Ferric Tape Re-assessment: Ferric Tape Re-assessment – Guns N' Roses

Wait, what did I say I was going to do? Review old records? Okay…

On occasion, a band rises above the ‘ease of reference’ that a genre affords them to become definitive, peerless. Guns N’ Roses were one such band, dragging the retrospectively baptised Hair Metal by its polymer enhanced locks through the second half of the 1980s. Dispensing with the spandex and mascara of their competitive set, their brand of punk infused blues and epic sense of rock dynamics quite simply took over the world.

It is only when you consider that the band actually only ever released two albums proper: 1986’s slow-burner of a debut and the Use Your Illusion recordings - regarded in sensible quarters as a double LP - that one realises what an immense impact this band had upon musical culture in such a short space of time.

I have chosen to re-appraise the second of the Use Your Illusion records track-by-track for the simple reason that ‘II’ was my first exposure to the band, one that immediately felt dangerous and illicit to my 12 year old self. Yet to forge my own sense of music taste having been brought up on my Dad’s passions of Queen, Dire Straits and Eric Clapton’s Cream (the band, you sick f*ck), I found myself caving to a peer pressure of sorts, and had a friend make me a copy of Use Your Illusion II. Whilst the quality of the recording was dubious – unconfirmed suspicions are that a tape recorder may have been pressed up against the speakers of a CD player – my nervous intrigue was at its utmost. This was no doubt driven by some of the band’s lyrical choices, this being the first record I had ever been exposed to which was emblazoned with an iconic ‘Parental: Advisory’ sticker.

Unprecedented levels of pre-teen excitement

In some territories, including the UK, the record was originally shipped with the band’s unique alternative to the sticker, a message less about parents protecting the malleable minds of their offspring, more about raising a middle finger to those who opposed their brand of ‘sinful excess’.

But this album wasn’t just exciting because somebody did a swear. This was the return of the most iconic band of a generation, the most powerful voice in modern rock, and the coolest top-hat to have ever emerged from Stoke.

Real rock icons get made into Lego

Branded ‘the most dangerous band in the world’ by many a media outlet, by the time the record and its preceding volume were released simultaneously in September 1991 the band were already several months into the accompanying Use Your Illusion world tour. They had already been charged with inciting a riot. By the end of the 28 month road trip, taking in 194 shows in 27 countries, the cracks in the band’s foundations would be beyond repair.

In fact, many would claim that the band never truly recovered from the firing of original drummer Steven Adler. Prior to their formation, Adler was the common denominator which would mesh members of two bands he had played in, Road Crew - with high-school friend Saul ‘Slash’ Hudson and bass player Michael ‘Duff’ McKagan - and Holywood Rose, which featured Lafayette, Indiana natives Jeffrey Isbell (better known as guitarist Izzy Stradlin’) and Bill Bailey.

Future Bill looks confused…

Early into the recording sessions for the Use Your Illusion records, it became clear that Adler’s heroin use had escalated to the point where he was no longer capable of being a functioning member of the band. Replaced by Matt Sorum, Izzy Stradlin’ would later describe the impact of Adler’s departure upon the band’s sound: “His sense of swing was the push and pull that give the songs their feel. When that was gone, it was just... unbelievable, weird. Nothing worked.”

Whilst the change of percussionary personnel may not have been as dramatic a shift as Stradlin’ claims, the effect that the change had upon the social and professional dynamic of the group would prove to be the lasting impact upon the band’s legacy. Adler only appears on one track from the Use Your Illusion albums, volume II’s opener, ‘Civil War’.

Opening with a simple brooding acoustic progression, quotes from 1967 prison drama Cool Hand Luke give way to Axl Rose whistling eight bars of American Civil War song, 'When Johnny Comes Marching Home'. So far, so politically astute. What differentiates this track even further is Axl’s opening vocal – there is no scree, no squall, no histrionics. Axl’s tone is sombre, and immediately surrounds the track with a sense of sincerity befitting its subject matter. A simple protest song decreeing that all war is in fact ‘civil’ and “feeds the rich while it buries the poor”, this is a million miles away from the nihilism of their sex & drugs drenched debut. Indications of changes to the core Guns N’ Roses sound become even more pronounced as the track progresses, with new member Darren ‘Dizzy’ Reed sneaking some piano into the second half of the first verse. However, all of this becomes secondary at the 1:19 mark, when the acoustic instrumentation gives way to swathes of distortion, chorus drenched bass, and THAT voice. Delicious.

What impresses the most with this song is the complexity of its structure. The track makes it through almost three minutes before hitting the main chorus (so defined by containing the song title in the lyric), having already traversed three distinct, differentiated limbs of the song. If there is one area where Guns N’ Roses remain criminally under-rated, it is their ability to create grandiose, multi-faceted opuses which shift seamlessly between segments. This is the first of a few prime examples on this record.

