Guns N Roses - Use Your Illusion 2
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CD Details
Artist: Guns N RosesEdition: Music CD
Audio: English (Original Language)
Published: 1996-03-01
CD Release Date: 1991-09-17
Music Label: Geffen Records
Product features:
- GUNS N' ROSES USE YOUR ILLUSION II
- Civil War
- 14 Years
- Yesterdays
- Knockin' On Heaven's Door
- Get In The Ring
- Shotgun Blues
- Breakdown
- Pretty Tied Up
- Locomotive (Complicity)
- So Fine
- Estranged
- You Could Be Mine
- Don't Cry (Alt. Lyrics)
- My World
Music reviews of Use Your Illusion 2
Music Review: Part II of an epic masterpiece
Rating: 5 Stars
The consensus among most critics and the general public is that both "Use Your Illusion" albums contain a lot of filler. It has often been said that a single album, with the best of both volumes, would have been better than two separate albums. Although this is the general consensus among Joe Public, the hard-core Guns N' Roses fans know better.
In my opinion, the Illusion albums have very little filler. It would also be hard to have a single album with songs from each disc, as each Illusion album is its own entity. The Illusion set is not a single album with two separate discs. Both volumes are albums in their own right, with a different tone, vibe, and feeling. The colors on the album covers represent the atmosphere of the albums. "Use Your Illusion I" is brighter, more up-beat, glossier. "Use Your Illusion II" is more reflective, and overall darker.
Between both volumes, there is over two and a half hours of music. Both volumes need to be nursed and savored. The listener needs time to let it all sink in. Some of these songs are fast paced rockers in the vein of "Appetite For Destruction." Other songs are longer, up to ten minutes in length, with intricate solos and complex arrangements, in short, art-rock.
With an album like "Appetite For Destruction" under their belt, any follow-up would be criticized. But much had changed for GN'R since they hit it big. They were now multi-millionaires and no longer living in poverty in cheap apartments in L.A. Also, the lineup of the band had changed. Drummer Steven Adler was fired, and replaced by Matt Sorum. Sorum's drumming was slicker, more technically proficient. Also added to the lineup was keyboardist Dizzy Reed. The new GN'R was more polished, less rough-around-the-edges than they had been in the days of AFD.
GN'R branched out artistically for their follow-up, and naturally received a lot of criticism. Common complaints are--the band went soft, too much filler, to arty, etc.
To address these criticisms: (1) The band did not go soft. There are ballads, but there are also a lot of rockers. A lot of the singles were the ballads, so someone unfamiliar with these albums might conclude that the band went soft by listening to the radio/MTV and conclude that these songs (Don't Cry, November Rain) represent the album, when in fact, they do not. (2) As for there being too much filler, that is a matter of opinion. I happen to think that each song ranges from very good-to classic. A lot of GN'R's very best songs are buried in the set. Because there is so much music, a lot of the songs remain unknown to the general public and are therefore considered "filler." (3)A lot of these songs are art-rock. They are often long in length and are not instantly assessable-and are therefore dismissed. A lot of these songs are quite intricate and take time to fully appreciate.
Compared to the first volume, "Use Your Illusion II" has a darker feel and tone. It is somewhat more reflective and melancholy. I tend to look at the first volume as "the Izzy album," and the second volume as "the Axl album." I do this because Izzy's signature Stones/Faces influence is more prevalent on volume I, and Axl's artistic muscle is stretched more on the second volume, although there is an overlap and each made great contributions to the other.
Sorum and bassist Duff McKagan provide a killer rhythm section. Slash's playing, of course, goes without saying, is absolutely incredible. Each song has at least one or two screeching, ear-crunching, kick-ass, yet melodic solos. And Axl Rose shows why he is one of the most memorable, charismatic figures in rock. Songs like "Locomotive" and "Estranged," demonstrate that Guns N' Roses most underrated, creative work in on "Use Your Illusion II."
