I have decided to cover an album for the album of the week that was a but controversial when it came out. The album that I chose for you guys is the last Guns N Roses record to be released to date in their sixth studio album Chinese Democracy. The very album that fans waited 13 years for Guns N Roses to release when it finally came out in November of 2008. The reason I chose the album is because of the fact that I bought the Axl Rose Funko Pop and I went on my Spotify that day and decided to listen to the album once again. The album besides Axl Rose (Vocals) features an army of musicians that worked on it like Robin Finck (Guitars), Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal (Guitars), Buckethead (Guitars), Paul Tobias (Guitars), Richard Fortus (Guitars), Tommy Stinson (Bass), Bryan “Brain” Mantia (Drums), Frank Ferrer (Drums), Dizzy Reed (Keyboards), Chris Pitman (Keyboards), and Josh Freese (arrangements). The album was successful around the world as it went number one in eight different countries and it went number one in the European Top 100 charts as well as peaking at number three on the Billboard Top 200 charts. The album also went platinum and sold over a million worldwide.
1. Chinese Democracy– The opening track on the album that was inspired by the film Kundun which was about the Dalai Lama. This track and the words contained in it is the reason the album is banned in China as we speak. 5/5
2. Shackler’s Revenge– A track dipped heavily into Industrial metal which is about all of the school shootings in America and how the media tried to pin one on Guns N Roses and their song Mr. Brownstone. 4.5/5
3. Better-An amazing electronic rock track that sees Axl singing in a falsetto style. There’s this one part in the song at the 2:30 mark that is absolutely killer and heavy. The song also contains a killer solo in it too. 5/5
4. Street Of Dreams– the track was originally titled The Blues before the name change and it’s a straight up pop piano rock song that definitely has some Elton John influence in it. 5/5
5. If The World– This is a very sexy song that features Buckethead playing the Flamenco guitar in the beginning with the funk and neo soul influences in it combined with some Nu Metal. 5/5
6. There Was A Time– An epic track on the album that is personally one of my favorties with the heavy orchestral sound with the mellotron, violins, etc. I feel the song is about how we change because we may grow distant with someone. 5/5
7. Catcher In The Rye– A song that Axl Rose wrote in tribute to John Lennon after watching a documentary on Mark David Chapman where Rose criticizes the book in the song. 4.5/5
8. Scraped– The track takes us to that Industrial Rock sound that a lot of people were talking about when it came to this record. With lyrics like, “Don’t you try to stop us now” and “All things are possible, I am unstoppable.” Rose is telling you, he is here to stay. 4/5
9. Riad N’The Bedouins– Axl talked about the track saying, “Riad is the name my one time momentary brother-in-law of Erin Everly went by when I knew him. Of part Lebanese descent and a former student of Pepperdine University, he claims to be an international arms dealer.” 4/5
10. Sorry– Sebastian Bach described the song saying, “There’s this one song called ‘Sorry’ that’s almost like doom metal with Axl singing really clean over this grinding, slow beat that is fucking mean, I cannot get it out of my head.” Rose said the track is about, “anyone talking nonsense at mine and the public’s expense.” 4.5/5
11. I.R.S.– The song starts off a little bluesy before some cool heavy guitars come in during the chorus. 4/5
12. Madagascar– Another track on the album that is one of my favorites. It kind of has the same kind of message as Civil War as it features quotes from films like Mississippi Burning, Casualties of War, Cool Hand Luke, Braveheart, and Seven as well as some excerpts from speeches by Martin Luther King Jr. over some Trip Hop styled sound. 5/5
13. This I Love– Supposedly the song dates all the way back to 1992 as it was a piano ballad written by Rose to one of his former loves. 4.5/5
14. Prostitute– A power ballad with that is actually a cool track that is not about actual prostitutes, but rather him telling you that he wouldn’t pimp the band out just for money to have in his pocket. 4.5/5
My Final Thoughts– In my opinion, this was an excellent release from Axl even though it took forever to come out. The question that was on everyone’s mind then was whether the wait for the new record was worth it. You have to listen to it yourself and just be the judge for yourself, but I love the album. I am going to give the record 4.6 star out of five for a final grade.
