Chinese Democracy is the long-delayed album from Guns N' Roses that is currently in process with a rumored release date of early 2005 on Geffen Records/Interscope Records. The album marks a drastic change in line-up of the band as last seen, many of whose members left or were fired throughout the 1990s.

Lineup

Guns 'N Roses' Frontman Axl Rose began production of the album in 1997 with longtime members Matt Sorum and Dizzy Reed, as well as Paul Huge , Robin Finck and Duff McKagan, the only other founding member remaining in the group at the time.

Currently in the band are Rose, lead guitarist Robin Finck (Nine Inch Nails), bassist Tommy Stinson (The Replacements), rhythm guitarist Richard Fortus (Love Spit Love), drummer Brian Mantia (Primus), and keyboardists Chris Pittman and Dizzy Reed.

Paul Huge, who joined the band in 1994 following the departure of Gilby Clarke, originally recorded guitar parts for the album, which were replaced by Richard Fortus when Tobias left the band in 2002. In addition, guitarist Buckethead—who departed from the band in early 2004—recorded parts for the album. It is unclear whether his parts will be replaced and a replacement (if needed) for him in the band has not yet been named.

Music

Several songs purportedly from the album were played during the group's live performances in 2001 and 2002. The songs performed were "The Blues," "Chinese Democracy," "Madagascar," "Riyadh and the Bedouins," "Oh My God," and "Silkworms."

Composer Marco Beltrami worked on orchestral arrangements for tracks titled "Thyme," "General," "Leave Me Alone," and "Seven" in October 2002. Composer Paul Buckmaster did the same for "Madagascar," "The Blues," "There Was a Time," and "Prostitute."

"I.R.S.," "Ides of March," "This I Love," and "Oklahoma" are other known titles.

Sound

The songs which the band performed during the 2001–2002 tour varied heavily in sound. "The Blues" and "Madagascar" were "November Rain"-esque epics, while "Riyadh and the Bedouins" and "Silkworms" were industrial-like songs. "Chinese Democracy" can be best described as a grunge-rock. Rose said in an interview that the band hadn't yet brought out the "big guns" on the tour—which ended prematurely in early after a riot in Philadelphia with several dates to go.

In 1999, a song then intended to appear on the album entitled "Oh My God" was released on the End of Days soundtrack. It featured current members Rose, Stinson, and Reed as well as Paul Tobias and then-drummer for the group Josh Freese. Dave Navarro and Gary Sunshine also did guitar work on the track. The song was very industrial-sounding.

Former Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash is reported to have left the band in part because of the change in musical direction, which at the time was reported to be industrial music similar to Nine Inch Nails, which Rose had long been a fan of.

In September 2003, radio DJ Eddie Trunk played a new Guns N' Roses song entitled "I.R.S." on his syndicated radio show Friday Night Rocks with Eddie Trunk at the insistence of New York Mets catcher Mike Piazza—which prompted the band's management to issue a verbal cease-and-desist order. Trunk described the song as "...Use Your Illusion-era stuff, with some modern flairs to it. The song had a loop track in the beginning, but then, when it kicked in, it was that same dramatic Guns N' Roses hard rock."

In April 2005, clips of a demo version for the song "I.R.S." leaked on the internet. While the true origin of the clips are still unknown, it is believed to be from a low quality demo tape, possibly the same one that was broadcast on Eddie Trunk 's radio show back in 2003.

Production and collaboration

Longtime Guns N' Roses producer Mike Clink is said to have worked on the album for a short time during the beginning of the conception of the album. From then on, former Queen producer Roy Thomas Baker worked on the album until leaving the project in February of 2004. After Baker's departure, Rose and former Nine Inch Nails and Pantera producer Sean Beavan assumed production duties. Former Killing Joke member and Verve producer Youth also worked on the album.

The band has also worked with numerous collaborators over the years, including Queen guitarist Brian May and Shaquille O'Neal. As mentioned above, Marco Beltrami and Paul Buckmaster worked on orchestral arrangements for the album.

Length

There has been some conflicting information about the length of the album. At the Leeds Festival in August 2002, in which Guns N' Roses played a set, Rose stated that the album was to contain eighteen songs with ten bonus tracks. Bassist Stinson, however, said in an interview in November of 2004 that the album contained "ten or eleven" songs.

Current status

When guitarist Buckethead left Guns N' Roses in March 2004, Rose issued a statement on the matter that included a notice that an announcement about the album would arrive in a "few months." As of February 2005, no announcement from the group has been made on the status of the album.

In December 2004, Guns N' Roses' manager Merck Mercuriadis became the CEO of the Sanctuary Music Group . In January 2005, Rose signed a publishing deal with Sanctuary, which covered past and future work by Rose, including "dozens of new tracks Rose has recently recorded for Universal Music."

According to a March 2005 New York Times article [1], production costs for the album have reached $13 million, probably the most expensive recording ever. Mercuriadis, however, called the article "rubbish" in a letter [2] to the Times and claimed that the newspaper's sources for the article had not been involved in the project for "six to nine years."

External links

• The Most Expensive Album Never Made (New York Times)
• Mercuriadis' response to NYT article