Well, I often get the feeling that Axl doesn't give a shit and hates the shows, but he's an energy vampire, and as soon as the audience's anger and hatred got high enough after the long wait, he gets his junk and he's swirling out on a tornado as an ancient evil god who rules the fn' jungle.

I agree. He looks quite good to his age and he looks good enough to look like a rockstar. In Rio he looked terrible, a real old has-been with days left of his career, who had just came out from his palace after decades of hiding, eating and doing drugs -  but he has last some pounds since then and looks like a rockstar again. That's enough for me.

Agree with Axlin @ Axl's unprofessionalism though.

I agree with a lot of your points. Yeah, the lyrics are often poor on 'Slash', and it can be said about his Snakepit2 or even VR (I think Snakepit 1 did well lyrics wise, and awesome music wise). For some sad and unfortunate reason, Slash doesn't really care about the lyrics - he used to praise Axl a lot back in the day, he got Dover to write decent words for 5 O'Clock, but since then he handles lyrics like a needed, but unimportant issue. (Analyzing Axl: I think those terrible lyrics and 'I don't know the words of SCOM' comments may hurt him more than anything else.)
Anyway, Myles' Starlight was one of the stronger lyrical parts of the album, so I expect better result this time.

On the 'safe singer choices' subject. I think calling Iggy, Alice, Lemmy or Ozzy wasn't a safe, but a terribly bad choice. I know that these guys (among with Plant) are his idols and friends, but this time he should have called the young and middle generaration, only. I back his choice of Andrew Stockdale, the co-work was one of the bests in years, and I'm a Wolfmother fan. I could only complain about the 'unexplored' and too retro intro riff. I agree though that Saint is a gem. He made a surprise choice with the singer and it worked. He should have done it more times.

@Slash1, you can hear the chemistry, but only a few times, like BTS, Cali, Starlight, Saint is a Sinner, Watch This, and these are the songs that turned out to be the bests. So call me a fanboy, but I have high hopes now that he has a real band and Myles, a real songwriter partner/friend.

Correct response, sir.

But. I have a thing with the Izzy fanboyism. IMO he hasn't done jack shit since GN'R and his solo works are uninspired, boring and generic. I could only name like 5 songs that could have been something with the others', Slash's and Axl's help. I think the Izzy myth is the biggest misconception of the whole GN'R saga.

Staying ontopic... tell me what magnificent you hear by Izzy on Ghost. TBH I even question Slash saying the truth that Izzy's there, cause the second guitar is basically doing nothing, a chord here and there, but nothing in the great Izzy style of AFD and Lies, with the sleazy, bit out-of-tempo, sloppy played strange notes. I absolutely loved that. But this cannot be more than some cut-out chords from the early The Project sessions that fit the song, or Izzy lost it even more than I thought. Slash's riff makes Ghost musically, not the rhythm guitar. Prove me wrong.