2016.08.15 - University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, AZ, USA

Inside Guns N' Roses' Massive, 250-Person Stage Production

Seth Kasselman

Between a Clinton running for president, a new Star Wars flick, and the Guns N’ Roses “Not In This Lifetime” tour, you’d be right to wonder what decade this is.

Maybe “How Many Times In This Lifetime?” would have been a more appropriate tour, though it certainly packs less of a punch.

These are indeed confusing times, but you’re definitely living in the past if you think rock 'n' roll excess hit its peak during the heyday of elaborate stage setups à la Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Yes.
Today, Guns N' Roses will convert the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale into “Paradise City” and their stage production is baffling, bigger than Axl Rose’s personality, keeping hundreds of people employed. While a press conference with the band would have been great, we also know better than to have expectations of Guns N’ Roses. No one expected Axl to finish Chinese Democracy, no one expected a 2016 reuniting of Axl, Slash, and Duff McKagan, and no one expects Axl to show up on time. why should we have expected a traditional press conference?

Instead, the tour’s production manager, Dale “Opie” Skjerseth, met with the press on Sunday for a brief look behind the scenes and into the massive amount of work that goes into pulling off a show like this.

Skjerseth lives in Phoenix, though you’d never know it by how much time he spends on the road. Between traveling with Guns N’ Roses, AC/DC, and other big stadium tours, his plate is constantly full and his road crew, consisting of 125 people, might as well be his second family. Between that crew and another 125 locals at each stop, it takes about 36 hours to prepare the stage. Yes, a lot of hands are necessary in unloading and erecting the contents of 20 production trucks and 16 steel trucks. In fact, it takes 8 to 10 hours just to unload the aforementioned steel trucks.

But according to Skjerseth, the most elaborate part of the setup isn’t the amount of steel, but rather the interactive video display. Three large screens (left, right, and center) incorporate graphics and sync with the band's every move, ensuring that there’s not a bad seat in the house. Let’s not forget that the crew travels with 106 speaker cabinets, 300 lights, and according to Skjerseth, “enough power for a small village.”

When all is said and done, this is just one of three different stage setups that they’ll have used on this tour. Taking all this into account, as well as an elaborate pyrotechnics display each night, suddenly a crew of 250 people feels more and more necessary. Skjerseth is pretty confident though, noting that University of Phoenix Stadium is one of the easiest buildings to work in.

“It’s probably the best in America. The grass is gone, and we drive the trucks right into the building. It’s easy to work with, and everyone here is very welcoming. It’s state of the art, and there’s no other like it,” he says.

He also seems happy to be back home and sleeping in his own bed, even if it’s only for three days. After this, he’ll continue on tour through the beginning of December.

When asked about how this tour was unique compared to other tours, Skjerseth talked about how well organized and planned out it was, making one wonder just how chaotic other tours can be.

“It was unique in the way that everyone came together when we met in January. We started putting the show together, everyone got together on paperwork and answered e-mails right away," he says. "There was plenty of time to be ready. That was the unique part. Plus, I tour with AC/DC, and Axl was with me, so we could communicate then, which worked out well.”
Skjerseth also spoke about how every show on the tour is different, and when talking about the band, it’s obvious that he’s a true fan, and that this is more than just a day job for him. He seems just as nostalgic as anyone at the pre-show event, discussing his favorite songs and how enjoyable it is to be working with one of his favorite bands. Skjerseth promised the hits as well as some deep cuts and surprises.

“They’re playing all the songs they know, and more.” This statement holds up when looking at their set lists over the previous weeks, and with a show time of two hours and 45 minutes, they certainly have time to dig deep into their back catalog. While it doesn’t seem likely that they’ll pull out, “My World” from Use Your Illusion II, fans should definitely be ready for anything and expect the unexpected.

Zakk Wylde: "Guns N' Roses Are the Zeppelin of Our Generation"

Over the past few decades, Zakk Wylde has somehow mastered the art of being one of the most influential modern guitarists of our time, while still staying under the radar. And while he isn’t one to start many debates, this interview made it clear that, once he gets started on an issue, he’s laying down a solid opinion.