For this weeks Album Of The Week, I wanted to go back and cover a record from a band that I always thought were underrated and if they reunited, all holy hell will be unleashed. The band I am talking about is Skid Row of course and the album I am covering is their third studio album Subhuman Race. The album featured Sebastian Bach (Vocals), Dave “The Snake” Sabo (Guitar) Scotti Hill (Guitar), Rachel Bolan (Bass), and Rob Affuso (Drums). This was the last full length studio album Skid Row would ever record with both Sebastian Bach and Rob Affuso as the band would eventually break up. It was produced by Bob Rock (Motley Crue/Metallica) and even though it would go Gold, it wasn’t their best selling album at the time. The album even peaked at number 35 on The Billboard Top 200 charts as well as going five in Australia, six in Japan, and eight in the UK. After the release of the record the band had been criticized for every little change they made in their sound. In an interview with Circus Magazine in 1995 Bach said, “Heavy metal and hard rock have always beaten up. When I was selling four million copies of a record in ‘88-‘89, all I heard was, ‘Hey, pretty boy, blah blah,’ so that was no good. Then when Slave to the Grind debuted at No. 1, ‘Oh, that’s too heavy,’ so that was no good. It’s always something. I think hard rock stands the test of time more than any other genre.” Rachel remembers the time period a little differently and all the differences within the band saying in an interview with Metal Exiles, “That record was a nightmare. Internally the band had fallen apart, but we were forced to go in and do another record.”
1. My Enemy– A track with a killer groove that reminds me a little of Vulgar era Pantera in a track about people hating, but you don’t care enough to let it bother you. 5/5
7. Subhuman Race– The title track is the band diving head first into the metal genre with all guns a blazing double bass beats and all. 4/5
“In this uncensored, unfiltered memoir, the musician and former frontman for Skid Row tells the story of how a choir boy became a mega-successful hair metal god, rode the wave of fame in heavy metal’s heyday, and came out alive on the other side when glam rock went the way of the cassette tape and the Walkman.” That is the official description for the newest addition to your rock autobiography collection as Sebastian Bach recently announced that he will be releasing his official memoir titled 18 and Life on Skid Row. The book will be officially released on January 19. 2016 which is also yours truly’s birthday. I now know what to get for my birthday and I can add this to the Heavy Metal Book Report as soon as I get to read it. Recently Bach offered this insight into what he believes is the reason for the reunion not happening in the form of Rachel Bolan, “I’ve talked to all of those guys except the bass player, and he is the one that has it in for me. But I haven’t given that guy any reason to dislike me in 19 years.”
I was trying to think of something special to have for the 50TH album of the week post on this blog. I had Pantera’s Vulgar Display Of Power as the 25TH album of the week and rightfully so as it’s my favorite album from them. So, since Mötley Crüe announced that they were going to do their final tour yesterday in a press conference which you can read about 
T.N.T (Terror In Tinseltown) is the intro to the album that kicks off with a solo from Mick Mars before we get some EMT’s speaking and police sirens before it kicks into the title track and first single off the record. Dr. Feelgood is the only gold certified single that Mötley Crüe ever had in their careers and it’s a track about the rise and fall of a Mexican drug lord. Slice Of Your Pie starts with a real bluesy beginning before it gets real heavy and sleazy. You can only imagine what the lyrics are about and it’s not food their talking about. Rattlesnake Shake continues the trend with a sleaze tinged blues track all about the way a woman moves her hips that leaves you hypnotized. Then the epic and amazing shot out of a cannon, freight train going a 1000 MPH, turbo charged I want to drive my car way past 100 Kickstart My Heart is next on the album. According to wikipedia, “The introduction is a classic example of a Floyd Rose bridge trick, in which Mick Mars drops three consecutive strings resulting in sound similar to a motorcycle shifting gears, borrowed from the similar-sounding intro to Montrose’s Bad Motor Scooter.” The song is about the 1987 overdose that Nikki went through, but I have to say that this may be one of the most ultimate rock songs of all time.
Without You is the power ballad on the record which is rumored to be about Tommy Lee’s relationship with Heather Locklear. The song features Mick playing a slide guitar during the intro and solo to give the song a little something extra. Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S) is a kick ass rock song about lesbianism which is still a concert staple to this day. Sticky Sweet is the power chord heavy sleaze rock song while She Goes Down gets a little naughty with the sound effects and you don’t have to be a genius to figure out what the song is about. Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away) was always an ultimate must have track from this album in my opinion cause you can relate to it in so many ways. I always felt that it just spoke about life even though it has obvious references to their lives. Nikki once said that he heard it as a line from a film that he couldn’t remember (which was Heartbreak Ridge from 1986) and he also could have heard it in a Blondie song (doubt it) called Just Go Away.
Time For Change is the socially conscious Mötley Crüe at work, but the song features Sebastian Bach and Bob Dowd doing background vocals for the track as well as Bob Rock playing bass on the track. The album features various rock stars doing appearances on the record like Steven Tyler doing the intro to Slice Of Your Pie and background vocals for Sticky Sweet along with Bryan Adams. Robin Zander does background vocals on She Goes Down, Jack Blades On Same Ol Situation and Sticky Sweet. The other element different about this record was the fact that the album also featured background singers for the whole record that the band also brought out on tour with them in Donna McDaniel and Emi Canyn. I am giving this album four and the half stars out of five because it is the ultimate Crüe album that helped cement them as the kings of sleaze. I can not wait to see the Crüe this summer on their final tour ever.
Moshpits And Movies 