-awaited Chinese Democracy album came out. I spent my teenage years on fan forums for the band, swapping leaked demos of the songs that were available, and commiserating with everyone else thinking that the album would never come out. Then one day, it was given an official release date that was actually followed through on. I was floored.

I remember being 18 years old and getting my copy that I had pre-ordered in the mail a day before the official release and I was thrilled. I loved the final versions of the songs, plus the songs I had not yet heard. I was over the moon and enamored with each and every last track. It became a significant part of the soundtrack to my late teenage/early 20’s years.

Now that being said, it is now officially one decade since the release. How do I feel about Chinese Democracy now? Does it still hold up in my eyes (or rather, ears)?

While I may not be the overly zealous GN’R fanboy and hormone driven punk that I was back then, as I have matured (a little), let my tastes grow and expand, and have given the music some time to simmer, I don’t think I feel the same way about the songs as I did back then (though I will still never understand the incredible hate and backlash toward it).

What I mean by that though is that I do not feel like the quality of the LP is any less than what I had initially perceived it as, but I am now able to be a bit more objective about it.

As a musician and composer myself, hearing all of these songs and the way they were so meticulously designed and constructed astonishes me even more as I have become more experienced. There are layers upon layers upon layers that all culminate into something grand, bombastic, and yet still maintaining that signature raw, uncensored, and unchained rage and melancholy that only Axl Rose can deliver.

Honestly, I have found plenty of minute details that I didn’t know about back then as I have given the album subsequent listens. Even when I gave it a full listen-through today for reference I heard details I had never picked up on (particularly in tracks like “Better” or “Chinese Democracy”). This is a LP that you should listen to on a good sound system both with regular speakers and also a good set of headphones. There are so many ways to experience the album and so many things you might miss out on if you don’t listen close enough. I can honestly understand at this point why the album took so long to finish.

You could argue that overall Chinese Democracy is bloated, over produced, and took way too long to finish. I can understand that point of view, though I don’t personally agree with it (aside from maybe taking too much time to finish, as 15 years is quite a long time to work on an album).

What makes me disagree with that is despite the fact the whole thing seems composed as though it were a heavy rock symphony of sorts, there is no less honesty in it than any of the previous Guns N’ Roses records. I don’t think you could make something like this if you didn’t honestly care about what you were doing and just wanted to make money.

Plus, I’ve heard what Axl sounds like when he doesn’t give a shit during a performance. This certainly isn’t that. I can tell he cared about his lyrics and delivery to where he gave it his all. Plus, he wanted to make something that was more than just another mindless rock record where you put it on, bang your head for a few minutes to meaningless dribble lyrics and basic riffs, and then you’re done.

That being said, if I were being shown some of these songs for the first time today and didn’t know that it was Guns N’ Roses, I might not be the biggest fan. A lot of the electronic drums/hip-hop-ish moments throughout the album (like in tunes such as “If the World”, “There Was a Time”, “Madagascar”, “Prostitute”, etc.) don’t exactly resonate with me now the same way as they did back then. I still like them though partially out of nostalgia, but also because of the musical context they are weaved into.

Honestly, because it was someone like Axl showing me that kind of stuff in a cool way that I could digest, it opened my mind to a different avenue of music that I never would have thought to check out before. I can honestly appreciate that as a music fan.

I don’t connect with the songs on an emotional level as much any more either. Particularly because I’m not balls to the wall with however I’m feeling at a given moment any more. Plus, I’m not in a bad place where I feel angry or heartbroken (I had “This I Love” on repeat during a lot of my sad heartbreak related moments of my young adult life). That being said, I can still say that this is good music for someone who is in such a place. It got me through some hard times and might be able to do the same for them.

Tracks like “Catcher in the Rye”, “Street of Dreams”, “Sorry”, and “Better” have certainly grown on me as I’ve gotten older, though. They have tasty ear pleasing melody while still having that gigantic beefy crunch where necessary. Hell, you can hear plenty of that old school blues rock influence in some of those tunes despite the rest of the record being mostly industrial metal, nu-metal, hip-hop, etc. inspired.

