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Review
GNR put on a great show! But first...
CKY
came on at exactly 7:30 and played for about a half of an
hour. They did seven songs and were politely received by
the crowd. I didn't hear any boos, but the applause wasn't
very loud either. They talked about how they've already
had a good experience with Ohio crowds, probably talking
about Cleveland's concert.
After
about twenty minutes, Mixmaster Mike started doing his thing.
He wasn't bad - obviously very talented. He played for about
forty minutes and got a much louder ovation than CKY did.
The
next hour was spent trying to get the girls in the audience
to take off their tops. Not a bad way to kill the time.
Anyway,
on to the good stuff. At about 10:10, we hear the opening
chords of WTTJ. The crowd just goes nuts! Axl comes out
and yells: "Do you know where the fuck you are, Columbus?"
For the next two hours, Axl and company simply gave us our
money's worth and then some!
For
those of you wondering, Axl came out with a white OSU jersey,
#27. He later switched to the Red OSU #27 jersey. He said
at one point that he has been wearing OSU jerseys for a
long time. He then switched to a generic Columbus Blue Jackets
jersey, then back to the white OSU one for Paradise City.
I checked the current roster and there isn't a #27 listed
for OSU right now. I'm not from this area, so maybe #27
means something to somebody, but I definitely don't know.
Back
to the show. Axl sounded GREAT. The best he has in years.
Especially during LALD - he let out a couple of long wails
during that one - very nice. Plenty of pyrotechnics used
in that song too.
He
didn't really talk to us until after Think About You. He
then comes out, and in a Ricky Ricardo voice, tells us:
"You got some 'splaining to do." He then talks
about the OSU riots of last weekend. Obviously
in a very good mood, he tells us that when he saw the reports
of the riots on TV, he checked his watch and thought he
was late for the show or something ("What, am I late
already?"). He also says, mockingly, that
he would never, ever be involved in something like a riot,
much to the delight of the crowd.
After
Out Ta Get Me, Axl did that little football jersey rant he
did in Cleveland, then tells us a little about Buckethead.
However, tonight Axl says that he "*has* to mention"
that Buckethead's father went to OSU. Then he introduces the
next song as Mad At NASCAR. "Damn seatbelt rules!"
After
that song and before November Rain, he briefly talks about
a memory he has of Ted Nugent playing down south and him
asking the crowd for some "Nashville Pussy." I
think I missed part of this, so I'm unsure of what the hell
that had to do with anything.
During
Buckethead's solo, he played "Old MacDonald Had A Farm",
then uses a synthesizer to record the last little bit of
his solo. After that starts playing on a loop, he sets his
guitar down and brings out a bag of what looked like sealed
toys. I was on the floor, but wasn't close enough to see
what he was giving out. Anybody else know?
I
have to say that all three new songs were received well
by the crowd. Some people already knew the words to them,
especially Madagascar (since it was played on MTV).
Patience
came and went without incident. Afterwards, Axl briefly
mentions that Rock N' Roll is such a "friendlier sport"
than football. Then he hears some guys up front asking for
Nightrain. He then actually asks the Security Guard to hand
his microphone to the guy, so he can ask for the next song!
The guy yells out Nightrain, Axl gets the mic back, and
the band launches into an awesome version of an old favorite
of mine. Afterwards, he says "Columbus, Ohio; Ohio
State; Good Night!"
The
band leaves the stage, but not for long.
Robin
comes out and starts a solo, which leads into Paradise City.
Axl throws his whistle into the crowd after he uses it.
Near the end of the song, rotating fireworks and confetti
machines go off, making the stage alive with color. And
Axl ends it with the classic "GOOD. FUCKING. NIGHT!!!"
Whew.
I'm sorry I wrote a book, but I promised myself that I would
stay up and type all this out before I forgot some of it.
Axl sounded great. Yes, you could hear him over the band.
He was really enjoying himself, interacting with the crowd.
Several times he grabbed the hands of the people on the
sides of the stage. And I can't forget to talk about the
band! Man, they played the fuck out of the old songs! I've
been a GNR fan ever since I heard WTTJ on the radio, but,
honestly, I didn't miss any of the old guys tonight. Sometime
during the show, Axl thanked us for coming out and checking
out the new band. Believe me, I was thanking him for sharing
them with us!
I
hope you all get the chance to see these guys in concert.
Again, it is well worth it.
Thanks
for listening,
OhioFan
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