Here's an electric one to compare against.

To me catcher isn't too noticeable for mickey - I notice it more on stuff like the KOHD call and response compared to 10 years back.

It's entirely different because Cornell didn't spend his prime creative years doing absolutely nothing.

He did 3 records with Audioslave and what 4 solo records? So that's 7 albums worth of output in the same time frame. Which is an entirely different creative headspace to then go back and relook at works you did prior to the band breaking up.

Axl on the other hand has released what 15 songs in the past 25 years? More than 10 years ago multiple witnesses talked about the dozens of other finished songs he has lying around. His last album was 8 years ago and that was songs written mostly 17 years ago or more.

There is absolutely zero reason why the band should delay songwriting other than Axl has psychological issues around it these days.

The first order of business could have been to release a comeback album (or single) much like Ac/Dc did for "Black Ice" - hell a single you could smash that out in a day just by adding Slash and Duff to one of the shit ton of vault songs Axl has. That's without them having to even make a real effort like write something new!

It sure wasn't better but that just adds to it for me. This shit is cumulative in terms of the frustration factor.

I enjoyed moments of it like I do this, but every year I get more frustrated watching the waste continue. Are they hoping to put out their other songs post posthumously?

We had to sit through how many shows where the guitarists with the most skill (Bucket/Bumble) do almost nothing while guys like DJ and Robin vamp up the lead lines? We watch as a guy like Richard who plays closest to the old style was relegated to rhythm? We endure 20+ years of album talk while the band stuffs up every chance at everything. Then Axl gives up singing with any rasp for 4 or 5 years seemingly (now) just cos he felt like it.  The band seizes that as a chance to put out THE ONLY GNR blue-ray and picks the most disinteresting performance out of even that line up's tours let alone old line ups.

Then thank god this reunion happens. But as I said...it's happening as reunion-lite.

I'm excited to think about going to the Aussie shows and seeing Axl and Slash on stage again of course, but the fact that we've moved from aping 1987 AFD shows to aping 1993 UYI shows doesn't really bring me a lot of solace.

It's beyond time for the band to move forward. Start a new era. A new era is not Slash pretending to be bucket while Adler and Izzy sit out the back listening to Fortus and Frank play the parts they wrote. A new era would be one new song. Anything. Just do something new to show this is a viable creative entity going forward and not just happening to pay for Slash's divorce and fernando's next car.

I know the shows are cool. I'm looking forward to going. But I dunno....I saw the UYI tour back when KOHD had rasp....it's nice they've ended the most self-destructuve and pointless feud in recent musical history....i'm happy for them...but yeah...after fucking themselves and us for 30 years I need more than the minimum effort to be giving out little gold star stickers of approval....

I could list things, but to be 100% honest, I'm enjoying the boots of the shows, and I don't want to dwell on the negative aspects and spoil it for myself and others too much.

However to give you an idea, this comes after 20 years of a fake GNR with noticeable business and sound issues that they can't seem to correct, the phoned in performances by Axl with no rasp 2012-2014 for apparently no reason other than lack of enthusiasm, the meets and greets where guys like richard dont even bother to come, the expensive fan club with no content..for multiple years, the silence to fans and the contempt shown for fans when considered at all, then the reunion: .the way they sold the reunion shows in the wrong order....frank's lack of chemistry with the band ..the way they use adler at random but give fans no indication of when it will happen....not bothering to add in the alternate songs. Like I say I don't want to dwell on it - but it just feels like for many many years they basically do the smallest easiest thing. Personally as you know I don't care about Izzy but I can only pitty you bastards that do!

The one exception to this is coma back in the setlist and Slash learning stuff like TIL which I really appreciated. I'm not explaining myself well - it's not that I don't love this stuff.  Perhaps I'm the only guy on here that feels this way, but I've loved this band so long, and don't get me wrong this is all so fucking great, and we never thought we'd live to see it, but there is a part of me that finds elements of this bitter sweet.

It's just kind of frustrating that they waited until Axl has *almost* lost the ability to sing in the style he made famous. He sounds great compared to 2012 but is noticeably weaker than 2006 and earlier. Fair enough can't expect a guy of 50 to sing like 40 or 20....but it's sort of frustrating that they waited until it's nearly and tangibly too late....and then decide to do something...but still when they decide to do something it still isn't the whole shebang...and it's clumsily executed.

Talk is we'll get a new GH and maybe some new tracks around December. If that happens I'll lose my shit. But yeah...I read slither on the alternate list like I read perfect crime for 10 years and oh my god for years before that and I raise an eyebrow. May it happen. However I feel we're like stockholm syndrome here. So many decades of nothing that we gleefully accept minimum order. No doubt the band would call me a cunt for saying this stuff. But I dunno. It's just so wasteful how they continue to squander opportunity after opportunity. At least they're doing this big tour now...but when you think about what could happen with a reunited tour...this is absolutely the least that you'd think would happen.

Perhaps an inane analogy - but it's like you finally hooked up with the girl you had a crush on in collage - only you do it at 45 rather than 20 - and you've had so many heartbreaks and sex isn't the mystery and adventure it used to be

But then my life has gone to shit of late...so maybe it's just depression talking.

whichever is over the fastest...came to hear Axl sing not Duff