I can still appreciate a lot of the other tracks for the loud, punchy, rage driven nature of them. They definitely aren’t quite my usual cup of tea, but again, it was the context in which I was introduced to that kind of music that made me like it as much as I do. If I want something percussive, noisy, and howling, then you bet I’ll crank the shit out of songs like “I.R.S.”, “Scraped”, or “Shackler’s Revenge”.

I think that Chinese Democracy is one of those albums where it’s not necessarily love it or hate it (though I have certainly seen a lot of that), but has the ability to grow on you if you let it. As I said, there are always new things to discover within it and appreciate. The internet seems to think so, as in more recent years I’ve seen tons of YouTube comments where people sound like they are finally warming up to it. As a former GN’R zealot, that certainly warms my heart a bit.

Do I feel Chinese Democracy is God’s gift to music still? Not really. Do I still think it is one hell of an excellent album that does not get anywhere near as much praise as it should? You bet the fuck I do. If you can separate yourself from the notion of what GN’R was before that album and can just keep an open mind, I think you will be pleasantly surprised by what you hear on this record. It’s not for everyone, but for those willing to give it a fair shot and not expect it to sound anything like classic GN’R, you may yet still find some tracks you like.

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #184

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. Evil, by The Black Keys

I came across this track earlier today and loved the crap out of it. I feel like a bad Black Keys fan for not knowing about it sooner. It was a bonus track on the Japanese version of their 2003 sophomore album Thickfreakness. It definitely has a real John Lee Hooker vibe to it, but with the dirty, lo-fi, rock n' roll feel of the Black Keys. This definitely should be put on ALL future releases of the album, in my opinion.

2. Born Again (unmixed), by Black Sabbath

If you didn't catch my Throwback Thursday blog last week, I discovered the unmixed versions of the tracks from Black Sabbath's infamous 1983 album Born Again. This was the one album where Deep Purple singer Ian Gillan fronted the band. It is such a unique album, for sure. The final release had muddy, muffled production quality, which horrified the band. While it still has its charms, finding the unmixed versions of the tracks is a whole different experience.

3. One Last Soul, by Black Country Communion

I didn't really care all that much for this song the first several times I heard it, but over time it has somehow grown on me. The peculiar vocal harmonies and the grooving riffs definitely do it for me. I'm glad that Black Country Communion is back up and running again. When they broke up in 2013, I was completely bummed. They got back together not too long ago and put out a pretty good album, so hopefully I get to see them live.

4. Soulcreek, by Black Stone Cherry

This was a song a former band mate wanted us to cover way back in the day, but we never got around to it. Kind of a shame though, because this song definitely has some soul and power to it. It rocks, grooves, and has an overall atmosphere of down by the river, no frills, down to Earth fun to it. At the same time though, it doesn't sound like every over-produced "country" song you hear on the radio these days. We definitely need more stuff like this.

5. Remedy, by The Black Crowes

This song is an absolute classic. If you haven't heard it at least once by now, you have been living under a rock - or at least have no access to terrestrial radio. It has everything: rocking guitars, a beat you can move to, soulful harmonies, powerful lead vocals, and swagger. Not swag, swagger. The Black Crowes really knew how to kick a groove with some real musical layering back in the day. Shame they broke up.

Throwback Thursday: Born Again Unmixed Demos, by Black Sabbath

We're doing something a little different today on Throwback Thursday, again (as I've reviewed hundreds of albums at this point and quite frankly I'm bored of the way I've been doing things). Today we are revisiting an old favorite of mine, sort of. During my normal internet browsing, I came across something interesting: an unmixed version of Black Sabbath's infamous 1983 record Born Again. I'll get to why that got my attention in a moment.

When Black Sabbath was recording this album, the band was already in pretty rough shape. They had just lost their second singer within only a few years, as Ronnie James Dio (as well as drummer Vinnie Appice) had both left the band due to tensions going on. Losing Ozzy Osbourne had been a huge blow before. Getting Dio had managed to bring them back some, but losing him just left them wondering what they were going to do.

This is when guitarist Tony Iommi and bassist Geezer Butler met with former Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan to talk about starting a new band. Instead, they billed it as a Black Sabbath album due to pressures from management. The album also saw the return of the newly sober and original drummer Bill Ward (at least for recording the album) to round things out.