Reed’s keyboard work continues to gain prominence on second track ‘14 Years’. With Stradlin’ taking lead vocal duties, this relatively pared back blues number would be instantly forgettable save for Rose seemingly taking an executive decision to add some life to an otherwise drab chorus. A finer quality of hook is present on ‘Yesterdays’. Clocking in at a little over three minutes, this is the most traditionally ‘pop’ song in the band’s portfolio - the antithesis of sprawling tracks like ‘Civil War’ and ‘November Rain’ from volume I – yet it is only recognisable as a G N’R track by virtue of Axl’s unmistakeable vocal. However, these tracks side by side serve to contradict each other – on the one hand we have reminiscence, a song dedicated to the musical friendship of Rose and Stradlin’, whilst on the other “Yesterday's got nothin' for me” - adjacent yet perpendicular.

Next up is a cover of the Bob Dylan song, ‘Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door’. Actually released one year previous on the soundtrack for the Tom Cruise film Days of Thunder, this song had been part of the band’s live set since 1987, included a reggae breakdown mid… you know what? Fuck this song. Fuck Bob Dylan, fuck scientology, and fuck reggae – I hate this track.

‘Get in the Ring’ doesn’t fare much better. A punk song layered with pre-recorded crowd noise (a possible nod to the fake crowd noises on debut EP Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide), this track stood out for my peers at age twelve as one of the most obscene – and hence coolest – things they had ever heard. In fact, this song offers little more than an opportunity to put on a display of anger directed at the media, with Axl offering various music journalists ‘outside’ - choice line from Axl’s spoken/shouted monologue: “Fuck you! Suck my fucking dick!”

As my old man would say, “Nice boy, basically shy.”

The self-indulgence of the lyrics could perhaps be excused were the music somewhat better, but, as it stands, the track is poor. ‘Shotgun Blues’ is a much better example of obscenities meshing with fast and dirty punk, like Status Quo on a cocktail of meth and forty Marlboro a day.

‘Breakdown’, opening with banjo, more whistling, and a military shuffle drumbeat, initially feels like the spiritual bookend to ‘Civil War’ to close the first side of the album, but such coherence is short-lived. Once the intro figure is replaced by the bold piano chords of the verse, the track degenerates into a seven minute bore, with an ill-advised shift in chord progression mid-verse leaning dangerously towards Meatloaf territory. Reportedly, the vocal ending to this track is the only part of either Use Your Illusion album that Rose was unhappy with. I would implore him to follow my example and re-appraise the situation.

So, half the album down, and my warm feelings of nostalgia are on the ropes…

Side two needs to open strong, and ‘Pretty Tied Up’ delivers. A Stradlin’ penned ode to a bondage obsessed acquaintance - “I know this chick, she lives down on Melrose/ She ain’t satisfied without some pain” – one would be forgiven for initially fearing the worst when the track starts up with a lick from a coral sitar. However, the phrasing and key of the song helps the distinctive twang mesh seamlessly into the instrumentation. This is what you want from a G N’R record, balls to the wall sordid rock’n’roll.

‘Locomotive’, a song that would no doubt disappoint thousands of Little Eva and Kylie Minogue fans alike if placed upon a pub jukebox, continues to get the album back on track. A pummelling Sorum drum figure and car-horn guitar usher in a funky McKagan bass motif, which in turn introduces this multi-tiered track with multiple chorus flashpoints. Like ‘Civil War’, the structure of this song is its most intriguing facet. The verses are simple enough, with Axl at his most nasal yet melodious over a single chord, and the first ‘chorus’ - lyrically referencing the album title - has a swagger that transcends the razor wire guitar chords which climb and fall in turn. Add to this a further ‘chorus’ - this time referencing the song title - consisting of a descending semi-tone figure that leads into a sequence of stop-start riffs which are as unbalancing and chaotic as they are driving, whilst Axl’s wails find themselves supported by an unsettlingly deep backing vocal, and you have 8 minutes and 42 seconds of structured bedlam, playing out with two minutes of piano led funk-blues. Somehow, it works.

‘So Fine’ is a McKagan number, dedicated to the then recently deceased punk rocker Johnny Thunders. With the verses sung by the bassist in a punk drawl over a lounge blues backdrop, Axl emerges to pine sensitively on the choruses. It’s a well measured departure from the bombast of ‘Locomotive’, and provides a moment of cerebral relief ahead of the album’s defining masterpiece, ‘Estranged’.

Another song that sits in two distinct halves yet flows seamlessly across its 9 and a half minutes, ‘Estranged’ contains, in my opinion, the finest moment of any G N’R song. An almost quivering Rose vocalises over pregnant, anticipatory piano chords - as the rest of the band enter the fray, Slash unleashes one of the most hypnotic guitar licks committed to tape. Each note is perfect, every bend a delight.

Considering the multitude of reasons that Axl Rose is widely considered to be, well, a bit of a dick, the one that I believe often gets overlooked is the writing credit for this track. Slash’s guitar phrases are essential to this song – try listening to it and try to block it out, leaving Rose’s piano as the lead instrument. It’s implausible that this song could exist in this form without Slash’s contribution, yet the only credit Slash receives is a token ‘thanks’ in the album’s liner notes for ‘the killer guitar melodies’. If they deserve special mention, they probably deserve a writing credit, Axl.