As a former axe-man for Ozzy Osbourne, Wylde co-wrote Ozzy’s biggest selling album, No More Tears, and won a Grammy for “I Don’t Want to Change the World.” As the frontman of Black Label Society, he’s created BLS “chapters” all over the country, and he actually spends quality time with his fans when he swings through town. He launched his guitar/amp company, Wylde Audio, this year, and is promoting his first solo album in 20 years, Book of Shadows II — named one of the most anticipated metal albums of 2016 by Rolling Stone — a rich and diverse offering with intense dialogue about emotions and the fight for the truth. (The fact that he’s sober, faithful, and quite the family man nowadays doesn’t hurt this clarity).

And if you would’ve told him that one day he would be invited to take the stage on Guns N’ Roses reunion tour while promoting this album, he would’ve probably said, “Yeah doll/brother, not in this lifetime.” Not in this lifetime, like the name of the long-awaited GN'R reunion tour coming to Phoenix on Monday, August 15.

Wylde is known for his talent in two musical pillars representing the hard-working roots and artistic truth in American culture: Southern blues rock and gritty heavy metal. The reason Wylde has been revered across different genres is because of his reverence for the music that’s influenced him: Sabbath and Zeppelin resonate in his riffs, Skynyrd in his mellow, yet powerful pipes, his worship for Buddy Guy in his pinch-harmonic driven blues licks and shredding.

We talked with Wylde about his son Sabbath Page’s fourth birthday, his hopes that Guns N’ Roses will stay reunited, why he’s making his own guitars now, and how we should make entertainment venues safer.

[...]

When you first heard about the Guns N' Roses reunion, what were your thoughts?

I think it’s awesome. It’s great for rock 'n' roll. It’s great for the whole community. They’re out there doing it again; the stadiums and music. … I hope they will make another record and stay together and keep doing it. As far as I’m concerned, they are the [Led] Zeppelin of our generation, hands down. By them doing great, all of rock does great.

It would be pretty awesome to see you and Slash doing something on stage.

Yeah, I mean we’ve done it before — but I’m sure at this one it’ll be great enough for me just watching them!

Guns N' Roses Delivered an Ecstatic Performance in Glendale Last Night

David Accomazzo

The Guns N' Roses song "It's So Easy" just might be the most swaggering rock song ever written.

Even coming from an era of dick-swinging, hyper-masculine rock music, it feels gaudy. The song oozes an easy confidence, an arrogance that can only come when your social capital is in such high demand that you become the center of the universe in every room you enter. It's a song that only true rock stars can lay claim to having written.

Guns N' Roses had a few glorious years when they were that band that demanded and earned that attention. A combination of chops, songwriting, and overwhelming popularity made the band seem immortal, but like many potent musical combinations that have come together through the years, Guns N' Roses couldn't keep the magic together for long. It's so easy to bask in the adoration of groupies, fans, and record execs building swimming pools with your money; it's harder to maintain a singular musical vision when your band is full of musical geniuses with authoritarian instincts.

Guns N' Roses' meteoric rise to becoming "the most dangerous band in the world" started in 1987 with the release of Appetite for Destruction and ended six years later when the band released The Spaghetti Incident?, a covers album that displayed infinitesimal amounts of the kinetic energy found on the band's seminal records. Slash would quit the band in 1996, leading to the prolonged hiatus that ended this year with a thunderous return performance at Coachella.
The band's subsequent tour, for which they reportedly might be receiving $3 million per show, stopped at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale last night. The night literally started off with a bang, as the crossed-pistols in the GN'R logo on the giant screens flanking the stage fired in succession to herald the main act taking the stage. Fittingly, "It's So Easy" was the perfect opening song, setting the stage for a reunion concert once deemed so unlikely the band named gave the tour the tongue-in-cheek name of "Not In This Lifetime."

The performance was high-energy and thrilling for nearly three hours. There were extended guitar solos, instrumental jams, Axl Rose on keys, and at least five T-shirt changes for the lead singer. The three original members on stage — Rose, Slash, and bassist Duff McKagan — congregated at the front of the stage at one point and rocked together, a heartwarming moment for fans who hadn't seen anything similar since the '90s. Slash delivered note-for-note renditions of some of his most famous solos, but the set also allowed plenty of time to show off the chops that have made him a guitar legend. Rose's voice was simply incredible to hear live; his range has hardly suffered two decades after the band's prime.