So what had happened was the band was all done recording the album and feeling pretty good about what they had done. They were digging how everything sounded even though it had not been mixed or mastered yet. They sent it off to the mixing and mastering people and that was that. Or so they thought. When they heard the finished product, to them it sounded like absolute rubbish and nothing like what they had been hearing on the monitors in the studio.

The production quality was murky and muddy beyond all belief. It sounded like some no name band's demo tape, though if they knew at least a little bit about production. This is what you hear on the version of the album that is still distributed to this day. That said, though I rag on it the production has definitely grown on me. I find that it adds this spooky, haunting, and eerie charm to it. It makes the experience that much darker and fun.

So what did the original music sound like before the post-production mucked everything up? Well now we can find out. In 2004, these unmixed tracks surfaced to the public, as one of Ward's ex-girlfriends sold the tape that he had gifted her of these tracks during the recording process to someone who put it out as Born Again Unmixed Demos on a Japanese bootleg label. It is now available either to buy from them or if you know where to find it for free. Plus, it's also on YouTube.

Now that we have gotten the context of the album out of the way, let's talk about the tape itself.

Let's start with some of the main differences:

1. IT'S NOT MUDDY AT ALL. Everything is pretty clear. In fact, it sounds pretty close to being a finished album as it is. You hear so many more little details in the way that they played things that got lost in the final mix and master of the record. A good example of this is hearing Ward's drum pattern at the beginning of "Zero the Hero". You can hear just how much more there was to it and it's cool as hell. It's a lot less bass heavy as well.

2. A lot less reverb on some of the tracks - particularly in the vocals and drums. Honestly, this is something that I miss from the final album. I feel it made the songs have a larger and grander presence, especially in the title track. I felt it allowed the music to breathe a little more and be more foreboding in places. However, this is something I can still live with given the fact that everything else sounds crystal clear and powerful.

3. There is a nearly five minute long version of the dark, ambient instrumental track "Stonehenge". This is not necessarily something I feel was a crime to have cut short from the final record, but it is definitely cool to hear this tune in a longer, more fleshed out way.

4. There is a track on here that didn't appear on the original version of the finished album, "The Fallen".

5. The track "The Dark" is missing. That is kind of a bummer because it builds up the tension and dark atmosphere for "Zero the Hero".

6. The vocals are just a little too high in the mix in one or two tracks, but not to the point where it is unlistenable or unenjoyable.

7. You can hear the tape hiss a bit louder at the beginning of some of the tracks. Plus, you can hear a bum note or two before some tracks kick in.

8. Different track order, but that isn't that big of a surprise.

This is the closest we are ever going to get to hearing Born Again the way the band wanted it to be heard. The original track tapes have since either gone missing or been destroyed. Either way, there will never be a remix. In 2011 the band remastered and re-released the album with the missing track "The Fallen" as well as some live tracks from that era.

That said, this is definitely worth your time if you are as much of a Black Sabbath enthusiast as I am, but don't pass up the official final version of the record either. Like I said, even though the production was shoddy, it still comes together to make an album that I feel is very well written and performed. It will grow on you over time, especially since there is absolutely nothing else out there that sounds anything like it.

Born Again Unmixed Demos, by Black Sabbath receives 3.5/5 stars.

Track List:

1. Hot Line
2. Keep It Warm
3. The Fallen
4. Digital Bitch
5. Stonehenge
6. Trashed
7. Zero the Hero
8. Born Again
9. Disturbing the Priest

Listen to the full album here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoG8p0uwMS0&list=PLYcMy-nHE0MeEIled0odZznhKVAXgo7m2

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #183

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. New York City Cops, by The Strokes

I know I'm a bit late to the party on this one (as per usual), but I've been checking out The Strokes a bit more recently and have been digging what I have been hearing. This tune in particular is pretty cool because it has that punkish garage rock vibe of the early 2000's in a nutshell. At the same time though, it still kind of reminds me of a bit of early 80's New Wave in certain areas. Regardless, I'm intrigued.

2. Purple Haze, by The Jimi Hendrix Experience

I was listening to this song at work the other day through some head phones and it was actually quite a different experience. Not only was I able to hear subtle details that I hadn't picked up on before, but the way that it was mixed and panned seemed interesting to me. The vocals being panned mostly on one side and the guitars mostly on the other seems strange to me. I'm used to most of that being pretty centered. Regardless, it made for a cool listening experience.

