I'm a rockslut!

In a move somewhat (very) out of character, on Saturday night I attended a Guns n’ Roses concert. I do like the rock n’ roll music, but I’m not generally what you may consider a rockslut. I prefer pub gigs to stadium spectaculars, independent Aussie acts to worldwide superstars.

That said, I’m a fan of the nostalgia. The Gunners were big in the late 80s, and their music reminds me of my late-primary school years. Other big-haired rockers also take me back to this time – Poison, Bon Jovi, Warrant. Back then I had a friend who was keen on harder music – her black pencil case was covered with band names like AC/DC, Black Sabbath and the Gunners, of course. My pencil case was more likely to be scrawled with Bros, INXS and NKOTB.

So when I was given a ticket to the Gunners concert, I was a bit indifferent. I suppose I was a little excited, in an ironic kind of way. And really, it’s hardly the ‘Gunners’ anymore. Axl Rose is the last man standing. The original band has been replaced with a seven-piece outfit (creative differences, anyone?), although they’re still all long hair and guitar solos. Axl too, has changed. No longer the whippet-like frontman in white bike shorts, he now more closely resembles Meatloaf.


The Gunners haven’t released an album for years. Their as yet unreleased Chinese Democracy album gave the theme for this series of shows, with huge banners of Chinese characters framing the stage. Why Chinese Democracy? Since when have the Gunners been political? Is Axl doing a Bono? I doubt it.

The gig itself was littered with all their classics from the late 80s. The crowd loved these tracks, lapping it up. But unfortunately there was also a fair share of duds, tracks we’d never heard before (from the new album, perhaps?). There were also guitar and piano solos every three or four tracks, mostly to give the frontman a break. This added to the length of the show, which hadn’t started till after midnight as it was. Suffice to say I was a tired little rockslut on the way home.