"Use Your Illusion II" opens with the majestic "Civil War," which demonstrates a thoughtful and world consciences Rose. The Stradlin penned and sung "14 Years" shows a real Stones/Faces signature. Rose and Stradlin's duet in the chorus works very nicely. The nostalgic mid-tempo "Yesterdays" shows a more sensitive, reflective side to the band. The light piano in the intro and outro adds the perfect touch. A cover of Bob Dylan's "Knokin' on Heaven's Door" is good, if perhaps a little bombastic. Although the band has received a lot of criticism for the punk inspired McKagan penned "Get in the Ring," it's actually a really cool song. Yes it is totally juvenile, but its defiance, its take-no-prisoners, refusal to surrender, makes it a triumph. Rose's "Shotgun Blues," which is akin to Appetite's "Out to Get Me," is a good, underrated rocker that keeps up the pace. The album takes a 180 degree turn for the Rose's mid-tempo, piano-flavored "Breakdown." With its screeching solos, sensitive delivery, and meandering piano, this song is a little off-center, but it works. Generally unknown to the general public, "Breakdown" is a favorite among hard-core gunners.
A lot of Guns N' Roses best songs are found on the second half of "Use Your Illusion II." Unfortunately, because of the album's length, they just sort of got buried. Stradlin's middle-east-esque "Pretty Tied Up" is sadistic and raunchy. With its infectious hook and killer solo, it's surprising that this song isn't better known.
Slash and Rose's "Locomotive" is easily one of the crown jewels on the "Use Your Illusion" set. "Locomotive has a Zeppelin-like groove and riff. Rose sings the verse in three different voices, and the chorus features all voices overlapping, layer after layer, creating an almost hypnotic effect. All the while Slash's solos punctuate here there and everywhere. As the song progresses, it builds and builds and builds until it is about ready to explode, and then it takes a 180 degree turn and goes into a subdued, limbo-like state space. Over piano and light guitar, the words "love's so strange" are repeated over and over like a mantra. Almost ten minutes in length, with intricate solos and overlaying vocals, it's easy to see why the general public, with its attention span of a fruit fly, has overlooked this masterpiece. Among GN'R fans, however, it remains a fan favorite. In a perfect world "Locomotive" would be regarded as one of the greatest rock songs of-all-time.
McKagan shows his sensitive side for his balled "So Fine," which he sings. The off-beat, awkwardness of this song makes it all the more authentic and appealing. Rose's "Estranged" is generally regarded by hard-core Axl Rose/Guns N' Roses fans to be his magnum opus. An ode to unrequited love, this is Rose's most creative, emotional song. Rose's low-key piano solo is (in this fans opinion) his finest hour. Rose's delivery when he asks "why must they drift away and die?" is both moving and heart-wrenching. "Estranged" also features some of Slash's best guitar work. Over ten minutes in length, and quite intricate in nature, this song may have been too sophisticated for the general public to truly appreciate. The pounding "You Could Be Mine" is one of Guns most intense, hard-hitting songs and should please fans of "AFD" era GN'R. "Don't Cry alt. lyrics" is an improvement over the original, with more reflective, mature lyrics. The album takes a complete left turn for "My World." While most fans hate the industrial sludge of this song, I happen to think it's really cool. This bizarre, eerie closing number leaves a lasting impression.
I bought "Use Your Illusion II" when I was 13 years old, and now, at 26, it remains one of my most favorite albums of all-time. If you are looking for an AFD part two, you will be disappointed. If you are looking for instant gratification, go buy a Blink 182 album. If you want a masterpiece that has songs that are instantly addictive as well as songs that take time to appreciate, buy "Use Your Illusion II."
Description of Use Your Illusion 2
Japanese only SHM pressing. The SHM-CD [Super High Material CD] format features enhanced audio quality through the use of a special polycarbonate plastic. Using a process developed by JVC and Universal Music Japan discovered through the joint companies' research into LCD display manufacturing SHM-CDs feature improved transparency on the data side of the disc allowing for more accurate reading of CD data by the CD player laser head. SHM-CD format CDs are fully compatible with standard CD players. Universal. 2009.Had Use Your Illusion II been combined with Use Your Illusion I, keeping only the best material while dropping the filler, it would have been one of the best rock albums ever recorded. Instead, great songs like "Civil War," "14 Years," "Estranged," and "So Fine" compete with the inexcusable "Get in the Ring" and the well-intentioned but off-target cover of "Knockin' on Heaven's Door." There's no point to the second version of "Don't Cry," either. On the other hand, when Guns N' Roses were good, they were very, very good, and some of the material on this album is unsurpassable. --Genevieve Williams
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