3. Ash Tray Heart, by The White Stripes

This is actually a cover of a Captain Beefheart song, though such a thing was not uncommon to hear from The White Stripes in their early days. They actually did a handful of them, especially live. That said, I like this version better because I love the deep, lo-fi fuzz on the guitar and the driving nature of the song overall. Plus, Jack White's voice is a bit easier on the ears for me personally. That said, both are excellent in their own right.

4. Behind the Wall of Sleep, by Black Sabbath

Over the years this song has grown on me. It's from the band's first album. It showcases a lot of their blues and jazz roots while still giving it that bombastic, gritty, dark heavy metal experience that they were known for. Interestingly enough, I never knew that the one lyric that gets repeated was "Turns your body to a corpse" instead of "Take your body to the cops". I guess even back then Ozzy Osbourne could still be a bit difficult to understand from time to time.

5. Have Love, Will Travel, by The Black Keys

This version is slower and less wild than the one done by The Sonics, but I think overall I like this one better. It has this deep, full sound to it and it has this groove to it that the other one lacks. It has swagger, style, and makes me feel like I'm dancing on a cruise ship or something. Plus, it also has a bit of a Cream vibe to it. Needless to say, it is one of my favorite songs from my absolute favorite Black Keys record.

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #182

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. Miracle Man, by Ozzy Osbourne

Since I went to go see Ozzy in concert last Friday for the first (and possibly only) time, I decided that this week was going to be Ozzy Week. I can trace a lot of the stuff I have listened to over the past decade back to him, so I feel he deserves it. That said, I feel this tune in particular is an overlooked and under rated gem. It's about a televangelist from the late 80's who got caught with his pants down. The riffs are killer, the soloing fast and melodic, etc. One of Zakk Wylde's best songs from his early career (as this was his first album with Ozzy).

2. Flying High Again, by Ozzy Osbourne

Over the years I have grown to appreciate the Diary of a Madman album a lot more. The Blizzard of Ozz will always be my number one Ozzy album, but this album has some AMAZING material. A lot of it is pretty musically complex upon closer listening. Lots of odd time signatures, classical chord progressions, brilliant melodies, and more. Ozzy might be a party animal clown, but his band (especially when Randy Rhoads was alive) really knew how to write some great stuff. This song in particular was one of Randy's crowning achievements, as he spent two days in the studio with no sleep, food, or water working tirelessly until he could come up with the perfect solo. The final product speaks for itself.

3. No More Tears, by Ozzy Osbourne

For a brief moment at the concert, I honestly thought Ozzy wasn't going to do this song. I was disappointed. However, he came back on for a few encores, with this being one of them. If you haven't heard it by now, you clearly have had your head in the dirt for the past three decades. It's a classic and some of the best song writing Zakk Wylde and the band Ozzy had at the time had ever done. Like I said, Ozzy may be a clown but his band has always had his back with great music.

4. You Can't Kill Rock and Roll, by Ozzy Osbourne

I absolutely LOVE this song. I didn't always care for it, but as I've gotten older I notice more of the complexities of it and can adore the way everything gets put together. The layered vocals that Ozzy does in this are tasty as fuck. The acoustic arpeggios played throughout the verses are a treat to the ear, and the choruses are larger than life. This is a song I always crank whenever I drive past a billboard for the Christian radio station that bought out the local classic rock station.

5. Electric Funeral, by Black Sabbath

And to end this list, a Black Sabbath tune. This has always been one of my favorite Black Sabbath tunes. I don't understand why it doesn't get any radio airplay, as the riff is just as catchy as any of the other songs on Paranoid. It's so evil, monstrous, and foreboding. However, it picks up at certain moments and then seamlessly transitions back into the lumbering, wah-wah evil riff. Definitely a hidden gem for sure.

Throwback Thursday: St. Anger, by Metallica

Today on Throwback Thursday, we're doing things a little bit differently. Normally when I do these I talk about some album I'm either fond of or at least feel has some level of importance and some admirable qualities. Well that's not what we're doing here today. Today we're briefly ripping an album a new asshole. What album could have possibly spurned such ire from me, might you ask? One of the most infamous albums in all of heavy metal:

Metallica's St. Anger.