(A quick note about Slash – how ridiculous is it that a guy with as cool a moniker as Saul Hudson should be known by a nickname? As a member of the first-name-as-last-name brigade, I am deeply envious.)

Released as a single at the height of the band’s extravagance and indulgence, the accompanying multi-million dollar video is a curious affair.

The fifth most expensive music video of all time features the following:

a SWAT team
a military airlift jet
Slash ripping a solo whilst floating along the Sunset Strip
an oil tanker
a school of bottlenose dolphins
Slash again defying physics - emerging from the ocean to wear down his fretboard once more

It all ends with Axl in a dressing gown smugly grinning to the camera whilst kicking back with one of the aforementioned bottlenoses…

What is this, I don’t even….

The record continues to strike whilst the iron is hot, with ‘You Could Be Mine’. A Stradlin’/Rose collaboration about a failed relationship, written prior to the release of debut album Appetite for Destruction, the song opens with gasoline propelled drums and guitar-work that sounds like it’s teasing a car ignition as you feel the track rev itself to full throttle. The track had been released as a single in the preceding summer, coinciding with the promotional campaign for Terminator 2: Judgment Day - the song features in the movie, but not on the soundtrack album. In retrospect, the film and band are perfectly twinned - both leading in their respective fields at the time, both still regarded as seminal today. This track is the collection’s climax and Guns at their finest; immediate, raucous, and slightly unhinged.

‘Don’t Cry’ takes the pace down, and is an odd proposition. Also present on volume I, this version offers an alternate set of lyrics and subsequent melodic phrasing. For what it’s worth, it’s a hell of a lot better on both counts. The problem with its presence here is the effect upon the pacing of the record. A simple open-chorded ballad, the song would be a better fit for a mid-album position rather than at the record’s apex. It certainly isn’t an album closer, despite any poignancy added by the presence of the late Shannon Hoon on backing vocals.

Of course, technically, ‘Don’t Cry’ isn’t the album closer. If we are to deal with this review literally and objectively, it is not the final track. But it might as well be.

Allegedly, the inclusion of final track ‘My World’ was a surprise to other members of the band when the record was released, with some completely unaware of its existence. Rose at the time was increasingly becoming interested in Industrial metal, best evidenced by the presence of future Industrial royalty Nine Inch Nails on the G N’R support bill. This minute and a half of electronic beats, S&M samples and synth bass is seemingly Rose’s solo experimentation with the then fledgling genre. Unsurprisingly, this tuneless, growled affair did not make a case for pursuing this direction long-term with bandmates and fans alike. Divisive.

This album was, of course, the beginning of the end for the band. Within two months of the record’s release and mid-tour, Izzy Stradlin’ called it a day, citing a combination of Rose generally being a dick and the struggle to reconcile his efforts on sobriety with the lifestyles his bandmates continued to pursue. This was a massive blow for Axl - his best friend, closest ally, and the buffer between Rose’s ego and the rest of the band was no more. Rose would subsequently drift between each internal feud and external controversy with aplomb. You only need to take a quick look at this timeline to see that Stradlin’s departure coincides with the band’s collapse into chaos.

More importantly, by the time the band would release their next record (much maligned covers album The Spaghetti Incident?), grunge had taken the world by storm. G N'R had become outmoded, antiquated, passé, in a mere matter of months. It didn’t help that Rose insisted on pursuing a war of words with Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, who would of course be heralded as the focal point of this new musical movement - whether he liked it or not. By the time the Use Your Illusion tour had finished, the musical landscape had changed irrevocably, with the guitarists of tomorrow buying Fender Mustangs instead of Les Pauls. There was no longer a role for Guns’ unbridled extravagance.

So, with of-course-this-pun-is-intended-Rose tinted spectacles removed, does Use Your Illusion II still hold up as a great record? Or was it merely an illusion constructed by the smoke and mirrors of vulgarity and anger?

All told, it’s a close run thing. This album certainly isn’t as good as I remember when considered as a holistic entity. The first half of the record offers very little, with four of its seven tracks eminently ‘skippable’ in this digital age. Yet the second side is the epitome of everything that was good about the band, and is the key exhibit when arguing that my nostalgia has not been misplaced.

Of course, the temptation is to ignore the weaker entries in the Use Your Illusion collection and hypothesise which songs would make the best track-listing for a singular volume. However, it would seem that record label Geffen have beaten us to the punch - getting half of their choices spectacularly wrong to appease the moral epicentre of America that is WalMart.

Despite their obvious, glaring flaws, the question for me is whether these recordings still feel fresh, raw, and exciting as they did to a musically naïve 12 year old almost 20 years ago. And the simple answer is "Yes". Whilst certainly of its time, this record still retains that sense of ‘danger’ that the band were branded with. A shame then, that this intensity and dramatic tension extended into the personality and behaviour of W.Axl Rose to such an extent that the band would effectively never commit an original note to record ever again.

What a dick.

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Okay, enough of all this serious patter. Time for an Axl Rose gallery special…..