The band followed "It's So Easy" with "Mr. Brownstone" and followed that with "Chinese Democracy," the first of four songs from the benign lump that is Guns N' Roses' most recent album. Slash didn't play on Chinese Democracy, but he ripped out a fine guitar solo when it was his turn to shine on this song. "Welcome to the Jungle" followed, followed by "Double Talkin' Jive," "Better," and "Estranged." That last song lasted 10 minutes, featuring Axl in a T-shirt that read "Show some ass," and it showed the band had more than just hard-rocking tricks in its evening bag.

"Live and Let Die," with perfunctory cannon blasts, and Slash striking his trademark legs-splayed power pose, holding the guitar almost vertically, reminds you that though the band hasn't played together in years, the individual members never stopped performing and writing music. They've been training, in essence, for this reunion tour, and they came to Phoenix in peak performing condition. The band played through a series of lesser-known songs from the band's catalog, highlighted by the powerful ballad "This I Love" from Chinese Democracy. "Civil War" followed and was easily a highlight of the evening. The combination of the spoken word intro, Slash's crushing guitar work, and Axl's on-point vocals made for a pretty magical moment.

Slash stepped to the stage for his moment in the spotlight, playing an impressive solo rendition of the theme from The Godfather. He seamlessly transitioned this into the famous intro of "Sweet Child O' Mine," which got the crowd on its feet once again.

The band closed out the set with "November Rain," "Knockin' On Heaven's Door," and "Nighttrain." After a brief break, it returned for a four-song encore, ending with a cover of "The Seeker" by the Who and finally, "Paradise City."

The atmosphere in Westgate before and after the concert was celebratory. It was a night for ecstatic fandom and reflection on rock music's past, present, and future. There aren't many bands like Guns N' Roses left in the world, bands that inspire and dominate and sell out stadiums. Rock 'n' roll has been replaced by hip-hop and electronica as the music of the young. But for one night, you could forget that no other rock band has sold out a stadium in Arizona in years, that all the bands that do huge ticket sales are decades old, and you could get lost in musical nostalgia and simple, aggressive, from-the-gut rock 'n' roll. Paradise City, indeed.

Critic's Notebook

Last Night: Guns N' Roses at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale

The Crowd: Huge, packed with people, and enthusiastic. Lots of people in Axl Rose drag and Slash top hats.

Random Notebook Dump: "'Live and Let Die' might be one of the few songs where the cover is better than the original."

Review: Guns N' Roses do their legend proud when Not in This Lifetime Tour hits Glendale

Ed Masley   | Arizona Republic

You’re not alone if you recently found yourself wondering if Guns N’ Roses could possibly hope to still have what it takes to deliver the goods on a stadium tour with the 30th anniversary of “Appetite for Destruction” looming just around the bend. Hell, it’s been 20 years since Slash abandoned ship with bassist Duff McKagan following in 1997, leaving Axl Rose to carry on as the last member standing with any connection to that classic first release.

It’s not uncommon to see the word "disastrous" attached to Rose’s first major GNR tour of the post-“Appetite” millennium (as I believe historians should probably start calling it) back in 2002, by which point the thought of him actually finishing “Chinese Democracy,” the long-awaited followup” to the “Use Your Illusion” albums, was well on its way to becoming a punchline.

So where do we go, as Rose so memorably asked on the platinum power ballad that became the ‘90s prom theme with the most tattoos?

Well, finishing “Chinese Democracy” helped. As did the fact that it was so much better than the jokes about how long it took to make it. And the tours got better.

But to generate the level of enthusiasm that's surrounded this year's tour? He needed the man in the top hat. Slash was in glorious guitar-god mode at Monday’s University of Phoenix Stadium performance, from the time he hit the stage until the final notes of “Paradise City” rang out some three hours later, fingers racing up and down the neck of one Les Paul after another in closeup after closeup on the massive screens that flanked the stage.