To give a bit of background on the album, it was recorded in 2003 during a rather turbulent time in the band's career. Their long time bassist Jason Newsted had left the band because among other reasons, singer and rhythm guitarist James Hetfield was telling him he wasn't allowed to do any side projects. They ended up hiring on current bassist Rob Trujillo, who has also played with the likes of Suicidal Tendencies, Black Label Society, and Ozzy Osbourne.

On top of that, Hetfield was also hitting the wall with his alcoholism and went to treatment to get himself clean. They then were filming a documentary of the whole process while also having a group counselor help them solve their band related issues. Needless to say, it was not a happy time in the band's history.

With that out of the way, this is a Metallica album that I actually not just not care for, but actively dislike (like many Metallica fans). Not only is the production bad, but the song writing in general is far less than stellar. The mix sounds incredibly muddy (ESPECIALLY the guitars due to being tuned so low), there are no guitar solos, and then of course there is the much ridiculed tin bucket snare sound. Honestly, I'm really not sure what they were thinking.

Now I could potentially put some of this stuff aside, but the music itself is just droning and boring. I REALLY tried to give this album a fair chance, but I couldn't even get through to the end of the first song before I had to tap out.

I get that Metallica was trying to do something different. I applaud them for always trying to do something new and boundary pushing. They wouldn't be Metallica if they didn't. That said, I think this is one instance where it severely backfired on them. Needless to say, they got a LOT of fan and critical backlash for the album and they soon tried to bury the album as far in the past as they possibly could.

That said, I am NOT going to give you a track listing or link to the album because you're better off not listening to it unless you really hate yourself.

St. Anger, by Metallica receives 1.5/5 stars.

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #181

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. Watching Over, by Greta Van Fleet

This is the new single that came out last week from the upcoming debut album of Greta Van Fleet. It's a little more interesting than some of the other stuff I have heard them do, but at the end of the day they still sound and look as though they are just trying to be Led Zeppelin. Personally I find the vocals on this to be a bit screechy for my taste, but I'll let you be the judge. That said, you had best believe that when that album does drop next month I will be doing a serious in depth review on it.

2. Good Thing Gone, by Elle King

Pop/soul/rock/country/whatever she wants I guess sensation Elle King also has a new album coming out in the not too distant future. This is another single from it, and honestly I like it better than all of the other songs I have heard her put out lately. It's a laid back, softer blues guitar driven ballad. It's like a 60's pop ballad, but with a bit more soul in the vocals and instrumental flavor. I like that there is still someone like Elle King around there who brings this kind of old school soul, passion, and authenticity to her music.

3. South of Heaven, by Slayer

And now for something completely different. A little bit of thrash metal is always good to get your blood pumping and your head banging. This song is one of their hallmarked classics, and for good reason. It is chocked full of dark, foreboding atmosphere all throughout and you feel like if you look over your shoulder you will see fire and brimstone. I put it on whenever I want to feel spooked or need to get myself pumped up. Also, if you are one of those older folks who get scared of Satan, Slayer is NOT a Satanic band and they do not condone worshiping him. The bassist and singer Tom Araya is actually a devout Catholic.

4. The Ghoul, by Pentagram

If you want a dark heavy metal song with atmosphere though, this is one of the best ones you could possibly go with. No, it's not about Satan worship. None of Pentagram's songs are. With that out of the way, this song is brimming with spooky atmosphere. It is big, heavy, dark doom metal, but played in a way that I have never quite heard before. The riffs are so tasty and intriguing. They are so grinding and crusty that it makes me shiver in delight.

5. Gotten, by Slash feat. Adam Levine

This is a rather chilled out modern Beatles-esque ballad of sorts. Adam's voice is smooth, colorful, yet passionate nonetheless and Slash plays some of the best clean guitar I've ever heard him play. I have a very specific memory attached to this song, though. It was maybe 2 or 3 in the morning and I had just gotten out from a really bad date with a girl I'd had a crush on for a year and a half. I put this song on in my car and somehow everything just clicked. It was one of those perfect moments, even though it was a sad one.