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Re: Impressed with Ashba
I loved Robin.
He was great.
But.
The guitar compositions Ashba has written to fill his solo gaps in GNR concerts are amazing.
The guy is really making the most of his spot in GNR.
He hasn't got the chance to put anything on a GNR record yet but he does get his solo spot during the shows.
The amount of work he has put into crafting really really good pieces of music for those solo spots is impressive.
Every time he tours with GNR he introduces a new original Solo. That is really making the most of what you've got.
More than that. The solos are great. They really gel with the November Rain, Estranged, This I love, There Was a Time type GNR material.
The Ballad of Death
Mi Amor
La Bella Vita
- metallex78
- Rep: 194
- Smoking Guns
- Rep: 330
Re: Impressed with Ashba
He's okay sometimes, but then he does that 80s Steve Stevenson noodling shit that really gets on my nerves... And his constant mugging to the crowd and cameras is beyond annoying. Not to mention he looks like Hot Topic Slash.
I'd take Robin any day. You can see the difference when Robin came back to play Better that last time... The feeling in that solo... Just not the same. I'm secretly hoping for a Sixx AM reunion or a broken arm that causes Robin to pull a Duff and fill-in for DJ... and then like... He just doesn't leave.
- Me_Wise_Magic
- Rep: 70
Re: Impressed with Ashba
Like my pal Lomax, I like both of them as guitar players.
Re: Impressed with Ashba
When I saw them live both times he did have good presence on stage and put on a hell of a show. Really tried to connect to the audience. I appreciated that. I won't lie during his solos it was beer/pot time. I wasn't disappointed with his playing but wasn't overly impressed.
Re: Impressed with Ashba
Okay I got some shit to talk in this thread in defense of DJ.
1) I love Robin in NIN. That's Robin's world. With Trent. In Guns? Never. I have never ever, nor seem to be able to, adjust to Robin Finck as the lead guitarist for Guns N' Roses. Maybe for that mysterious electronic album that Dizzy & Chris have spoken about that includes "Silkworms" & "Oh My God" among other tracks that are so driven by Robin & Bucket, that Robin, as well as Axl's electronic reboot-vision for GN'R in 1999/2000 gets to shine. Outside of that, he just doesn't meld that world, although I will give him credit on "Better". That was his shining achievement in Guns as a writer (so far/that we know of).
2) DJ Ashba ain't Slash. Robin Finck ain't Slash. Ron Thal ain't Slash. Even Buckethead -- ain't Slash. So can we all stop putting them on a level to compete? Bucket is a superior player to Slash, but NONE of the rest mentioned are. Slash is a once in a generation-type of player. That doesn't mean what the others do isn't good. I've heard all be good in their little moments, and when you're listening to a song, and it's just rock... that's all that is necessary. Is it good? Yes, then that's it -- it fuckin' rocks. 'Nuff said.
3) Ballad of Death is great. Easily DJ's shining acheievement in Guns. However that version above blows. I have heard far better versions of Ballad of Death, mainly that terrific Osaka 2009 performance, although I gotta admit the HD audio version from Appetite For Democracy is fan tastic. I have the MP3 of it on my MP3 player and it kicks ass. It has a far better melody than the above performance. The above one sounds like he's missing a chord or two from normal.
4) Mi Amor is solid too. Although I don't like it as good as Ballad of Death, the version of Mi Amor that I heard in Orlando 2011, was beautiful. I was right next to DJ when he played it, so I got an up-close & personal experience at hearing it played, in comparison to Ballad of Death. The song needs work, but I could easily hear that melody getting turned into another Catcher In The Rye for a future GN'R album.
5) The last one, La Bella Vita is new, but is superior to Mi Amor. I really like it. 'Nuff said.
I DO NOT get the absolute HATE this guy gets from the fanbase. His This I Love solo is better than Robin's. I enjoyed his modern rock-ized remix of "Better" that leaked (although it needs new Axl vocals to match the new, darker Shinedown/Sixx AM melody of it). DJ's little fucking around gimmicks on songs sound good too, such as his impromptu jam session version of "Patience" guitar solo that appeared in Appetite For Democracy. Everyone on MyGNR (i'm a lurker, non-poster) absolutely raped DJ for it, yet if DJ played it note-for-note they'd still bash him. I thought his re-doing Marty McFly fuck off moment on Patience was very cool sounding, and a funny little moment that he made the song his own. I liked it. I like his melodies from If I Die Tomorrow up through Sixx AM, as well as most of his guitar solos.
Is it Slash's SCOM solo? No. Is it Slash's November Rain solo? No. Is it Slash's Estranged solo? No. Is it Bucket's TWAT solo? Is it Robin on Better? No.
Are ANYTHING Slash & Bucket & Robin doing right now matching their own above said solos? No.
Be honest...
BE FUCKING HONEST
That's right.... the answer is no. Those solos are once in a lifetime type shit. That's why I think DJ really has a pulse on melody, and a pulse on being able to provide GN'R with a modern sound to keep it relevant. The guy markets himself on Twitter... name me ONE FUCKING PERSON THAT DOESN'T?!?! Everyone does. The guy goes above and beyond to make all fans feel welcome and a part of the show, and always has an answer, a friendly smile and a great personality with fans.
Yet he's hated for how he dresses. I really don't like "getting gay about it", but I really am sick of the BULLYING GN'R fans do towards this guy that is absolutely undeserved. The more people bitch, the longer I hope he's in the band cockblocking any return of any guitarist just to piss them off.
- Smoking Guns
- Rep: 330
Re: Impressed with Ashba
DJ just isn't good enough to be in that band. Put Doug Aldrich next to DJ and DJ looks like and amateur.
Re: Impressed with Ashba
DJ brings a good vibe to the band, you have to admit it. And the band does seem tighter as a unit than they ever have. You can see it on stage. Even Tommy seems to have bonded with him. And he plays well, except for his showing off, when he turns pure 80s cheese.
But 2002-2006 band was better. Robin fit that line up, those new songs, which were his songs. DJ is just playing Robin's parts, and not matching the soul of them. We'll have to see what DJ brings, but Robin has become much more appreciated since DJ came on board, and how important that uniqueness was... He was never pretending to be Slash. And DJ still can't play that Better solo near as good as Robin.
