It finally happened - Axl Rose has ended the 'exile' of the vehicle he calls Guns N' Roses and released 'Chinese Democracy' after 17 long years - with a few starts and stops in between.
The 'masterpiece' we've been waiting for since 'Use Your Illusion I & II' has, on first listen, turned out to be hugely disappointing - it is saved only from drowning in its drollness by a triumvirate of guitarists who filled in Slash's/Izzy's shoes on this outing: Buckethead, Ron Thal and Robin Finck.
Powered by tasteful and powerful guitar runs, it's their imagination that rescues the album from sinking under its self-important musical direction and composition. The interplay among all three - each taking stabs at intros, outros and everything else in-between, holds up the songs which otherwise meander into self-indulgence, courtesy of Mr. Rose. The world has moved on, but it's seems to be stuck in the late 80s/early 90s for him.
I'll give this disc a few more spins to confirm my initial assessment, but for now, I'd say - thank goodness for the Guitar Trinity.
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