By Jim Shea
If you’re expecting a perfectly executed tribute album to the legendary Guns N’ Roses, then you’ve come to the wrong place. Get the facts straight – this is a hardcore tribute to Guns N’ Roses. Bands such as Most Precious Blood, Dillinger Escape Plan, Eighteen Visions, Bleeding Through, God Forbid, Vaux, Unearth and Death By Stereo signed on for this special tribute album. While the idea of having some of the best hardcore metal bands perform classic Guns N’ Roses tracks sounds like an interesting concept, the end results won’t satisfy the common Guns N’ Roses fan, only those who appreciate hardcore metal.
Don’t let the opening for Zombie Apocalypse performing “Welcome To the Jungle” fool you. It’s the same guitar solo opening of the original song, but quickly it turns to a whole metal barrage of crazy guitar riffs and screeching vocal that would make Axl Rose blush. From a metal standpoint, this qualifies as a good song, but Guns N’ Roses enthusiasts won’t think so.
While the original Guns N’ Roses songs stand out on their own, it is somewhat unfortunate that some of the songs sound like generic hardcore metal songs. Hats off to bands such as Vaux and Death By Stereo for trying their best to match up to the original version in a hardcore sense, but it appears they were trying too hard.
Unfortunately, some of the best Guns N’ Roses songs aren’t given proper treatment, as heard with tracks done by Most Precious Blood and Time In Malta. Most Precious Blood does a catchy intro for “Sweet Child of Mine,” but the rest of the song is done in a slobby rapcore/hardcore hybrid. The Time In Malta cover of “November Rain” follows next. You may have remembered the Guns N’ Roses’ version to be somber, but Time In Malta makes the entire song upbeat, which doesn’t quite work.
Once again, this album is not for Guns N’ Roses fans, unless you have a deep appreciation for hardcore metal. Let this be a warning for those expecting a decent Guns N’ Roses tribute album, only to instead be disappointed listening to music they don’t even like. Having top notch hardcore bands perform Guns N’ Roses covers just wasn’t meant to be.