The man can definitely shred and offered ample evidence of that before the night was through while sweating through a sleeveless Slayer shirt. But one of Slash's not-so-secret weapons is the reverence he shows the source material, offering faithful readings of key instrumental passages, including such iconic parts as the intro and solo to "Sweet Child O' Mine" and those soaring melodies that do so much to make "Estranged" the song it is.

And McKagan’s return only sweetened the deal. The bassist looked a total badass, exuding an effortless rock-and-roll charisma in his Lemmy T-shirt while rocking a bass with Prince’s logo on it. His harmonies were spot-on and his vocal showcase was among the many highlights of the set – a medley of the soulful Johnny Thunders ballad “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around a Memory” and a reckless tear through “New Rose” by the Damned.

The Not in This Lifetime Tour is not a full reunion tour. For that, you’d still need Izzy Stradlin on guitar and Steven Adler laying down the beat. But three out of five, as Meat Loaf may, for all we know, have sung in an earlier draft of that song, ain’t bad.

The three originals were joined by longtime keyboard player Dizzy Reed, who’s been on board since 1990; guitarist Richard Fortus, who joined in 2001 and somehow held his own while trading licks with Slash; a force of nature on the drum kit, Frank Ferrer; and second keyboardist Melissa Reese, who brought great harmonies and blue hair to the mix.

And that left Axl as the wild card. Could he bring it like he brought back in 1987?

No one brings it like they brought it back in 1987. But he definitely brought his A-game to the table as a singer and a charismatic front man.

He shimmied, he swaggered, he raced around the stage, he did his little snake dance and sweat through an astonishing variety of T-shirts, all while grinning like a man who was not only fully invested in this particular performance but also thrilled to be there, rocking the stadium crowd that should have been his for the rocking all along.

He may not be as skinny as he was when Guns N' Roses hit, but who among us looks the way we looked in 1987? He put in one hell of a cardio workout in his tattered jeans, a flannel tied around his waist as he made his way through a series of hats and bandanas, occasionally throwing on a leather jacket. And he still had energy to burn in the four-song encore that took the concert well past midnight.

As for his vocals, some of those high notes he managed to hit – and hold – at 54 were just amazing, especially after two hours of wailing and screaming and throwing himself into the lines that just demand a little something extra, from “Do you know where you are? You’re in the jungle, baby” to “I wanna hear you f—king scream.”

The set list went heavy on “Appetite for Destruction," diving right into the action with the one-two punch of an explosive “It’s So Easy” and “Mr. Brownstone.” Then, after dusting off “Chinese Democracy,” which Axl introduced by saying “Welcome to the Birdhouse,” they returned to “Appetite” for an incendiary “Welcome to the Jungle.”

By the time they brought the encore to a pyro-laden climax with “Paradise City,” they’d treated the fans to no fewer than eight of the album’s 12 songs, every one a highlight, from a raucous “Rocket Queen” to a triumphant performance of “Sweet Child O’ Mine.”

Other highlights included the “Use Your Illusion” tracks “Estranged,” which was suitably epic, “Civil War,” “November Rain,” “Coma” and “Live and Let Die,” their Paul McCartney cover. They also dusted off the other big cover from “Use Your Illusion,” a somewhat meandering somewhat reggae-flavored rendition of Bob Dylan’s “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” in the back half of a set that may have gone a bit heavy on covers.

A few of those covers really added to the set – McKagan’s punk-rock medley, “Live and Let Die” and Slash’s solo showcase on the tremolo-picking transcendence of “Speak Softly, Love” from the “Godfather.” “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door” just needed to be tightened up a bit.

But the piano coda from “Layla,” performed as a medley with “Wish You Were Here” (as an instrumental), may have been a hair too fast to really tap into the majesty that makes it work. And by the time they followed “Patience” with the Who’s “The Seeker” as the third song in the encore, I couldn’t help making a list of all the Guns N’ Roses songs I’d rather hear them do than that.

And then, of course, I made a list of all the Who songs I would rather hear. These were not tiny lists.

Still, when Slash and Axl get together after 20 years apart and your biggest complaint is that they may have thrown a few too many covers in the back half of the set? I’d say they did their legend proud and made a strong case for seeing what else they could get up to when this tour is over.