Chinese Democracy?

Who has listened to Chinese Democracy? I gave it another whirl today and I have to say that I actually like it a whole lot. My expectations were about zero to begin with, but I think it is a pretty damn good album.

My hesitation obviously lay with the absence of Slash. Izzy left during the Use Your Illusion days and I'm not sure Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum were ever the heart of the band anyway. The only members from back in the day are Dizzy Reed and, of course, Axl Rose. The title track was the first I heard quite a while ago and it did nothing to excite me about the pending release.

But, since I pretty much still hold Appetite and Use Your Illusion I and II in high standing, I felt I owed it to myself to listen to the new offering. My conclusion... Axl is GnR. I've never been a huge fan of Velvet Revolver. They are OK, but just not my thing. But, Axl proved that he is still able to rock on without Slash.

Other stuff in the last year I think is pretty much fantastic... Alkaline Trio's Agony & Irony. Honorable mentions on that CD are Calling All Skeletons, Help, and I Found Away. Arcade Fire's Neon Bible. I won't even begin to pick my favorite song on this album, but I will say that Keep the Car Running and Intervention got me hooked. I like the new Rise Against and was pretty excited to see the Toadies reunite. Plus, Rise Against got Zach Blair and the Toadies got Doni Blair. I guess I won't hope for a Hagfish reunion anytime soon.